Ororo Heated Vest Review

It’s quite a contrast–riding in winter in Southern California versus the Midwest! When Knight and I packed our bags to head to Chicagoland this past summer, I dreaded the cruel temperatures and endless months of circle riding in an indoor arena. However, with my Ororo Heated Vest, the cold climate has been fairly tolerable. Please enjoy this Ororo Heated Vest Review and consider adding this wonder product to your winter wardrobe. You won’t regret it.

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Discovering the Ororo Heated Vest

I have fellow blogger Olivia from DIY Horsemanship to thank for introducing me to the Ororo heated vest. She moved from California to New England a few years back, and recommended the heated vest to me while I was preeping this blog post on winter riding gear. I didn’t know heated clothing was even a thing!

When the fall temperatures dropped a few weeks ago, I noticed another boarder at the horse farm where Knight lives wearing the Ororo Heated Vest, and we bonded. I have since teased her she’s my vest trainer–sharing the bells and whistles. I also convinced my sister, a teacher, she needed this vest. I know her classroom is cold, and when she has recess duty outside it’s going to make everything better.

Beyond Personal Warmth: You Need the Ororo

Obviously, a heated vest is perfect for Arctic temps. But there are several reasons to own the Ororo ranging from its use as a bit warmer, to injury soother, and (according to this rundown of product features) to charge your cell phone. Lol!

I was elated when I realized I could warm Knight’s bit with the Ororo vest. Now granted, I was glad no one else was around (lest they think I am a nut) when I draped the crownpiece of Knight’s bridle over my neck and inserted his snaffle inside my vest and zipped. The bridle hung like an over-sized chunky necklace underneath my winter layers.

My sister shared that when she had her vaccine booster and her body felt achy, she wore the vest in the house, lounging on the couch. I’ve had back problems over the years, and anticipate using my Ororo heated vest to soothe my sore muscles too.

The cell phone charging feature seems practical, but I haven’t tried it out. I’ll update this post when I do.

How to Use Your Ororo Heated Vest

When your vest arrives, you will need to charge the battery, which will arrive in its own little pouch. Simply take the battery out, connect it to the USB cord and plug the charger into the wall.

The battery attaches to a small cord and tucks neatly into an interior pocket on the left bottom side of the vest. It doesn’t weigh very much–I don’t notice it at all when I wear my Ororo heated vest.

When you want to turn your vest on, simply press the logo area above the “Ororo” on the upper left side of the vest. Once you turn it on, you’ll see the logo flash and illuminate red.

The Ororo vest possesses three heat levels: low, medium and high. I pretty much use the high. The battery will last about three hours on high (perfect length for barn time), six hours on medium and around 10 hours on low. The logo will illuminate white on low, blue on medium and red on high.

The heating elements are located by the neck (which is super cozy!), upper back, and one underneath each pocket in the front in the stomach area.

More Info to Know about the Ororo

The Ororo heated vest has two pockets with zippers which accommodate a large cell phone. Yay for zippers to keep things in place! It is essentially a puffer vest and it can be folded up to take up minimal space (if you’re going to travel with it).

My Ororo mentor at the barn said she also has the heated jacket, but prefers the vest for barn activities. One of the reasons is, although the Ororo is washable, according to the manufacturer, it has a limited life if washed repeatedly. (I think I read it can take 50 washings.) If you wear the vest at the barn you can have a lighter jacket over top of it or even a heavier winter coat, thus keeping the vest clean (so you can wear it for non-horse activities and not smell like a stable).

Read this Best Winter Horse Riding Gloves blog post!

There are a couple of things I’m not over the moon about with the Ororo:

1. I wish it had a more tailored, slimming look. From a fashion standpoint it is more boxy than I prefer. But function over fashion is important to me in the winter chill.

2. This is me being overly careful/paranoid: I wonder what would happen if you fell and landed on the battery. That would not be comfortable.

But since the fashion police are not out in full force at my barn and the likelihood of a fall, landing on that exact spot is probably minimal, I will continue to wear and delight in my Ororo heated vest.

Leave a Comment: How do you combat winter riding chill? Do you have any favorite products or tips and tricks to stay warm?

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