Yep, more mini-reviews. It’s the only way to fit everything in without doing a review every day for a month. Just go with it.
Back on Track
I was a hold out on the Back on Track voodoo for a long time. It’s pricey, and I wasn’t blown away by the science enough to shell out that kind of dough. Then last fall we found some arthritis and remodeling in Henry’s hind ankles, so I figured “what the heck” and asked the SO for a pair of the Quick Wraps for Christmas.
I used those a few times and thought I noticed some difference (windpuffs were smaller, and he seemed a little more limber from the beginning of the ride) so when the Mesh Sheet showed up on TackDealz one day for $145, I couldn’t pass it up.
I started putting the sheet on before lessons, or in the trailer on the way to shows. Can’t be 100% certain that it did anything, but again he seemed more limber through his back and his hind end when he had worn it vs when he hadn’t.
Then I found myself needing a new dressage pad, and when Riding Warehouse had their Back on Track sale (I’m sensing a theme here) I decided to bite the bullet. I’ve only used the pad a few times, but Henry was good each time. Coincidence, yeah maybe. Tough to say.
All three products are really nicely constructed with good materials. I won’t let Henry wear the sheet unsupervised, just because I really don’t want him to destroy it, but it fits him well. I’m still not unequivocally sold on the idea of Back on Track being magical, but I’ve seen enough to believe that it can definitely help. If you get a good deal or come across a sale, or if you have an arthritic horse or one with a tight back, their stuff is definitely worth trying.
Ice Horse tendon wraps
I honestly had a hard time coming up with a lot to say about these. I feel very “meh”. Don’t love them, don’t hate them.
I only paid $35 for the pair, secondhand. I don’t love the design in general, I think the little strap meant to hold the ice packs in place is a pretty goofy. Also the gel in the ice packs tends to settle toward the bottom of the leg as it warms up, so there isn’t even coverage of the tendon.
No gel pack ice boot will ever be as good as ones that use real ice. Those are quite impractical for me though, so being able to toss these in the freezer or ice chest then pull them out and put them directly on the horse definitely has it’s advantages. They’re convenient.
I use them after hard gallops or XC schools and they seem sufficient enough for that. If my horse was doing harder gallops or higher level fences, I would want the cooling power of real ice. Overall, for what I paid I’m satisfied with them. If I’d paid the $100 retail price I probably wouldn’t be super thrilled.
Camelot contact anatomic girth
It’s much easier to come up with my feelings about this thing: it’s legit heinous.
The leather finish is pretty bad, it looks like it was dipped in colored plastic. The “leather” over the padding on the inside has the same yucky plastic look, except it looks thin and wrinkled and sad. Edges are cut unevenly and the stitching is crooked in spots. The color, which they call Oakbark, is kind of a sickly grayish brown and there’s no way that will change short of a deglaze and a re-dye. Honestly, I’m not even sure that would work.
To it’s credit, the elastic is thick and sturdy, the anatomic shape is good, it has 3 dee rings that are nylon reinforced, and it has roller buckles. Technically it has all the things a girth should have. So… yay?
Functionally it’s fine, if you can get past how it looks and feels and how questionable the workmanship is. I used it once and just couldn’t do it. It’s cheap, in every sense of the word. But good news – I have a 54″ I’ll sell you for $40.
breedrideevent.com 
I too was skeptical of the Back on Track products until my sheltie started having arthritis issues. I figured it wouldn’t hurt to give it a try and it worked! He has the mesh sheet and the heavier blanket. We call them his sleeping jackets. He gets so relaxed when he wears them and we’ve noticed a difference in his stiffness in the morning. The cat also loves sleeping on them if we don’t hang them up, she will go out of her way to get to it. Don’t know if that’s because of BOT’s magical properties or the lure of the forbidden 😉
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I have a love-meh relationship with BOT. When I had a more sensitive horse, the sheet did make a difference. With May? … I think she couldn’t care less either way. I think the material can help some horses, but it seems to be pretty individual. I always recommend that people in my barn try my sheet/quick wraps on their horse before buying their own. And of course, no majikal sheet or saddle pad is going to fix saddle fit issues.
They do look sharp though!
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I basically want all the BoT things. I don’t think it’s mysteriously magical. The stuff does what it says and I think the results I’ve had personally reflect that. There is enough science out there for me that documents the therapeutic effects of far infrared radiation that I’m willing to continue to invest in the BoT stuff.
The one piece of Camelot tack that I had was inexpensive, but the leather was papery and didn’t even absorb oil very well. I sold it for next to nothing and won’t buy that brand again.
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Ain’t no way that girth would take oil, it’s totally sealed with that icky painted-on looking color.
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Right? What animal did this leather even come from? I don’t actually want to know, but it’s weird leather for sure.
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I’ve heard a lot of good about the back on track stuff, but I’m just so skeptical… and cheap… SSTack has a different brand, same concept available that’s a little less expensive, but it’s bright-ass blue. I do have a pair of BOT no-bows that someone gave me, but honestly I forgot all about them until this post. Maybe I’ll have to give them another chance. Might help with Rio’s current bout of cellulitis.
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I just saw those yesterday. I wish they offered a few more products.
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I was also a long hold out on BoT products. Now I have more than I care to count! I really want their turn-out sheet.
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I have the Ice Horse tendon wraps (old style now, doesn’t have anything to hold ice in just slides in pockets) and the back pad. While I like the design of both, the ice packs themselves I’m less a fan of. When you get them they are nice and pliable and stay frozen for a long time, but after a while they become hard and then melt fast and slump. I also noticed that the instructions say not to leave them frozen? Seems like that ruins the point of them… I keep meaning to see if I can find some other packs that would fit in the pockets to buy but haven’t yet. Summer is coming though and Stamp will be needing his back iced…
BOT I haven’t figured out. I wear the socks myself and love them, they help immensely with lower leg cramps. I have the saddle pad but it has never appeared to do anything for stamp although I wonder if it’s because it’s not used in advance of work? I let our old dog sleep on the saddle pad for a while but never saw a difference there either but he had a lot of issues. I always feel tempted to try more but haven’t pulled the trigger. Wish I could just borrow from someone first.
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I was very skeptical of the BoT stuff, but I have an old back injury and I tried the back brace because basically I got to a point that I would try anything to loosen things up. I still believe it’s voodoo magic, but it helped my back immensely.
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I am still skeptical about the BOT magic – I got Suzie the BOT knee wraps for her arthritic knees and haven’t really noticed a shocking difference vs when she wears them and when she doesn’t. Altho, I haven’t had them that long to make a real judgement call either.
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I got the ice horse inserts and wrapped them to Cosmo’s front legs with polo wraps – not easy, and not pretty. I also found that the gel sunk to bottom as it warmed up, so it didn’t really work that great for me. Plus it was a pain to put on. I know the new design of the boots uses velcro to keep in the inserts in rather than a strap, so that is an improvement. I do like the soft texture when they are frozen, hubby now uses them to ice his knees after a long run, so money not totally wasted.
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I love the BOT products, I just wish I could still use them in FL in the summer without feeling like I’m going to overheat her.
I love the Ice Horse products, and judging by your description, I think you have the old version of the boots. The new boots don’t have the strange velcro strap around the ice, and the ice packs all velcro into the boot itself.
That being said, just a word of warning. The boots aren’t made to be put in the freezer with the ice packs still in the boots. Theres a membrane on the front of the ice packs that has to breathe, so they really should be taken out of the boot to go into the freezer, membrane side facing up. Also if yours aren’t freezing to snow, the packs are probably past their prime.
Camelot products are terrible. We had a saddle come back that had a nail sticking out through the gullet. No idea where the person was hammering it to, but it could have cut a horse on the back it was so low!
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I’ve been a BoT hock boot lover for a long long time- especially on cold days.
I like my sheet too and recently got the quick wraps.
Had a saddle pad and Henry HATED it ha!
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