Get Over It: Studs

Here's the promised post on studs.

First, we have a basic array of the little buggers:

note the various shapes: big squares, small squares, hexagons

I like to use the flat hexagons and the small square blocks for what most would consider to be "good" conditions, like medium, soft sandy soil that isn't hard or slick or muddy.

For riding on wet grass, I use the grass studs [often referred to as points or tips]. If the ground is also quite hard, I prefer the longer and sharper of the two for a little extra grip.

NOTE: I highly advise pairing these with a small block [like the one pictured above] on the inside branch of the shoe, because if a horse stumbles or brushes you don't want a sharp stud stabbing into the horse's adjacent leg.

For very soft that isn't wet and muddy, I love a small bullet. The small pointed hexagons work wonderfully on the front shoes, because it is also very important to always use smaller studs on front feet than on hind feet. The front legs are designed to slip just a little upon landing to disperse the jarring effect of hitting the ground. So, smaller studs on front to keep the knee joints happy longer!

Now for the good stuff- Mud!

When it is raining and you have a cross country course to run and a hundred horses have gone before you- it is time for big mud blocks. Big bullets and big rounded blocks also work exceptionally well, however I find that the simple set I have now are all I need. Smaller ones straight across on front, bigger ones straight across on back.

The smaller-on-front-rule IS important, if you watch a barefoot, free-lunging horse jump and how the leg slides on landing it can really show you what the horse's body is designed to do. Often I have competed without any studs on the front shoes at all- And if you're on a bit of a budget don't even bother with the holes and purchasing extra studs and such for the fronts- odds are you won't need them until upper levels anyway.

Here are rubber plugs, very quick and easy to get in and out, but if your horse is rambunctious in his pasture/stall or if he's turned out a lot they may not stay in as well as the foam style [which are virtually indestructible!]

The safety T-tap is also important, as it aids in the cleaning of the holes and will sharpen the threads. Be careful not to strip the threads, but this is much harder to with the safety style rather than the older versions. Also, if you have a fidgety equine [we've all experienced those days] the flat, rubbery surface is easily stepped on without damage to shoes or hooves or human feet.