Editor’s Note: Heels Down Mag asked riders to tell us about the piece of your riding outfit that makes you feel confident and why. Our editorial team selected three finalists’ essays, which are being published this month. One winner will receive a pair of ProChaps ATHLETIC full chaps (retail value $274.95 USD).
By Shawna O’Brien
I started riding late. When I say this, I don’t mean in my teens. I mean I was 25. I missed out on the pony days and the junior years and the equitation classes. I can hear you say “Oh, no! How sad!” I have had the horse bug since I was small: horse drawing, horse anatomy books, Black Beatuy on film.
I did also attend a horseback riding camp for a few years before adolescence, so I was fortunate to have that experience. However, being from a non-horsey family I honestly just thought that the only people who owned and rode horses were farmers and cowboys…. and as I grew into my teen years I found other hobbies that preoccupied my mind.
Do not despair! One fateful day in Sept. 2016, while attending Baconpalooza with a friend at the local Agricultural Museum (spoiler alert: I was disappointed at the lack of free bacon) I spotted a beautiful Clydesdale. Unsurprisingly, I went right up to him and kissed his nose. As soon as I smelled the combination of horse hair, dirt and oil, I knew I had to find a way to ride. Luckily, I knew how to use Google at this time, and started lessons in October 2016.
Fast forward a few years, and I went full horse girl really quickly and bought my first horse, Ronald, a 14-year-old chestnut Hanoverian gelding, in September 2019. As soon as I bought him, I moved from the hunter/jumper barn I was at to a dressage-based barn closer to home. The trainer is incredible, and my horse is a Saint, but had some habits and physical tension gained from years of being a lease horse and of course I am quite green.
Needless to say, after riding hunter school masters for so long, I started to question my abilities as a rider when we started the process of unbuilding and rebuilding Ronald to be his best self. What is bend? What is contact anyways? Why can I not get him to relax down? I had so much to learn and it felt like one of those “the more you learn, the more you realize you have yet to learn” situations.
When these difficulties started, I started trying to dress for success as I use this tactic in my professional career. My FAVORITE piece that brings me confidence, and that I’ve literally had my best rides in, is my Pasture Polo shirt from Street and Saddle. It is form fitting and made of the softest material with a fun patterned collar. Great on its own or under a smart sweater. Tucked in or not. Worn as street wear. Always perfect.
The best part is Street and Saddle is a small, Canadian, woman-owned business and the
products are all hand made. Fun fact: I wore that shirt to my first lesson back after the COVID-19 closures. It was a great success. Since then, I’ve also acquired their Give Me Ribbons shirt and horseshoe leather belt, which I wore for my first lesson jumping Ronald since August 2019. I also purchased a beautiful white button down with pink horseshoe print which I have yet to wear riding.
A lot of people might scoff at the thought of a shirt making you ride better, but when I put on Street and Saddle’s gear for my ROOTD I feel like the rider I know I will become in time, and that gives me tremendous confidence.