Alright so I mostly ride Western, and have western boots. But I am trying to get back into English riding (the only reason I didnt take english lessons were because my former trainer had me going in little tiny circles on a lunge at the trot. lets just say that I dont have enough balance/security to remain relaxed and not feel like I will fly off, YET. but Im getting there) and I am saving up for a pair of tall boots.

Only problem is that I have short, muscular calfs.

measurements when sitting down:

height: fifteen and one half inches

circumference at widest part over clothing: sixteen and three fourths inches to seventeen inches.

its weird that my calfs are rounder than they are tall, isnt it?

but yea. I cant find any boots that will match that, except really expensive custom made boots.

 

help?

 I had  a similar issue, one leg is 16' and the other is 17' around my calf.Lovley thought , but I had  hurt my leg a while back. I  had to go with  Montain horse boots, thay have elastic stretch sides on them with a nice zipper. I think I paid $169 for mine at horse Town. They are the dress boot style, but  are  very comfertble. If you look around you  can fin somthing to fit your budget and are comfortable for you.

I feel your pain. Trust me. Over a month ago I went through exactly what you are going through. My calves are 15 inches around, which I have been told is normal, and not huge compared to my show size which is 6.5 or 7. I could nt find boots that fit for the life of me! I tried on a million pairs and they were too tight, too big, etc. Ugh. And I couldn't just order boots because none of the places in town would take them back if they didn't fit. So I'd have to sell them myself and then go through the whole process again. Like you I was concerned about having to order custom boots, in which case I would be in paddock boots and half chaps for the rest of my life, haha.

It took me going to a nice tack shop out of town when I went to visit my aunt to find the right pair.  I found a nice pair of Ariatzip field boots. Size 7.5, med/full. So try to find a place that knows a lot about Ariats and their sizes and that will spend time with you trying things on and trouble shooting. This pair is $360 which is still a chunk of change but way beter than $600-1,200 for customs.

 

Good luck. You are not alone! 

Yip, have had this problem all my life and I am sure plenty of others have aswell and as you say the custom made boots are hideously expensive. One can usually find a boot that sort of fits but it seems that they are never as elegant as the ones you would like. I can't imagine why it is so difficult for manufacturers to make a wider variety of 'standard fit' boots when there must be thousands of riders who would prefer some sort of in between size or outsize.

i feel your pain! I went through the same thing last year when buying tall boots! (why is it that when your favorite pair wears out you can never find that brand/style again?) I hate buying offline because boots always fit differently-the only thing I used to order were my justin ropers because no matter what I'm always the same size! i eventually caved because there were no good tack shops that caried my size. I eventually bought mine from stateline tack and had to order the extra wide and just deal with the height-but they drop down about an inch or two when you break them in! good luck id eventually just check online!

 Let's face it, not much with horses is for short legged people --including the horses especially when you need to use your legs.  I am lucky as I ride English Saddle with the low boots.  It's not easy having short legs and trying to ride :)

I just had this problem also! I bought a pair of new boots, but once I tried them on they were too big. Then my trainer told me that I would be able to have them cut down at a tack shop or some leather place maybe, so I brought them to our tack shop and them cut down for $25. Saved a HUGE amount of money for cutting down rather than getting custom boots! Good luck =)