Goodsmith - The Solution for Eventing Riders

Since last year I have been competing in eventing with my 12-year-old Holsteiner mare.

At the front she has long worn irons; at the back she is barefoot. Since my horse lives in the open stable, she is unfortunately not allowed to wear irons at the back, which would unfortunately be necessary for fitting studs.

In everyday use (and therefore in winter, when no tournaments are held) she basically does not need any hoof protection. Duplos unfortunately could not be sufficiently adapted to her hoof shape. Accordingly, the Goodsmith was particularly attractive to us.

In winter I can do without the hoof protection; in summer I can fit it at the back and – with self-fitted stud threads – screw in studs as needed.

The adjustment including fitting the threads unfortunately took a very long time – but this may also be because my dad and I are not experienced hoof care professionals and tried this ourselves for the first time and wanted to work very neatly. The application itself, however, went super quickly and uncomplicatedly.

The horse runs very willingly and surefootedly with the Goodsmith. On normal terrain as well as on hard ground without studs, it held well and was not slippery. Even in eventing on muddy ground with studs, everything worked wonderfully and my mare finally no longer slipped.

So far, I am very satisfied with the Goodsmith.

Since I can apply it myself, I have maximum flexibility with regard to my eventing tournaments.

In winter, I can easily leave the hoof protection off at the back again, since there are no nail holes. The Goodsmith does not disturb at all in normal use, and after fitting studs gives my mare a great deal of confidence in the field that she did not have before.

I have already been approached several times about what a great alternative the Goodsmith is – above all for horses that are kept in the open stable.

I am very curious to see how the Goodsmith fares under this enormous strain. Since I otherwise have absolutely no other alternative and it has so far done its job absolutely satisfactorily, I am very confident.

Photo: Allegra Eggersdorfer