[RC] ThinLine and Back On Track - Ultimate Saddle Pad - Oh Really? - Richard Sacks
Gee Steph, I wish you had been so helpful when I introduced the EquiPedic pad
six years ago. I had to laugh when I read this post this morning. Sure it is a
press release, but coming from you it takes more of a level of endorsement.
"Undeniably the most technically advanced saddle pad available in the world", I
don’t think so. A poor copy of an existing pad that has superior technology, oh
yes. Both of the technologies used in the ThinLine and Back On track products
are over 20 and 40 years old respectively. The ThinLine product uses a material
called ImPlus that was developed for the foot bed industry (insoles). It
competes against materials called Poron and Isoloss LS. None of these products
are very breatheable. Yes, they do breathe in some sense of the word but they
closer to neoprene (which doesn’t breathe) in their ability to breathe than to
the foams that are used in the EquiPedic, Skito, and Toklat pads. Additionally,
the impact reduction capabilities of these foams is significantly less than
those used in the EquiPedic, Skito and Toklat pads. We had a study done on the
breathability of different pads. (http://www.equipedic.com/Breathe_Ability_Comparisons.htm).
Our latest formulation of our foam inserts have dual peak temperature range
(stays firmer when hot and softer when cold) and has 579% less resistance to air
flow than the ThinLine product.
Back On Track uses a "technology" called FAR infared. This process has been
around for at least 40 years and has not been scientifically proven. What it
does is reflect light waves is specific segment of the light spectrum. The
spectrum of light it allows to pass through creates heat. Yes, it is similar to
the lights used to keep food warm in fast food restaurants. Yes, it will
increase blood circulation in the same way that you see bubbles in boiling
water.
The EquiPedic pad has been using Celliant (HoloFiber) technology (our
EquiCharge feature) for six years. This technology is not to be confused with
FAR Infared. It does not create heat. It has been scientifically tested
in major university studies and been proven to increase blood flow and
oxygenation by as much as 30%. These studies have been conducted at Chicago
Loyalo Medical, Texas A&M, and most recently at UC Irvine. The most recent
study also found that Celliant (HoloFiber) reduced pain two fold when compared
to placebos.
So what does all this mean to a horse? Horses perform self thermo regulation
by two means, piloerection and evaporative cooling. Piloerection involves the
raising and lowering of the hair on their bodies to trap and release air as a
means to control insulation. If lowering the hair is insufficient to release
enough heat, sweat glands kick in to allow for evaporative cooling. All
endurance riders know how important this is. If a pad impedes air flow, it
impedes the horse’s ability to self thermo regulate their bodies. Certainly, one
doesn’t want something on their horse’s back that is continually generating heat
during an endurance ride.
I know it is an election year and many things get said that are not exactly
the truth. Maybe Ride Camp needs fact checkers like we see when it comes to
campaign promises.
