This message is from: GAIL RUSSELL <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Hi Casey,
Just finished a round of saddle fitting, etc. I tried an Aussie saddle. The Aussie Stock Saddle Company has metal and wood trees. They take your horse's measurements and then use a bottle jack to spread the metal of the tree. I did not try those - but suffice it to say that they did not start out life as a wide tree saddle. I tried another Aussie saddle that had big flat skirts instead of the English style panels. It was wide enough, but had a sort of "duck tail" back that meant it rocked forward and back. I gave up on the Aussies. The older ones are all pretty narrow trees, but supposedly they are starting to build wider trees. I never saw anything wide enough. I tried a Bob Marshall Sport Saddle - treeless. Gunthar hated it! It is really two trees, connected by a bareback pad. The tree in the front is actually fairly narrow. You might try this one, but beware of Tyr's withers being pinched. There are other treeless saddles that are cheaper and may well be better. I may have the e-mail address of someone who sells them on my hard drive and could forward you a picture via e-mail(think I still have it). Some of the synthetic western saddles looked like they might work. I never tried them on. I have an Xtra wide Collegiate Senior Event Saddle that I *thought* fit Gunthar, until he worked hard at his lesson on Saturday - and came up with *huge* dry spots on either side of his withers last time. It has been Ok up to now - so don't know if he has muscled up (has actually lost weight since I bought it) or if the cotton air flow pad I used (which is the only pad that keeps it from slipping sideways all the time) may have made it fit incorrectly. So.... I would recommend you at least try that saddle. What does seem to work is unlikely to make your non-horsey husband happy. I bought an Orthoflex Stitchdown with the new panel system. It is a great compromise for someone who likes the security of a Western saddle, but wants to dispense with the extra weight, horn, etc. Not cheap though. The dealer here came to my house with an array of saddles to try. She charges $50 if you do not buy. The Orthoflex "flexes" on his back. There is no way you could make it slide to the side as far as I can tell. It almost looks like you could use it without a cinch - but I'm not about to try it. So far he shows no dry spots from it, I find it very comfortable and secure for trail riding and plan to start using it in my dressage lessons. I'm told the Versatile is the same tree - and saw one advertised for sale somewhere on the Internet recently. Good luck - it can be frustrating. Gail > Gail Russell Forestville CA [EMAIL PROTECTED]
