From: Hayward
Dear Jessica, I'm about to buy a new bridle for my new horse. This has got me in fits because I'm one of those returning adult riders you wrote about in your book. I went twenty years between horses, and I seem to have forgotten a lot during all those years!
My new horse is a Warmblood cross, very quiet and sweet, and I adore him, but I have to say that he has an enormous head. I'm just not used to seeing this much nose and forehead, not to mention ears... So I'm getting used to him, and now I've brought him home (you will be glad to hear that I took lessons on him for a year before buying him from my instructor), and I need to get a new bridle for him. Unfortunately I didn't realize this until my instructor had already left for her honeymoon, and I want to order it now, not in a month when she gets back!
I have a stack of catalogs in front of me, and I'm getting more confused by the minute. The only consistent thing I see is that bridles are a heck of a lot more expensive than they were twenty years ago. I don't want to make a mistake. I'm pretty sure that what I want is just a very basic bridle, but I don't seem to be able to find one. Does anyone even make flat bridles anymore, you know, the ones where the browband is a flat strip of leather and the noseband is too? Everything is raised and half-raised and lined and squared and full of doo-dads and metal and the kind of rhinestone stuff I thought was only for Saddlebreds and Walking Horses. I don't want to be totally out of fashion, but I really don't plan to do a lot of showing. I ride dressage and sometimes a little hunt seat, what my instructor calls Basic Balanced Seat. Wha t kind of bridle would be right, and where can I find one without all the fussy stuff? I'd like just a plain noseband like the one on my long-lost old bridle. Do all nosebands today have flash attachments? What about a "crank"? And how can I be sure that the one I order will actually fit my horse's head? Help!
Hayward
I, to o, remember the days when rhinestones on bridles were limited to gaited horses at big nig,ht-time shows. Things have changed since those days. If you look in your catalogues, you'll f ind glitter and glitter gel in with the grooming supplies.
The kind of bridle you want is now known as a "hunting bridle" - since only foxhunters are considered to be sufficiently traditional to want (or demand?) traditional flat tack. You can still find them, but the nice ones are costly. Look through your stack of catalogues until you find the one from Horse Country, and then just be sure that you're SITTING when you look at the prices. ;-)
Some of the raised tack is actually appealing, and can look nice on a large Warmblood head. It's also quite acceptable in the dressage arena and at hunter shows - but leave the rhinestones for others. Even lined bridles can be reasonably conservative, if you buy a brown leathe r bridle with brown lining, the leather will match the leather, and although the co,nstruction will be more elaborate than the bridles you remember, it won't look "fussy". , Go with good quality, so that it will last. I've had very good experiences with Courbette when it comes to both saddles and strap goods - never a problem in thirty years - so that's always my first resource whenever I'm looking for a new piece of tack.
Be sure that you buy reins that are long enough for your new horse - I would advise paying the surcharge (usually 10%) for reins that are a full 60" long instead of the "average horse" 54".
Measuring your horse for a bridle is an excellent idea - and if you buy from a top company and send the measurements, they'll put your bridle together from the parts that will fit your horse best.
Measurement 1,: headstall (bit to bit)
Start by measuring your horse's head from bit ring to bit ring - put one end of the tape at a spot 2.5 inches (or roughly the width of three fingers) up from the corner of your horse's mouth, bring it up and over his poll and down to the corresponding spot on the other side of his head. Record this number.
Measurement 2: headstall (for placement of cheekpiece buckles)
Measure from a point behind your horse's eye, over his poll to the same point on the other side of his head. This will determine the position of the cheek buckle, which should be horizontally behind the horse's eye.
Measurement 3: noseband
First, take a measurement around your horse's nose, one inch below the cheekbone. Don't pull the tape tight - leave comfortable room for his nose and three of your own fingers.
Measurement 4: noseband strap
Second, measure from a point one inch below your horse's cheekbone, over his poll and down to the same point on the other side. This will ensure that the noseband strap is the correct length.
A note on nosebands: No, not every bridle is equipped with a flash noseband, nor is a "crank" leverage noseband your only choice if you don't want a flash. You can order exactly what you want for your bridle - look through the manufacturer's catalogue and select the noseband you prefer. It's true that flashes and cranks are trendy, so you're likely to see a good many of them at tackshops, but you don't have to follow trends, and for your horse's sake, I hope you won't. If a horse is comfortable and healthy, with its teeth in good condition, a suitable bit, and a considerate rider, that horse is unlikely to open its mouth during a ride. If one or more of those conditions is NOT met, then the horse is likely to open its mouth in protest against discomfort -- which doesn't mean that the horse's mouth should be tied shut, it simply means that some condition must be changed so that the horse can be comfortable.
Measurement 5: throat latch
Place the end of your measuring tape at a point just below your horse's ear, then bring the tape down under your horse's jaw and back up to a point just below his other ear. Again, don't hold the tape tightly - be sure to leave enough room for the width of your hand (four stacked fingers).
Measurement 6: browband
Place the end of your measuring tape at a point just under and two fingers to the rear of your horse's right ear, then bring the tape across your horse's forehead until you reach the corresponding point on the left side of your horse's head. Be sure that the tape is low enough to stay well away from the base of your horse's ears.
Bridles can be purchased in "sizes" - pony/Arab/cob, full-sized, Warmblood-sized, etc. - but it's generally much more practical to deal with actual measurements. At the warehouse, bridles come in pieces, and are put together to fill orders. Very few horses have "generic" heads or heads that correspond perfectly to ANY manufacturer's sizing categories. If you were to take your measurements to the tack warehouse and put together your own bridle for a specific horse, you might well find that your horse needed (just a "Warmblood" browband, a "full-sized" headstall, and Arab/cob cheekpieces and noseband.
Reins are usually sold separately in any case, but remember that reins also come in sizes - not just in different widths, textures, and grips, but in different lengths. Remember that there's more to the length of your reins than the height of your horse. Even if your horse is quite tall, if he has a short neck or you have especially long arms, 54" reins might be perfect. On the other hand, even if your horse is NOT very tall, but he has a long neck and/or a long, sloping shoulder, or if your arms are short, you will both be more comfortable if you buy the longer, 60" reins.
Armed with all of this information, you should be able to purchase a bridle that will be comfortable for your horse, attractive to you, and strong and durable. No good bridle will be cheap, but a truly good bridle, well-maintained, will last many, many years. Good luck!
Jessica
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