Competition equipment for horse and rider
All the competition documents are prepared, the competition has been chosen, you are working intensively with your horse to get the season off to a successful start. But apart from the technical skills of you and your horse, a well-groomed and harmonious appearance of the horse-rider pair is also important to the judges. Here, we will help you to put together the perfect competition outfit for you and your horse.
In addition, we will provide you with helpful tips from our riding experts on how to keep your white competition breeches clean until you enter the arena and what easy measures you can use to give your horse’s coat a shiny finish. To make sure you don’t forget anything, we have provided a horse competition checklist for you to download for free and you will also find a „How To“ for the best and quickest competition plaits.
Rider’s Competition Equipment
Across disciplines – tips for a successful competition outfit
Regardless of the discipline or performance level, horse shows are surrounded with a very special atmosphere. There is something solemn and official about it – accordingly, you should also radiate this with your competition outfit.
What you should definitely keep in mind:
- Be sure to check the requirements for your competition or test. While there are fewer requirements for the rider’s clothing at unaffiliated competitions, you have to take a closer look at affiliated competitions, as the rules can differ depending on the class.
- In any case, the chosen competition clothing must be clean and intact.
- Don’t overdo it: unless you are taking part in a Western showmanship competition, you should hold back on glitter, colours and accessories – in many disciplines, black and white is still the classic colour scheme.
- Make sure that you and your horse look coherent. Muted colours should also prevail for the horse’s competition outfit.
- The competition outfit is not everything: even if a well-groomed appearance is appreciated by the judges, the performance you achieve with your horse is essential.
In our overview you will find the requirements for the individual disciplines. Please note that this is a general overview that may vary depending on the event, class and individual circumstances:
Neat appearance at the competition
First of all, the clothing should be clean and meet the minimum requirements of the corresponding class. Of course, you can also enhance your outfit individually; in our range you will find competition clothing with real eye-catchers such as Swarovski elements or elaborate embroidery.
If you wear your hair long, you should put it up with a hair net. You should avoid flashy jewellery as much as possible – also for safety reasons. Discreet stud earrings are of course allowed.
competition eye-catchers
Felix Bühler Riding Gloves Lace
from £14.90
Felix Bühler Functional Competition Shirt Jule
from £16.90
KNIGHTSBRIDGE Riding Hat X-Cellence Jewellery Silver
£104.00
Felix Bühler Competition Saddle Pad Numbers
£39.90
Felix Bühler Belt Alkeste
£14.90
Felix Bühler Stock Tie Carola
£32.90
Felix Bühler Knee Socks Glitter
£4.99
KNIGHTSBRIDGE Riding Hat X-Cellence Sparkle
£84.90
Felix Bühler Riding Gloves Grand Prix II
from £12.90
Kramer Bridle Number Crystal
£6.99
CLARIDGE HOUSE Cavesson Bridle Vienna Soft
from £69.90
Please make sure to find out before the competition which aids are allowed for the respective competition. In particular, the use of spurs and riding crops are sometimes subject to precise regulations regarding their shape or length. SHOWMASTER Pet Hair Remover
£6.99
SHOWMASTER Small Cleaning Brush
£1.99
Bama Instant Shine Sponge
£4.99
Kramer Hook and Loop Fastener Cleaning Brush
£5.99
SHOWMASTER Skin Care Wipes
£9.99
As a partner in a competition, your horse should of course be cared for and equipped appropriately for the occasion. First and foremost, the following things should be ensured for your horse at competitions: The special occasion of a horse competition requires special grooming measures with regards to your horse. While the daily routine is often limited to hoof care and grooming, most competition participants bring out the big guns a few days before the competition. They shampoo, comb and plait for all they’re worth in order to be able to present a well-groomed horse to the judges. We present tips on how to get the best out of your horse with appropriate grooming products. It is a special challenge to get a grey horse clean for the competition. When washing, choose a whitening shampoo to reliably remove stubborn grass and manure stains. For acute cases at the last minute, there are also stain removers from many manufacturers that can be used without water and make your grey horse gleaming white again! If you use coat shine spray, please take care not to spray the saddle area with it. This could cause the saddle to slip. SHOWMASTER Teddy Fleece Grooming Mitt
£7.99
SHOWMASTER Whitening Shampoo Glamorous White
£9.99
SHOWMASTER Natural Power Horse Care Soap
£9.99
SHOWMASTER by HAAS Brush Bella Diva
£19.90
STONEDEEK Sleazy
from £23.90
SHOWMASTER Hoof Grease
from £7.99
SHOWMASTER Hoof Grease Set Maya
£3.99
SHOWMASTER Sponge Body Brush
£9.99
Effol SuperStar-Shine
from £15.95
SHOWMASTER Leather Care Quick Cleaner
£8.99
SHOWMASTER Leather Care Sponge
£0.99
Plaiting is not rocket science, even if it seems that way due to the multitude of variations. Are you plaiting your horse for the first time? We’ll show you step by step how to create beautiful classic show plaits. To make sure that it goes quickly on the day of the competition, you should practise plaiting a few days beforehand. If the mane is very thick and/or long, you should shorten the mane a bit and/or thin it out with a mane thinning knife or a pair of thinning scissors. Mane spray and shampoo have ingredients that make the long hair look particularly soft and supple. However, a good grip and structure of the hair makes the plaits more durable and stable when they are plaited. Therefore, it is best to avoid using mane spray a few days before the competition and wash the long hair early and not directly the day before. What you need for plaiting: Step 1: Brush the mane properly, separate it evenly into individual sections and tie them in place with a mane plaiting band. Remember: The wider the sections of hair, the larger the plaits will be. Many small ones or a few big ones? Short necks look longer when many small plaits are plaited. A long neck, on the other hand, looks shorter with a few large plaits. Step 2: Plait the individual sections of hair from top to bottom, keeping tension on the plait so that the plaits are tight. This will make them last longer. When you reach the bottom, secure the plait with a mane plaiting band. Knob or flat plaits? If you prefer knob plaits, you should tie another mane elastic band very close to the base before plaiting. In our example, the plaits fall to the side of the mane. Step 3: In the last step, fold the end of the plait inwards once and fix another mane plaiting band with a twist. Hold the rest of the elastic with one hand and roll the rest of the braid up towards the neck. When you reach the crest of the mane, secure the competition plait with the rest of the elastic plaiting band you have in your hand. SHOWMASTER Plaiting Helper
£0.99
SHOWMASTER Wide Mane Plaiting Bands
£2.99
SHOWMASTER Mane Plaiting Bands Box
£5.99
SHOWMASTER Plaiting Thread
£2.99
Kramer Fancy Mane Bows
£3.99
SHOWMASTER Mane Comb
£1.49
SHOWMASTER Mane Scissors
£4.99
SHOWMASTER Pearl Curlies
£5.99
SHOWMASTER Mane Thinning Knife
£6.99
SHOWMASTER Mane and Tail Brush Maya
£5.99
SHOWMASTER Mane & Tail Brush
£1.99
The basic principle of good competition equipment for your horse is that the fit is correct and that the components have all been tested over a longer period of time so that horse and rider get along well with the equipment. However, not all equipment is approved for competitions. Especially for affiliated competitions, there are strict rules about which accessories are allowed in which competitions and how they are to be used. Check with the organizer of your unaffiliated or affiliated competition whether the equipment of your horse can be used for the test of your choice. As soon as you have made sure that your horse’s equipment is also competition-compatible, you should give the equipment a thorough check-up a few days before the competition. Is the leather of the bridle, stirrup leathers & etc. intact? Does the saddle pad need to be cleaned again? Do the Velcro fasteners on the boots still stick reliably? Take enough time to care for your leather equipment. In our care guide we also give you valuable tips on how to get your saddle pad and leg protection properly clean again!
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£24.90
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£24.90
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£24.90
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£99.90
Other aids for your horse competition
Competition outfit hacks from our riding experts
for a shiny finish
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Competition equipment for the horse
Grooming for the horse competition – horse care at full speed
A few days before the start of the competition:
Whitening care before the competition
Attention when using coat shine sprays
The day before the competition:
On the day of the competition:
Must-Haves for competition care
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£34.90
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Competition plaits – How To
Do not use mane spray for plaiting competition plaits!
competition plaits on fleek
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Competition equipment for your horse
