Now that I'm in full mode riding, I went for a great ride this morning. On returning, I pulled the bridle off and noticed that the browband had not quite rubbed a spot on my mare's head. More like a pressure spot. I'd never seen that rubbing before so I checked my bridle.
Turns out, my browband is pretty freakin' fancy (lots of braided rawhide as it's buckeroo) and where it's sewn into the loop part that goes on the crownpiece, it's quite a bit thicker. That caused the rub.
Now, why would it rub this time and never before?? Welp, this is a fairly new headstall and today my mare and I went a LOT farther than ever before and she did more sweating than before. The stars aligned and there was the pressure spot.
So, I got home and checked my other headstalls and found one with a thinner browband. I'll change her bit to that headstall for longer distances.
Moral of the story is to always check your tack, no matter what type of riding you're doing. Might save you and your horse in the long run.
Ride on!!