Justriding.com announced that despite a slight downtrend in the market in 2017 we will continue to support many brand ambassadors and sponsored riders from the United Kingdom, Ireland, Poland, Hong Kong and Germany. However, we will sadly be saying goodbye for now to some who have been involved in our journey for quite a while. Our thanks to these few have been extended privately and we wish them all the success in the world with their riding and their horses in the future.
2017 has been a tough year with many suppliers sticking hard to wholesale prices and some increasing prices and tightening terms, shows & exhibitions where we sell our products no longer offer any concessions for long term or high value clients. Combine this climate with customer expectations for discounts and altogether better deals on premium equestrian clothing & equipment growing year after year the math is easy to figure out, it equates to challenging financial times.
In 2017 Just Riding invested in a brand new website which is focused more around the shopping experience for the customer, we employed 3 new full time staff members and an all new state of the art customer service system which supports our new trading policies. We also expanded our in house stock by 100% from the year before.
Justriding.com As we move into 2018 we want to shed some older lines through clearance and outlet sales and look to reinvest in one or two new key brands for the future, when I built I promised that I would bring the latest and very best of the equestrian world in terms of equipment and clothing to the masses, by traveling to all the major shows both in Europe and in the United States and that is what I have been doing.
I have some awesome brands in mind for you guys I have seen, touched and caught the bug for, and cant wait to settle the agreements with the suppliers and get them on the website for pre order and purchase.
In the meantime enjoy the massive discounts and sale on Animo Italia and Montar as well as reductions on a few ex display items from Dyon, eQuick and Kask.
This year we have launched the "Express Collection" this is a collection of products maintained in real time to ensure absolute availability for our customers.
It can be hard sometimes to ensure stock availability when you have 34 brands and over 60000 product variants. Every single product in the "Express Collection" is available right now! it will be dispatched within 24hrs.
This means that any product ordered from this collection is guaranteed to be received before Christmas if ordered before the 20th.
and as an added bonus if you order between now and 20th December we are offering special "festive shipping" of $20 on all products including sale products including Animo Breeches, Animo Show Coats, Equiline, Dy'on, Kask, KEP Italia and more.
Equestrians dodge the blood rule with the new Body Bandage (Spur Guard) from LOVE HORSES of Italy.
We have been selling the original body bandage (spur guard) for nearly two years, but have seen sales rocket in recent months. Interestingly coinciding with showjumping judges controversial decisions to disqualify both Bertram Allen and Scot Brash under the "Blood Rule" which states something like - any trace of blood found on the horse in this case the horses flank would warrant immediate disqualification.
The fact that the "trace" may have been almost invisible to the eye, matters none.. the rules as they say are the rules.
Equestrians are also starting to see the benefits of the body bandage for non competitive use, one of our customers recently reviewed stating that she liked it because she no longer wore the hair off her horses flank with her boot when she was riding.
Competitive equestrians at the highest level have adopted the body bandage and we have seem the likes of Edwina Tops-Alexander, Constant Van Paesschen, Emanuel Andrade, Faleh Suwead Al Ajami, E. Von Eckermann, N. V. Callerio, Gudrun Patteet and many more using the product in major tournaments in Europe.
Check out our video below which gives a little more information about the Body Bandage and how it is used.
We have SOLD OUT of all brown but we just taken stock of FULL and X FULL in Black.
You can order your right here below without even leaving the blog:
Just Riding is very proud once again to be supporting top international rider Jaroslaw Skrzyczynski (Jarek) with clothing and equipment.
Jarek claimed top prize's at the prestigious CSI3* Selesia Tour in Poland last week by winning the 150 Longines ranking on Saturday 22nd followed by the top prize 160 Grand Prix on Sunday.
Jarek is a highly respected athlete and absolute sporting hero in his country of Poland and we are delighted to be associated with him, our congratulations go to Jarek, his family and his team who have done an awesome job.
Jarek rode to both victories on Calevo 2 an 8 year old Oldenburg gelding owned by Dariusz Slupczynski.
Credit for photo: Swiat Koni
These victories follow an amazing performance last week Jarosław Skrzyczyński and Quintella won contest 145 cm during csi3* Knokke Hippique! and in the same contest he took 4th place on silver shine later taking 2nd place in the Grand Prix.
At Knokke Hippique Jarek demonstrated his world class skill and beat the worlds best riders including Christian Ahlmann and Ludger Beerbaum in the 160 Grand Prix event, and was only very unlucky to have a final fence down resulting in a 4 point penalty.
A great photo here above of Jarek and top international rider Ola Lusina. Both Jarek and Ola ride in Animo Italia.
Jarek chooses to ride in Animo Italia eQuick KASK Dy'on and Lorenzini provided by Just Riding
Ola chooses to ride in Animo Italia eQuick KASK and Lorenzini provided by Just Riding
- SPECIAL INTRODUCTORY OFFER AT THE END OF THIS ARTICLE -
This week I wanted to speak about HOCOR, Just Riding is well known for partnering with the worlds best brands and up until now we had only sold Global Medics supplements as we believe they were the best possible supplement available presently for your horse. Now there is a new kid in town, HOCOR and in our opinion these are shaping up to be a contender for the top spot.
In this short article I will begin to try to explain why your horses need HOCOR and why top riders are starting to turn to HOCOR for their horses nutritional needs because they can not match the content anywhere else.
Over the last 10 years your demand on your horse has increased exponentially, many supplements have changed but few have evolved.
Let us first introduce the line of 6 products that make up the entire HOCOR professional range. In this brief article I will speak about HOCOR Complete.
Available in 1.5kg and 3kg tubs (Also available in 10kg bags for professional yards)
We have 3 products within the "General Care" range:
Hocor Complete perfect for horses in light to medium workload
strengthens immunity
improves digestion
increases efficiency
regenerates sells
Hocor Performanceis ideal for sports horses that are under a lot of stress and physical exhaustion
contains antioxidants
restores mineral deficiencies
beneficial effect on nervous system
speeds up regeneration processes
Hocor Titaniumfor strong hooves and shiny coat
strengthens and nourishes hoof
supports regular growth
has an antimycotic effect
increases frog resistance
and 3 more in the "Expert Line" range.
Hocor Respiro+cough and allergy symptomatic treatment
protects horses from free radicals
easily digested
anti inflammatory effect
Hocor Regen+ Ideal for horses recovering after illnesses, operations as well as for those in poor condition
high concentration of Vitamin C and magnesium
immunity enhancer
restores mineral deficiencies
Hocor Digest+ for horses suffering from and prone to gastric ulcers
contains phytobiotics
antihepapatoxic properties
helps to stop bleeding
supports liver function and the healing processes
HOCOR are working with a UK based rider Claire O'Hara who is currently testing our products on her sport horses they and have just secured an agreement to supply products for the horses of Italian professional rider Alberto Violante seen here below:
If someone were to ask me, what's the difference between HOCOR and another typical off the shelf brand of supplement it would be almost impossible to verbally describe in terms of the gap between the two but I'll take a couple of examples below and give it a try:
Let's take a look at HOCOR Complete and compare it to an off the shelf brand which is also marketed as a "General Purpose" or "Complete" supplement / product for your horse.
HOCOR contains a very high quality protein which is extracted from a yeast called yarrowia lypolitica this is a patented product which is only found in two commercial products throughout the world.
The complex explanation which will be followed by a simple explanation is that Yarrowia lipolytica are dimorphic yeast forming cream-coloured, irregular colonies with numerous hyphae. They occur naturally in margarine, cereal plants, high-protein meat products, vegetables, frozen food and wine.
They belong to non-pathogenic microorganisms, and processes it participates in have the status of „Generally Recognised as Safe” (GRAS). Contrary to Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast processing simple sugars, this strain uses fats (vegetable fatty acids, including unsaturated acids) as a source of carbon and energy.
It is slightly confusing, but if you take your horses health seriously then it's worth hanging on.
Let me try to create a simple metaphor, imagine lake number 1 is a stunning crystal clear lake, the sunshine bounces off the shimmering surface. Now imagine lake number 2 a dark, nasty looking lake which actually looks more like swamp. Are you going to eat the fish caught in lake number 1 or the fish caught in lake number 2?
"the yeast from which HOCOR protein is extracted has a high biological value of 80%"
Due to its unique physiological and biochemical properties the strain offers a huge biotechnological potential.
Protein from that yeast is particularly valuable, because of high content of lysine. It is also characterised by good absorbability. Also the high phenylalanine, valine, tryptophan and isoleucin content is notable. Moreover, protein from Yarrowia lipolytica yeast has a high biological value of 80 %.
I had a look at the label of a typical off the shelf complete product, the protein content was listed at around 13%, HOCOR Complete has a protein content of at least 42% remembering that this is also a very high quality protein.
Lets talk about Amino Acids for horses
Speak to anyone who trains particularly athletes or body builders and they will tell you all about BCAA's (Branch Chain Amino Acids) and how critical they are.
The fact is horses just like humans need them! we need Amino Acids, they are the building blocks of protein.
Here is a little know fact for you:Essential amino acids cannot be made by the horse. As a result, they must come from food / diet. The 9 essential amino acids are: histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine,methionine, phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan, and valine.
I found this great video below which explains Amimo Acids for horses and also reiterates the importance of using a high quality protein.
Video Credited to: Forage First Nutrition FF19, ADM Alliance Nutrition and The Horse Show with Rick Lamb
"HOCOR Complete contains 16 Amino Acids"
We are still looking at HOCOR Complete as an example and an off the shelf popular branded general purpose or "complete" product. HOCOR has 16 Amino Acids while the other brand has 2, we have already learned that there are 9 essential Amino Acids which the horse can not make themselves, so where is your horse getting the other 7 essential Amino Acids from?
Sports Equestrians would not consider using an ill fitted saddle in competition or a bit that wasn't right for their horses mouth in fact when you think about the lengths of some forum threads created about which bit to use, the mind literally boggles equestrian can talk for months about that one subject and spend thousands on the "right" saddle. Yet when it comes to their horses nutrition many are happy to put cost before any other consideration which to me, quite frankly is utter madness. I rate what I put inside my horses above anything that I put on them.
HOCOR Complete (the product I have been speaking about in this brief article) is available to purchase from our store.
In the coming weeks I will be writing about the other products in the HOCOR range and how each one will benefit your horse and help you to achieve the results you want from your riding.
Remember whether you jump, event or dressage your horse is an athlete, he must be treated like one.
ORDER NOW AND RECEIVE A SECOND TUB HALF PRICE
OFFER ENDS 30/08/17
The views and opinions expressed on this web site are soley those of the original authors and other contributors. These views and opinions do not necessarily represent those of Just Riding, the justriding.com staff, and/or any/all contributors to this site.
Around 2 years ago we crossed paths with an amazing young lady called Evie Toombes, due to my connection with a boot manufacturer and working at the time as an agent for said company I was able to introduce her to the possibility of receiving some boots on a sponsorship basis, for some reason the deal just never quite came off and so we picked up the tab for the boots and remained in contact.
I am such a busy person clearing at least 60 emails per day is the norm for me and I rarely have time to look at anything specifically I usually just power glance at each mail and try to delegate the best I can, but Caroline's (Evie's mum) emails always stopped me in my tracks and left me considering just how great this young rider was and how fortunate I am to have my own health in good order.
Evie is struggling with what she writes about quite eloquently on her own blog, Lipomyelomeningocele which is a form of Spina Bifida. She did undergo surgeries to try to rectify the issues but has been left with challenges. You can find Evie Toombes blog here it is called "Find a way not an excuse" <<< we love that!!
Despite her condition Evie's passion for riding seems to win out over everything, I receive emails and photo's of Evie regularly on her horse competing up and down the country at various shows. Not intent on simply competing in small regional shows Evie has gone further and competed at Bolesworth, the national championships at Stoneleigh. Evie also won the grade III senior para showjumping at the National RDA Champs in Hartpury and was selected for training with Dame Emma Jane Brown. Her commitment to her sport of riding and accomplishments for a girl of just 15 are phenomenal.
I decided that we would offer Evie a place on our "team" as a brand ambassador from May 2017. We at Just Riding think that Evie is what the sport is all about, passion, commitment and lots of hard work! We are absolutely honoured that Evie accepted our offer and we are humbled to be a part of Caroline and Evie's world.
As part of our Brand Ambassadors deal Evie will be supported with discounted and sometimes cost price products as well as some products for free throughout the year.
We hope that the little we have to offer will help Evie with her riding and look forward to many years of collaboration. Currently Evie rides in Animo Italia, KEP Italia and Parlanti Passion.
I feel absolutely compelled to shine a spot light on KEP Italia's new E-Light range of helmets which they released recently. I think KEP may have secretly been working with NASA!
First I want to speak a little bit about KEP Italia. To be honest I could probably never run out of superlatives to describe KEP and what seems to be an endless search for perfection. While other helmet manufacturers produce perfectly nice and sometimes even stunning helmets, KEP produces memorable helmets, helmets that are unforgettable. For me their helmets are a bit like the Ferrari Enzo or the Lamborghini Diablo, while other car makers were making great cars Ferrari and Lamborghini were making unforgettable cars. Helmets that push the limits of what is possible. Their use of precious materials as far as I know is a first in the industry and the unique finish in doing so is omnipresent here in these exquisite models one with inlaid mother of pearl and the other with beautiful Lapis Lazuli. I believe these are the Diablo's and the Enzo's of the helmet world.
The KEP model above with inlaid mother of pearl will set the discerning rider back a cool €1,342.00 and the model adorned with Lapis Lazuli a meager €5,073.00!
Moving on to their latest contribution the E-LIGHT, does it satisfy? oh yes it does! Once again KEP Italia push the boundaries of possibility and produce a helmet that weighs just 396 grams whilst still meeting ALL global safety certifications. I mean seriously though! my conscience after a cheeky Friday night out is heavier than that!! The investment in research and development of this model is mind boggling I truly believe that passion must have ruled over profit when I look at models like the E-LIGHT. The entire cap of the E-LIGHT is 100% carbon fibre and is made using a process called autoclave, the process for each helmet is very long and complexspecialized artisans stratify the carbon fibers by hand to obtain phenomenal results in terms of quality and high mechanical strength. This is the same process that is used by the aerospace industry for example on the black hawk helicopter and UAV drones it is very, very high tech.
The Science Bit
In the production of composite aerospace and aircraft components, autoclave curing has traditionally been used to achieve the desired fiber content (resin-to-fiber ratio) and the absence of resin voids to produce light weight and strong components. Autoclave curing achieves this by placing the part under vacuum in an autoclave and then pressurizing the autoclave during the heated cure cycle. The high pressure on the part (within the pressurized autoclave) helps to minimize resin voids and to achieve the desired resin/fiber ratio.
Autoclaves are utilized where the highest of material performance standards are required such as a void content of less than 2% and high glass transition temperatures. Aerospace autoclaves normally operate from 120 to 230 degrees Celsius within a nitrogen environment at 7 bars of pressure. Liquid nitrogen is injected into the heated autoclave to create the internal pressure. Most common materials cured in an autoclave are advanced composites such as carbon fiber and epoxy resins. Curing cycles range from 90 minutes to 12 hours.
OK you made it through the science bit, well done :-) I want to go through each variant of the E-LIGHT as they are available in a few different trims, first the "NAKED" model has no inserts at all in order they say to better highlight the carbon fibre shell and natural lines. The helmet comes in either Shine or Matt finish.
Here she is below as naked as they day she was born:
KEP Shine E-LIGHT Naked - €772
and KEP Matt E-LIGHT Naked €830
Now if you prefer to add some ventilation assistance to the helmet you can opt for either 2 or 3 additional inserts and choose to have them in black, green orBordeaux, I have to say I looked at theBordeaux colour and immediately thought about the Qatar Equestrian team, they would compliment theirBordeauxjackets like wine & cheese. Having spoken to a few customers about the NAKED models and the models with inserts their opinions are split down the middle, some want the added inserts saying that they like the look of them and some stating that they prefer to increase air flow as much as possible. So it really is down to personal preference, I spoke to a customer who has ridden in a NAKED helmet and a helmet with inserts and she said that she could feel the difference in air flow in canter after riding for a while in heat.
Here below we have the NAKED Shine model plus 2 vents in black.
KEP Shine E-LIGHT 2 Inserts - €965
As you can see from the image here below the 2 inserts are mounted over the ventilation holes in the front and back of the helmet forcing air down into the holes when riding.
Finally we have the NAKED Shine with all 3 inserts also in black, 3 inserts is the maximum you can add to the helmet. This is very different to the NAKED helmet and the helmet with 2 inserts because KEP have added additional ventilation to the front grill on the helmet and overlaid the insert as pictured. This helmet is providing maximum ventilation to the head during riding, we think it also looks pretty cool. Having said that we are having internal turmoil at Just Riding because half the office love the NAKED helmet with no inserts and half love the model with all 3. So lets call it a tie.
Here below is a good representation of what the helmet looks like with either Green or Bordeaux inserts. We love that KEP also coloured the peak to match the inserts.
KEP Matt E-LIGHT Bordeaux - €1065
KEP Matt E-LIGHT Green 3 Inserts - €1130
KEP E-LIGHT models are made to order and take around 6 to 8 weeks to produce.
At the time of writing this article I have just two NAKED models in stock. One is in Matt and will fit sizes 55, 56 or 57 (US 6 7/8 US 7 US 7 1/8) and one is in Shine and will also fit size 55, 56 or 57.
Below are the products we have featured in this article which for your convenience can be purchased without leaving. Price below are not including VAT.
