New boots, 2 weeks off, sassy Riko

The week between Christmas and New Year's, I managed to snag a pair of the winter boots I've had my eye on for months. I was hemming and hawing about the price tag of $269.95, and found a couple of alternative styles that were a little bit cheaper and came more consistently in my size, but were not rated quite as high temperature-wise. 

See, I REALLY wanted the Dublin Medway boots (see below). 

Dublin Medway boots, as pictured on Dover Saddlery's site

But ALL of the reviews said that you need to order at least 1 full size up, because the thinsulate lining is so thick that they are very hard to get on. That meant I needed a size 11. For a while, the largest size I could find was a 9, and it seemed like the boots were being discontinued by Dublin -- possibly due to the issues with fit. So, enter me drooling over the Dublin Pinnacle and River boots as worthy substitutes. Just as pretty, still warm and with great reviews but seemingly fewer sizing issues. Honestly, I was just waiting for a decent sale on one or the other (because you can't use coupons on them, wth is that about?) and I was going to bite the bullet. 

Then, right after Christmas, I saw all the big tack shops I regularly visit were having huge winter blowouts on everything...including boots. I wanted to stay (well) under $200, if at all possible. So, I tentatively started trolling my big 3: State Line, SmartPak, and Dover. 

I got to Dover and searched their winter clearance for Dublin. Up popped the Medways. I clicked the link, thinking there's no way they have an 11 in these boots. It's not a common size, especially in European boots! The boots are seemingly not being made anymore. And, they were marked down to $119.95 on final clearance. I really wasn't hopeful. In fact, I held my breath as I selected the color then clicked on the size dropdown. Holy crap, 11 was NOT greyed out. "O.M.G," I thought. "I have to buy these." I didn't even think about it. I transferred my boot money out of savings and bought them right then and there. Then I proceeded to stalk my Dover account, looking for some indication that they had shipped and were going to be here in time for my lesson on January 2. 

My lesson group didn't have anything scheduled for the day after Christmas, and late in the day on January 2, lessons were canceled due to weather. The forecast was for a high of 32*F, and around lesson time, it was going to be a balmy 18*F. Wayyy too cold, even with a fully enclosed arena (which it's not!), and I was definitely relieved that they canceled!

Shortly after I read the cancellation email, I heard UPS pull away. I went to the window and saw a large box on the porch. My boots had arrived! (Of course, if I had still been riding at 7, they wouldn't have been delivered until 8, lol.)

I brought the box into the kitchen and opened it like a kid on Christmas. When I pulled the boots out, I couldn't believe how beautiful they are in person. I took my shoes off and went to stuff my feet in them. Uh oh. Man, they weren't kidding about the ankle being really, really tight. 

My husband and I proceeded to spend about 15 minutes per boot stuffing my feet in them. I was cursing Dublin the entire time for not putting boot pull tabs in them to make the process easier. Once I was in them, I was pretty sure that I was going to have to live in them from that day forward, but I was sort of ok with that. They were incredibly comfortable and WARM. I wore them around the house for a while and then tried taking them off. Much easier in the off direction, but I made a mental note to look for my boot jack to make it even simpler. The next morning, I wore leggings and boot socks and spent about 12 minutes getting each boot on...progress, right? The time it takes to get them on has consistently gone down with each wear, since. 

The only way to break them in is to wear the crap out of them

I spent 3 days wearing them all day, wore them to run errands last Saturday and marveled the entire time about how warm my feet stayed! Then I didn't touch them again until I was getting ready for my lesson last night. Oops. Putting them on at the end of the day was challenging, and I had to change my socks once, because the first pair I put on was too thick, lol. But these beauties are rated to -34*F, which basically means I could go barefoot and be perfectly fine. 

They were amazing to ride in. Not only did my feet stay nice and toasty the entire time, but I actually felt that they helped steady my leg a little bit more than my regular boots and half chaps. This was good, because they made me feel more secure in the saddle and after his own week off, Riko was definitely feeling his cheerios!

K walked up to the arena as I was western kicking him in the middle of the arena to get him to walk (he had stalled out in the middle of a circle. Rude.) and told me that he's been, well...a jackass, lately. She didn't elaborate, but given how hard I was kicking him, she didn't really need to. I got him walking again, ears pinned and generally being cranky and put him right to work asking for an active walk and to step under and carry himself. She asked if I wanted a crop. I said, yes, maybe just to start out to back up my leg. So when we got to where she was standing, I halted and picked up the crop from her. He didn't want to move again, so I tapped him twice on the shoulder. He sassed a bit, but accepted my contact and walked on. She said, when you feel you need to or he's listening to you, go ahead drop the crop, if we need to drop it and get it back to get him to behave the whole lesson, I have no problem with that! 

When we started trotting, he kept doing this annoying hop like he wanted to run through my hands and canter, but I just tapped him and asked him to stay in that "box" I had created. Other than that, it was mostly just him sassing or pretending to spook, which he totally half-asses. I made him work the entire lesson, even during our walk breaks. I'd let him have a slightly longer rein to stretch, but I still asked him to maintain contact and step under himself. 

We all cantered one at a time, to avoid any unnecessary drama. Riko only got to do the short sides at first but when K was confident I could hold him in the "box" and he wasn't going to launch himself and be stupid, she let us go around the entire ring. I chose to cut across the short side on the pasture side of the arena, because he gets looky over there, and I was going for positive! While other people cantered, we trotted circles and halted, walked, trotted, etc. 

At the end, we trotted a small course of ground poles (all the horses were sassy and K didn't want anyone getting out of hand!). The first pole, Riko rushed despite my hard half halt right before, so I halted him in between the first and second poles and when he settled, we walked over it. I praised him and we walked to the corner before picking up our trot again. I praised him for being quiet and trotted toward the third, single pole. I talked to him and half-halted a few steps out to let him know I wanted him to stay quiet, and he obliged and trotted quietly over the pole. We moseyed back to the end of the line.

I commented to K that I thought he knew he could use his size to get his way and she agreed and said, I didn't want to tell you before the lesson, but he's been ejecting people, so now only a select few will get to ride him. I was like, wow, I mean, if he threw his butt in the air, I'd definitely come off of him, but my mentality is that he's just too big to be an asshole, so it's not even an option for him while I'm riding him, and I'm going to do what I can to not let him get that upper hand. She said, and he needs that ride, plus you're strong enough to keep him together so he can't get strung out and throw his body around. 😁