Crops and whips

Wondering where to get a really good whip or crop?  One that's gonna last?  My little helpful info for the day here!<br /><br />The horse tack shop silly!  And yes, there's probably one in your town.  Heck they're in Manhattan, so don't think you're too urban for a tack shop.  And that's the one place on the planet you can buy a whip and nobody will bat an eye at you as you test them out in the store.  <br /><br />These are real whips and crops, made to last a really long time.  The craftsmanship is better than you'd probably see at a "toy store."  The materials stand up to sweat and all the things we spray on the horses' coats to make them shiny and to keep flies away.<br /><br />I've been riding/training/showing horses forever, professionally for many of those years.  So I've got an extensive collection of whips :-)  I replace them because I lose them.  Or they grow feet and end up in somebody else's tack box.  I think I've only had a handful actually fall apart.  That's usually from leaving it outside in the weather for more than a day or two.<br /><br />A crop is medium length and usually has nice springiness.  If it has a wide slapper on the end, it's a slappy springy whack.  If it's a narrow slapper, it's stiffer without the slap factor.  The ones that have a string or cord instead of a leather slapper are usually very stiff, like a narrow rod... or what I picture a cane to be like maybe?  So the wider the slappers tend to be more springy.  And they feel the best ;-) <br /><br />A bat is a short crop.  They are very stiff with no spring.  I don't like them for horses.  It takes a lot of swing and then it's just a thud.  Not useful for a horse unless you're a little pipsqueak of a kid that can't handle a crop.  Perhaps useful for people though!<br /><br />A whip is nearly always springy.  But there's different kids of whips so be careful.  You want a dressage whip.  They are meant to flick the horse anywhere along their length.  They're wonderfully whippy sounding too!  They will have a cord popper on the end.  The longer the whip, the springier it'll usually be.  <br /><br />Watch out for long driving whips and longe (sometimes spelled lunge) whips.  They are both designed to be used only at the end.  The length of the whip is not designed to handle a strike.  It is fiberglass inside.  When it breaks, the fiberglass becomes fine little splinters that embed deeply.  They're itchy and painful at the same time.  Now these whips could be great fun for dramatic displays and sounds, just be very careful not to use the body of it on a body.<br /><br />You might see a fly whisk, similar to a flogger.  Don't think this will do you any good.  They won't hold up to much of anything fun.  Also they're made out of itchy horse hair.  There are some events at certain horse shows that require adherence to strict traditional foxhunting attire.  The whisk is a piece to complete that need.  They were used long ago, before they invented great fly repellants, and used to whisk the flies off the horse's body.  <br /><br />So how do I know about all this?  Well us horsey girls tended to beat the snot out of each other.  Not so much now, but the younger girls do.  And it happened way before my time too, I'm sure.  So I've gotten it all, both clothed and on bare skin.  <br /><br /><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Roma-Rainbow-Glitter-Stick-Purple/dp/B001Z541KO" target="_blank">This one</a></b> is my favorite.   I like purple and they're sparkly.  I've got a few of them in the barn and one in my bedroom ;-)  Hubby only humored me once and it was amazing.  It still sits there in case he comes around again lol.<br /><br />And I just feel obligated to say that no good horse person beats their horse.  Whips and crops are used as communication tools.  It is nearly always a single flick or two that doesn't register as painful to them.  A 1200 lb animal can handle a lot more whack than a person, and they're not receiving anywhere near the intensity or quantity that y'all are.

Crops and whips

Wondering where to get a really good whip or crop?  One that's gonna last?  My little helpful info for the day here! The horse tack shop...

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