--- In IceHorses@yahoogroups.com, "Judy Ryder" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > What type of saddle do you have? Can you send pictures of it on Blessi?
Hello Judy, I will have someone at the stable take some pictures when the saddle comes back from the saddle reflocker. Thanks for the offer. Blessi's stiffness was very slight and it has gone away. I stopped using the uneven saddle until it gets reflocked. We did some exercises for flexibility on the stiff side. Luckily we noticed the problem when it was very subtle before it developed into something serious. Yesterday, Blessi and I spent some time with a saddle fitter who was able to evaluate the one saddle (which I have stopped using and am going to sell). Druing the past few rides using this saddle, Blessi had started some head tossing behavior which is very out of character for him. - The saddle seemed to fit at the withers nicely without a rider but definitely pinches a bit at the withers when I sat in the saddle. - Plus the saddle extends a bit beyond Blessi's last rib. I was very surprised when she traced the rib up to the spine how little space there is for saddle. - When she took her hand and ran it between Blessi's back and the saddle, there was less room near the center of the saddle. This would make it difficult for Blessi to raise his back. - The saddle had very pronounced thigh blocks. As shorter, rounder person on a short, round horse, my legs were forced out to the side which makes posting and lateral work more difficult more challenging. Note slightly taller riders really like this feature but it was too much thigh block for my confirmation. There were some positive points about the saddle such as the saddle having a wide gullet. After exercise, the sweat patterns were even indicating even overall pressue, etc. Plus the seat was very comfortable for me. It was great having a really experienced person check this out. On a superficial examination, the saddle seemed to be ok--even a decent fit. However good saddle fit seems to be a matter of degrees and subtleties.
