Hi Karen, >>>One thing I may have said on this list - I know I said it on the treeless list, but I'll say it again. I've started hearing the term, "barefoot, bitless and treeless" as if that is some holy trinity that we should all aim for, and that they are somehow connected. It worries me when anything gets too "sloganized."
I totally agree with you. Treeless saddles are not for every horse and rider. And even if they seem perfect still pay attention. Last weekend I had a group here and one of the riders has a Sensation but it sits off to the right side of the horse. In watching her ride - she sits off to the right and her friends just thought the saddle was crooked - actually the felt on the right side of the saddle has compressed because she has a left shoulder injury which has caused to compensate off to the right side of the horse. No surprise that her horse has much more problem to turn right and doesn't want to take the right canter lead. I put her in a Balance saddle (treed) so that the horse would have more support and she would be more aware of her imbalance. It made a big difference to the way she sat and the horse went. The last day she road one of my horses on the trail in one of my Sensations and as I watched from behind, with each stride, the Sensation logo on the cantle went right, straight, right, straight etc. No movement left because of the riders heavier right seat bone. I asked her to bring awareness to the movement and what she could do to influence it. In her case she made a small adjustment to her LEFT shoulder and all of a sudden the saddle moved evenly slightly in both directions. So when you are riding with a friend, check each other from the back to see what is going on. Otherwise a person can be doing just as much damage as other ways of riding. It is a reminder to stay open and paying attention even when a person might think everything is just right. What we do as riders and how we sit makes a huge difference, even with the smallest adjustment. Robyn Icelandic Horse Farm Robyn Hood & Phil Pretty Vernon BC Canada www.icefarm.com
