I have an OTTB that I bought last November and evented lightly this year at Starter. After a bout with back soreness and brief lameness he had Stifle surgery and is currently rehabbing. I had to sell both of my saddles, a courbette primera jump saddle and a wintrc pro dressage due to both didnt really fit one or the other of us.
I have about 3000 +/- to purchase a saddle/or two.
I am loooking at the new model of the Toulouse monoflap Marielle Jump saddle with the Genesis tree as my guy has lost all his muscles in his back due to stall rest and lack of work. He has lost almost all of his topline and I am leaning towards the Genesis tree for that reason. I would also like to get a dressage saddle, I’m looking at the Toulouse Marianna with the Genesis tree again to fit his changing body shape.
What can anyone tell me about the twist sizes for these 2 saddles? Who has these and do you like the Genesis tree?
Is there another brand that I should be looking at? I should be riding him again in the next few weeks and would really like to get these ordered and tried before much more time passes.
Thanks!
Personally, I would find something cheap and used that fits him now, and sell and upgrade once he gets fully back into shape. You never know how their muscling is going to change after coming back from injuries, and I’d be hesitant to invest serious money until he fills back out. Even with allowing for different tree sizes, the tree SHAPE may need to change, and even a genesis tree might now allow for that. Just my two cents.
There are so many good English saddles that fit OTTB’s well. Typically, they do well with more depth in the front third of the panel and frequently need wither or full front gussets with a less squared or full rear gusset. Most OTTB’s are usually medium or medium wide with similar builds although there are nuances that vary from horse to horse.
Black Country makes a few models that work well with the proper options and are worth checking out as does Frank Baines.
Those will be the cushy ones but Passier standard tree and many other saddles could possibly work.
Working with a fitter with tracings, conformation shots and as much info as you can provide will help you get a better idea of what to try, especially, if you can take advantage of a generous trial policy such as ours. We also offer trials on all of our saddles and the long distance fit service for free.
Feel free to pm me with any questions.
[QUOTE=PaintedHunter;7239832]
Personally, I would find something cheap and used that fits him now, and sell and upgrade once he gets fully back into shape. You never know how their muscling is going to change after coming back from injuries, and I’d be hesitant to invest serious money until he fills back out. Even with allowing for different tree sizes, the tree SHAPE may need to change, and even a genesis tree might now allow for that. Just my two cents.[/QUOTE]
THIS! I had an OTTB that needed rehab from starvation. I went through 3 saddles. Started with a wintec AP, if there is curve to the back from lack of muscle a wintec won’t work, they are pretty straight. Thought the gullet plate would work but it didn’t change the shape. Sold the Wintec, went to an older curved Stubben, that was fine for a while. Now I am back in a Wintec jump as we slowly are filling in the topline. So I agree, a used whatever fits now and then find the one you want to spend money on when the topline is filled in.
Obviously every horse is different, but if your TB is built like mine (HUGE withers, hollow behind the shoulder, and curvy back) I wouldn’t recommend a Genesis tree. Tried one on my guy last year (it was a dressage model, so the jumping saddles may be different, I don’t know) and it was a dismal failure.
The old model Wintecs fit him pretty well (although we do need a lift front pad in the jumping models, Isabell is OK without). Newer Wintecs are much flatter in the tree and won’t work at all. His jumping saddle is much as Jay described above - Black Country Ricochet with medium plus tree, full front gussets and K panel. It ran nearly $3k new, but Trumbull has a lot of demos and consignment saddles you could try. Other saddles that have worked pretty well on that type of back are Stubben Roxane and Ainsley Pro National.
Not a cheap saddle, but the 30 cm Stubben monoflap (Zaria) fit my TB with big withers perfectly. The saddle is also wool flocked and very adjustable; not to mention they will stuff/gusset it to fit whatever type of horse you want.
The saddle is awesome to ride in; I was super comfortable and felt very balanced. I ordered one and am currently waiting (takes 6 weeks to arrive).
I would absolutely wait. You KNOW his top line will change. I have ridden bareback in this situation - you can buy super comfy sheepskin pads with girths that are really quite secure. I spent several months doing rehab flatwork in one.
Once the horse is more consistently in real work you can assess what might fit.
If your horse is just coming back from a long layoff, I’ll echo asterix and say “wait.” If you put in 6 or 8 weeks of good, solid groundwork (when your vet says your horse is ready), you’ll build a good “baseline” back, and the saddle you find then will have a better chance of working for a longer period of time.
There are lots of saddles that offer options that are helpful in fitting the OTTB type. Most of the UK-made saddles (Albion, Loxley, Frank Baines, Black Country, Ideal, etc.) can be had bench-made for around $3K or less. I do recommend working with a knowledgeable fitter (preferably hands-on, or remotely with a shop like Equestrian Imports or Panther Run Saddlery that has experience and success in long-distance work) to find out what features your horse may need, and trying as many saddles as necessary to find the one that works for you both.
And on the adjustable tree / changeable gullet saddles, keep in mind that they only address tree width, which is only one part of the saddle fitting equation. You also have to nail tree type and shape, panel configuration and billeting as well. If those facets of fit aren’t correct as well, being able to change the tree width won’t make the saddle fit.
I have the Toulouse Marianne Platinum and I love it. I assume that’s the one you’re looking at since I don’t see a Marianna. I would say it has a nice, narrow twist (which is why I love it, every dressage saddle felt too wide). I do not have a Genesis as I don’t feel like it’s been out long enough for me to trust it’s longevity, I just have the medium tree, which def fits like a medium wide.
I would wait until your horse has rebuilt some of his muscle before you invest your money on a saddle. I don’t know much about the M Toulouse dressage saddles, but I have ridden in their jump saddles before. I don’t particularly like them because it’s really hard to feel the horse with your legs. They feel bulky. The leather isn’t particularly nice, and I’ve heard of the stitching on the bottom of the flap coming undone after half a year of riding. However, they do seem to position the rider well.
If you have the patience, I would suggest looking for a higher quality used saddle. If you’re not completely set on a monoflap, I do believe Dover has some older M Toulose models on closeout right now.
Thank you everyone!!! Very helpful, i did pick up both the Toulouse Marielle (jump) and the Toulouse Marianne (dressage) and loved them both, beautiful high quality leather and comfortable saddles the genesis tree is very cool and easy to use but they would not fit my guy. Adjusted for the tree to fit and they both wanted to slip farther back then they should. So needless to say they both were taken back to the tack shop. I will take him to the barn where i take lessons and try everything that i can get my hands on to find something that will fit. At least then I will have a starting point. Thank you again!!!
