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Post by dalesponyrider on Sept 30, 2011 20:44:14 GMT -1
Following on from Sue's comment on another thread, has anyone used or tried one of these saddles?
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Post by harveydales on Oct 1, 2011 4:25:40 GMT -1
Didn't Olivia have one at one time? They used to be very heavy which put me off but they now do lighter models. I see a lot of them on the Endurance circuit.
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Post by SuzieP on Oct 1, 2011 5:36:42 GMT -1
Linda, if you want to talk to someone, I'm sure Tim would be happy to share his experiences. Let me know and I'll ask him if he'll chat to you.
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Post by Debbie on Oct 1, 2011 8:45:17 GMT -1
Vanda got one for Merls, but I don't know how its worked for her in the longrun as she's no longer on here  |
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Post by harleydales on Oct 1, 2011 14:13:13 GMT -1
I got one to try for Lady, but it was too narrow. However, I tried a wider one on her and it was perfect, looked and felt super.You can get a new girthing system for them now, more like a western style with 2 girths - it helps stop the saddle going forwards or backwards, depending how you set it up.
They look a bit odd because the saddle sort of 'floats' on the adjustment bolts - so they don't sit particularly close to the horse, and that takes a bit of getting used to. The numnah is in 2 bits, one for each side, which leaves the spine totally open to the air. You can also adjust where the stirrups are placed.
They put you in a fantastic riding position, and are infinitely adjustable. A lot of distance folk use them - I know someone who did over 1700 miles with her horse - she used a Free n Easy and he was never, ever lamed out, and never had back issues - says it all for me.
They're very expensive new, over £2,000 and hold their secondhand value well (the one I looked at was £650). You see them now and then on Ebay.
Yes, they are a bit on the heavy side, but not too bad.
I would definitely get one for Lady if a wider one came up.
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Post by dollylanedales on Oct 26, 2011 22:05:40 GMT -1
I borrowed one to try, and found it very heavy, but that was sóme years ago, so they may be different now.
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Post by heathera on Oct 27, 2011 13:08:36 GMT -1
I've encountered a couple of horses via my shiatsu business that have ha problems with these and it's put me off trying them. Drop me a pm if you want to know more as they are very free with legal threats if people say anything negative about them online.
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Post by lucydales on Oct 27, 2011 20:52:37 GMT -1
I had one for some time age and sold it on to an endurance rider with a big Arab. It was very heavy and IMHO not so well suited for a Dales as their backs are a bit short. That said I think they are good saddles on the right horse. Not seen any modern ones though.
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Post by harleydales on Oct 28, 2011 8:46:22 GMT -1
I've got a newer one now, and I like it. It's not that heavy (much lighter than a western, and not that much heavier than Harley's conventional saddle with numnah etc attached). Yes the panels are quite long, but you can take the bottom one (the longest one) off, cut it in half and overlap it to shorten it, so it doesn't hang over the loins.
Lady seems very happy in it and REALLY stretches out in trot as it completely frees up the shoulder - everything floats underneath the panels with no restriction. It also floats over the loins with no pressure - she hasn't paced in it at all. I particularly like the fact that the numnah is in 2 pieces so there is lots of airflow down the spine. And also like that there are 3 adjustment points, plus the panels are moveable so you can tailor the fit to each horse.
I know lots of endurance people who have them and are doing 50 plus mile rides with them, with no problems with back, legs or pressure points/lumps. When you get up to even 30 and 40 mile rides your saddle problems will burst to the fore, even if you didn't know you had any - this happened to me with Harley's original saddle which was super, but once we upped the miles we had BIG problems with it.
I think it's like every other saddle - some folk love them, some don't (look at treeless and that debate!), but as with every saddle it is often the fitting that is an issue rather than the actual saddle.
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Post by The Moo on Oct 28, 2011 12:06:36 GMT -1
I really loved mine, comfortable on the bum and so effortless to ride in as you are so in balance - which must have made it better for the horse as well.
I bought mine 2nd hand off ebay for an arab and had an FnE local fitter to fit it. Sadly it was right on the edge of the adjustments (they do wider trees now) and she was a difficult shape to fit anyway, wide flat wither with dippy and short back. It worked well to start with but as she muscled it kept slipping back so in a way was a victim of it's own success.
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