i’ve been told that the verhan i just bought,is forward balanced.haven’t received it yet but can keep you posted.
and i do believe the harry dabbs/jaguar i had,was forward balanced.
remember that all of us have different angles to the floor of our pelvis. This impacts how we sit in the saddle and where we are comfortable.
I think riding in a forward balanced saddle requires you to ride in the three-point seat - pubic bone (lightly) and two seat bones. The pelvis is more upright. SOme trainers do not follow that path, wanting you to sit on your seatbones only. I find that drives my seatbones into the horse’s back and is not as effective.
IMO it has to do with the combination of where the deepest part of the saddle seat is (towards the pommel or cantel), where the stirrup bars are (more forward or more back), and how it sits on the horse.
My saddle is more forward balanced. When I am in the “pocket”, my legs are under me, and everything is easier. If I tip my pelvis too much either way, our balance is disturbed… usually I fall back. (Lemke SDL saddle)
[QUOTE=lorilu;8391743]
remember that all of us have different angles to the floor of our pelvis. This impacts how we sit in the saddle and where we are comfortable.
I think riding in a forward balanced saddle requires you to ride in the three-point seat - pubic bone (lightly) and two seat bones. The pelvis is more upright. SOme trainers do not follow that path, wanting you to sit on your seatbones only. I find that drives my seatbones into the horse’s back and is not as effective.
IMO it has to do with the combination of where the deepest part of the saddle seat is (towards the pommel or cantel), where the stirrup bars are (more forward or more back), and how it sits on the horse.
My saddle is more forward balanced. When I am in the “pocket”, my legs are under me, and everything is easier. If I tip my pelvis too much either way, our balance is disturbed… usually I fall back. (Lemke SDL saddle)[/QUOTE]
This is where it gets interesting. I do agree that the shape of the saddle should match the horse’s back and the deepest part should compliment that along with appropriate panel support. Additionally, the rider should be balanced in the deepest part. Therefore, it is relative, (along with stirrup bar placement and rider conformation), as to where that spot along the saddle is. But, it can be somewhat of a riddle if you think about balancing a pencil. It only has one true balance point.
Sitting more forward in the saddle=sitting with rider’s and horse’s center of balance closer together. So, a saddle that has the center of balance further forward in the way it is built would be a forward balance saddle and closer to your horse’s center of gravity
A saddle that for me put me in a forward balance was the Schleese Wave. I didn’t realize how hard I had to fight to maintain an even balanced position until I got a Custom Icon.
IMO there seems to be disagreement in the horse community about the biomechanics of how the horse carries the rider. In the end I boil it down to that some want the rider at T15, some want the rider ahead of T15.
I don’t have the experience enough to be able to say exactly where each saddle places the rider as far as its relation to the vertabrae. I feel it would help this discussion to be able to convey that- such and such a saddle places the balance balance point of the rider at T13 or wherever. Of course this assumes the saddle is also adjusted correctly, is placed correctly on the horse’s back, and that the rider is also balanced.
And then what, especially with a short backed horse, if science does say that the rider needs to be at… T12, and science also says that the rider needs to be in the center of the saddle, but we can’t extend the saddle forward because of the scapulas, where does that leave us? I don’t think the average butt would fit in that.
Kolsch, My mare likes my weight forward. Not sure at what thoracic vertibra though. And she has a long shoulder. I finally ended up with a french monoflap that sits over her shoulder blades and allows her shoulders to move under it. The saddle is wide enough to accommodate her shoulders. I’ve had the saddle for 8 months and her shoulders are no longer uneven and the hollow behind the right one has filled in. When I girth it up, the billets pull the saddle down and around her but opens the saddle up where her shoulders are. None of it seems to make sense but 8 months later my horse is still happy and her back is never sore according to the muscle therapist that works on her each month.
As for forward balance, I have owned an Amerigo. Bought it for my TB who has a very forward big trot, opposed to my other horses who have very bouncy trots. I found the Amerigo instantly allowed me to sit the TB’s trot with little effort on my part. Never tried it on the other horse’s due to fit but I really liked the Amerigo and how it allowed me to sit with the horses movement and allowed my leg to drop naturally. That said all my other saddles have allowed me to ride the trot just as effectively on the horse’s they were bought for. So maybe it depends on the horses movement as much as your body and hip angles?
[QUOTE=JLR1;8392740]
A saddle that for me put me in a forward balance was the Schleese Wave. I didn’t realize how hard I had to fight tomaintain an even balanced position until I got a Custom Icon.[/QUOTE]
Perhaps that saddle made you TIP forward. That is different than having a forward balance.
