and round in circles we go treeless v tree

[Brychen]

well I have now sold my treeless trekker ( instant bitter regrets but I do want something I can also do dressage at a local level in) , horse was going well in it but he did tend to keep streching down in an odd way and didnt seem wuite right.

I have my albion wihich now doesnt move from one side to another as I have spent £55 on a prolite front rider pad thing and £45 on a stuniing ( I could lick it its so nice) elevator girth. He went great in it, last night but actually hid form the saddle this evening which he wasnt doing with the trekker so my main thoughts on the subject are ...AAARGGGHHHH

I must add that the treeless has finally taguth me atfer 32 years of riding to sit up straight , all these years and I finally realised I have been siting on my crotch and tipping forward, I now sit on my rediscovered seat boens and dont tip...

So where do i go next saddle wise I am seriously considering the barefoot london, any other thoughts.

[neen]

No helpful thoughts I'm afraid, except that we're stuck in a bit of the same loop. The difference is that we haven't tried treeless yet and are dithering about taking the plunge. Considering the London here, too -- I've only read good things about it, but haven't heard of very many people actually having one, so will be watching this thread with interest.

[Brychen]

yeah maddening isnt it. Worst thing is I had wanted an Albion selecta for four years having seen some one with one at the last yard I was on. I love the fact that you can change the knee rolls to suit the discipline and the craftman ship si superb. I bought it quite cheap whilst tiddly and put in a dead stupid bid on ebay and won.

I may just have it adjusted to fit, but whilst I know my horse schools better in the treed saddle , he certainly seems happier (which means a lot to me) to see a treeless one.

Funnily enought I had forgot till now that I tried the balance treeless (pretty well identical to HM's new ones) 5 years ago he wouldnt round up and the rep made me try their treed saddle which my horse went much better in..

[galadriel]

If you haven't had it adjusted yet that's the very first step.

[Brychen]

yes I probably need to have that done asap. the prolite thing really should just be a short term fix.

I am a bit twitchy about master saddlers as one ( I dont think he really was a MS) wrecked my horses back to the point where he was nearly put down but fortunatly recovered after 5 months box rest. he ripped the longismus dorsi muscle and couldnt move his left hind leg. he ended up with a 2 inch high 4 inch wide odema one his left side of the spine for a year which is when I had my first venture into treeless saddles ( Bob marshall sports saddle).

The MS had fitted a medium saddle which as my hroses muscles wasted he clamped down to mn and then narrow. he kept going on about him being a nice arab endurance type, and this was how their back developed with work. I was dim enough to listen to him. by the way my horse is a 14.3 hh welsh cob! A ride vet finaly explained (when vetting horse out) what was wrong and this was just before horses back completly went.

Hes never been quite the same horse- went from advanced endurance to no thanks, and now 9 years on still cant quite connect his left hind to the forehand properly.

Sorry to rant on but oh I wish people knew what damage can be done by saddles without having to have first hand expereince.

[KateWooten]

Have you tried the Fhoenix ? You don't have to keep buying different saddles to figure out if they'll work - I'm sure most of them that are worth having, they'll let you trial them. I'm right there with you on the riding style - riding on the treeless Fhoenix was an eye-opener for me, and I can't go back to my previously comfortable treed saddles.

[KateWooten]

oops - double posted

[galadriel]

A poorly adjusted saddle can be as nasty as one that didn't fit in the first place, sure...

but one that hasn't been adjusted at all may as well be one that doesn't fit. I can understand being wary, but would you be put off vets entirely if you had a bad experience with one? Or farriers? Just got to go out and find a new one, hopefully one with better references & a good record this time. *SO* important to be sure that your saddle is fitting well before you use it.

[Bay Mare]

Second the Fhoenix but the Barefoot London has been getting good write ups too (and I believe that it's cheaper). If money isn't an issue I'd go for the Fhoenix though especially for schooling and dressage.

I do agree, though, that you should get your treed saddle adjusted if you want to stick with it. Having sat on a treed saddle recently, though, I was desperate to get back into my SBS!

[No_Angel]

Ive got a few treeless saddles at the moment.
Ive got a trekker talent but it really isnt the best if you actually want to school.
The fhoenix and the ansur classic are the best for schooling in, i prefer my classic for schooling on my big cob as it doesnt hold me in place as much, but my fhoenix is better on my tb, and better for the hacking and endurance work I do.
I have a freeform which is nice, im not sure I like it for schooling, I find I have the same problem as with the trekker, theres not enough to it for schooling, hacking/endurance its great for tho(and keeping nervous mums attached to bolting just broken ponies)
Weve just got an icelandic treeless aswell, i havent properly ridden in it but my mum says its nice, tho pushed you to the back of the seat quite a bit.
I did have a trekker dressage, i found it quite wide, but it was great for riding a very nervous 5 yr old in, he was so much happier and the big pommel and cantle kept me in when he was spooked by some flags. I schooled in it but just found it too wide for me and my dodgy hip.
I had an ansur konklusion but it wasnt very good for schooling in being a jumping saddle.

Ive heard good things about the barefoot london, tho you may have the same problem as youve had in the trekker with it as its of similar style, but with velcro knee rolls.

[MelanieD]

I'd try having the treed saddle adjusted or even a different treed saddle if he goes better in it. Treeless doesn't suit all horses.

Fhoenix can be great on some horses but it's worth trialling one first as they don't suit all horses, my horse was quite happy in an SBS but got a sore back after just a bit of light hacking in a Fhoenix.

[carrieh]

Heather Moffett actually says the Barefoot London is a good saddle if you cannot afford a Fhoenix! I remember reading her recommendation on the Enlightened Equitation forums just the other day. It's quite new out on the market though I think, which is probably why not many people have one yet.

I did consider it, but I was wary about the position of the girth straps on it for my little tubby pony. The Barefoot Cheyenne was forever being pulled forward on him which is why we never got on with that particular saddle, and I suspect that the girthing arrangement may be the same on the Barefoot London.

Part of the reason I've just ordered a Fhoenix is that they are now made with hanging girth straps [is that the correct phrase?] so that even if your horse has a very forward girth, the saddle should not be pulled forward. Certainly that system worked very well indeed on the Fhoenix I trialled this week. Another reason I ordered it is that my Fell went so superbly well in it, I just could not believe the difference. And also because being treeless it will adapt to his ever-changing shape! That swung the decision for me over a treed saddle really.

But you have my sympathy! The choice of saddles out there is phenominal nowadays and all summer I've felt like I've been going round in circles trying to find the right one, be it treed or treeless. We must have trialled at least 15 saddles this summer. In fact it had got to the stage earlier this week that I was saying to my pony "If this Fhoenix isn't right either, I think we'll just retire from riding!"