Does anyone not use knee blocks on their dressage saddle?
Got a new saddle and rode with the knee blocks a couple of times, then just took them off (velcro) and it feels so much better.
My other saddle had very minimal knee blocks so maybe I am not used to them? Or am I missing something?
I am rather long legged and usually feel like they are “in the way…”
What is their purpose?
IMHO, it shouldn’t be called knee blocks as you don’t want to block the knee per say. The blocks are for the thighs.
It’s not a yeah or nay, it’s a personal thing.
Since you have velcro ones, I suggest you try different ways of putting it to accommodate your legs. Blocks need to be put to follow your thighs in the right position.
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I say nay. I think it makes you a better rider. WIthout the blocks you can put yourself where you need to be to ride better. With blocks they have to be places exactly right to help and not hinder you. I think they can work, but it’s easier to have issues with them. I have very long legged, too, and so maybe that’s an issue.
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I’m very short legged and find the thigh blocks on my Custom help me a great deal. I can more easily maintain an internal thigh rotation with the thigh blocks which makes my leg g and foot position better. So I say yes to thigh blocks.
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As with many things saddle-fit-related, “it depends”.
It depends on:
- how the saddle fits you overall
- how the blocks fit you specifically
- what kind of work you are doing (lots of sitting or lots of rising?)
- your specific “confirmation” (i.e. long/short thigh, tight/strong/normal/loose/weak hips) and riding challenges
For me, I have tight hips and hamstrings. Combined with a longish femur. For the longest time, saddles with blocks didn’t agree with me. I’ve owned 7+ dressage saddles.
On my green horse, I preferred a fairly open seat and no blocks. First rode him in a Stubben Tristan, then moved to a Thorowgood T4 with velcro blocks. I mostly rode with them off or placed veeeerrry far forward (i.e. they stuck out from the front of the saddle).
On my more advanced horse, especially as I did a lot more seated work, this configuration didn’t work for me. I bought a saddle that has a much deeper seat and blocks. I resisted for a long time, because I thought “less saddle = better” but after riding in my coach’s saddle for awhile and realizing how much more my horse liked it and how much more effectively I was able to use my seat and half halt, I bought the same model saddle as my coach, deep blocks and all, and haven’t looked back (yet-lol).
I used to have difficulty because I pinched with my knees. Many blocked saddles didn’t help this situation, but my saddle, because of the twist and seat size and shape, helps me open my hip and use my thigh instead of my knee.
I still think the answer will be different for different people and at different points in the horse’s development. What works for me may not work for you. Sorry! clear as mud.
Do what works for you at this particular point in your training.
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I ride with very minimal rolls in a flatter seat saddle, but my horse has soft gaits and I don’t ride on heavy driving contact. I expect the blocks are doing an important job for riders on horses with huge gaits and that are heavy in the hand.
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Agree with Arab Diva - it all depends. There is no “right” answer. Not using blocks does not make you a better rider - nor a worse one (look at the Olympic riders!). If you have a long thigh, the blocks will be in the way UNLESS they are angled correctly for your leg (and your seat is big enough for your leg - seat size is more about thigh length then it is about butt size). So - find a saddle that you are comfortable in, with or without thigh blocks, and enjoy.
I grew up riding bareback - I don’t need thigh blocks or stirrups, but I find that when they are in the right place, they are helpful. When they are in the wrong place, they are wrong.
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You expect that?
Does Valegro look heavy? Does Damon Jerome H (Uta Gräf) look heavy too?
How is that even related? My horse pulls so I’ll buy a saddle with big blocks?! Really, if you don’t know something, it’s ok not to talk about it.
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Like others have said, blocks properly placed can enhance good position. Blocks in the wrong spot jam you in there like a vice and you forget about having a good ride since you’ll be so tense.
you are not able to argue but only to be harsh… This is actually related to the other thread where you were harsh as well. You cannot on one hand say people have the right to have their own opinions and then bash them when they do… I in fact tried to speak for horses with big gaits because I think a lot of people have no idea how nice it is to ride one which takes you with him (I know I have no idea because my horses don’t have big gaits…) because they never really had the chance to feel it. Yes it might be tempting to think that you just use the blocks to have a secure position to pull against your horse, but that is not what the fun in Dressage is… Dressage is so amazing when you feel all this movement
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My saddle has minimal blocks but I’ve ridden in one with great honking intimidating blocks. Luckily the saddle and block placement fit me, so once I got over my ‘mental block’ about the big blocks I didn’t really notice them.
Luckily they are velcro and you can add them or take them away as you see fit!
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The fun in Dressage is to keep an open mind and allow for new concepts, ideas, and share your findings with others.
Being condescending, belittling or dismissive of others way of riding/use of tack is not what I consider an “opinion”.
So yeah, I’m harsh agaisn’t purposely rude remarks.
You could have said to the OP : I like riding the big gaits, I’m 50 and can do it! Go for it too!
But yet, you prefered to be condescending.
Scribbler could have said : I don’t like big blocks on saddle, it doesn’t work for me as it blocks my natural movement.
And yet, s/he said : Big blocks are for riders with horses heavy in the mouth.
You see the difference?
Anyway Manni01, if you don’t like my posts…you don’t have to read them or answer to them…
Sorry OP for this.
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My preference is for a shallow seat and minimal/no blocks. However, when one has a difficult to fit horse the answer is “I can live with a deeper seat and bigger blocks provided they don’t interfere with my riding.”
I have one of each. Less on my more advanced horse, and more on my tough-fit younger horse. I don’t notice the seat and blocks as they don’t affect my riding negatively.
well I guess that could work for you as well, if you don’t like my posts, you don’t have to read them… But I do see your point. In the future I will say, I am 50 and like to ride the big gaits… Go for it too!!!
Manni01, please see my last post on the Big Movers Killing Dressage Star Fantasies - I wrote a theme for you.
OP sorry to derail your thread!
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Yeah this is always such a great topic :rolleyes:
here’s my favorite version :uhoh:
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As a saddle fitter, I get slightly more requests for minimal blocks than for big blocks. The saddles I have had with the biggest blocks don’t get much attention. I have a lovely new Verhan that looks a little like an airplane…
I think that they can help. My saddle needs are conflicting. I need a 17" for my bum (I hate a too-big seat), and an 18" thigh. All the 17" saddles with knee blocks were hugely uncomfortable for me, so mine is now pretty flat.
It’s all about personal preference. I happen to like feeling my saddle wrap around me a bit - a deeper seat, decent blocks, etc. I switched to a Hennig Sofa almost two years ago and it felt like the saddle I always dreamed of but didn’t realize I wanted, as soon as I sat in it. I just find it more comfortable! But when I’m riding, I don’t actually even touch the blocks, my thigh lays parallel to the thigh block, about an inch away. I’m not a fan of flatter saddles, but that’s just me. I know my trainer prefers a minimal saddle, for example; she feels anything with blocks or a deeper seat gets in her way.
So if you prefer it without the blocks, and can take them off, go for it! Some people do use blocks as a crutch, I’m sure, but liking them or not is truly all about personal preference.
As you can see from the responses, it’s a very personal preference. Some love them, some hate them and all points in between.
Personally, I like them as long as the saddle fits me in every other regard. (And the 1st person to respond to your post is correct, they are thigh blocks, not knee blocks/rolls.)
I also think that in the “hate them” camp are a few people riding in a chair seat without realizing it. They get in a saddle with a correctly placed thigh block and they have to have their leg in the right position. This is uncomfortable if you’ve been sitting incorrectly for a long time. That’s why some people eschew the big thigh blocks. They want to obtain that classical seat without the extra help.
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