Barefoot saddles

[Toni_L]

Hi!

I have a 10 year old, 14 hand Tennessee Walking Horse mare that I do a lot of trail riding with. She is my first horse. I have recently heard about the Barefoot saddles and I would like some more thoughts and information from others on the saddles. The pros and cons, things to think about, etc… I think they sounds interesting, but I really can’t afford to buy one just because they sound neat! So, I am really hoping to hear others thoughts and experiences with them. I am currently riding in a Trailmaster Aussie saddle from Downunder.

I know I can do a 7 day demo of one, but I kind hate to spend the extra money to do that as well…

Thanks in advance!

Toni

[gothedistance]

They are a very nice saddle - extremely comfortable for both horse and rider. They are best suited for the round, low withered horse/pony if you want to remove the pommel form; can fit a medium withered horse with the form in.

Best to suck it up and get a demo to try out.

[wendy]

I found the seat to be incredibly uncomfortable.

[BaileyTW]

I have the Barefoot London (their dressage model) and LOVE it for trails. I find it is most stable on horses with some sort of wither (my low withered, round TWH it tended to roll) but a thing to watch out for is that the billets seem to be longer than normal saddles. It seems to be worst on the London, I had to get an 18" girth!

The saddle is very comfortable and I really like the bareback feel it gives, you can feel their muscles really working under the saddle. Its such a great feeling, reminds me of riding the ponies around the farm bareback. Some people don’t like it though for that reason.

Also you MUST get the recommended specialty pad for the saddle for stability and spinal clearance.

[GallopingGrape]

I ride in the Barefoot Nevada when I’m not riding in my treed Dakota, and LOVE IT. My gaited SSH loves it too. He gaits out well, moves freely… Its sooo very comfortable and incredible close contact. We often get used ones in for sale.

[Toni_L]

I am confused - more info on Barefoot Saddles please!

OK - After reading the other thread on the Barefoots and the comments here, I was thinking I might be interested in trying one, BUT now I have been told (by a respected horse person / trainer) that a treeless saddle is not what would be best for my horse. She told me that they are nice saddles, but that since I ride a lot, and go on rides for more than a few hours at a time, that with it being treeless it will cause my horses back to be sore. She said if I was just going to be doing occasional riding it would be fine. She said she has seen many horses who are ridden in the Barefoots and the horses have soreness issues related to the saddle.

I trail ride and often go out for full days of riding. Sometimes it is rocky, hilly conditions and sometimes it is flatter where we will gait a fair amount.

Help - I am so confused. So, those of you who have these saddles, how often and long do you ride and under what conditions!

Toni

[Auventera_Two]

Lots of endurance riders ride treeless. If their horses backs were getting sore, they wouldn’t be able to continue using them. At my last ride I counted at least 4 other treeless saddles, besides mine. One of them belongs to a woman who has over 5,000 AERC miles and she currently does 50s with 8 hour ride times. I asked her about her saddle (a Barefoot Cheyenne!) and she said she absolutely loves it, so does the horse, and she’ll never go back to treed.

I got As on my horse’s back after a 25 mile ride with just over a 3 hour ride time in my Bandos treeless. I’ve been riding her regularly for about 6 months in the saddle and she has had no back soreness. I cannot say that about the treed saddle she was in.

Treed saddles are fine and treeless are fine, if they fit the horse. Each person and each horse has a preference to what they like best. You MUST use the good pads recommended for the treeless saddles. That’s not even an option. The saddle and pad should go together as a system. The pads are very expensive but they are designed to disperse pressure, give spinal clearance, and icnrease your stability.

Call Action Rider Tack and you can talk to an endurance rider there who has logged thousands of treeless miles. I can’t remember her name, but she helped me. Also check out April Battles (www.treelesssaddle.com) who has 37,000 treeless miles.

It seems that people who poo poo treeless didn’t use the proper pads, or have no firsthand knowledge but just don’t like the “idea” because it’s not traditional. Indians rode a zillion miles without treed saddles. As times progress, technology improves and we have padding options available today with closed and open cell foam, that people didn’t have 30 years ago.

Don’t you think that if endurance riders started getting pulls or bad scores because their horses had sore backs, they’d drop their treeless like a hot potato? So the fact that so many people put so many thousands of miles on them seems to be proof that it sure CAN work if done properly. Just like anything else. You can still get an improper fit and dry spots if your padding isn’t right. It takes some tweaking, just like a treed saddle.

Like I said I only have about 6 months on mine but after 6 months of fairly heavy and consistent riding, I would sure think my mare would be sore or lame if the saddle were so bad.

[chicamuxen1]

There are probably more endurance riders using the Bob Marshall sport Saddle (treeless) than any other brand in this country. From featherweight to heavyweight, 25 miles to 100 miles, and multi-day rides. Don’t let someone who has no experience influence you.

Treeless for a 1000 + miles!

Bonnie

[Toni_L]

Anyone in the Midwest with Barefoot / treeless?

OK - Thanks guys - and keep the info coming!! This is the info I was hoping to hear (from people using treeless) and I figured if I posted here I could get answers from people who know what they are talking about.

So, my next concern is that I live in Iowa and I know of NO ONE that knows anything about treeless that could help me with fitting, etc… Do any of you know anyone around me that could help me if I did decide to get one?

And yes, I know the expensive / special pads are a must and I would get the entire “system” including the pads.

Thanks so much!

Toni

[Auventera_Two]

It would depend on what brand you end up going with, as to who is local who can help you. Our local tack shop loans out a Bob Marshall on a trial basis. Check with your local stores to see if any of them have a saddle you can try out, or at least sit on at the store. I think the Barefoot people offer a demo and then if you decide to keep the saddle, they deduct that from the sale price.

Next, I just googled “treeless saddle” and started reading all the websites of all the different brands. Then I decided on my price range, and narrowed it down to brands within that range.

Join the treeless saddle Yahoo group also - there is about 10 years worth of reading right there. :lol:

Most of the online tack shops that sell treeless saddles are happy to talk to you on the phone, and you can email them pictures of your horse and his closeups of his back. Also call the different stores and ask what pads they recommend. I went with the Toklat Woolback with inserts and am SO happy I did.

Oh yeah - Jeremy Reynolds won the Tevis in a Freeform treeless last year also.

[katarine]

I’ve ordered a BF Cheyenne to try, just this week. Try www.loristack.com she supports a trial program.

Like you, I have a short backed, supple, made of rubber TWH. I don’t really believe in my heart that there’s a western-type tree that can fit this horse, lord knows I’ve looked. I’ve spent way too much money and miles trying 25+ saddles on him, taking little test rides, and nothing’s right on him, price be damned. Like you, I ride a ton and all over and do tons of crazy trails on this horse. I need him happy.

Here’s my thoughts…I’m a balanced, centered rider, so I’m bringing what I can to the table. I’ll use a Skito pad under it, a good breast collar…and give it a try for a few rides, see what happens.

I think a treeless can’t support/overcome a bad/unbalanced rider as well as a treed. If you can honestly assess yourself as a pretty GOOD rider, you’re bringing what you can to the table.

[Toni_L]

Please let me know what you think of it when you get it!!!

Toni

[Bogie]

You really need to try the different brands to figure out which one(s) will work for you and your horse. I dislike the position that the Barefoot Cheyenne puts me in and I hated the nubuck . . . I have a Torsion Extra Light and a Freeform instead. I use good padding and have not had any problems with my horses’ backs. I am not a lightweight rider, either. I had an older style Cheyenne, without any gullet, so this may have changed, but I didn’t think they had enough structure.

Lots of people “poo poo” them without any real knowledge; there are probably more horses that have had their backs sored by poorly fitting treed saddles!

Personally, I ride in both treed and treeless saddles and think that they can both work. I have an article and some reviews on my blog . . . maybe they will help.

Many of the distributors of treeless saddles have trial saddles available. That’s a good place to start.

[GallopingGrape]

As opposed to the previous post, I love the Barefoot, and thought the nubuck was awesome. The saddle puts me in a centered riding position, and the new Barefoots have great pannels for increased spinal clearance.

[katarine]

I got mine today.

BF Cheyenne with Grandeur saddle pad (as I was advised to use by dealer)

Carefully saddled horse with thin towel under pad to keep it clean. Did not put in the pommel insert, just wanted to try it as it came out of the box.

Horse seemed to like it fine, but some of his same issues as with others- bit chewing, pacey, tight- but he’s always like that for the first mile or so…

too bad I hated it so much, we didn’t last that long.

I found that it has a very uncomfortable seat to me. Any of my other saddles: Rocking R hard seat trail, Wintec 2000, Tucker River Plantation…any of those offer a closer,truer feel.

I was sitting on so much fluff and stuffing I found I couldn’t feel him very well. The Little Jo BB pad offered a truer feel than this puff ball. I cantered and galloped in that BB pad. Not this thing.

Also, he’d walked mostly out from under it in two flat walk laps in my arena. I have treed saddles that don’t fit him great, but do fit him better than this thing.

I did like:

• where it put my legs.
  -good construction
  -grippy neubuck, not TOO much grip but a nice feel
  -the weight. There ain’t much to 'em in that regard, LOL
  -quality of that Grandeur pad. VERY nice pad.

Nope, not for me. I think I’ll stick with treed.

[CanterQueen]

Search the COTH threads – there’s a few on treeless saddles.

I’m a big Bob Marshall Sport Saddle fan. I ride trails in the mountains and on the flat for hours at a time and I’ve never had any back issues with my gelding. I was doing mounted search and rescue in the VA/MD area and all I used were my BM saddles. VERY comfy saddles, and I can feel him just like with a close contact saddle. No matter which saddle you decide on, absolutely spend the money and get the recommended pad.

[chicamuxen1]

I would suggest trying one of the Sensation Saddles, I have the English trail. I tried Barefoot (bought and sold) Freeform (bought and sold) BMSS (used for many years) and now am riding mostly in the Sensation. If you like and english style saddle this will really make you happy. Also the Hybrid model is a good choice for trail and endurance work.

Bonnie