I’ve been through wayy too many periods of not having a saddle. It sucks, but I long line, lunge, handwalk, and do a bunch of other groundwork to keep the horse going and somewhat fit.
Check out the used saddle market too. I’ve seen a few Rooks out there now, and a lot of used saddle shops have trial periods of 5 to 7 days.
I didn’t love my Aviar/Custom rep, but she wasn’t terrible either. I’ve yet to be blown away or really satisfied with any of the fitters I’ve tried here though.
The person that ended up with the saddle that you had, may have been desperate too, who knows. They could’ve been pressuring the fitter a bit. She might’ve been balancing two clients and one saddle, and wanted to jump on the more secure sale. Not ideal, but I get it to some extent. Hopefully she gives you the other one to try. If so, it sounds like she is trying to please 2 clients that are in need. Or maybe I’m being too optimistic, I don’t know.
