aaaand we’re back to our normal routine of The Sunday Review every other Sunday. Today I want to review a different type of product. I learned about this product in July while we were camping and wanted a chance to use it a few times before I made my final opinions.

This week we’re not discussing a physical item but an app for your phone. I’m talking about Equilab.

OVERVIEW:

Equilab is a mobile app that is downloadable for both android and apple phones. I use it on my Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus. It’s main system is completely free and let me say…I am FLOORED by what this app can do!

The Equilab app not only tracks the steps of your ride but can tell you what speed you’re going, your transitions, your distance, tempo, elevation gain. You can tell the app which horse you’re riding, the weather information, and how you and the horse feel that day.

Equilab makes use of the accelerometer and gyroscopes in your phone to estimate your gait, speed, etc. It knows when you’re climbing, it knows your transitions, it knows when you’re turning.

In fact, let’s take a look at our most recent hunter pace (The Pace That’s Out to Get Me) at Landsmankill Trail Association. The pace was about 8.4 miles long. Equilab allows us to look at the pain view or the Google Earth view and tells us how many miles we traveled at walk, troy, and canter (and the average speed).

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PROS:

• It’s super cool to have the birdseye view of your ride
• The app doesn’t require any external devices…just what’s on your phone
• Surprisingly accurate
• You can view your progress but you can also look at each individual horse’s progress
• Useful in developing better conditioning and fitness
• Can share horses with other riders
• Can connect and share your location with others as a safety feature
• You can start and end tracking before or after your ride and then go back into the app to tell it the ACTUAL times of your ride and it will adjust accordingly.
• The free version offers many great and useful features

CONS

• It might look boring from a bird’s eye view if you’re always in the ring
• You need to make sure your phone is on you
• Can drain your battery, not a great idea if you’re trail riding in the middle of nowhere

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Tips/Fun Facts:

• This app can be used to capture Tolt if you tell it you are riding an Icelandic Horse
• If you ride alone often become a premium member to allow location sharing in case you fall and get hurt during a ride.

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Alternatives:

• EquiTrail
• Horse Riding Tracker
• My Tracks – Google

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Final Word:

Equilab was first introduced to me this year when we got more serious about trail riding and camping. I was amazed at how you can track speeds and geographical data. I was excited all summer for hunter pace season to begin so I could put the app to the test. I haven’t used the premium content but the free app is worth the download. I have trainings logged for both Nahe and for Tiger and under my personal riding I can view all of the rides on both horses.

I like using the app to get an idea for how our fitness and conditioning is coming along. I might think we did a long ride but in fact we might only do 3 miles. Other days might feel great but we covered 6 or 7 miles. It’s so easy to forget how a ride was from day to day but the app will remember the facts for you. It will tell you exactly what you’ve done and how you felt about that ride. That way you have a more solid foundation to build upon.

If you ride alone or on trails often it might be a good idea to try the premium version. You never know when something happens to you and your friends/family will be happy to know that you’re safe.