Does anyone have experience with using an exercise saddle for hard to fit horses? I recently saw an article in The Chron about it and thought it might work to start rehabbing my guy until I can find a saddle that works for both of us with no rush.
Hard to fit how? They are designed for racehorses.
Hes an OTTB. Saddles often bridge
This is more or less exactly what I have: http://www.usedsaddlesmaryland.com/17.5--EXCERCISE-SADDLE-P-1956.html
All the ones I’ve ever ridden in have been incredibly beaten up and ancient looking, so I have no idea what brand they actually are. Typically they run pretty narrow.
[QUOTE=Marginally Safe;8963239]
Does anyone have experience with using an exercise saddle for hard to fit horses? I recently saw an article in The Chron about it and thought it might work to start rehabbing my guy until I can find a saddle that works for both of us with no rush.[/QUOTE]
Yes, an exercise saddle would almost certainly work for your OTTB. It’s likely the only type of saddle he was ever ridden in (other than race saddles on race days) before he became an OTTB. Never seen a thoroughbred who was unhappy in one, and it’s all I use on all that I ride, including for fox hunting across country, etc.
Check out Big D’s Saddlery…there are some good buys on there. An exercise saddle with a condensed foam pad and saddle towel is ALL we ever used on our race horses…NEVER had one that didn’t fit!! Just don’t try to mount from the ground…get a leg up or used a tall mounting block. That is always best for OTTB’s anyway!!
If the saddle is bridging it is either too narrow, too straight, or both. I don’t know much about exercise saddles but I don’t see how fitting them would be easier unless possibly it is a half-tree which do not perform well under pressure tests.
Typically they are half trees. IME they don’t always fit everything especially if the horse is on the wider side. People do jump and hunt in them around here but Idk that they are really any better than the average $300 Stubben or Crosby. And definitely not great if you are a heavier rider.
honestly I don’t see how a half tree is any better for a hard to fit horse - the reason why many race horses don’t have the residual trauma from the saddle is because by and large the people who ride them are lighter than average (even exercise riders), and yes, while their training is VERY intense it is usually short periods of training/breezes (IE they aren’t breezing/riding them for hours at a time) – the ‘saddle time’ isn’t there long enough for it to be structurally significant, IMHO.
I would not be riding a RIDING horse in an exercise saddle. Most of them are way, way too narrow and it’s asking for back-soreness IMHO. If your guy’s other saddles are bridging chances are they are too narrow - an exercise saddle would likely be even more narrow…
If you want something minimalist that fits a wide variety of TBs, try an older Kieffer or Stubben.
