There’s a painful truth every rider knows. The second you put the word “equestrian” in front of a product, the price triples. We’ve all felt the sting of ripping a £150 pair of breeches on a fence nail or watching a £70 base layer snag on a haynet. For a sport that involves mud, sweat, horse hair, and heavy-duty chores, the gear is inexplicably delicate and shockingly expensive.
This leaves most of us in a constant, frustrating dilemma: do you buy the cheap, off-brand stuff that fits poorly and falls apart in two washes, or do you invest in a “premium” brand that’s too precious to get dirty?
It’s this gap that GS Equestrian stepped into. They built a following on social media with slick, matchy-matchy sets and prices that seemed too good to be true. But as riders, we’re skeptics. We’ve been burned by influencer brands. I had to know if this gear was just for the Instagram photo, or if it could actually survive a real day at the yard.
The GS Equestrian Gear That’s Worth Your Money
- GS Riding Tights: The everyday workhorse. The fabric is impressively squat-proof, the high waist actually stays up without rolling, and the phone pocket is deep and secure.
- Signature Base Layers: A genuine technical top, not just a fashion piece. It wicks sweat well, the fit is athletic and flattering, and it’s smart enough to be worn off the yard.
- Signature Saddle Pads: An excellent value, everyday pad.1 They wash without losing their shape and, most importantly, have a great high-wither cut that provides good spine clearance.
The Workhorse: A Deep Dive on the Riding Tights
Riding tights are the brand’s hero product, and they are the first thing I had to test. The single most important test for any pair of riding leggings is the “squat test.” Are they see-through the second you bend over? I was genuinely surprised to find they are completely opaque. The material isn’t a thin, flimsy cotton; it’s a proper technical-feeling stretch fabric. It’s not compressive like heavy shapewear, but it’s supportive, smoothing, and doesn’t show every lump and bump.
The next critical test is the waistband. So many “high-waisted” tights look great when you’re standing still, but roll down into an uncomfortable sausage the second you sit in the saddle or bend over to pick out a hoof. The GS waistband is wide, structured, and stays put. It supports your core without cutting off your circulation.
Finally, the details. The phone pocket is a non-negotiable for riders now. Theirs is deep, set high on the thigh, and easily holds a large smartphone without it feeling like it’s about to fly out when you’re cantering. The silicone grip (I tested the full seat) is “grippy but not sticky.” It gives you that extra bit of security without gluing you to the saddle, which is a balance many expensive brands get wrong. For the price, they feel and perform like tights that cost twice as much.
Beyond the Yard: The Technical Base Layers
A good base layer is the unsung hero of a rider’s wardrobe. It needs to keep you warm in winter, wick sweat in summer, and be smart enough that you don’t feel embarrassed stopping at the shop on the way home. The GS Signature Base Layers hit all these marks.
Again, it comes down to fabric. This isn’t just a simple polyester top. It has that cool-touch, athletic feel of a high-end running shirt. I wore one on a humid day for a tough schooling session, and it did an excellent job of wicking moisture away, drying quickly, and not clinging unpleasantly. The fit is athletic and true-to-size, with a flattering cut that isn’t just a boxy t-shirt. The 1/4 zip is good quality and doesn’t chafe your chin when it’s fully zipped. It’s a versatile, genuinely technical piece that I’d just as easily wear to the gym as I would to the yard.
What About the Horse? A Look at the Saddle Pads
A brand can’t be a true equestrian one-stop-shop without looking after the horse. The “matchy-matchy” trend is built on the saddle pad, so I was curious if they were all style and no substance.
I was, once again, pleasantly surprised. The most important feature of any saddle pad isn’t the color; it’s the shape. A cheap, flat pad will pull down over the horse’s withers, creating pressure and rubbing. The GS Equestrian Signature pads have a high-wither, anatomical cut. This provides excellent clearance over the spine, which is a key feature you usually see on premium, more expensive brands. The “girth guard” area is reinforced to prevent wear and tear, and the billet straps are well-placed. After a few machine washes (and we all know how gross they get), the pad held its shape well, the color didn’t fade, and the filling didn’t clump up. It’s a solid, reliable, and well-designed pad for everyday work.
Is It the Ultimate “Everyday” Equestrian Brand?
After testing the gear, the verdict is clear. GS Equestrian is not trying to be a luxury brand. It’s not competing with the £300 bespoke breeches or the Italian-made riding boots.
What it is doing, and doing exceptionally well, is creating the ultimate “workhorse” wardrobe. This is the gear you will reach for every single day. It’s for the rider who has to muck out, ride, and do chores in the same outfit. It’s for the amateur competitor who wants to look smart and put-together in a matching set without spending a full week’s wages. It’s for the growing teenager who needs new gear every season or the rider who is simply tired of the “equestrian tax.”
The quality you get for the price point is, in my opinion, one of the best value propositions on the market today. It frees you from having to be precious with your riding clothes. You can wear them, get them filthy, wash them, and repeat, which is exactly what real equestrian life is all about.
