Equicizer in Pop Culture

The Equicizer is not only a popular tool for everyday equestrians but it has also made it’s mark on Hollywood! It is possible you have seen the Equicizer “performing” on TV or in the movies before and never even realized it! Below are some of our favorite “Equicizer in Pop Culture” Moments!

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Seabiscuit

The 2009 film “Seabiscuit” was directed by Gary Ross and starred popular actors Tobey Maguire, Jeff Bridges, and Elizabeth Banks. The movie follows the famous story of a Depression-era racehorse whose story and victories captured the attention of the whole nation. What you might not know is that it also co-starred an Equicizer!

The Equicizer used for close-up shots in the movie was outfitted with a special Seabiscuit head complete with blinders. You can see the fuzzy ears of the Equicizer in the shot below where the director and Tobey are discussing a scene.

Tobey was amazed at the intense workout the Equicizer provided. He kept one at home while working on the movie in order to get in shape and continue to train. He said of the experience:

"I didn't realize what kind of athletes jockeys are. The first time I got up in the stirrups and did a bit of a gallop on the Equicizer, after a couple of minutes my legs were noodles. I could barely stand up."

– Tobey Maguire

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Fantasy Factory

Rob Dyrdek is a professional skateboarder, actor, and reality TV star. One of his best known projects is the reality TV show Fantasy Factory, which aired from 2009-2015 and featured Rob’s various attempts to manage both business and pleasure in one space.

One popular episode in Season 2 featured what they dubbed “Jockey Training”. Rob purchased an Equicizer to have in his Fantasy Factory. The video above, featured on Rob’s YouTube page, shows the star riding the Equicizer around his Fantasy Factory space.

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Big Brother

Big Brother is a popular reality television show that started in 1999 and continues to this day. The premise of the show is that a group of people called housemates live together in a house that is cut off from the outside world almost entirely. Throughout the approximately 3 month stay, they are monitored by audiovisual equipment and vye for a single cash prize. They must survive periodic evictions that are decided by their fellow housemates.

So how did the Equicizer get connected with the show? In 2014, the show commissioned six mechanical horses to use in one of the weekly challenges the housemates participate in to earn prizes.

Local news coverage:

http://www.norwalkreflector.com/News/2014/08/21/Norwalk-company-gets-national-exposure-on-reality-TV-series.html

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By: Amanda Chicotel

Jennifer's Journey with "Mags"

This week we'd like to share with you a beautiful testimonial we received from a dear customer who recently purchased an Equicizer. This is a great testament to the Equicizer's ability to help those dealing with physical challenges of many different kinds!

By Jennifer Warren

I received my new Equicizer "Mags " on Tuesday July 12th, 2016.  She arrived in a big 18 wheeler truck. She was all packaged nice and neat in a HUGE box.  I put her together myself following the easy directions I printed from the website after watching the setup video.   I am extremely impressed with the  high quality of the Equicizer.  It is built on very heavy duty frame and wheels.  The detail work on my Classic Equicizer is awesome.  The beautifully carved head, the ears, the mane and tail -all just very well done.  I know it will last me years of use.

Let me explain why I ordered the Equicizer.  I grew up a horse crazy girl who loved to ride and show.  Between a fall from the roof of my house and several horse wrecks I suffer from two bulging disks, bad hips and bad knees.  The past six years I exhausted medical, physical therapy, acupuncture and chiropractic options.  Nothing helped my pain.  Worse than the pain was the inability to do what I loved and that was ride my horse.  And it was not just any horse, it was my dream horse I purchased before the death of my father.  Every time I tried to mount her, my hip would lock up and I would be unable to move.  The pain was excruciating.  I would have to just stay stuck until my hip unlocked and I could get my leg all the way over.  It would then take several minutes before the pain would subside enough so I could let my horse move.  I finally just quit trying to ride because of the pain.

About five years ago I heard about the Equicizer and started corresponding with Frankie about my situation and asked if he thought it could help me.  I received a lot of information from him on the Equicizer over the past five years.  This was something I really wanted to try but it was a lot of money for me.  I kept watching the website and reading testimonial after testimonial of those the Equicizer had helped.  I was especially intrigued by its use in the therapeutic riding programs.  I really wanted to try one out before I committed to the purchase, but I decided that I was willing to give it a shot based on all the positive reviews.

 My first ride I outfitted Mags with a new saddle blanket and soft cashel saddle.  I brought in my step to have help mounting Mags.  The first attempt to get on her was as I expected - ugly.  My hips were very tight and it was as painful as I expected to get on.  When I got seated in the saddle I noticed how lifelike the Equicizer felt.  You have the same feeling as sitting on the back of your horse.  Making Mags move was not as easy as I expected.  I know a lot of that was due to my physical issues.  My first ride was only about 10 minutes because that is all my hips could take.  I got back on and rode another 10 minutes later.  The movement of the horse is so real down to the head motion.

The next morning after my first day with Mags I woke up for the first time in over six years WITHOUT back pain.  That was from one day of riding the Equicizer 20 minutes.  I know that watching the video on the website by Dr. James Warson on using the Equicizer to treat osteoporosis I hoped for the same outcome with my 2 bulging discs.  Today is Friday August 12, 2016 and I am so excited to report that I have not had ANY back pain since the morning of Tuesday July 12 before I rode Mags the first time.   None.   I am riding once or twice a day and am now up to 25 minutes a session.  My hips issues are improving both mounting and while riding.  I still have discomfort but I am making progress every day.

I have scoliosis and noticed that I have become more aware of my center while riding Mags.  I feel that it is building my muscle memory on my weak right side to make me more balanced in the saddle. I have always leaned toward my weak side while riding.

While a friend was here I mounted my real horse for the first time in a long time and my hip did not lock up on me.

I wanted to tell my story to those who may be contemplating if the Equicizer could be the answer for them.  Don't be afraid to place the order.  The Equicizer is everything the website says and much more.  Mags is changing my life.  To be free of back pain is huge.  But more so to know that I will soon be back riding my horse, that is priceless.  Frankie really is making my dreams come true.

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If you or someone you work with has a personal story or testament with the Equicizer and would like to share it, please send us a message at info@equicizer.com or give us a call, 419-663-1472.

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Syd's Exciting News!

In case you missed last week's blog by our Para-Equestrian friend and supporter, Sydney Collier, please click here to check it out. This week, Sydney can't wait to share with you some exciting news about something that she been striving and working so hard towards for years...
 

By Sydney Collier 
 

Hey everyone! For those of you who don't know me, my name is Sydney Collier and I ride Para Dressage for the United States! I'm super excited to share with you all that I was recently selected as a member of the team headed over to Rio for the Paralympics this summer!

I'd love to take you all on this journey with me and share some things with you about the preparation for the Paralympics. Right now is the crazy time while we're just getting ready for all of it - between training, official paperwork and packing, things can get super busy. I'm so lucky to have my mom here with me to help me make sure we are organized in order to have a smooth trip to Rio.

You're probably wondering, "How do the horses get to Rio?"  Well, the horses actually fly in an airplane to their destination.  Most horses handle the flight really well. In fact, on our flight to the World Equestrian Games in 2014 to Normandy, France the horses flew on the same flight as us, on what's known as a combi plane.  The front of the plane is for traditional passengers and the back is typically used for more unusual passengers.  

They told us besides horses, animals like polar bears, lions and even dolphins have flown with them! If you weren't a part of the team traveling with our horses there is no way you would have known that there were horses on the flight. They fly 2 horses in a shipping container with stalls the size of conventional trailers. It's important for the crates to be small because it makes the horses feel safer and prevents them from moving too much during the flight. My groom, Amy, said that the most difficult part of the flight for them was landing but once we came to a stop they all settled down.

Going over to Rio is a bit different though; the horses will fly on a separate flight with professional flying vets from Miami, Florida to Rio on Sept 3rd. The team and I will fly from Miami to Houston, Texas for team processing on the 3rd and then meet up with the horses in Rio on the 4th.
 

Rosie, my mount for Rio, is an experienced flyer and international competitor; she was on the team for the Paralympics in 2012 in London as well! So I know she's going to put her best hoof forward! The end of August really can't come fast enough! The anticipation makes it seem like time is going by so slowly. I think that the US has the best team we could have and it's such an honor to be a part of it!

My Equicizer has been a key part to my success and to getting this far in my riding career. His name is Wyburn and he is a gentle giant with incredibly low maintenance! Believe it or not his food, farrier and vet bill hasn't cost me a thing since we first got him! He's amazing because I can ride him as long as I want every day. Without Wyburn I have no idea where my fitness level would be. I highly recommend an Equicizer to anyone trying to decide if they want to ride, or even trying to further their own riding career! He's even really great with kids; so gentle and kind tempered! The other bonus to the Equicizer is that you can get really creative with your exercises. You can do exercises specific to what muscle group you want to target that day in your workout. The movement is so similar to the horses movement that you can barely tell the difference between an Equicizer's gait and a horse's gait. I love my Equicizer so much!

I am so excited to keep you all updated as Rio gets closer. Thank you so much for following my #JourneytoRio and a million thanks to everyone at Equicizer for your incredible support. I couldn't do it without you and Wyburn on my team!!!

 If you would like to help Syd out on her #JourneytoRio, you can make a contribution here!

 

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Introducing Para-Equestrian - Sydney Collier!

We are excited to introduce you to our first guest blogger - Sydney Collier! Syd (as we all know her), is a high level Para-Equestrian dressage rider who, among many other things, was selected as a member of the 2014 US Para-Dressage Team representing the USA at the World Equestrian Games in Normandy, France. Despite her hectic schedule, Syd was delighted to write our first guest blog. For those of you who do not know Syd we would like to start off by sharing with you a previous blog written by Syd in 2013, shortly after we met her and she purchased her Equicizer "Wyburn". Stay tuned for next week, as Syd has some exciting news to share!!

By Sydney Collier
 

It has been the most amazing year so far and Wyburn and I have been keeping ourselves super busy training daily and showing almost every weekend this season! In April we relocated to Millbrook NY to train with Wes Dunham at his farm called Woodstock Stables.  

My mom’s minivan became a horse trailer and Wyburn and I traveled in style J My Mom said Wyburn was the best horse she has ever trailered and she would be happy to take him anywhere hehe!  Wyburn settled in nicely at the new barn and everybody loves him-horses and riders alike.  



Sydney & Wyburn her Equicizer

Every day I ride Wyburn at least 30 minutes before my lesson, and let me tell you the improvements in my hip flexors, balance, and overall flexibility is mind blowing.  I am able to warm up all my body parts at my pace, and then when I climb on Wentworth (my horse) for my lesson we can get right on to the learning!  How can I tell things are looser you might wonder-well for me the biggest thing I notice is that when I get on Wyburn I often need help to swing my leg over his back, and when I am warmed up I can do this movement without any help-something I LOVE!!!   

Sydney, Journey, and Wyburn

Before I had my Equicizer I had to spend at least the first 15 minutes of each lesson focused on getting my body loosened up and listening, before we could even begin to think about warming up my horse.  This took up a huge part of our lesson time and was frustrating to everyone - because we were all mentally ready to get to work.   Now I am ready to go as soon as I mount up!    After I ride I spend between 1 ½ to 2 hours on Wyburn, something Wentworth would like to personally send a big horsey kiss to Frankie about for inventing the Equicizer!  

I have a lot of work to do to be at my peak performance in dressage, and it isn’t fair to expect Wentworth to continue working when he has been a good boy!  That’s when Wyburn steps in and he will keep working as long as I keep moving J The other huge thing Wyburn has helped me with is straightening out my seat.  My trainer, Wes Dunham, and I can pinpoint when the problem begins and with a mirror I can focus on correcting what my silly brain keeps telling me is straight.    

 

By moving, watching and reacting like I would on a real horse, I have been able to recreate these corrections on my own horse and improve my riding skills incredibly.   Cardio wise I am able to withstand much more activity on and off the horse, and recently I have been working with a fitness trainer to incorporate Wyburn into my daily exercise regime.   Wyburn, Wentworth, and I are working hard to reach for our dreams, and help change people’s perception of disabilities! Every day I remind myself RIDE STRONG and enjoy every day :) 

 

About Sydney - At a young age, Sydney was diagnosed with a rare condition called Wyburn-Mason Syndrome. At age 11 during treatments, Sydney suffered a stroke that has left her partially blind along with limited use or control with the left side of her body. Still, this amazing young woman continues to inspire everyone that surrounds her and goes above and beyond to help other children with disabilities to reach for their dreams. Sydney was selected to compete as a Para-Equestrian in the 2014 World Equestrian Games in Normandy, France and next week she has some exciting news she would like to share with us! So stay tuned and to learn more, visit Syd's awesome website at: Sydsparaquest.com

 

 

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