AQHA Magazine January / February 2019 AQHA March / April 2019 | Page 13

BUSTING THE MYTHS
Hooves – polish of any sort is not
allowed, in fact you will be disqual-
ified. Avoid using anything on your
horse’s hooves that could be deemed
as polish – that includes clear.
Trimming – although it is not
against the rules to trim inside your
horse’s ears, it is discouraged. Trim-
ming of the bridle path, long facial
hairs and fetlocks is allowed. You will
not be discriminated against if you
do not trim any of your horse’s long
hair.
Manes and Tails – a cowboy
would never put a false tail on his
horse, nor would he band his horse’s
mane. Manes can be long, short or
hogged off, but cannot have any form
of bands, braids etc, and no false
tails are allowed.
Silver on equipment – many
will argue this one, especially based
on the original American cowboys –
those in the east did not use silver,
but the cowboys in California sure
did. Whilst silver on your tack is
discouraged under our rules, having
silver on your saddle and bridle is al-
lowed. A clean, neat, well fitting sad-
dle and bridle is all that is required.
Breast Collar / Back Cinch –
Neither are compulsory. I once had
a visiting judge from the USA say
if you’re wearing a back cinch you
better have a breast collar. Not a
rule, but it gives the appearance of
a horse about to go to hard work. If
you choose to add these accessories
make sure you have them fitted
properly.
A plain bridle is perfect for Ranch classes.
The purpose of the breast collar is
to prevent the saddle from slipping
backwards. Collars are an impor-
tant accessory for activities that
include climbing steep terrain, and
fast starts such as roping and speed
competition.
The back, or flank cinch is a safe-
ty piece that stabilises the saddle
by attaching with the aid of rear
billets and a leather hobble strap
to the front cinch. The back cinch
holds your saddle snug and level
to your horse’s barrel, alleviating
pressure to his withers so that the
saddle doesn’t shift forward during
maneuvres. Because it’s unlikely
your saddle will shift in certain show
events, such as Western Pleasure or
Horsemanship. A back cinch isn’t
commonplace in these classes. But
for hilly trail riding, cattle and speed
events, reining, and other activities,
some riders consider a back cinch is
a must.
The back cinch is meant to fit snugly
against your horse’s belly, not hang
Navigating the Trail bridge
March • April • 2019 • The Australian Quarter Horse Magazine • 13