> It is usually possible to ride in a chair seat (because the saddles are often > quite long and >flat) but it's also quite possible to ride in a good seat. No icelandic saddle >I have tried "puts" >the rider in a chair seat.
I strongly disagree with that. The "sweet spot" on many Icelandic and "gaited" saddles is further back, and the stirrup bars are still quite forward. While it might be possible to fight the saddle and sit in a more classical alignment, the saddles are pretty much designed to place you in at least a subtle chair seat. That said, I am tall (5'9") and have rather large feet (women's 11) and I often don't have the alignment problem with some of the Icelandic saddles that a more petite woman does. /Roo
