Perfect Sit of Sweden Bridle Review

the pretties

I maybe possibly went shopping. I KNOW I'M ON A BUDGET AND BLAH BLAH BLAH BUT THE 900FBPONY MADE ME DO IT.

So go check out her blog and assign lots of blame.

Anyways. I own a lot of bridles (no shame) and I was sort of running out of things that interested me. Figure 8? own it. Plain cavesson? Have two. Micklem? Got it. Crank? Yes. Normal crown? Yes. Monocrown? Yes. Laced reins? Rubber reins? Soft grip reins? Web reins? Yes, yes, yes, and yes.

So what's a tack ho to do when she has the shopping itch and all the bridles?

Courage needed it too

Why, shop overseas of course!

Amanda (the bitch) turned me on to Perfect Sit of Sweden with all her obsessing over the High Jump Revolution bridle, which I grant you is interesting and different at the very least. It didn't call my name, though. It was like the European version of a micklem, which is ok, but not like MUST BUY NOW sort of thing. You know, since I've owned two micklems and all.

But I got browsing around the site and ran across another model called the Flat Out Revolution.

Cavesson with flash detail

I can't explain what happened next. It just called my name and I needed it. I sold two bridles in record time and snapped it up.

Here are the things that I absolutely love about it:

Pretty details

so soft and wide

Padded crown (with mystery buckle? still figuring that one out)

love this feature

Snap-on browband that can be changed while the horse is bridled. Also if you forgot your fly bonnet. Not that I would ever do that.

Again.

mmhmmm

Nifty martingale stops. I'm forever losing these or having them on the wrong set of reins. Love this set and the unusual design.

And that's not even including things like the easy-to-hold narrow rubber reins and the so-convenient snap ends on the cheeks and reins.

Or the total lack of the throatlatch, which I think is brilliant. Here's the thing with throatlatches: they're supposed to hold the bridle on when foxhunting through heavy brush or (maybe) if the rider comes off over the head.

still on the fence about the swoopy brownband

They don't. Even if we aren't talking about the resent spat of bridle-fails (srlsy all the time now), the mechanics of the throatlatch are such that if it's done up to prevent it from coming off, you are actively throttling your horse. Maybe it's different when you're galloping through woods with an open throatlatch, but if you want your horse's head down (ever), the throatlatch is not helping you.

Rant over.

Anyways. The bridle shipped to me this week and came with cool extras like a bridle bag, conditioner, and Swedish horse cookies, which Courage LOOOOVED.

now we just have to go to a show

I've ridden in it twice. I love how it fits Courage's face. I'm actually quite happy with the leather. I think it will soften up to Nunn Finer-esque levels when broken in. The clips are as-advertised. I emailed USDF and ascertained that it is legal for any dressage competition that allows snaffles and it's of course legal in the jumping phases of eventing or for show jumpers, though it would obviously be non-traditional for hunters.

Prisoner being adorable

The sizing is pretty standard. It fits Courage well--it came adjusted on the middle holes. I think I put the bit up one and the cavesson down one. For reference, Courage has a bit of a long, narrow head that is very, very cob sized and I bought the cob size model.

We also tried it on Prisoner. He's even more petite than Courage, so we shortened it up a little more. I'd say it's true to size.

It's fun. It's different. It wasn't even that expensive, coming in around $170 including shipping. I tend to be a buy and sell type of girl, given my tack ho tendencies, but I honestly think this on is going to be a keeper. I mean, OMG, if I don't use the flash, I literally only have to do one buckle to put my bridle on. How is that not awesome?



Noted: this is a first impressions post. I will do a more thorough write up in a few months when I've gotten to spend a lot more time with this particular piece.

Also noted: I have tried to answer any questions I've already gotten about it. I'm happy to answer more. I really quite love this bridle.

Let the Good Times Roll

So much exciting pony news and only a little bit of it is mine. 

Bacon over the teeny box. Photo credit: me.

I spent the whole weekend out of town playing at a horse show pretending to be a pro photog. And that's all that happened.

OH UNLESS YOU MEAN THAT ALYSSA AND BACON WERE ALL WHUPASS AT THEIR FIRST OUT OF TOWN SHOW.

So there was that. But yeah, I had oodles of fun crewing for them and totes took a bajillion (actual number) of pictures with her ridiculously fancy camera.

Babysitting ears

And then there's redheadlins' news, which is pretty freaking fantastic as well.

I got back from the clinic and hopped on my little man for the first time in 4 days. He babysat Prisoner for his first in-company arena ride and was a total champ. We even hacked though the fields on the buckle while P-man cantered around and all was well.

<3 my little bay horse.

So much Ogilvy goodness!

The only problem is that redheadlins let us use her Ogilvy baby pad.

WANT

That is all.

Well, that and the fact that I toasted my legs in the sun so badly that I can't put breeches on right now. Look for creative solutions until that situation resolves.

Weekend Fun: Meet the New Guy

Courage says "HELLOOOO TRACK HORSE"

Those of you who follow me on instagram or facebook have probably noticed a new face started popping up last week. I mean, I always have random cute racehorses, but one was cuter than the others and then he was meeting Courage and going under saddle...

Yep. Dapple bay and all.

A couple of you have asked about him. I mean, it's hard not to. His face is ridiculously adorable and he's built like a champ.

Ladies and gentlemen, meet Prisoner, pedigree here.

He's a Kentucky-bred 2007 model TB who we put the OT on last Saturday. He's something less than a stunning success on the track, netting just over $4,000 in four years of racing.

Yes, you read that right.

Looking cute on the back side

As I rule, I stay away from horses for sale on the backside because I want (almost) all of them, but this guy is special. I had my eye on him, and when his trainer said he was available, I immediately started taking crappy pictures of him and sending them to my good friend Ellie. I really can't be doing two boarded horses and a car payment, but this guy needed a soft landing with lots of love and Ellie needed something sweet and fun and pretty.










Because she is brave (and knows us really well), Ellie agreed to buy him even though she'd only ever glimpsed his adorable white nose over the stall for like ten seconds one time this summer.

Prisoner (working on the new name, ok?) moved in to Courage's barn for the next month to get nicely restarted. I think he's looking at much the same schedule Courage had--light riding through the fall, winter off, and then getting going for real next spring.

First ride off the track. HE'S SO FANCY I COULD DIE.

In the mean time, yours truly gets to play with him and take pictures of his cute little face. Redheadlins is doing the heavy lifting in terms of training, but Alyssa and I can do useful things too and of course Ellie will join us as much as her schedule allows.

He's aimed for a dressage/trails/open shows/all around type career and yes, Ellie assures me she will blog about him. Plus she is a kick ass photographer, so expect to be inundated with pro-quality pictures instead of my usual camera-phone business.

ERMEGERD KISS HIS NOSE ALREADY

If I had room in the budget for two, I'd never let this little guy slip away. He and Ellie are going to have so much fun together. I'm glad I got to be a part of his rehoming team and I look forward to their continued adventures together!

And yes, you can always count on me for Prisoner updates. This is my first time helping out with a resale, and he sort of feels like my little god pony already.