Why Not Four?

By Neel Glass, Ph.D
Saddle Action August, 1977

Shortly after Easyboots were first put on the market, we started to hear about endurance riding. First a letter from Sally Ridgeway. Dr. Jim Steere, Dr. Bill Bentham wrote asking questions. Drusilla Barner called to find out where she could get a couple for Wendell Robie’s birthday. We learned that Easyboots were being used as a “spare tire” by endurance riders on the West Coast. The thought was immediate: if they’re good for a spare, why not start with four?

The more I heard about endurance riding, the more it grabbed me. But, at first, information was hard to come by in our part of the country. I suppose I was subconsciously looking for a real “proving ground” were results- not preconceived opinions or appearances-counted. By this time, I was pretty well caught up in the “magic” of horses and, to me, the most natural, instinctive, and satisfying relationship involved their use and companionship in getting off the beaten track, covering and discovering country. Endurance riding just seemed to be “it.”

By coincidence, at about this time Roger Taylor organized the first Los Alamos 50 mile Endurance Ride. I entered, very insecurely, with a 10 year-old mare whose only redeeming feature was that she seemed to be tough and wouldn’t go fast enough to get tired. Of course, I started with Easyboots over bare hooves. There was a fair amount of skepticism evident as to the Easyboots and to the decrepit 50 year-old rider, whose main physical activities for years had been pushing a pencil, eating, and boozing!

In the past three years, Lucille and I have completed 1500 AERC-sanctioned competition miles on Stanley (Lilla Pojke), and 1200 on Dapperloosa Dandy with never a nailed-on shoe. We may never be National Champs, but I don’t think we’ve done too badly for a couple of old folks with two pretty good horses. And I’ve learned a little on the care of the hoof and Easyboots.

The best possible hoof care for many horses may be to not shoe them at all. Practically all vets readily agree that barefoot is best if there are no particular additional requirements for hoof protection, correction or traction. Of course, in endurance, competitive, or cross country riding, hoof protection is usually necessary and often required by some rule or another. Even here, though, the fraction of the total time the horse is actually working is small.

I’ve heard many owners say that their horses need to be shod all the time, even in the stall or pasture, because their hooves break out so badly otherwise. This may be, but it is almost always there result of nail holes breaking out as the hoof grows down.

Once the nail holes have grown out and the hoof is trimmed up, this breaking out is reduced to a great extent. If there is some chipping and wearing down at the quarters, this is not bad. In fact, it is healthy and part of nature’s design. This effect provides increased frog pressure, better expansion and thus shock absorption, and provides nature’s own heel calks for better traction.

With normal shoeing procedures, however, it is seldom convenient or possible to remove the shoes for a few days or weeks of rest. Even if a person is his or her own horsehoer and is willing to remove and replace shoes every few days, the results would be poor because of the damage to the hoof walls by repeated nailing.

Enter Easyboot! The above approach becomes reasonable and practical. Barefoot except when required!

There are many more advantages which I will only briefly mention here before getting into some practical details for their use. Unpadded iron shoes increase concussion and hold the frog and bars off the ground, increasing chances for concussion- induced problems such as road founder, sidebone, ringbone, navicular, etc. Easyboots provide cushioning, complete sole protection and natural frog pressure on all surfaces, thus preventing stone bruises and allowing the natural blood-pumping action of the frog and plantar cushion. Safety is another real factor. Not only for horse and rider on slippery pavement and rocks, but for the times when flesh and bone-human, equine, or canine-get in the way of a flying hoof. An iron-shod hoof carries a terrible clout.

The first requirement for proper and successful use of Easyboots (after obtaining them) is to carefully read the instructions. There is nothing complicated about their use, but as in all things, a touch of attention and plain common “horse sense” is useful. If they are too large, they may not stay on. If the boot itself or the inside strap rides above the hairline or on the soft part of the heel bulbs, there can be chafing. A snug fit is desirable. If there is no way you can get them on, they are too small. For use on endurance rides, even as a spare, or through water, mud, or over a greased hoof, there must be a positive grip to the hoof wall. That is the function of the two stainless steel plates with the burrs or bent corners on each side inside the boot. The burrs, or the bent corners, should slightly dig into the hoof wall forward of the quarters. If the boot is too wide for the hoof, the burrs or corners won’t grab the walls. If the burrs reach the walls, but the inside heel strap is not snug, the boot can work enough over a period of time to gouge the wall somewhat. If this appears to be happening, take up the inside strap as per the instructions.

For extended use, over many barefoot hooves, the back of the Easyboot should be trimmed down to eliminate any possibility of rubbing the heel bulbs or the coronary band. There is a scribe line on most Easyboots as a guide for trimming. So read the instructions, practice a little, and check the fit before starting out on a 50 or 100 mile ride either with the Easyboots on or as a spare. Even as a spare, when you need it, be ready. You’ll save yourself a lot of time and trouble on the trail if you’ve practiced and properly fitted ahead of time.

I strongly recommend the use of Easyfoam for any strenuous competitive events or extended trail rides. We have now developed a tough elastic Easyfoam which is the consistency and hardness (or softness) of a healthy frog. Simply mix in pre-measured cups, pour into the Easyboot and put the boot on the hoof. The Easyform then foams to form a perfectly-fitting liner and filler. This insures an exact fit-even for an Easyboot which is large for the hoof. The Easyfoam keeps out sand, dirt, mud or manure. Installed on a clean, dry hoof, Easyfoam also acts as an adhesive effective for a few hundred miles or several days.

As a spare, carrying an Easyfoam kit as well as an Easyboot may be more then you’re ready for, so at least put a pad of one inch thick sponge rubber foam into the bottom and under the heel strap of your spare Easyboot. This foam compresses to nothing but keeps out sand and dirt. Be sure the burrs or bent corners of the inside backing plates will make good hoof wall contact. Easyboots can easily be screwed on. Before you scream and shudder, consider following: shoes are nailed on by driving six or eight nails an inch or more up through the hoof wall. Nails are properly started at the edge of the white line, 3/8 to ½ inch from the edge of the hoof wall. Two #6 or #8 self-tapping sheet metal screws with washer under the head and the length chosen to penetrate the hoof wall ¼” or less do an excellent job of anchoring an Easyboot to the hoof. And it can be done with the hoof on the ground by poking small holes with an awl, ice pick, or small leather punch an inch and a quarter above the bottom of the Easyboot (3/4” above the bottom of the hoof). Thread the screw plus washer part way into the boot. Install the boot normally and fasten. With the hoof on the ground, screw the screws into the hoof wall with a screwdriver.

With the judicious use of wedge pads borium tipped studs, Easyfoam and proper trimming, all types of corrections are possible (see figures 1 and 2). Experimentation is easy, since changes can be made in a few minutes and gaits and way of going immediately checked. Once a correction has been settled on, allow the horse a day or more-preferable more, depending n the severity- to become adjusted before undertaking a strenuous ride or activity.

I have tried to cover the problem a few people have had with Easyboots: keeping them on, and chafing above the hairline. Both can be solved by following the instructions and taking elementary care. Nailed-on shoes are lost on every endurance ride. If an Easyboot should be thrown, it can be replaced in less than a minute by the rider. The use of the “keeper strap” included with every Easyboot is recommended until experience and confidence are acquired.

Along this line, here are a few examples. In a year and a half, riding in over 14 rides each, neither Lucille nor I have thrown an Easyboot in competition. In the 1976 Upper Rio Grande 25 and 50 Miler with about 30 entries, at least four finished with at least one Easyboot after throwing shoes. In the 1976 Los Alamos Fifty, three out of the four first finishers including best condition (Gail Price) wore Easyboots from start to finish. The other top finisher purchased a set the next day. The ’76 Virginia City 100: there wasn’t an Easyboot thrown by any of the riders (at least four) starting with them. I never got a good count on the number of shoes thrown but it was in the dozens. One well known rider and top finisher threw a shoe four or five times (different feet) and used his Easyboot each time to get in for re-nailing. I couldn’t resist: “Why not start with Easyboots and save a lot of time and trouble?”

Charlie Barieu’s photos showed one rider trotting her horse out wearing three Easyboots. She didn’t start with them on the feet. “If you end up with three Easyboots, why not start with four?”