Nicer bareback pads...opinions/experiences

[chebeau]

Love to hear opinions/experiences on the following bareback pads:

1. Little Joe Bareback Pad
2. Brockamp Pad
3. CAS Equestrian Signum bareback pad
4. Trailmaster bareback pad

I have had a Best Friend bareback pad which was fine, but didn’t love it. Also, I had a Christ pad which was lovely, but I did not like sitting on sheepskin for some reason.

Looking to do some schooling and hacking. No need for stirrups. Fitting a 13.3 wider little mare who is sensitive and very particular about her tack.

If there is another brand I missed that is worthwhile, let me know.

Thanks so much.

Happy riding,
Jessie

[firecracker]

I don’t have experience with the pads you mentioned above, but I do love my Thinline bareback pad. It is slightly contoured to allow for withers, doesn’t slip, and it made me feel good to have ThinLine’s shock absorbing material in the pad during moments when I bounced a bit more than I should have while riding bareback. Oh, and it’s super easy to clean.

[walktrot]

You might have to take out a second mortgage on your house, but I splurged on a bareback pad from Supracor 20 years ago. A bunch of people at the barn headed up to Acadia National Park, where the John D Rockefeller Jr created the beautiful carriage roads. One of them borrowed my bareback pad for what turned out to be 7 or thereabouts hours in the saddle. She was able to walk around and sit down after they all dismounted. Apparently they fought over it the next day, and it went to the person whose butt hurt the worst. That pad is still in use at this time by a queenager who does lessons on a mare with more movement than her own laid back gelding. It’s not bulky and keeps her hips functioning better.

When I purchased my first saddle in 2000 the tack store manager suggested Supracor’s Cool Grip saddle pad. I bought one and do not regret it. The honeycomb construction has resilience that you won’t find elsewhere. It really protects my horse’s back because it flexes and doesn’t flatten out under pressure. It came out of technology for the astronauts. I put it on a Back on Track baby pad. A few years ago I switched to a dressage pad because my horse’s back has dropped some. It has more curve on the topline. I also added a gel-type rear riser pad which works fine. The front didn’t need any adjustment. It’s just as good now as it was when I bought it. The cover is washable and the honeycomb pads can be hosed down.

[ERNurseonaHorse]

I just throw an Olgivy memory foam half pad on my horse! It’s got a suede top and bottom so it’s grippy. I got a used one off of Facebook Marketplace for 90$.

[luvmyhackney]

I love my Best Friends pad, but I love my Thinline bareback pad more. I can ride out all my ponies sillies with it without eating dirt. Haven’t used the others on your list.

[wsmoak]

Another vote for the Thinline.

(I looked up the Supracor mentioned above. It looks nice but I wish it didn’t have white fleece!)

[outerbanks77]

This is the one I’m going to buy one of these days… https://www.filzsattel.de/englisch

[chebeau]

Thanks for the info so far. Much to consider with more options on the table.

[HungarianHippo]

It’s been years since I’ve ridden bareback :eek: but the Stacey Westfall ultrasuede gel pad is really great.

[joiedevie99]

I wanted to make sure I built in some spine clearance for my older horse, so I went with a Skito. It’s quite old now, but still works great.