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[RC] Kyle's Shoe Questions - Kathy - Alissa NormanHi Kathy,Sure, you can ride barefooted in the dressage ring. You just can't use boots of any kind. No ankle boots, splint boots, polo wraps, and (although it's not specifically called out) no hoof boots. No boots. I can and will ride him barefoot in the horse trial we are going to this weekend. But we'll be riding in the rain, so I am sure to have good soft footing in the dressage ring (and we'll boot for coss country and stadium - that's allowed. Weird, eh?). In the heat of the summer, in normal Maryland drought, in a stonedust or a grass arena... I don't think I'll be able to ride my little flat-footed TB barefoot for his dressage test. I don't think he'll be pleased. Maybe, though, my new natural trimmer will turn his silly feet around in six months or so, and things I never thought possible (before last fall, I'd never owned a barefoot horse, so this is all new to me!) may well be possible. Which goes back to my question for Kyle - why the switch? Do you think you gave your barefoot and boot experiment enough time? Did you get frustrated with rubs? Boots coming off? Horse sore even with boots? Tell me all the terrible things I can expect... : ) Alissa Alissa, Are bare hooves not allowed in the dressage ring?
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