Joined: 21 Aug 2004 Posts: 1 Location: Isle of Man
Posted: Sat Aug 21, 2004 10:46 am Post subject: Wintec WIDE and the saddle fitting....need your help!
I finally had my saddle fitting today for the wintec WIDE that I ordered, and it went well.....aprt from the fact that I am undecided about it...as the ONLY problem was that the back kept flapping a little when in trot etc . We tried the various gullets, until the pink(ish) one was the best, but then the back of the saddle sat up a little of Penny's back, even when using the 4th strap...should this be the situation...has anyone else any experiences of this?
I am going to try it again on Wednesday night with a different girth and girth strap combination to see how she goes, but I am starting to wonder if a treeless would be our answer, what do people think?
Galadriel - I have looked at the barefoot treeless as a cheaper alternative to the torsion of Heather Hoffatt SBS, what did you think of it?
Remember I have no direct experience with the Flexion, but from what I've heard & seen of other peoples' evaluations of it, it's a much better option than a Barefoot. The purpose of a saddle--from the horse's point of view--is to provide clearance over the spine/wither and to distribute weight along the panels. From what I can tell, most bareback saddles do manage to provide spine clearance, but do not really distribute weight. Looking at a *saddle pad* after being under a Barefoot, it is clear that most of the rider's weight was sitting right under the rider. From the pics Nix has shared with me, it looks like the Flexion does in fact provide weight distribution all along its length.
but essentially, when most of the weight is centered in one area of a saddle, the pressure directly under that area is much higher.
I looked into the Barefoot for a horse who was desperately hard to fit (ribcage about 5" shorter than average) and whose rider only rides for pleasure. She wanted a Western saddle to provide her security, but getting a Western saddle for that horse would have involved a custom tree and huge expense. Any off-the-shelf Western saddle would bridge on that horse something awful, and in fact his previous saddle had caused him a number of issues. For that client, considering the difficulty to fit him and the fact that he was never going to be asked for more than a canter along the straight (no lateral work, no schooling, just trail riding and riding around for fun), I did think that the Barefoot was a decent option.
For a horse who will be doing real schooling, who will be ridden often, or whose workload generally involves more than just riding in mostly a straight line, I don't think that a Barefoot treeless is the best choice. The saddle used on the horse should be the best possible, so it should allow weight distribution and not create areas of higher pressure directly under the rider's seat. For a horse who's going to really be using her back, I wouldn't recommend a Barefoot. A Flexion might do it, but I have no direct observation of the Flexion. Try asking nix
Some NR people have recommended various different kinds of saddles made especially for wider horses, which I think include a wider gullet throughout. Duett is one I've heard, and other NR people might be able to suggest some more.
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