Breaking in new boots - hints & tips please!

FestiveFuzz

FestiveFuzz

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So for my 30th I was treated to an absolutely stunning pair of konigs, which finally arrived today. They are absolutely gorgeous but incredibly stiff and I'm currently walking around the house like a cat with toilet roll tubes on its legs! I can't sit down in them, so riding in them is very much a pipe dream right now :D They're my first "proper" pair of riding boots and I'm a complete wuss...for context I thought my now soft as butter ariats were a ****** to break in!

I've ordered heel risers to help the situation but do any of you wise and wonderful folks have any tips for breaking these beautiful boots in or shall I just accept my days of riding in comfort/not feeling like my legs have been severed are over?
 
The heel raisers will make a big difference. Then put plasters behind your knees and get riding in them!

Mine are like a second skin now, this is just a phase ;) as soon as the ankles drop you'll be well away.
 
milliepops said:
The heel raisers will make a big difference. Then put plasters behind your knees and get riding in them!

Mine are like a second skin now, this is just a phase ;) as soon as the ankles drop you'll be well away.
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Get riding in them already? That's crazy talk! I'm not even sure I can do the step up the mounting block at the moment :D
 
Walking about in them will help but only riding will put the creases in the right place ;) no pain no gain...
 
Haha I'm beginning to think you're secretly my trainer with talk like that! Point taken though, would it be too ambitious to wear them for my lesson tomorrow without the heel risers?
 
Not sure if I'd brave a lesson straight away... but would be ok if you have your old ones to hand just in case ;)
 
Ha ha! You sound like me with my beautiful, beautiful custom made Cavallo drainpipes that I rode in exactly once, had to lie down to take off (with the aid of no less than 3 stout men), and gave away as they made my legs feel like over-stuffed sausages and I couldn't actually feel them.....

No advice on the breaking in, but deffo don't wear them for a lesson until they are bearable.
 
Cortez said:
Ha ha! You sound like me with my beautiful, beautiful custom made Cavallo drainpipes that I rode in exactly once, had to lie down to take off (with the aid of no less than 3 stout men), and gave away as they made my legs feel like over-stuffed sausages and I couldn't actually feel them.....
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Aww no don't say that! To be fair, the foot is a little roomy (not sure if that's normal?!) and aside from the ankle being stiff they're not actually too bad. It's just around/behind the knees that's the issue. Loving the image of 3 stout men having to help you out of them though :D
 
Are they stiff boots with a front zip or normal shape ones? The main thing I noticed with my first pair of stiff boots was how much less I could feel to start with.
Did make me get the horses more sensitive to the aids tho :o it does get better but very different feel to soft boots.
 
They're the Konig favourits, so the ones with the front zips. I'm already kinda dreading riding in them as I just can't see how I'll be able to feel anything (as a child I would only ride in short boots and no chaps as I hated not being able to feel the horse) so it's definitely going to be a bit of a culture shock!
 
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another one saying ride in them!

Don't bother with plasters as they just rub off, you need the blistex blister plasters its like a second skin and will stay on for about 3 days even in the shower. The only thing that will save you from horrendous new boot blisters, prevention is better than cure! When i was breaking my last Donatello's in i had them on the back of my knees/ heel/ side of little toe and the boney bit below your big toe but only after i had holes and blisters in all those places, only got better once i put the plasters on - i still have the scars to show it! :D
 
So I listened to all your wise words and wore them in tonight's lesson and survived! Stuck compeed plasters behind my knees and despite a brief moment where I thought I was going to get cramp whilst mid-way through a 20m circle it was fairly uneventful.

I'm a tad worried they're a little loose on the ankle/big on the foot but pretty sure if I'd gone down half a size they'd be way too tight so thinking insoles might be the answer.

An unexpected benefit to my boots was realising just how much my position has been blocking M :( Now I can't pull up from the knees he's a lot more consistent in the contact and a lot less argumentative.
 
I just hacked in mine for the first few weeks and smothered them in leather conditioner each time. Couldn't school in them for weeks without a 'WTF?!' type reaction from my boy, who clearly thought I wasn't riding as normal in them.
 
FestiveFuzz said:
I'm a tad worried they're a little loose on the ankle/big on the foot but pretty sure if I'd gone down half a size they'd be way too tight so thinking insoles might be the answer.

An unexpected benefit to my boots was realising just how much my position has been blocking M :( Now I can't pull up from the knees he's a lot more consistent in the contact and a lot less argumentative.
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brilliant :)

I had a similar revelation when I bought my first pair, with soft boots I was doing some odd contortion to put my leg on whereas with stiff boots I couldn't... immediately it became obvious that my horse just wasn't sensitive enough to a light aid and that was all I could give now so had to address that :lol: good when your own clothing can give you feedback on your effectiveness!

I have sheepskin insoles in mine which make them a little more comfy and would take up some of the room you have in yours :)
 
Haha I did have to ask my trainer how on earth I apply leg aids when I can't feel the horse, but after that we were well away and M was living up to his schoolmaster reputation :) I am a fan of the instant clothing feedback though, even if it has made me realise just how tight my hips are! I feel a human physio session coming on pronto! :D
 
My petrie boots where like this! gave me whopping great bruises behind my knees the first few times i wore them, ride long!! - heel raisers for the first few weeks, they soon drop very quickly!! had mine almost a year now and they are so comfortable :)
 
Feeling like a failure as I sold my Konigs as I couldn't ride in them :o...

However my Petries with a nubuck inner are a-maz-zing, I did not have the position revelation with the stiffer Konigs maybe I'm a lost cause :lol:.
 
Warm them up so the leather softens, then stuff with newspaper for overnight storage, will help when you're not riding in them.
 
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