My saddle is a Specialized Eurolite. I discovered the Specialized saddles two summers ago when a good friend asked me to ride her endurance horse while she was out of town (he is seriously the coolest horse ever!). She has a Specialized International, and I really liked that it was a sort of english hybrid. I got to saving and putting away my money for my own International, and had almost enough when Wayne and I went to the PNER convention in Pasco this past January. I stumbled (by accident, of course!) across the Specialized booth, manned by Carol and Rick Brand of Oreana, ID, where I sat in the new Eurolight model. It happened to be my size, and had the added bonus of being both black and for sale right then and there! So I bought it, and have loved it since. It does fit Callie with a few adjustments, and I noticed some sore seatbones on longer walking trail rides. Carol ended up putting some really nice memory foam in the seat, and now it's a total dream! Thanks, Carol! I also purchased the booties made for the saddle, made by Carol and Rick at their ranch. I think these are my favorite--I love not having to deal with a separate saddle pad and that the spine is totally free and clear.
As for everything else, it really is just details. I have the Easycare delux pommel bags that can hold about a weeks worth of food and clothing. I have to be really careful on the trail to remember where I put things--there are so many pockets I've spent 10 minutes looking for my first aid kit! I also love that it's got a chapstick holder right on the outside. I'm terrible about forgetting to put it on, and dealing with sun- and windburned lips for the few days following is never fun.
I have a Zilco delux breastcollar that I modified for Callie using a couple of red biothane girth loops from Running Bear tack. (You may be able to see them above--they're above her shoulders between the clips-to-the-saddle piece and the shoulder bit) For Cricket, I have a Zilco halter and headcollar that Wayne is using with him on the trail. For Callie, I have this ginormous beta biothane halter I found on eBay a few years back. I keep meaning to replace it with something custom and a LOT lighter, but haven't actually gotten around to it.
We still keep Callie barefoot, which works really well for her. The trails we ride are usually soft earth or sand (like above), so she is not typically being challenged too much. With my recent school schedule, I'm lucky to get out to even just see Callie a few times a week, so we've been mostly just sticking to arena work for now. Wayne is looking into getting a set of Renegades (jealous! jealous!) for Cricket so he can do a little more challenging terrain if need be. He'll also need them to take Cricket to rides.
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