About Essentially, Drafts

Like David Copperfield, I was born. About two minutes later, I asked for a pony.

That was the theme of the next decade. I got my first horse at 11, then life happened, as it does, and horses waited 25 years.

The way back was unexpected. My youngest daughter needed volunteer hours for graduation, so we found a well-known draft rescue, and I fell into the draft world face-first. A few years later, we adopted our first two senior drafts: Sophie Valland and Helene Dumon. Both came out of the Amish auction pipeline with physical and behavioral challenges, and I’m forever grateful to the team who helped us through them.

Sophie, a Percheron/Standardbred cross, had that gloriously triangular head. Halters that fit her forehead swam on her nose. Helene was a 17.3 Belgian, and nothing fit, period. Like so many people in the draft Facebook groups, we bought and resold tack among ourselves and frankensteined the rest.

Sophie and Helene were laid to rest in fall 2025. They are deeply missed.

Then came Freda Benning.

My “In Search Of” post said north of 16 hands. Freda is north. She’s so north she’s near Utqiaġvik. She’s 19 hands. She arrived the last week of January, right into a Polar Vortex. I had Helene’s old 88 blanket and was sure it would fit. Oh, sweet summer child. I found a 90; she needed a 96. We frankensteined it and I kept promising her it would get better.

It didn’t.

Bits, bridles, blankets: it either didn’t fit, wasn’t in stock, or wasn’t good enough to put on her. Driving home one day, I joked to that same daughter that I’d just have to do it myself. She said, “You could.” I filed the LLC a few days later and started calling vendors.

Today, Essentially, Drafts works with ThinLine, Dressage Sport Boots, CorrectConnect, Kensington, Agador’s, Ovation, Perri’s Leather, Tough1, HayChix, and Triple E to bring draft owners tack that’s actually made for their horses. Drafts and draft crosses deserve gear that looks and feels as good as what lighter horses get, and their owners deserve a store where a big horse is the norm, not the exception.