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Monday, January 20, 2025

this is why we can’t have nice things

Hope y’all are staying warm out there… These polar vortex storms are getting old, not gonna lie… As of this writing, we’re expecting another deep freeze plus possibly a few inches of fresh snow UGH!

the destructive monster herself
Idk about you all, but I was feeling all motivated going into the off season and signed up for all manner of fun activities and outings that are all getting postponed, rescheduled, or straight up cancelled bc bleh… The weather is too hateful!

She may or may not have had murder on the mind while riding amidst lessons the other night
Tho ya know. Maybe it’s all for the best anyway… Poor Miss Thing bruised her feet a bit from a nasty ice ball wedged in her shoe during the first big snowstorm, and is only just now starting to feel better. 
 
at least she’s cute
Tho naturally the ground outside is still completely trashed so she’s simultaneously overflowing with pent up energy…

wild woman had to get it out of her system!
It’s made our attempts at riding a little dicey. I’ve tried to keep getting on her regularly, with the idea being that just walking around nice soft footing is good for her body — even if her feet were too sore for regular ‘work.’ 

well, wild until she got ‘stuck’ in the box lol
But y’all know Doozy, she’s not always entirely on board with the idea of “just walking around” LOL…. And not gonna lie… We came embarrassingly close to causing a major scene a couple times while sharing the ring with lessons… whoops!

there ya go lady - back out the way you came in!
C’est la vie, I guess. Like it’s no secret that the mare kinda needs a fairly consistent degree of work. And I’m not particularly worried about things smoothing out when conditions improve… So ya know. We’ll see where things are after this next storm!

ugh mare!!!
In the meantime, tho, I’m experimenting with some repairs to our brand new (ugh!) and beloved nathe bit, which the monster friggin CHOMPED in our last ride. 

have you used bit wrap before?
We’ve literally only had this bit for a few weeks at this point, so, uh, that’s not really nearly durable enough for something that cost almost $100. But it’s such a good solution for Doozy at this point in her training that I’m hoping we can maybe keep it going with some bit wrap?

it’s just self-adhering latex that can be cut to fit
Like, I don’t necessarily expect this latex tape to be any more durable, but… if it protects the bit itself then, maybe it’s worth just having to rewrap the bit every couple weeks or months? I got this particular tape off Amazon, and reviews said it works about as well as Sealtex, which I think is maybe the more common brand but less available these days? 

my first attempt seems decent enough, lmk if you have any tricks
I dunno. I tried to take a little care wrapping the thing — starting with a clean dry bit and trimming the edges to hopefully be as thin and unobtrusive as possible. I also used a hair dryer on the low setting to help with adherence, tho it naturally seems to stick quite easily.

wrapped our other new bit that i want to try for jumping
I haven’t jumped in the nathe yet so it’s hard to say how well it works when Doozy gets strong. My guess, tho, is that we might end up wishing for a little more in that department lol… So I picked up another nathe with beval cheek pieces. I was just trialing it from my friend, but opted to buy it outright after Doozy chomped the other nathe in case she destroys this one too. Hopefully wrapping it preemptively will be enough tho? 

i thought i sold Charlie’s old Myler comfort snaffle but nope it was just tucked away!
I also re-discovered Charlie’s old Myler comfort snaffle that could possibly work as a back-up. Like maybe it could be similar to the nathe, but less susceptible to chomping, if I wrap it all up? We’ll see, I guess. I haven’t wrapped it yet in case Plan A works and I want to conserve the rest of the roll for keeping the nathe smooth. 

ugh mare… at least with this weather it’s not like we’re doing anything exciting anyway!
Let me know if you’ve had any success with bit wrap. Or, alternatively, if there are other more sturdy materials or styles of bit that might be worth trying for this ridiculous chaos agent of a mare…

off into the storm….
In the meantime, we’re just hunkering down for the next few days — hoping it’s not as bad as forecast! Stay warm out there!



13 comments:

  1. That is the problem with those bits- durability sucks. I have never tried bit wrap I'll be curious what she thinks. I'd try the myler without the wrap and see what she thinks.

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    1. I can’t believe I found this myler - i was POSITIVE I’d sold it when I went thru that whole Marie Kondo phase a few years ago lol, but then was mad at myself bc I got the bit for such a deal and never would find it again at that price… so yay that I still have it !

      Anyway tho I def think we will eventually try it without the wrap too, tho I’m really immersed in this idea of exploring stable immobile styles of mouth piece right now bc it feels like exactly what we both need to help increase our education together without all the chattery noisiness that doozy finds so disruptive. We will see!

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  2. I know I am always disappointed when a horse destroys whatever nice, new, expensive thing I just bought them. No fun! I can't comment on bit wrapping, but when I had horses that wore bits, I also liked the Mylers. And the current cold snap is no joke. I just fed my horses this morning in a wind chill of MINUS 14 degrees. That's no fun either!

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    1. Oh myyyy goodness I probably should NOT be complaining about our 20*F haha, oof stay warm out there! Here’s hoping the cold snap is relatively short lived !

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  3. We don't have more of a reason to complain than the rest of y'all but here in TX, no one is used to these temps! That being said, I rode both yesterday and today in sub-freezing temps and no one died. So let's count that as a win

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    1. lol I will never weather shame anybody haha — if the outdoor conditions are more than a standard deviation (or two) from normal, it’s gonna be unpleasant! Glad you were able to ride both tjo - that’s definitely a win !!!

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  4. Somehow my dentist convinced me to put the dragon itself in a Nathe. She absolutely loves it and we have no more BTV problems, but also no more brakes. Love that for me. Anyway, I'm using a secondhand one that already had a small chomp or two in it, and it's held up surprisingly well over 5 months of pretty much daily abuse - so that's a win!

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    1. Hmmm that’s good to know. Our first experiment with the bit wrap definitely increased the level of chomping significantly, so idk if that’s gonna be any better than just the occasional nibble on the exposed bit itself …

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  5. Is the second nathe with beval cheeks a Winderen? I have several of those, and the mouthpiece holds up MUCH better than the Herm Sprenger in my experience. My mare chomped through the HS, but neither of my horses have put a tooth mark on the Winderen mouthpieces I have.

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    1. Oooh that’s good to know - yes it’s the Winderen and definitely feels like a different type of rubber. I rode in our sprenger nathe with the wrap on yesterday and idk if it was just the texture or flavor of the latex but she was chomping NONSTOP. I actually haven’t peeled back the latex yet to see just how much damage she might have done in a single ride … ugh lol

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    2. Lol, been there. Those HS ARE expensive. I hope she likes the Winderen and can't destroy it!

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  6. I've used bit wrap in the past (good ol' sealtex!) and had good luck with it. I read in your comments that she was chompy on it though. It might be the added thickness she's not liking. Al's a bit chewer which is why I have him in a leather wrapped snaffle and not a regular leather bit like the other two. Pammon once bit one in half. Thankfully it didn't come fully apart while I was riding.
    She may just make some teeth marks and that's the extent of it in which case it will still be functional for you. But if she really goes to town on it, maybe you could try a thin metal mullen mouth and wrap that.

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  7. Stay warm! Super curious how the bit wrap goes for you, and the myler! I'm personally a huge fan of myler bits, Goose lived in one for most of his riding life and loved it. Hope you find the right solution (without it costing you a small fortune!) for the red mare!

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