Drivers constantly quiz me about how to do well in a turnout class at a pleasure driving show. Some of the answers are straight forward, and some may surprise you.
If there is one word to memorize for turnout, it is "Appropriate."
The horse should be appropriate for the driver. The carriage should be appropriate for the horse. The harness should be appropriate for the carriage and horse. Finally, the driver and groom should be dressed appropriately for the carriage, season, and type of driving. The most underutilized resource for information on this is the American Driving Society rulebook. There is quite a bit of information on how one should turnout a variety of carriages. Go to the section Marked "Coaching Appendix A" in Volume 1.There is no greater sin to commit in a turnout class than to show up with equipment that does not fit. Poor fitting harness or the wrong size carriage not only looks tacky, but can hurt the horse or may even be unsafe. All the spit and polish in the world can not make up for badly fitting equipment (or clothing!) If your harness and carriage do not fit the horse well, you'll bring up the rear in the placings.
Some of us have a hard time getting out the door with matching socks, so it's no wonder we have trouble matching up things on our carriages. To make things a little tougher, not everything on a carriage will always match. Here's a quick look at what should match.
Furniture:
I don't mean a sofa and loveseat. I mean the metal that adorns your harness and carriage. If your carriage has brass hubcaps, rein rail and other furniture, your harness should likewise be made with brass furniture. If the carriage has silver (nickel, or stainless steel), your harness should be made with similar silver colored metal.
However, weight bearing harness and carriage parts should always be made of mild or stainless steel, and therefore are silver in color even if you have brass harness. Examples of items that should always be silver in color are: Dee-ring traces; buckle tongues (the part that sticks through the leather); pole heads & chains; bit cheek pieces.
This is one that perplexes the newly initiated, and points out the uninformed. Reins on a carriage driving harness are always brown. There are many theories to the reasons behind this tradition. It is imperative that reins are made of the most supple leather available, and dying such high quality leather black will often stiffen the reins. Furthermore, the black dye often bleeds onto the gloves of the driver and the backs of the horses, especially when wet.
Today's leathers are more sophisticated, and dyes are more fast, but they will not budge this tradition. Some makers have thought to compromise by making the front half of the reins black, and the back half brown, but this comes off as trying too hard and in the end looks down market.
Gloves follow the reins. The driver and grooms should always wear brown or tan gloves with only a few exceptions. White string glove (that don't stay white for long) can be worn over leather gloves for better grip in the rain. Black gloves are only worn by the grooms on a Park Drag coach.
Brass is generally considered more formal. It looks great with dark colored horses, especially black horses. Not all brass has the same metallurgy, so some brass will shine to the point that you could mistake it for silver at a glance, while other brass will always look quite yellow. Those who think they are clever have had harnesses plated in gold, only to find that gold doesn't shine as bright as well polished brass.
Keeping brass bright has a lot to do with how you've polished in the first place. Products like Maas and Cape Cod leave behind tarnish inhibitors to keep the brass from turning so quickly. You can follow up with a polish glove or jeweler's cloth just before the class to make a great impression.
If you have silver colored metal, don't get caught thinking that your chrome or nickel never needs attention. It's easy to spot the slackers by the spots on their furniture! While these metals are far easier to care for, it is wise to give them some attention with a polish cloth to make sure they are spotless.
By all means it is important that your horse, harness, carriage and outfit are clean and polished. You'd be surprised at some of the grime I've witness in the show ring! Cleaning and polishing is a classic case of a chain that is only as strong as its weakest link. A judge may not notice every last little effort you've put into cleaning and polishing, but what you forget or neglect to clean will stand out like a sore thumb!
Give that harness a good thorough cleaning before the show, so you are not fighting the tide or trying to hide anything at the show. Bear in mind that patent leather isn't the only leather that should shine. Your flat leather should shine as well. I've tried every shoe and leather product out there, but it's good old fashion Kiwi that I've found to work the best. Put it on "thin to win", and buff it up with a pair of nylon stockings.
It sounds silly, but many people get so hung up in the harness and carriage that the horse gets forgotten. Get 'em clean, bathed, and brushed out. Make sure that the tail is snag free.
Braid the mane if you are turned out formally. A good guide for this would be, if you see top hats or bowlers, there should be braids in the mane. Tails however are never braided. There are a wide variety of braids that we can use, so use the style that compliments your horse's style and breed.
After all of that cleaning, polishing and grooming, don't worry if you get dirty on the way to the ring. New mud looks quite different than a week's worth of grime. If it's a yucky day, don't fall into the trap that "everything is going be gross as soon as we move off. They'll never see the difference." Judges that are worth while have spent a lifetime doing this stuff. They know the difference!
If you've taken the time to assemble the appropriate spares for your turnout, don't wait for the judge to ask to see them. When you pull into the line-up, lay them out if you can, or at minimum open the boot so the judge can look in with little effort. Arrange the spares as neatly as possible, and never use spares that can't actually be used if needed!
The next installment, dressing for success.
Hello! It’s Linda, our Retail Manager, writing for you today. Andy has been swamped with training and showing and he did promise you some turnout tips, so I’ve offered to lend a hand in one of my areas of expertise – braiding.
How important is braiding to your turnout? Very! In my mind, braiding your horse for the show exhibits the detail and effort you put into your overall program. It shows respect for the judge, your competitors, and your horse. Whenever “appropriate”, do take the time to braid.
Braiding should absolutely be done for a formal turnout. If you see top hats, you should see braids. Braiding can add that polished, winning touch to a turnout that isn’t quite as formal. Perhaps the only time you shouldn’t braid is when you are showing all three phases of Combined Driving in a marathon carriage, but, this does not mean your horse’s mane can be unruly and wild. A well kempt, pulled mane is a must! (Unless of course you are showing a “mane & tail” breed such as an Arab or Friesian. These breeds typically allow for long manes as given to the breed standard, but should still be kept neat and tidy.)
I’ll assume for the purposes of these notes that you already know the basics of braiding. I’ve paid for more than a few show seasons by braiding other horses, and we thought sharing some tips might be of help.
Practice makes perfect was never more true than with braiding. Take the time to braid your horse before show season starts. When I was learning to braid and wanted to get good at it, I would braid my horse every Saturday before working him. I did this all winter that year and by spring I had improved my speed and quality of braids significantly. If you always wait until show day to braid, you will be stressed trying to do it well in a short period of time, and your fingers will fatigue. Just as you condition your horse for Marathon, condition yourself for braiding! Once you’ve trained your fingers to do the work, you won’t have to practice so much.
Since we’re in the middle of show season, here are some handy tips to polish those braids now:
· Mane length should be between 4-5 inches long. Manes that are naturally thin should be on the shorter side and thick manes on the longer side.
· Manes should be uniform in length and thickness from poll to wither. Either pull the mane in the traditional way or get yourself a Solo comb or a basic dog grooming stripping knife. Do a little at a time, every day until the mane is even throughout. Oh, and even if you have a “mane & tail” breed like the Friesian or Arabian, do yourself a favor and trim a bridle path! Having a space clear for the bridle to sit makes a tidier appearance for your braid job. It is generally considered unsafe to braid your bridle into the mane. If you are concerned about the bridle staying on, then consider a bridle arrestor/gullet strap.
· Wet the mane as you go. This allows for much tighter braids and keeps the flyaways to a minimum. I am a fan of Quick Braid, but plain water works pretty well too! I like to use a spray bottle but if the horse I’m braiding isn’t fond of spray bottles, I’ll dunk my comb each time I bring it up to separate out the next section of hair. If I’m working with a truly unruly mane then I’ll pull out the hair gel!
· Use yarn for tying up the braids. It has some give when your horse stretches his neck, it’s inexpensive and comes in any color you could possibly need. You want the color of the yarn to match your horse’s mane or your turnout for recognized shows, but you can have fun with braiding at club events. I once did a grey horse up in Hunter Green and Gold for St. Patrick’s Day trial and a black QH up in Red, White, and Blue for a July Fourth show.
· I do not recommend the rubber bands. It’s difficult to keep the braid done up tightly enough to stay in for the day and it is also more difficult to keep the bottom line of your braids even. You want the line of braids to be level at the bottom and not look like the NYC skyline. Tape and stickers are not appropriate for driving classes and should be avoided, unless you have a Commercial Turnout in a Commercial Class.
· Tie a piece of string 1” down on the mane comb. Use this as a guide for separating out the hair for each braid. Braids should be about 1” wide and by using the same measure, the braids will come out much more evenly spaced.
· Work quickly and evenly. Slow braiding leads to loose braids, braider fatigue, and cramped hands. Keep moving!
· Keep your tools within easy reach. I have seen combs attached to lanyards hanging around people’s necks so they stay easy to grab. I like to use an apron with big pockets to keep my tools in. Whatever works for you is fine, but you don’t want to be reaching across the aisle to grab tools.
· Start with your hands ½ inch above the mane. This allows you to pull the hair right up against the neck for a nice tight start to your braid. Then braid down quickly and evenly.
· I do recommend braiding the morning of the show whenever possible. Your braids will remain neat and tidy and you won’t be picking out shavings or fixing them last minute.
· Do not shampoo the mane the day you are going to braid and DO NOT USE CONDITONER and especially no SHOWSHEEN, COWBOY MAGIC or other silicone based product!! While it’s important for the horse to be as clean as possible, a slightly dirty mane will keep the braid better. Wash the mane a couple days before the show. I have had more than one client who, in trying to help, has presented me with a freshly shampooed and Showsheened mane that no amount of hair gel was going to hold together.
· Use a seam ripper (carefully!) to remove the braids. The pointed end makes it much easier to just rip out the yarn and not hair. Since the horses usually look like they’ve had a bad Tina Turner perm after braiding, keep that water bottle handy and wet down the mane again so it begins to lay flat again more quickly.
· More braids for short necks – less for long ones. Obviously, a good judge knows what they are looking at, but you can make a less than perfect confirmation look more aesthetically pleasing. Again, experiment with the number of braids until you find what works best for your horse.
I hope you find some of these tips helpful. If you have any questions – just drop me a line at Linda@coachmansdelight.com