crotch punisher saddles

[MelanieC]

I realize that everyone is built differently so answers will vary, but I am looking for my first saddle and there are not very many tack shops around here so I will likely have to order and/or go eBay.

What is your LEAST favorite saddle brand in terms of crotch comfort? If you do not state your gender I will assume, for obvious reasons, that you are female.

I have ridden in saddles of all sizes and makes (unfortunately paying little attention to what the makes were as I wasn’t shopping at the time) and feel like I can compensate for pretty much anything (seat size, flap orientation, etc.) except for crotch punishment.

Back when I was on my college equestrian team we rode at a lesson barn (h/j) that kept a tack room full of interchangeable saddles for the school horses. We would always race each other to the tack room to avoid getting stuck with one particular saddle, which was dubbed the Crotch Punisher (even worse considering you don’t really sit in h/j). I really don’t want to end up with one like that.

[thatsnotme]

I don’t find any Keifers comfy in the seat. I also don’t care for the older Schleeses, both are like sitting on a 2x4 to me. The newer Schleeses (Infinity and HK) are quite comfy. I know you didn’t ask, but I really like most Niedersuss’ in the seat. I think the Lemke’s are the most comfortable saddles around, if you can get one.

[arabiansrock]

Stubben
haven’t met one I can sit in yet.

[ThreeFigs]

Saddles I think are comfy (no particular order):

Prestige
Neidersuss
Albion
Passier
Some Lovatt & Ricketts (the more open seats…)

Saddles I hate (JMO and in no particular order):

Keiffers built after 1970 or so
Cliff-Barnsby
Some Lovatt & Ricketts (I hate the uber-deep seat models!)

OTOH, one of my best friends LOVES Keiffer and hates my Neidersuss. It’s such a personal thing.

Worth it to observe patterns of love/hate perhaps, but the decision is yours alone. What’s comfortable for YOU? Better to go a half inch or so on the large side than to settle for a “snug” fitting saddle. “Open” seats are more forgiving in general, “Deep” seats more secure feeling for some people, others will feel confined. So again, it comes down to what you like, what fits best, and meets your expectations.

[GeminiPony]

Definitely agree with those that said Keiffers are uncomfortable. I have a fairly old one, and for the first couple of years it was OK. Now that we have reached a stage where we are doing sitting trot regularly in our rides, it is a killer!!! Beware that the saddle you are sold when you are starting out with your horse, may not be the saddle that you like when you have progressed in your training. I wish I had asked the OP’s question when I was saddle shopping 4 years ago! :lol:

[JLR1]

Kieffer and Passier…ouch!

[Xfactor]

I have an Albion SLK…it’s a fine enough saddle. I don’t swoon over it or hate it either. No damage in the hinterland thus far.

County Competitor…hated it…HATED it.

Cheap little Klimke…is it a Millers or Ovation…can’t recall… actually surprised but it isn’t bad!

The saddle that made my backside sing was a Roosli…I forgot i was in a saddle.
I think if I could wish for any, it would be a Roosli.

One other older saddle i had that I just adored, was one made by Mansion House…which later became Albion?
That saddle was heavenly, but didn’t fit the horse I bought it for.

I do have an old school Kieffer A/P that I enjoy…but that is really more for hacking/ out of the saddle…can’t speak to the dressage Kieffers.

[horsefaerie]

I was given this info many years ago.

Sit in a chair wearing a pair of jeans with an inside seam.

Preferably a wooden chair with a flat seat.

Measure how many fingers between the seat and your inseam. More than 2 1/2 you like a fast rising saddle such as some Kieffers, Countys etc.

Less than two you will like a slow rising, falling away type saddle.

Then you need to know if you like a wide or narrow twist and a soft or hard seat.

I like soft leather with a wooden tree.

I like a fast rising saddle.

I loathe Stuebbens and any saddle that is flatter in the front or cushy saddles. Can’t ride an Albion at all.

Try to find people that will let you try their saddles as well if at all possible.

[reefy]

Kottas - could be because mine is old as dirt but that thing hits you in all the wrong spots.

I don’t even use it now, I’m riding in my CC Antares until my new Custom one comes

[ThreeFigs]

Good tip, Horsefaerie! That explains why my friend and I loathe each other’s favorite saddles!

Yes, I would be one for a flatter saddle with a slow rise.

[Velvet]

I had a student who had an old Courbette and we used to affectionately call it the “ball buster” saddle and we were grateful we were women because at least it didn’t cause permanent damage to us. :lol:

[EasyStreet]

Flat, slow, wide for me! I can ride in a deeper seat as long as it does not have a narrow twist!

[appychik]

[QUOTE=horsefaerie;5132565]
Sit in a chair wearing a pair of jeans with an inside seam. Preferably a wooden chair with a flat seat. Measure how many fingers between the seat and your inseam. More than 2 1/2 you like a fast rising saddle such as some Kieffers, Countys etc. Less than two you will like a slow rising, falling away type saddle.[/QUOTE]

I must just be dumb, but can’t figure out where the heck you take the measurement. Oh well.

I know that I LOFF my Kieffer (it’s the Wien DL Pro). Very, very comfy. My trainer’s Stubben Maestoso is my new “dream” saddle.

My Stubben (Woton) is a good saddle. Fits Gus well enough but is still quite hard. It’s a pretty plain Jane saddle (no knee rolls or extra cushion anywhere) and I won’t ever sell it, but if I were to ever get into H/J, I’d want something more comfortable.

The worst saddle? The Bates, umm not sure which model… it’s a dressage model though. Very, very uncomfortable and put me in a bad position, least I thought it did. Felt very much like a chair seat. Uggh.

[BetterOffRed]

I may be the only one that thinks this, but I think Wintec Isabell’s are the most uncomfortable saddles…YUK!

I also can’t stand Stubben or Keiffer.

I love my Prestige but I think Albion is the most comfy saddle EVER!

This week I’ve been riding in my friends horse in her 16" Hulsebos…besides the fact that I was riding in a too small saddle, I don’t understand all the hoopla about Hulsebos.

[angel]

I would almost bet that many of you who have “crotch punisher saddles” are being “punished” for not sitting correct on them.

[Velvet]

[QUOTE=angel;5132798]
I would almost bet that many of you who have “crotch punisher saddles” are being “punished” for not sitting correct on them.[/QUOTE]

Wow, you have a point there! Get it? nudge, nudge A point? All of us must now hurry out to the doctor and have our pelvises (pelvi? what’s the plural?) adapted to have an auto-adjustment feature so we can fit in all saddles no matter what the twist or seat style. Yep, that’s the answer. Maybe they can even make our pelvises adjustable by using air bladders like they they do for guys who need to pump up their appendage. That’s it! Oh, oh! And we can have the air bladders installed in our breasts and have instant augmentation as well (or deflation, depending on the width we need to adjust our pelvises to). Yeah…yeah…THAT’s the ticket! :eek:

(BTW, that would be that we are being punished for not sitting “correctly”–not “correct.” )

[ThreeFigs]

[QUOTE=Velvet;5132841]
Wow, you have a point there! Get it? nudge, nudge A point? All of us must now hurry out to the doctor and have our pelvises (pelvi? what’s the plural?) adapted to have an auto-adjustment feature so we can fit in all saddles no matter what the twist or seat style. Yep, that’s the answer. Maybe they can even make our pelvises adjustable by using air bladders like they they do for guys who need to pump up their appendage. That’s it! Oh, oh! And we can have the air bladders installed in our breasts and have instant augmentation as well (or deflation, depending on the width we need to adjust our pelvises to). Yeah…yeah…THAT’s the ticket! :eek:

(BTW, that would be that we are being punished for not sitting “correctly”–not “correct.” )[/QUOTE]

:lol: I heart you, Velvet!

[BetterOffRed]

hmmmm…

[QUOTE=angel;5132798]
I would almost bet that many of you who have “crotch punisher saddles” are being “punished” for not sitting correct on them.[/QUOTE]

maybe this is why I can’t reinback in place.:rolleyes:

[arabiansrock]

I was thinking airbag near bladder to prevent issues for those of us who have had kids, might help us to sit better in saddle at sitting trot without having to worry about having the p__s bounced out of you!

[honeydoozy]

@BetterOffRed;5132761

I don’t understand all the hoopla about Hulsebos.

I have a lovely one that I’m getting ready to sell… when I got it, EVERYONE at the barn was getting them, and it seemed like the “thing” to do. I have since come to realize that it probably was never really the best fit for me, but because I was riding high on the wave of enthusiasm around me, I tried to convince myself that it was great.

I don’t really get the hoopla either. :no: