I HATE gloves, but my trainer convinced me to try some Neumann's. LOVE them. I'm assuming you're in an indoor, ours is kept at about 5C in the winter, and my hands are just fine. They are a tacky glove, and have lots of grip.
Cold hands are really an issue for me too. Technology has provided me with warm legs, warm feet, warm head/ears, and a warm torso, but so far the only things which I've found help my cold hands are:
1. Radiant heaters in my grooming/tacking area, so that at the least I start with warm hands; and
2. Silk glove liners. I use silk sock liners too, when I'm teaching.
We don't have many heated arenas in BC (unlike you lucky folks in AB), so I'm always on the lookout for clothing which works!
I have bad circulation problems in my hands and it can be VERY difficult to keep them warm in the winter - I work with horses too so it's not exactly a good condition to have when you're outside 10 hours a day :( I hate riding in gloves but I don't have a choice, because without them I would be in a lot of pain. I currently use a pair of Sealskinz riding gloves which are fairly bulky unfortunately but pretty much the only ones that work.
Hey, Joosie: I have Raynaud's Syndrome, so I understand circulation problems in extremeties.
I have found that taking fish oil capsules has helped a lot - instead of having issues with Raynaud's every day, I might only have an episode once per month, and sometimes even once every couple of months. My optometrist suggested the fish oil for dry eyes - it hasn't done a thing for the eyes, but it's been truly wonderful for the Raynaud's.
Additionally, a friend of mine bought me Roeckel Polartec gloves for Christmas. They actually fit, I can groom and do up bridle buckles etc. with them on, and they're warm to -5!
I have been using quading gloves lately, because of the padding on the inner hand, they are warm, and are canvas so they are easy to wash and dry. Another brand, which I think you described, was SSG rubber dot gloves, I find them ok for light work in the fall and spring.
-- Edited by Barrelracer106 on Wednesday 15th of February 2012 11:28:18 PM
I live in Northern Ontario, where it can get really cold. Thankfully the barn is heated to apprx. 5 to 8 degrees above (celcius). I am very lucky to board where there is an indoor - it is not heated ... I'm just glad to have a sheltered place with good footing to ride in, in the winter. As far north as we are, winter lasts a long time! In the winter I use either gloves or mittens while riding, whichever I can stay warm in, regardless of arena riding or riding trail. We all tend to ride on a looser rein and rely on our seat and legs more in the winter, and 'finesse' things in better weather. Up where I am, a heated barn with box stalls and an indoor arena is a luxury, not standard. I only wish my big worry was what kind of gloves to wear ... I usually have to figure out whether or not to wear ski pants, which coat, which boots ... how hard I can safely work my horse in the cold and be able to cool him out nicely ...
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