I am about to buy a Paso Fino - I have about 6-8 months to get a saddle sorted of my own. Borrowing the stable one for now. She is currently wearing an extra wide English saddle. All the Paso horses there take the same saddle, but the others have more wither.
1) She's a gaited horse which perhaps means good shoulder movement is needed. I know Icelandics saddles sit further back and accommodate a shorter back. But there are gaited saddles available which describe being higher in the front to accommodate a higher wither i.e.: walking horses. But she also has a ridiculous lack of wither so would she even fit a gaited saddle. See the photo, it's just smooth and round. (She's a dream for anyone wanting to ride bareback, no bony front wedgies!)
She spooks a bit as still young. So I want something nice and stable. Pairing this factor with the smooth movement she has, nobody should ever fall off this horse.
2) Are flex trees any good? I'm a lightweight rider at 50kgs but others may ride her up to 90kgs. I'm ruling out memory foam as it seems like when warming up after a while riding, the girth would need adjusting as the foam gets softer and that doesn't seem safe to me.
I like the look of stock or endurance saddles. Western appeals to me but without the horn. I'm an English rider so far. I will use her for endurance, and want to be able to saddle bag it up and have comfort on long rides.
3) A lot of Paso riders use treeless saddles. With the lack of wither is that a really bad idea for me? Rolling to the side is an issue in the English - we use a breast plate to help keep it in place which makes a big difference. Nothing that I feel will take me with it but I haven't got up to higher speeds yet.
Window shopping online is scary. I can't tell if the "size" is for the human seat or the horse spine.
1) She's a gaited horse which perhaps means good shoulder movement is needed. I know Icelandics saddles sit further back and accommodate a shorter back. But there are gaited saddles available which describe being higher in the front to accommodate a higher wither i.e.: walking horses. But she also has a ridiculous lack of wither so would she even fit a gaited saddle. See the photo, it's just smooth and round. (She's a dream for anyone wanting to ride bareback, no bony front wedgies!)
She spooks a bit as still young. So I want something nice and stable. Pairing this factor with the smooth movement she has, nobody should ever fall off this horse.
2) Are flex trees any good? I'm a lightweight rider at 50kgs but others may ride her up to 90kgs. I'm ruling out memory foam as it seems like when warming up after a while riding, the girth would need adjusting as the foam gets softer and that doesn't seem safe to me.
I like the look of stock or endurance saddles. Western appeals to me but without the horn. I'm an English rider so far. I will use her for endurance, and want to be able to saddle bag it up and have comfort on long rides.
3) A lot of Paso riders use treeless saddles. With the lack of wither is that a really bad idea for me? Rolling to the side is an issue in the English - we use a breast plate to help keep it in place which makes a big difference. Nothing that I feel will take me with it but I haven't got up to higher speeds yet.
Window shopping online is scary. I can't tell if the "size" is for the human seat or the horse spine.