Cob Jockey

It absolutely kills me to write these words, but I also definitely knew it was coming.

My saddle doesn't fit.

March 2020

I mean, nobody is surprised. The CWD was always "good enough" in terms of fit, but not perfect, and Homeskillet porked out like a cow on a feedlot while in training. Plus, as JenJ always says, no saddle is forever. Toward the end of training, CGP said she thought he was resisting lifting and sitting because of the saddle, which is exactly, verbatim, what and when the fitter that reflocked the CWD last spring said would happen with this saddle.

January 2021. It's subtle, but if you look at the angle of the knee roll, you can see the top of the knee roll is now tilted slightly back toward his tail, and if you look at the back panel, you can tell it's lifted up a bit. Both signs that it's now too narrow.

(Can I just get an "Praise Jesus!" that I didn't spend let's-not-talk-about-it money on the Patrick one year ago and instead bought the $2,000 CWD instead? The price difference between the CWD and the Patrick is more than what I ended up paying for 3.5 months of full training, so that money ended up where it needed to be spent for sure.)

Last week I reached out to Connor's former owner and blogland's favorite saddle fitter/body worker Tara to start the process of saddle fitting with her, because 1. I really trust her, and 2. Any of Frank Baines monoflap Dressage saddles can be made with a Velcro block, which other manufacturers have flat out told me "No" on. 

Come on, this is just genius. I'm going to order mine with as many blocks as they'll sell me so CGP can adjust my leg to her heart's content.

I didn't intend for Tara to take a look at the CWD, I know it needs to go, but in the process of taking conformation photos she thought she saw it sitting a little lower on the right and asked me to place one thin shim underneath it.

Before I rode with the shim, I wouldn't have thought anything was crooked, but damn did that make a difference. And if I thought that was noticeable, I rode him bareback on Sunday and was flat out amazed at what I felt.

After shimming, sitting suspiciously straight

Bareback, he was effortlessly consistent in the contact, he didn't throw his head up for transitions or reinbacks, and lifted his back almost from the beginning of the ride. I could also clearly feel for the first time that his back does have less muscle on the right. 

So now I'm stuck with a horse I desperately want to keep in solid work so I don't lose the muscle he built with CGP, but I'm also facing a long drawn out saddle buying process and a saddle that may be actively hurting him. Which sucks, but all I can do is get that ball rolling.

Poor beefy pony

 

As an aside, I had a fleeting thought that I'd give the Eq Saddle Science flapless saddle a second try, because that feeling of closeness and how easy it made to ride Connor literally haunts my dreams. But...the more I thought about it, the more I'm convinced that it was the length of the panels that caused the issue last time, given the point at which the pain was most acute was right at the back corner of the panel (as diagnosed by my vet before she'd even seen the saddle). And while it might fit better now that his back isn't as banana shaped, I cannot take the risk that he'll get back pain again and set us back at this point in his training. And ESS told me last year that they won't make a shorter pony panel for me. So...that's sad, but I'm moving on. Hopefully either my next horse fits my anatomy better, or my next horse has a slightly longer back!

 I got a pair of Dubarrys for $50, and took so.  many.  lessons. with CGP. This was also the first time she ever rode him.

We've had some surprising twists in the "why is Connor NQR" and "is it the saddle" saga over the past few weeks, so buckle up!

In our mid-December lesson with CGP, he was extremely resistant to bending, wasn't forward, would not "follow his nose" around a circle, would not lift his back and was exceptionally tense in the mouth.  CGP was stunned at how much had changed in a month.  She palpated him (far more aggressively than my own palpation technique) and declared him "probably" back sore (although admitted other things can cause the appearance of back soreness), and gave me some stretching exercises to do with him, and also advised me to get a hold of my vet.

NQR but real cute!  PC: Austen

I wasn't 100% convinced he was back sore, but the idea was enough to make me email Eq Saddle Science and say I wanted to send the flapless back for now, as I was renting it weekly at the time (with all rental fees going toward the eventual purchase price of my custom saddle).  They convinced me to let them send me a Port Lewis Impression pad to prove whether the saddle was digging in anywhere.

PLI pads are clear plastic half-pads filled with fancy Play-Doh.  You ride in them for 20-30 minutes, and if your saddle is causing pressure points, you'll see them clearly because the Play-Doh will be thinner/let more light through in that area.

The Velcro isn't lined up properly here, plz ignore

Now, I 100% took this pad on the basis of "is this saddle making my horse sore?", but I have to admit I was curious to see whether there really were four circular indentations in his back because I'm just so skeptical of the Reactor Panels.  But I couldn't have been more surprised when I lifted the saddle off his back after a solid 40 minute ride and saw...nothing:


It was so smooth, so even, I was absolutely shocked.  There were just very faint indentations where the panels were.  The pressure was completely even all the way up and down the panel.


I hadn't intended to actually buy this pad, but in the end I did.  I want this data, for all of my saddles and all of my current and future horses.  No, it's not going to tell you EVERYTHING about the way a saddle fits, but it's a great starting point for information we normally have to guess at.  As the owner of a stoic horse, I'll take all the saddle fit data I can get, even if it means buying a half pad I'll probably use twice a year.

Resetting the pad by rolling it out

(PS - If anyone local would like to borrow it, I'm happy to let people borrow it for a small usage charge, since these do have a limited number of uses in their lifespan.)

No real areas of pressure to note, except where I sit real hard on my left seatbone (facepalm)

The good news is, it's not the saddle, but the bad news is, it's not the saddle.  Next...

When we last left off in my saddle fitting saga, I had decided to move forward with the Eq Saddle Science flapless Dressage, knowing that I would #1 take an extended trial of it, and #2 request a second trial saddle, this time the blocktester version.



The blocktester version exists to do exactly what it sounds like: allows people to test blocks of different sizes and shapes in various positions on the knee roll area.  It comes with three sets of blocks, and they're going to be adding a fourth in January 2020.

This saddle is an older model compared to the trial one, and it's a 17.5" instead of a 17.  Which...




...I gotta be honest, I'm digging.  And not (entirely) because I've finally gotten serious about hitting the gym consistently over the past two months and gone up a pant size since the saddle search began.  (Far more importantly, I tied my all-time back squat PR from four years ago this week at 175 lbs/115lbs body weight and my workouts are starting to feel easier!  Bring on the booty!)

And had a huge breakthrough in snatch biomechanics

I scheduled the blocktester to where I'd ride in it for both of my trainers - my home trainer tonight, and then I have back to back weekend lessons scheduled with my GP trainer this weekend before she leaves to winter in Florida.  And Jan is coming too!



The one thing that's going sideways right now is Connor.  My trainer has noticed it too, he's not lame, but he's unusually reluctant under saddle currently, both in terms of forward, relaxation and just general balance.  I don't think this is saddle related because he feels the same for my trainer in her saddle as he feels in my jump and the flapless, and he's not palpating sore at all.

We did this remote saddle fitting outside for cell signal reasons and Connor was like "...why?"

My best guess is that he's had an ulcer flareup, since he's been increasingly girthy over the past couple of months - with all types of saddles - and he's started spooking at nothing again too.  Either way, Carmi, the owner of Eq Saddle Science that has been doing all of my fittings, is encouraging me not to buy until I have some amazing rides again, so I can be 100% sure I'm making the right choice for both of us, which I totally appreciate.

I still have one fitting to go, which is Custom, tomorrow.  I'm confident they won't be able to outdo Kate's fitting/Patrick in the "normal looking traditional saddle" category, but I'm moving forward with it anyway. It's a relatively cheap fitting and a very popular option that I want to be familiar with. 

But that said.  I'm already in the process of moving forward with one of the two finalists, even though I'm over a month away from signing anything official or sending a check.

And the winner is...


I KNOW.  I'm as shocked as you are.  If you think I'm absolutely insane for not going for the picture of perfection that is my leg in the Patrick, I don't blame you at all.  But I'm also not going to be able to explain it to you unless you've ridden in the flapless.  So far the flapless is 2 for 2 for converting everyone who has ridden in it since I've had it, but like 0 for [everyone else] on converting anyone who has just seen it and not ridden in it.  Insanely ugly to the eyes, magic under your butt.

Like, literally perfect

The one thing I couldn't get past about the Patrick is that it felt very wide and made my adductors sore.  Now, given Kate's opinion on twists, you could argue that that's because she fit the saddle to Connor's anatomy and that's what happened, but still.  I couldn't shake the feeling that the saddle was riding me.  And that's not something fixable if I get it and I hate it six months in.

I also realized, after some probing questioning by Leah, that a big part of the reason Patrick was in my top two was Kate.  If Kate ever moved on or quit fitting, I wouldn't be nearly as happy with the Patrick, and could potentially find myself without someone who would work on it given the lack of independent fitters here, a risk that the user-adjustable flapless doesn't have.

My next ride after the Patrick fitting, I rode in the flapless, and as I settled into the saddle I felt that "coming home" feeling my jump saddle gives me.  "Oh shit," I thought.  "I genuinely missed riding in this."  THAT'S the feeling I've been chasing this WHOLE TIME. 

Point for the flapless, there's no other saddle on the planet easier to use a quarter sheet with!

Then I had a lesson at home in the flapless, in which Connor went SO well, my trainer asked me if CGP rode him in my last lesson.  Her initial reaction to seeing it when I unboxed it the week before was shock and horror at how ugly it looked, so it had an uphill battle with her.  "Your leg does look very effective in it," she mused as she watched us.  After my lesson, I begged her to get on him and just try it, and I think she shocked herself when she admitted she really liked it and asked if she could ride him in it during her training rides this week.





The flapless solves a problem for me that I've always had, which is that Connor's body and my body are really poorly suited for each other.  In a normal saddle, I choose between my thigh and calf on him at any one time because of where his barrel hits my leg, and the only saddle I don't have to do that in is the flapless.  Yes, I've tried a lot of monoflaps.  It's not even close to the same feeling.

The repositionable stirrup bar is a gamechanger

Even with a knee roll that's not yet perfect, the balance is effortless.  I can be a lot quieter with my leg aids, because the only thing between my leg and him is a saddle pad.  It just feels like a better way to ride a horse.  And even though I'm my own person and would buy whatever saddle I'm happiest in, it does feel good that I have an option that both of my trainers like.

Time to get used to this strange, strange view

The one thing I'm still concerned about is the Reactor Panels.  This is 20+ year old technology at this point that's beloved by endurance riders, so in theory it's solid, but like anything there are good and bad stories about it out there, and I'm still nervous about just how weird it is.  Connor is going well in it, but I'm still going to approach the purchase with a long trial runway just so that I can abort before purchasing if I notice he's sore.

Pony likes it, human is still skeptical

Right now, the plan is that Eq Saddle Science is going to send me a second trial saddle, one with a giant patch of Velcro on the front, along with a pile of knee rolls, so that during my next lessons with my GP trainer the second week of December, as well as with my home trainer, we can figure out the perfect knee roll and position for me.  Then the Velcro saddle will get sent back, and my saddle will get made with the knee roll in the same spot.  I'm going to continue to ride in the trial saddle at least up until I order, which will be mid-December, so that I can thoroughly assess how Connor's back reacts to the Reactor Panels.

 And now...let the fun part begin 😁  How do y'all feel about brown?  Contrasting piping?  Hot pink cantle designs??????

Brand: Eq Saddle Science (English saddle sister company to Reactor Panel)
Cost for Fitting: $95 for two week trial and remote fitting, including shipping both ways
Number of Saddles Tried at the Fitting: 1
Number of Saddles Trialed: 1

After former CWD saddle fitter best friend Mary gently helped me come to the realization that nothing in CWD's lineup was made for the way I want to ride Dressage now, I was taken aback.  I realized two things. First, MW is more counter-culture than I realized, at least to saddle makers, and, second saddle makers are making what the general riding public asks for, and what people ask for isn't always the most biomechanically sound.  Therefore there are a lot of saddles out there that aren't biomechanically sound.

So I sent an SOS to fellow biomechanics nut Kate and asked what saddles she loves and she had a few ideas, but her resounding recommendation was Eq Saddle Science.  Her words: "never fallen in love with a saddle more in my life".

Yes, it's weird as f*** (This saddle has three billets because it's a demo.  Once purchased, the third billet would be cut off after you determine which two you want to use.)

Because it's so weird looking, I'll cut to the chase quickly: I LOVE this saddle.  I have never felt more balanced or stable in anything in my life.  Read on for more.

We do have a local-ish fitter (Cincinnati), but our schedules didn't line up, so I took advantage of the remote fitting.  First, you take lots of tracings of his back as well as photos from the side and above.  Then you physically mail the tracings and email the photos to ESS, and they build a saddle for you off of that.  After that, you schedule a remote fitting via Facetime/Skype/Hangouts/whatever to validate the fit, then you ride, then you call back and discuss (I also sent videos).

One of my fitting photos

According to Carmi, the founder and my remote fitter, they have about a 75% success rate of getting it correct out of the gate with this process.

It rides so much more like a regular saddle than you'd expect, and you don't notice the lack of flap in any negative way.  You don't feel the billets.  You do get the sensation that your horse is suddenly much narrower (a godsend for me on this horse!) and like it takes less effort to transmit aids.  I could easily get my whole leg on him top to bottom, when normally I have to decide between thigh or lower leg at any one time.  Even a monoflap doesn't do it for me anymore after riding in this.

Three cheers for a REPOSITIONABLE STIRRUP BAR!  Unusual length femurs of the world, unite!

The thing I love most about it?  The balance is just incredible - and they have a published study to back this feeling up.  It feels like it gives me body control that I normally don't have, without locking me into place.  I feel so stable and in control in while in the saddle.  And all that is with a block configuration that I'm not sure yet is perfect for me.

If you're wondering why he looks like crap in these videos, this was hour #5 of back to back saddle fittings with a steadily falling temperature (it was 25 degrees in this video).  It's a testament to his kind nature that he wasn't flat out saying "NO" at this point!

I included the unplanned down transition at the end just to show you how stable I stayed even when he plows onto his forehand like a ton of bricks.

I'm showing you this direction because it's my right lower leg that tends to swing wildly at the posting trot in most saddles, while the left remains stable.

The negatives?  This thing looks weird af.

Half a saddle for my "haffie"?  Where's JenJ when I need her?

I didn't prepare my poor trainer for this one, and she was like "What IS that?!" when I pulled it out of the box.  The panels are a combination of foam plus a proprietary rubber disc:


You'd think it would have a concentration of weight under those discs, but the heaviest part of the saddle isn't under the discs at all, and ESS has the pressure pads to prove it.  They are also preparing to publish more research on this as well for the true skeptics - and I do consider myself one, even though I love this saddle.  I challenged the founder on the weight distribution over the phone and she was delighted, saying she could always tell it was an intelligent, thinking individual if they questioned the panels that much, and she dove right into the research and panel mechanics with me.

This configuration also means it's user-adjustable, although they recommend you not touch it without guidance from a pro, either in-person or over video chat.  They recommend taking tracings and assessing fit regularly, in part because it's actually possible for you to adjust, unlike a wool or foam saddle.  This is a big selling point for me out here in saddle fitting no man's land, where I'm lucky if I see a saddle fitter yearly when someone makes their "big trip" up from Florida or the East Coast.

All of the stuff it shipped with (minus my whip, plus some webbers (not shown))

It comes with thin flaps that get attached to the saddle with Velcro, either for regular use or just for shows, where it's illegal to show in a flapless saddle:

Shown with flaps that I don't think I had attached quite right

Finally, it also comes with a special two piece Toklat III saddle pad made specifically for this saddle - and by two piece I mean each SIDE is completely separate.  They have regular colors and then you can also custom order any color combination you want. The pad has Velcro pockets that the ends of the foam panels slip into, which makes it look (slightly) more like a normal saddle.  This also has the added benefit of making it impossible for the pad to slip, the saddle pad and the saddle become a single unit.

Totally separate.  I do love that there's no binding to tighten against the withers or spine.

They also sell a quilted panel cover that goes over the strangest looking parts of the saddle to make it look more normal, so that you can then ride in your regular saddle pads, as well as pocket pads and full pads that are wool fleece or sheepskin underneath.


I really, really didn't want to like this.  It would be so much easier to hate this, but I don't.  I have to say it's my current #1.  All of my dislikes about it are rooted in fear - of being weird, of losing money - none of it has to do with the saddle itself.  It feels absolutely amazing.

Short List: Eq Saddle Science Flapless Dressage

Likes

• Everything about the way it rides - it makes riding easier.  It's the first one I've looked forward to riding in a second and third time.
• The way it fits Connor and really moves with him
• Science.  ACTUAL PUBLISHED SCIENCE!
• The way I can get my whole leg on him and not be forced to choose between thigh and lower leg
• The repositionable stirrup bar
• Carmi's commitment to "Getting it right or we won't take your money"
• Remote fittings and user-adjustable parts mean I'll be able to check saddle fit more than once a year 
• The way the saddle pads don't have any spine binding whatsoever

Dislikes

• Much smaller resale market and therefore resale value won't be good
• New saddle pads would be an additional cost
• The thin flaps are such poor leather I thought they were plastic.  Maybe that would get better with conditioner?

Outstanding Unanswered Questions

• Am I really ballsy enough to show up in this saddle to clinics and shows even if I love it?  
• If I ride flapless in the summer will my legs get sweaty?  Not something I can test in the dead of winter!