Most of my riding background is English, but I do a lot of cross over activities with my horse including trail riding, working equitation, and even some cattle sorting. I don’t mind being the odd man out in my English saddle, but I wouldn’t mind also having a western. So far I’ve just tried a Circle Y trail saddle on my horse, which he clearly disliked. I want to try to take most of the guess work out of finding a saddle that fits both of us so would prefer to use a saddle fitter/rep that can bring us several demos and help select the right one (as is common in the English world).
There is a TW / Specialized rep in my area, and I am somewhat intrigued by these saddles. It sounds like it could be a good solution, or could go horribly wrong and make my horse really unhappy and sore. Does anyone have a saddle with their fitting system - and if so are you happy with it? Or tried it and thought it was awful??!! Any insight is appreciated!
I don’t know anything about TW, but you might check out Trail Saddles by Steele. They make custom saddles in Western, English, and Endurance models. They will send you a demo saddle to ride for two weeks so you can decide if it’s right for you and your horse. Here’s a link to their website (https://steelesaddle.com/ ) and Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/SteeleSaddle/ ).
I’ve been riding the Steele Frontier model for four years, and I absolutely love it. I can stay in the saddle for hours and my knees never, ever hurt. My horse likes it too–no more pinched withers, no more white spots. The nice thing about Steele is that they will customize the saddle so that it fits both you and your horse. The only downside is that it takes a while to get the saddle, but it’s well worth the wait.
Thanks! I don’t mind waiting, I’ve heard most saddles (both western and English) currently have about a 16 week lead time. But I would really like to have a local rep help guide me through the process in person. Plus I want a traditional look.
I have had a TW Wade saddle for the past five years, and have had it fitted to both a 16.1 Hanoverian, and my current 15.2 Canadian Cheval. Like you,.my background is English, but I wanted to try Western dressage. I tried several saddles including Circle Y, and fell in love with this saddle. The seat is well-balanced, and super-comfortable. I can ride in this all day. And it’s beautiful. Both saddle fitters I used were detail-oriented and professional. HIGHLY RECOMMEND!
