Cob Jockey

While at the Royal, I wanted to sit in as many saddles as possible, since there are brands there I hardly ever see in my area.  There's only so much you can tell sitting on the barrel horse, but I wanted to see if I liked any of these brands enough to put in the effort to track down a rep that could come out to me.  Even though none of these were winners, I thought it'd be interesting to share anyway.

Devoucoux
# saddles tried: 4
Overall impressions: I spent a half hour talking to a gorgeous French fellow who said Connor had "perfect conformation for saddle fitting" right in front of his breeder, what do you think I thought of it?  😂  On a serious note, they did the best job of selling out of all of the brands I tried.  He had me sit in them with stirrups (no one else did) and tried hard to figure out my preferences.  He also asked for a conformation photo of Connor so that he could figure out which saddles would and wouldn't work for him.

"Is Daniel Radcliffe moonlighting as a Devoucoux rep?  More at 10!"

I tried the Makila S (monoflap Dressage aimed more at eventers), the Makila Lab (deep seat straight flap aimed at Dressage), the Loreak (a model aimed at eventers that they don't make anymore), and the new Makila Harmonie (monoflap with carbon fiber tree aimed at Dressage).


My favorite knee rolls and flap were on the Loreak (RIP), but my favorite seat balance was on the Harmonie.  I've loved carbon fiber trees ever since getting the low-down on them from Mary while she was fitting CWD.  I love the way they conform to and move with the horse, while still retaining the structure that allows them to distribute weight well.  Wood trees just can't move like that.  I remember from watching Mary demo the CWD 2GS how the carbon fiber tree allows the seat to move with each step of the hind legs (it almost twists through the waist with each hind leg movement), and I've drooled over the idea of that in a Dressage saddle ever since.

I also really like where the billets come off of the Devoucoux saddles, on the flap:

Harmonie

Butet
# saddles tried: 3
Overall impressions:  I had a bit of a language barrier at Butet, the guy spoke barely any English, and they also only had massive 18's with long flaps, so it was hard to tell.  Butet has one model of Dressage saddle which is then customized from there.  Since then, I rode in my barnmate's heavily customized Butet and found it to be very nice, but without enough support compared to some other saddles I've tried.  Which, it should be said, is more of a personal preference than anything else.

Can't decide between black or brown tack?  Butet has a solution for you!

So pretty

Antares
# saddles tried: 3
Overall impressions:  This young French Canadian fellow was the most charming and flirtatious out of all of them (you needed to know that, right?  It's very important to saddle fit).


The leather quality on the Antares just could not be beat.  After trying virtually every French saddle brand available last weekend, I feel like I can make that statement confidently: they are the best at leather.  The twists were nice, but they really like their straight flaps, and while I think I could make it work, I found myself still putting Devoucoux ahead of them on the whole.

Bruno Delgrange
# saddles tried: 2
Overall impressions: Like Butet, Bruno Delgrange only has one Dressage saddle model that gets customized from there.  The rep was apologetic, calling themselves a "small company" and they're clearly more focused on the jump saddle market. They were very open to remote fittings, which was nice, but the saddles didn't wow me enough to go to that effort.

I didn't end up with any photos from BDG or Equipe so have some more pictures of the Devoucoux guy

Equipe
# saddles tried: 1
Overall impressions: This rep was nice, but the least thorough out of all of them, and it felt like she wanted to get me out of the booth.  She asked my preferences and what kind of horse I rode, and based on that said "here's your saddle". Oooooooooookay.  They were nice, but I definitely judged the saddles on how uncomfortable the rep made me feel.

No pictures since it ended up being a very brief interaction

The only thing I didn't try?  CWD.  Sorry guys.

The bottom line for me is, all of the French brands feel so similar, and it's not just because I was on a whirlwind saddle sitting tour.  I think you could blindfold me and ask me what nationality a saddle is at this point and I could pick out French vs English in a heartbeat.  Devoucoux was the only one that stood out to me, but it wasn't worth the effort to get my "local" rep out (who lives in VIRGINIA!)

Happy Thanksgiving to all my US-based readers!  Connor and I have so much to be thankful for this year.

A continued healthy, happy and sound pony


Enough pennies saved to find and buy a saddle that works for both of us



TWO amazing trainers for twice the fun

GP trainer at USDF Finals this month, on her $1 GP horse

A whole lotta miles on the ol' rig this year without any trailering incidents

I will knock on wood for that

Blog friends to share the journey with <3



And speaking of blog friends, one of you has won the Dressage Rider's Journal giveaway!  And the winner is...

Rafflecopter hath spoken

Congratulations!  And thanks to everyone who entered - it was so fun to see everyone's goals for next year, whether they were just having fun with their horse or competing.  I encourage you to go back and read everyone's comments sometime, it's encouraging to see what everyone is working on.

Reminder that the Dressage Rider's Journal contest ends at midnight tonight!  Also, reminder that you must both comment AND enter the Rafflecopter giveaway in order to win.  As of right now there are significantly more comments than Rafflecopter entries, so doublecheck that you're actually entered.  Good luck!


Link to contest blog post

Rafflecopter giveaway link (may need to click through to see it if you're viewing in RSS):


a Rafflecopter giveaway

The most interesting part of this whole saddle fitting process is that what I thought I wanted isn't what I wanted - but I'm not sure I would've figured that out if I didn't ride in 36 saddles over six weeks.

Before the fittings, I thought I wanted a narrow twist, flat seat, low cantle, minimal block.  Mostly, those were knee-jerk opposite reactions to my last saddle, which I know now was waaaaaaaay too small for me, but I didn't know that then.

I hate everything about me in this saddle looking back on it!  Funny how that works.  PC: Austen

I thought I wanted a flat seat, but it turns out I just want an open seat, and those two things aren't necessarily related.  I learned that I hate anything that cups my butt, where the rise of the cantle starts quickly behind me.  I began to see the surface of the saddle as a work surface: sometimes in Dressage you need to slightly change your position to get things done, and too small of a work surface limited my ability to do that - and I'm not talking about seat size here.

This felt appropriately flat and open.  Custom Wolfgang Omni (older version)

But that desire for a large work surface doesn't mean I want the saddle to encourage me to flop all over the place - I want the default balance of the saddle to put me in a good place, but give me options.  A closed seat does not equal more rider stability - some closed seat saddles put me far more out of balance than some open seat saddles.

I learned I really don't care how tall the cantle is, as long as, like I said above, the rise doesn't happen quickly.  Some saddles with very tall cantles felt very open, and some saddles with very short cantles made me feel trapped.

Short cantle, but I felt trapped in this

High cantle, but I don't even notice it

I learned I actually prefer a slightly wider twist.  I encourage anyone who has ever said the words "narrow twist" to keep an open mind where this is concerned, because I was saying it without truly understanding why and I don't think I'm alone in that.  I don't mean I want the twist so wide my hips hurt, but I learned that I don't like it when the saddle twist is more narrow than the width of my pubic bone.  I want the saddle to fill up the space between my legs (that's what she said?) and not make me feel like I have to contort myself to"snug" my thigh into the saddle, as MW would say.

WOW - wide(r) twist.  Liked it.

(And according to KB and Eq Saddle Science both, twist is a function of the horse's anatomy and not the rider's preference, so take that for what you will.)

Finally, blocks became fascinating to me.  I was wrong in thinking that big blocks always equal "seat belt saddles".  I rode in saddles with big blocks that you'd never notice, and with small blocks that felt like they were shouting at my knees "YOU SHALL NOT PASS".  I learned that I want the support of a good block, I just don't want to be pinned into place.

Both big and small blocks can be bad blocks

The difference between a good block and a bad block was not the height or length of the block - it was whether it asked or demanded a certain position from me.  A good block gently supported my leg in a good spot, and I didn't notice it.  A bad block said, "We're gonna put you HERE and you're NOT GOING TO MOVE, got it?" Even if it was the right leg position for me, if the block forced me to stay there, it was a bad block.

Good, big blocks.  And it should be noted that if I had bought the Patrick, we were going to custom shape these blocks, both by taking some foam off the upper right corner (as you're looking at them here) and by reducing the height of them by 1/2" because my thigh isn't that tall (in terms of how far it comes away from the saddle)

Also, interestingly, the difference between a good block and a bad block was so subtle - millimeters of foam that needed shaved off at the top or single degrees of angle.  The fact that there are some saddle makers that do not offer any customization of block position on their saddles is absolutely infuriating, and I will name and shame CWD and County for this because I think it's stupid that they ask you to drop many thousands of dollars on a saddle you can't really customize.  Custom, Patrick, Eq Saddle Science, Stubben and WOW all allow custom block shapes and positions with almost no limits.

And with that, that wraps up my saddle fitting series!  I hope you guys found this helpful.

Earlier this year, Aimee convinced me to give Equifuse Gleam Moisturizer and Shine Serum a try.  I think the conversation was about how to keep his tail from getting tangled with the least amount of effort this winter.


I had used Cowboy Magic's detangler in the past, and I hated it.  It detangled all right, but it took a literal handful of product to work, it attracted dirt like mad, and it left my hands with this slicker-than-snot feeling that I could.not.get.off.  I left a slippery, slimy trail of gross doorknobs and brushes at the barn every time I used it, which drove me so crazy I eventually stopped using it.

Did not like at all

Equifuse Gleam is the polar opposite of Cowboy Magic's detangler in every way.  Connor's entire, massive tail takes 2-3 quarter-sized amounts, because you can just keep working it with your hands and it keeps getting distributed further and further throughout the tail.

Almost immediately I can run a comb through the tail.  No joke - this is a tail that without Equifuse Gleam takes me 45 minutes to hand-pick, but with it, it takes just a few minutes to detangle it to the point you can run your fingers through it. 

BEHOLD.  No filter.

It also keeps his tail detangled and feeling amazing for weeks at a time.  Just for one example, I pulled him out of the field for a saddle fitting without having touched or combed his tail in a week and I could still run my fingers through it.  If you know this horse, you know his tail typically devolves into dreadlocks immediately after I detangle it, so that's notable.

That tail is like a second being floating behind his body

On the surface, it appears to be more expensive than Cowboy Magic (Gleam is $16.95 for 8oz, Cowboy Magic is $22.95 for 16oz), but with how little Equifuse Gleam and how much Cowboy Magic it takes to do his whole tail, I estimate that the cost-per-use is lower with Equifuse Gleam.  Plus the Equifuse Gleam keeps his tail detangled for so much longer than Cowboy Magic, so I'm using it less often.

Closeup

It also doesn't build up in the tail.  I've used it multiple times since his last bath, which was six weeks ago, and it seems to just slowly fade away between uses.  That tells me it's probably water soluble, which means there probably aren't any silicones in it  (which slowly build up in the tail over time because they aren't water soluble and can only be removed by detergents - they're not bad in and of themselves, you just need to understand them to be able to use them effectively.)  Update: it does contain silicones and will therefore need to be washed out with a detergent-containing shampoo. However, it does not build up quickly like Cowboy Magic does, so I still think this is a great choice for the winter months This makes it a great choice for the five months out of the year we can't bathe here.

All in all, this is my new secret weapon for tail detangling.  I got it for easy winter grooming, and it's great for that, but I'm going to use it year-round for sure. 

Bottom line: This works better than Cowboy Magic, and is effectively cheaper even though it appears to be more expensive at first glance.  I can't live without it now.

Price: $16.95 for 8oz
Where to Buy: Riding Warehouse

Brand: Custom
Cost for Fitting: $100 trip fee + $40 to try the saddles
Number of Saddles Tried at the Fitting: 4
Number of Saddles Trialed: 0

Having already more or less decided on the flapless, I thought about canceling this fitting with Custom.  I didn't in the end - it's a very popular brand I wanted to be familiar with,  friends I respect are happy with their Customs, and the fitting fee wasn't ridiculous.

Also, I wanted to thoroughly round out my blog series on the saddle fittings for this blog and for you guys, and I'm glad I did.  This is a great follow-up to my rant post and gives me hope for the saddle industry.


Custom has done their best to solve a lot of the problems I ranted about.  They have over 30 fitters covering the US.  This fitter could get to me as often as once a month if I needed her even though she lives 6 hours away.  Their trees are very adjustable, and have a five year warranty that they honor even if they suspect the saddle has been damaged by the user.  Their new saddle prices were well below CWD and Patrick, and on par with WOW and Stubben.


Best of all, their custom saddle ordering process does a lot to put my mind at ease.  When you place your order, you put $500 down if it's a non-blingy saddle, or $1k down if it's a blingy saddle.  When it gets here, you get a 10 day trial.  If you don't like it, they make you a new one, and in the meantime you're allowed to keep the first one.  You don't pay in full until you're happy.

I like this pattern.  But without the patent, or rhinestones, or contrasting color stitching.

This fitter was a great fitter.  Not a biomechanics person really, which is fine, but a great fitter.  And she's been doing this for 20 years, so you know she's doing something right.  Even though I told her I had the budget for new, she offered to consult with me over text if I found a Custom I liked on eBay, and then come back to fit it!  She's the only one I've talked to that has offered that, and some have straight up told me they don't work on anything they don't sell.

She travels with a trailer full of usually 80 demo, new and used saddles, although she apologized because her inventory is low (50) right now as they prepare to launch some new models in January.


The fitter was also very honest, she and I are so similar in the way we sell.  I described my preferences to her and she said, "I've got saddles for you, but I also have a lot of saddles that are NOT for you, I won't waste either of our time by bringing them out.  Their seats are like soup bowls, and if you like a flatter seat you'll hate them."

Her easy-going nature, deep knowledge of the product line and straight-talking attitude helped me immediately hone in on what I liked, and I tried four saddles - Wolfgang Gemini, Santa Cruz Monoflap, Icon Flight, and an older Wolfgang Omni they don't make anymore.

Of those, I liked the open and wide seat and twist of the Gemini, the size and material of the blocks on the Santa Cruz, nothing about the Icon flight, and everything about the older model Wolfgang Omni.


It's a used saddle taken back from one of her sponsored trainers, and as such would be quite a bit cheaper than buying new, and I almost liked it that much.  It would need some adjustments to fit Connor, but it was doable, and well below my price range (Is this starting to feel like House Hunters to anyone else?)

(Side note, all the good fitters have called Connor quite easy to fit. Hmmm.)


It's one of those things where maybe if she'd let me take it on trial (she couldn't) I might have given it some serious thought, but I couldn't make a decision that fast during the fitting. 

In the end, Custom has a lot of nice saddles that are on par with the Patrick, but with both brands, I'm more in love with the fitters and policies than I am the saddles.  If I could get the flapless with Custom's return policies and Kate's biomechanics skills, I'd be in business.

Do you have a significant other who is interested in cars but not horses?  Here's a handy visual translation guide to the vehicles of 200 years ago and the vehicles of today to bridge the gap between your two worlds.

Semi trucks:





Grand touring sedans:







A grand touring sedan with a flat tire:

 






Roadsters:





Box trucks:







Cute little underpowered convertibles that handle well and are aimed at the female driving market: