When I began riding in the late 1960s the fashionable tall black riding boots were not so tall. You were lucky if they went most of the way up your calves. They were very baggy around the calf and had to be held up with a boot garter strap. The style was a dress boot.  That is the one with no lacing in the front of the instep.  Twenty years later, when I opened my own tack shop, Field boots had come into style. Some of the available brands are Ariat, Treadstone, Tuff rider, Elite, Ovation and Dublin.  I also had been wearing field boots for about ten years prior. Women’s and men’s field boots have a lace at the throat of the boot in front of your instep.  This allows your foot at to pass through the narrowest part of the boot to get into the foot with ease.  The laces are then tightened up for a custom fit.  By having the laces it enables riders who have high insteps or long heels to get into and out of a boot with less struggling.

Field boots are usually black and very tall against the back of the equestrian’s knee.  When I measure for custom field boots I add an additional 1¼” inches for drop.  The drop is when the boot settles at the ankle after it is broken in.  The drop is very important because, when English riders are in the correct equitation position their heels are below their toes in the stirrups.  By putting you heels down when riding you will pull the calf of the boot down your leg.  The boot will then appear to be to short. By adding the extra height in the shaft of the riding boot it will never appear short.

Another feature on a women’s field boot is the gusset in the top of the boot towards the inside of the leg.  It is a small piece of elastic sewn in to where the boot is split. The gusset allows the widest part of the women’s calf to pass through the top of the boot.  The top of the boot measurement is usually 1”-1½” smaller than the widest part of your calf.  The gusset works because it opens as the calf passes through and then closes when you pull all the way into the riding boot. It guard against stretching out the top of your boot with your calf muscle.  The other benefits of gussets are the ability to wear different weight breeches, and when you pull out of your boot it will open and not create a suction that makes them very difficult to get off. 

Design features of field boots are ribbed soles for grip in the stirrup and so you will not slip down trailer ramps, a punched toe design to make the boot look more stylish and zippers down the back, for ease of putting on and taking off.  All together a properly fitted field boot is one of the most import parts of your horse show attire.