Kim believes she is a convincing model for western clothing because she has road-tested it in all kinds
of weather and can personally testify as to the practical reasons for wearing it.
Here are Kim’s evaluations of her favorite western clothing:

It's true, there really is nothing better for keeping the sun and rain off your head than a cowboy hat. The brim does a great job of casting shade around your face, and if you have a waterproof hat or cover for it, the rain slides down the brim and falls off well in front of you.

The drawbacks: Reality is, cowboy hats are hard to keep on your head! If they blow off while training a horse,they can spook the horse, which is really dangerous. Until my last year of training horses in California, I rarely wore a cowboy hat. I almost always wore a favorite baseball cap (and it was waterproof).

Yes, I know some dude hats come with strings. I would not be caught dead training a horse while wearing a hat with a string... or anything else tied around my neck that could get caught and choke me to death if the horse spooked or bucked.

Cowboy hats can also be knocked off easily if a horse swings his head and hits your hat, or you can swing your arm and knock it off yourself. (You can also bash it against your car door while getting in and out, as I have stupidly done several times.)

Their shape can spook any horse who isn't used to them, so I am always careful about approaching a strange horse while wearing one. It's one thing to wear a cowboy hat in a horse-show or rodeo, where nearly all the horses are used to them and you're riding a familiar horse. But going house-to-house training strange horses as I did (see the Cowgirl Image Website banner), was a different story.

The last year I trained horses full-time, I wore my cowboy hat every single time I trained a horse. Halter-Breaking, Saddle-Breaking, Jumping, Dressage -- I wore the hat. It made training difficult, because the more a horse acted-up, the more I had to remember to make sure my hat didn't blow off -- so I was distracted from the horse, which was dangerous.

But it was a good test of how effective a horse-trainer I was -- even while distracted by the hat, I still got through my horse-training sessions safely and made progress with the horses. Bottom line is... wear clothing and use equipment that is safe and practical while training horses. Save the flashy stuff for showing off.

Jeans are made of tough material. They rub against leather, get covered in dust and mud, get rained on, and still look fairly presentable after a good washing. They also last a while, depending on their quality and use.

I personally like boot-cut jeans, when I'm riding a horse and wearing cowboy boots but not chaps.

When I'm wearing chaps or half-chaps, I like an ankle-hugging jean-cut, so I can tuck them into my boots and zip my chaps without extra fabric getting in the way.

I love chaps! They are extremely practical. They save lots of money because you don't wear-out your jeans or boots as fast. They protect your legs from trees and brush. They keep your legs pretty dry when you're riding in rain. They keep your jeans clean.

The downside is that they are harder to walk in, and make it more difficult to mount and dismount. If they have fringes, they can scare any horse not used to them. And they are hot! Wearing them in 100+*F weather is not fun.

Half-Chaps are a good alternative when you just want to protect your calf area, or keep your boots clean (my #1 reason). Horses don't notice them - they accept them as part of your boot. You can easily mount and dismount while wearing them.

The main downside of half-chaps is that you must buckle your spurs over the top of them, which is rather annoying and requires a bit larger spur-strap. But hey, nothing's perfect.

It's impossible for me to pay enough tribute to the virtues of cowboy boots. They are made of leather, so if a horse steps on your foot, you have a modicum of protection. They protect your feet and calves from trees and brush and snags. They have a good heel, which helps keep your foot from sliding through a stirrup. (A horrible thought!) And a tall heel gives you added height and straightens your leg, making it easier to mount and dismount.

I use rubber boot covers over my boots when it's muddy or raining -- they keep my feet dry, and my boots clean and well-preserved.

The downside is that cowboy boots have no tread on their soles, so are slippery. They are hot -- your feet can't breathe, especially with tall boots.

I do prefer the tall boots, as they protect more of my jeans and calf-area. They don't pinch my calves either while I'm riding, as do mid-calf boots.

My boots also have a high, narrow heel, which is uncomfortable to walk in -- and makes it tricky to maneuver around quickly when a horse has me on the run!

That said, I prefer the tall heel. I can really dig into the ground when a horse is pulling on me while halter-breaking or longing it. And if all else fails (and sometimes it does), the heel doubles as a ski when the horse drags me around.

I don't think I could train horses without spurs.

Horses are 1,000 lb. animals, and they just don't respond to a thump from a boot heel!

A spur gets a better and more instant reaction from a horse, which makes for less need to use a kick. Without spurs, I might thump a horse with a boot heel 10 times - and still won't get the response I get from one or two digs with a spur.

Theoretically, as the horse becomes more responsive to the spur, there is less need to use it... However, in reality this is not always so. A slow-blooded horse will always need spurs to help him stay motivated and pick his body up. A high-strung horse will never need as much external motivation.

Of course, like anything, spurs should be used with wisdom and care. Some horses become upset by them if they are not introduced gently, and I would not recommend a novice rider use them without knowledgeable help.

That said, I am not a novice rider, and I have not yet trained the horse who didn't need or benefit from my use of spurs.

Only when saddle-breaking a horse do I forgo them; but I usually work the horse into spurs fairly quickly. Not only is it beneficial to the horse to become used to them, but most horses need them - some after only a few rides!

Of course, spurs vary in the size of the rowel, and some have no rowel at all. The spurs pictured here are fairly good sized, and used for the lazier horses. I usually use blunt, no-rowel spurs on horses that are only green-broke.

For more information about Kim's Horse-Training technique, visit her Cowgirl Image website: