Exclusive Interview with Stübben at Hickstead

 

As a collaboration, Stübben and Michael won the SPOGA Innovation Award 2023, which is a very prestigious prize for equestrian businesses. Having entered it multiple times with other brands and products, he acknowledged how hard it is to win but always wanted to enter again when creating the concept of this design and did so with the full support of Stübben. He had to present the Hybrid Tendon Boots to an expert panel of judges, from top riders to officials. He also states he is "very very thankful" to have won the award.

 

In hand, the boots felt very light and flexible. The thought process behind the Stübben Hybrid Tendon Boots was to combine the old style with the new school to take a step forward in horse welfare, comfort, and performance. The reason Michael pursued this design was due to how things had evolved with tendon boots, seeing the older leather or neoprene boots, which were comfortable for the horse and fitted well but lacked protection from impact., move to hard shell, injection moulded boots offer great levels of protection, however, the rigid structure can negatively impact the horse's performance and movement through pinching, slipping, or rubbing. Therefore, Michael created the best of both, "soft shell flexibility, hard shell impact protection"

 

 

 

After launching in 2018 with the Streamline Saddle Pad, the initial model of selling to end consumers directly was scuppered by Covid-19 and lockdown. At the same time, Stübben had a new, young, and hungry team wanting to drive the brand forward across the world with top-quality saddlery & equipment. Alongside Michael's desire to design and innovate equine products, a natural progression for both parties was to collaborate and give the equestrian market the best of both brands.

 

 

 

This was the first product designed by Michael when he launched Evolution Horse. The reason for creating this product was although saddle pads were progressing from a fashion aspect, they weren't developing from a technical point of view. as much. When assessing what the market needed, feedback provided by consumers on existing saddle pads was that they were fed up with their pads creasing, slipping back, and creating friction rubs. Overall, this was having a negative impact on a horse's comfort and performance. 

 

The Stübben Streamline Saddle Pad is different because it can be used with a velcro saddle component, made of a light and flexible TPV, that has arms to slide and secure in the gullet of the saddle. The saddle pad itself comes with a removable strip that reveals velcro, allowing the pad to be attached the to TPV saddle component, meaning airflow and comfort for your horse. However, you don't have to use this with the saddle component. The patented 3D spine system means you can also use it traditionally and still have a saddle pad that doesn't create friction and allows good airflow over the lumbar spine.

 

For optimum performance, you would use the saddle component with the saddle pad and have the push button D-ring fasteners secured to lock everything into position. The saddle pad is finished with a 3D mesh to ensure comfort and breathability, a velvet binding to stop friction, and PU over the wither to ensure the saddle pad holds its shape.

 

 

 

Stübben is in the process of releasing the new Hybrid Cross Country Boots, which launched in Kentucky recently and has again been very well received by the equestrian community. They've teamed up with a US company that has done extensive research into an impact response material to combat blunt force trauma. Keep an eye on the Stübben and Evolution Horse Facebook pages for more information as it comes. 

 

 

**This article is an indirect quotation of Horsemart's interview with Stübben to summarise the discussion and give our audience a better reading experience.**