Day 6 of 30 Day Horse Challenge: All the tack and riding clothes you have (brand/color/other details)

Day 6 - All the tack and riding clothes you have (brand/color/other details)

I have been through 40 years worth of equipment. I have also sold a lot of things and added a lot of things over that time. The collection would change as my tastes and needs changed. I could never list it all. Without digging into the farthest reaches of my closets and tack trunks, I'll give the best of it.

Saddles - Wintec 2000 All Purpose saddle(old style) in brown and a Bruno DelGrange show jumping saddle.

Girth - Beval Saddlery Italian made anatomic synthetic girth. No longer being sold by Beval but a great girth for easy care and the quality of the workmanship is second to none.

Saddle Pad(s) - I loved to collect saddle pads when I had a horse. I have sheepskin ones for horse shows and all kinds of quilted squares for schooling. It would bore you to tears to list each and every!

Bridles - Beval Saddlery's Newport bridle in both horse and warmblood sizes (found amazing deal on ebay when they closed out of this style)

Show Clothes: My 2 wool hunt coats were both custom tailored and made by Grand Prix. One is a navy blue windowpane plaid and the other a charcoal gray pinstripe. I also have a vintage Tailored Sportsman hunt coat (made by TS many years before they became a status name) made from 100% polyester in navy blue with a red satin lining. It was my "horse shows in the rain" hunt coat.

My show breeches were Pikeur's "Winner" breeches. They are side zips with doeskin knee patches.

My show shirts are a few different brands, most of them are made by Essex in various colors to compliment the jackets. All have monogrammed collars.

I still have my custom Dehner boots from my hardcore horse show days. They are beautiful but no longer fit me. I can't bear to let them go yet. Otherwise I have a very nice pair of Mountain Horse field boots that serve me well if needed.

Helmet - I still have my ancient fiberglass shell velvet helmet. It is sun-bleached, the ribbon at the back is faded and hanging down, it has many scuffs in the velvet and the satin lining is rather... grungy. But I can't part with it, either. It is like the shield of a warrior, it's appearance is an unspoken testament to the hours spent training, competing, and giving all to my passion. The new style helmets don't age like those old velvet hunt caps. I remember when I got that deep black, plush velvet hat I longed for the day when it resembled the helmets worn by my heroes, Rodney Jenkins, Conrad Homfeld, Harry DeLeyer, Melanie Smith, and George Morris. (and if you only recognize the name George Morris as you read this, you are a youngster with a lot of horse show history to catch up on).

Its replacement, my old GPA helmet has passed the 5 year mark and it's still in my gear bag. It's supposed to be retired but I can't let it go, even as its replacement, a very attractive IRH Elite Ultra helmet waits to get some riding time.

Schooling Gear - Kerrits! Kerrits! Kerrits! I LOVE Kerrits! No matter what I buy from them it always fits and I love it. All my schooling breeches in all sorts of colors are Kerrits. I have a few Ariat shirts and some On Course cotton breeches but nothing beats my Kerrits. My Paddock boots are Ariat zip fronts and my half chaps are brown suede Ovations.

Hunt Clothes - I outfitted my dream before it became a reality. I have a few fox hunting pieces, specifically a black Melton coat and a reversible canary vest bought in my hopes of riding with the hunt one day. They are unworn and hanging in cedar bags. I hope I will wear them one day while riding a horse.