If there is any group of people who are dedicated to finding proper fitting saddles for their horses, it is Endurance people. They are always looking for good fit. What fits for 5 or 6 miles, isn't going to cut the mustard after 50 or even 100 miles, so if you want comfort in saddles or rider wear, that is the place to go!
I went to the AERC Convention in Reno with 3D cutouts of the backs of three different horses: Whisper, Andi and Tosca. What I found in treed saddles was truely amazing and quite eye opening. Treeless saddles for distance are not working out for most people. Seems people have found, like me, that unless you are a featherweight rider, they don't do well over the 10 mile range. I had even noticed on the underside of my Skito pad increased dirt marks on both sides near the front of my pad. What I have been told is that this corresponds to where the girth attaches to the saddle, so when I tighten the girth, it causes a pressure point there. Hmmmm, maybe that is why my mare gives me an ugly face back to my leg at the beginning of a ride, and then it goes away as the pad(s) squash down and the girth loosens into the ride??? Anyway, while my treeless is going to stay here and be used for short rides (those under 8 miles) I knew I needed something with a tree to give more support over the longer miles. The newest innovation in treed saddles are flexible, hard plastic. Well, maybe not new, but widespread enough now that there are lots of options and brands to choose from. Not flexable as in discs, or "broken" up trees, but hard, flexible plastic surrounded by different types of foam to create a truely flexible saddle that will fit many horses. And in the majority of cases, these are shorter saddles, and the way they flex, they will not bridge once in the saddle, and this also alleviates the possibility of loin rubs if the saddle is a mite too long. I had 3 of the widest, roundest backs there, and I found many saddles that would be a good fit (and in fact, the same saddle would have fit all three horses in my bag!). I need to download some pics and videos I took, so I will save the specific reports on the individual saddles for later. My brother borrowed my cord that downloads my pics from the camera to the computer, so I have to run over and get it back from him. More later... Susan in NV http://desertduty.blogspot.com/ Riding for Breast Cancer Awareness Nevermore Ranch http://users.oasisol.com/nevermore/ ____________________________________________________________________________________ Never miss a thing. Make Yahoo your home page. http://www.yahoo.com/r/hs
