Dress/turnout for lessons

D

DD265

Well-Known Member
Joined
12 April 2013
Messages
761
Visit site
What do you wear/how do you turnout your horse for lessons?

I am determined that we shall not be scruff pots and let the side down :p
 
I know how you feel. I go for tidy, but not dressy - for my dressage lessons, a nice polo, casual breeches, long boots and helmet. Horse is clean (brushed) and tidy tack.

Truly, I have seen people turn up with muddy horses but while I don't think "show" clean is necessary, there is a pride thing going on here. Dress for me is comfortable, but nice - if that makes sense.
 
My main effort is cleaning. My boots are usually caked in mud and coat filthy so I clean/wash those. Clean my tack. I love the matchy sets you can get but I have not got any but usually my numnah matches my browband and my hat matches my coat so I look tidy enough. Get the mud off the horse, comb the mane, hose the mud off the legs and swish the end of the tail round in a bucket of shampoo.
 
At the moment I'm dressing quite carefully for my lessons; ponio is feeling rather fresh at the moment and isn't keen on schooling at the best of times, so just for peace of mind I'm making sure I have clean, semi matching underwear (as in the same colour and with no holes in!) and clean but old jods and top, I also check that my saddle grab strap in particular, is in good repair! For accessories; we have all round matching boots and a saddle pad-which-was-clean-seconds-ago-when-I-put-it-on-but-is-now-covered-in-shedding-hair-despite-hours-and-and-hours-spent-grooming... x
 
Last edited:
I tend to go for the clean approach for the boys, i.e., making sure there are no stable stains, shavings in tails etc. I'm usually relatively tidy apart from my boots anyways so just give them a quick flick over with a brush if I remember/am not rushing to get on and warmed up.

If I was going to see a new trainer, I would probably make a bit more of an effort - put on a smarter polo shirt/pair of breeches, polish my boots, dig out a pair of gloves without holes in them... The boys would probably have nicer numnahs on rather than our usual everyday ones and hoofs oiled/polished.
 
We are the dreaded scruffpots I'm afraid. Horse is usually vaguely de-mudded, tail will be roughly de-knotted and tack will have been de-minged. But we don't have matchy anything and I just tend to wear whatever is clean :)
 
Clean, mud free horse - if I have time I'll brush the tail out. Me - usual riding gear but clean (not the grubby breeches and gloves I'd been wearing for the last few days!).
 
People plait and clean tack for lessons?! lol I brush dry mud off as usual but his legs often have wet mud on from the muddy winter fields. Then usual tack/numnah and whatever i'm wearing on the day, probably the top and leggings that i've worn to work that day!
 
Given my favourite instructor is also my YO, I don't worry too much about looking super-smart. I mean, I do try to get Mr H looking fairly clean, but he's grey and likes to roll in things; so there are often one or two stable stains that just won't come out without actually giving him a bath, and those just get reduced as much as possible with brushing and then left.
 
Depends on the instructor - for my weekly lessons with YO - grooming limited to tack areas and I amy be filthy! If going to a clinic -smart but comfortable for me (i.e. clean jods!) and brushed all over (tail dependent on weather).
 
Batgirl said:
Depends on the instructor - for my weekly lessons with YO - grooming limited to tack areas and I amy be filthy! If going to a clinic -smart but comfortable for me (i.e. clean jods!) and brushed all over (tail dependent on weather).
Click to expand...

Same here. I would like to be more tidy but a) I'm a natural scruff, I put clean clothes on but they are filthy by the time I've brought the horse in from field. b) My lesson time is to fit around others and tends to be a mad rush to get tack on

If I have more time, I make sure the horse is clean, unfortunately I always seem to be a mess no matter how coordinated I am
 
I try and go for nicely groomed horse, dont usually clean my tack but its usually pretty clean any way, then i usually wear navy breeches, long sleeved top and a navy gillet so we are both clean and respectable. My Saddle cloths are always clean and if i have time i bandage to match.

That was until the other week, when i forgot i had a dressage lesson at the yard at 5pm, i got a bemused call from my friend at 4pm to check i was still coming and of course i'd completely forgot and was still at work, dashed out, sat in traffic, got to the yard at 4.45 and luckily i had a pair of breeches in the car but that was it, borrowed a pair of boots and had a spare hat in the lorry. Had my lesson in spare dirty breeches and my work shirt and cardigan. Horse was plastered in mud, quickly brushed face off and girth area, chucked tack on and we were good to go at 5 - Luckily instructor saw the funny side and we had a good lesson! We looked a complete state and like we'd both been dragged through the muddy fields but like i told him, its whats under the mud that counts!
 
For lessons with my usual instructor we go for cleanish and that's about it! Usually because our lessons are in the dark after work and require military style getting out of work and praying to the gods of traffic and commuting that we get there on time which is stressful enough! If my lesson is on a weekend or it's a clinic I'm starting to really enjoy going a bit matchy and making an effort. :)
 
Uhoh, this is making me think I should make more effort...
Coloured cob = white parts impossible to get clean without bathing, so just brushed off as much as possible. Feathers are often still damp with mud from the day before, so I brush off the dry bits as much as possible.
The tail is like a muddy dreadlock at the minute, there's just too much of it and it gets dipped in mud on a daily basis.
The only special effort I go to is his mane as there's so much of it and he gets sweaty, I plait it in a running plait to keep it out of the way.
I just wear normal jods and whatever top I happen to have on, but always clean.
 
I announced to my usual instructor that he'd best appreciate that I'd bothered to brush horse's mane and tail for our last lesson :D

It really depends on who lesson is with, location/timing, and where horse has been. I.e. if I've just dragged him in from the field, he's going to have muddy legs!
 
brushed and clean. Clothing depends upon the weather but try to not wear anything too voluminous so trainer can see what we're doing (though they've got x-ray vision anyway I swear :) )
Usual tack, but if it's a tune-up for a show will make sure we have the tack and riding boots that we'll be using on the day.
 
Clean horse, she's dark bay and clipped so not hard! Tack is usually cleanish, I don't specifically clean it for a lesson unless I have time. Horse only has 2 numnah's that she can wear, so whichever is clean on the day. Horse also normally has her 'daily' brushing boots on. They are pretty tatty, but do the job. Me- whatever I put on in the morning, dark jodhpurs, to disguise any muck on me, clean loose fitting t-shirt and a hoody or coat if it's cold. Boots have normally started the day clean and end up filthy by the time I arrive at lesson. I don't do smart for lessons! My instructor also looks like she's been dragged through a bush backwards and is coated in mud, so that suits me perfectly. Matchy-matchy is a big no-no for me! I don't think I even have anything that would match if I wanted it to. ;-)
 
Try to make myself and horse clean and presentable and TBH like to match my breeches and top with horses pad and bandages but not difficult as i go for brown, navy or burgundy. For a clinic, I do put white powder on hocks and knees and try to make sure mane is pulled and tail is clean. I work on the principle that if we both look nice my riding will rise to the occasion, not always true of course but trainers always like Mr B even if they hate me!
 
I get the feeling instructors aren't that impressed by a fancy turnout. I have been praised by one guy simply because i haven't bought everything in pink for my horse. He hates it when people do that it seems.

I have also seen women put make up on for a lesson with my show jumping coach. I usually turn up covered in mud because i know the guy does not care how you look for a lesson. Hell he helped me tack up my horse once and told me off for taking longer by grooming the horse. I told him off as i needed to remove mud from the horse ha ha. To be fair he was clean i was just checking out of habit.
 
I never even considered cleaning the horse (beyond necessary tack bits) or dressing nicely. The field kept horses have wet mud on legs, tide marks where their rugs don't cover and I suspect I mostly just keep on whatever jeans I happen to be wearing. Given consensus here I will at least try to wear johds and de tangle mane next time!
 
I have never in my life plaited for a lesson! And I don't do matchy-matchy, except by accident, as I have a fondness for brown and black for both of us. Horse is bay, so no issues with stable stains. I do wave a brush at him, make sure there's no mud, and mane and tail are brushed, but he's not polished to show standard. Tack and saddlecloth are generally reasonably clean anyway, but I don't make a special effort for a lesson.

I, however, am a different story. I will always start out clean and presentable, but by the time I mount there is usually a light veil of mud dust, a few places where the horse has decorated me with hay, possibly of the half-chewed variety, and even if my boots started off clean, I invariably end up standing in a puddle and getting messy with bedding and school surface.

Neither of my regular trainers are remotely bothered, and as long as I'm on time, have worked in, and they can tell I have been using the time between lessons trying to work on the points from the last lesson, they don't seem to regard my appearance or the horse's as a courtesy issue!
 
Clean and tidy but nothing excessive.
Can't stand this matchy matchy craze

Horse with no mud in sight, tail washed if grotty. Clean boots/bandages/saddlecloth. Tacked wiped over. Clean clothes for me and I wear my competition boots usually.
 
If we're going out for a lesson, will try have tail/legs washed (grey pony so I don't get away with just brushing very often), tack is usually given a quick clean, and wear clean, comfy stuff myself. Went for one after work a few weeks back, so wasn't able to do his tail, but apologised in advance for it!
 
Thanks all I feel better now!

I will try my best but ultimately we can be (somewhat) clean, but not particularly smart. Welsh Cob with half a mane, a rubbed tail, missing feather on his back legs but still feather on the front, and shedding a full coat religiously for the next 3-4 months. Thankfully he's black and his sock is looking quite bright at the moment all things considered.

I'm going to buy us a new saddle cloth (well, probably a 2nd hand one if I can find one) as we only have the one so difficult to wash. Will just make sure I'm wearing clean clothes when I start the day and his tack will probably get cleaned at some point between now and then.

We have met the instructor before for a saddle fitting, and I know she probably won't care as long as we're serviceable. I just feel if it's worth doing it's worth making an effort for. :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top