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I have only recently started competing in Endurance riding, and from the outset have been a fan of doing it unshod. I have seen many good horses ruined through bad shoeing and from injuries relating to use of shoes, and I didn't want to do this to my horse, too.
Starting out young with me, I have a Waler Gelding, Wattagain Macpherson, (the kind that the Aussies took to the wars all those many years ago!) and he is hardy and has incredibly good feet, so I thought I'd take the plunge and try barefooting. This proved to be a far greater challenge because I was doing it in a region where non-traditional methods of horse management, such as booting or bare-footing, are still rather frowned upon, and because I had little or no experience in the matter. Careful research quickly showed me that not only was booting the way to go, but it was a booming trend in the Southern Areas of Australia, which gave me the ability to find out more about it. Easyboot Epics were quickly highlighted as the most economical, effective and user-friendly boots to try. These have since been replaced by the Easy Boot bares, but I am still waiting for my trusty epics to wear out!
Not only do they fit perfectly to his feet, but the Epics are easy to get on and off and have withstood many arduous conditions thus far, including the rocky gold mining country in which we do the majority of our rides. I live in the wet tropics, so much of the year Mac's poor feet are quite soft, but it also means my training terrain is soft. I get to have the joy of training him barefoot and know that when we compete not only will his boots offer him perfect protection, but better than shoes, they protect the sole AND provide cushioning from shock impact. My success so far has also encouraged two of my friends to try the boots (luckily I had some spare ones, because I once ordered the wrong size!) so now there are three of us giving the Epics a go!
Thank you EasyCare for making something so user friendly that you don't have to be qualified to operate it, and for helping me to keep my horse happy and protected whilst doing something we love! I can't wait to finally wear out these boots (which I think is going to take a long time) so that we can maybe upgrade to the Bares. but then again, if you have a good thing, why not stick to it!!
Jeanette Norman,
photographer: Lachlan Murrary
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