You answered your own question in your OP: a Western saddle puts you in the wrong position for traditional dressage. You just cannot sit correctly. You may feel you can find your “own sweet spot,” but I assure you, in the photo you posted, that isn’t it. As I’m sure has been said (haven’t had a chance to read through all the previous replies), you need to find a good, qualified saddle fitter and get a dressage saddle that fits your horse and you. I suspect you find the Western saddle more comfortable because it puts you in a chair seat, which, let’s face it, is more comfortable than correct position in a dressage saddle. In a Western saddle, the fenders alone will hinder your leg aids. You need to rethink your approach.
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This Beowulf. I had to step back from it to see it. Whooomp, there it is
Ha! A good dressage position allows your horse to move freely under you unhindered. The whole meaning of this is lost on you. Nowadays I am much more interested in classical dressage versus the stiff artificial exaggerated gaits shown in some arenas and what some judges are awarding today. And my horse absolutely can feel my leg, weight and seat.
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Does the horse object to all English saddles? Or just dressage?
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Sigh. All. It is night and day. And the western saddle weighs in at 38 pounds. No different than writing in a dress site is an riding in a dressage saddle with a188 pound rider.
OK. I probably missed this up thread, but how old is the horse & what was his background prior to coming to you?
14, homebred and behind the 8 ball due to some health issues and NO saddle she liked😉
Maude, you describe your Wade saddle as “close contact.” Um, not with a 1 inch thick felt pad under it.
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5/8" No thicker than those fat sheepskin pads some use in dressage, including Charlotte & Valegro😊
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Why then, do you want to show at all, especially HC?
If it’s just to get a judge’s opinion, then just bring in a good judge to your home base and have him/her judge you.
Of course, saddle fit is very important. Short back, high withers, downhill horses, etc. etc. I’ve had them all and been able to find an appropriate saddle for each of them. Unless your horse is some freak of nature, I am not willing to believe there isn’t a dressage saddle existing (or that can’t be made) to fit you and your horse. As I recall, you’ve been posting about saddles here for a long (couple years?) Things that make me go “hmmmm”
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She. And other riders in an English saddle?
Exactly! And none worked for long. Thanks for stalking me🙃
I can’t believe that I would ever defend WP, but many of these horses are bred to move this way, requiring very little training to go around like that.
I would never have believed that if I didn’t see it with my own eyes - a horse taken from unbroken to showing over a year and some change, bred to the nines for WP. He started out moving this way - just needed a little refinement.
It’s certainly not my cup of tea. But to say this is any harder on a horse than dressage or jumping or ____ [insert any discipline here] is entirely unfair. There are abusers in every discipline, and people trying to cram the round peg in the square hole everywhere. Then there are the horses, bred and built for the job, that find it effortless and pleasant.
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I know several vets that are opposed to the western pleasure way of going as they are to big lick Tennessee Walkers.
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Yeah, and passage isn’t good for them either.
Take one of those horses and try to get them to stride out. Some will be able to. Others, flat out, will struggle to do so. They are bred to move that “short” way - whether or not there’s longevity is another question, and a totally different breeding topic (see: halter horses, DLSD in the long/soft pasterns of modern warmbloods etc).
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I’d never watched any Western Dressage, so I turned to my friend Youtube and found the following video. Note: I have no connection to this horse or rider–the video was literally the first one that came up on the search.
Western dressage level 1 test
The canter is a little slow/four-beat, and at the free walk, the horse does stretch down very low. But the trot is nice and swingy and honestly, you could see a very similar performance in a test at a “regular” dressage show. The rider’s turnout is also similar to what you’d find in dressage.
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Exactly. My understanding from the judges that I’ve scribed for is that the judging of gait quality is the primary difference between dressage and WD. No gait type is favoured or penalized as long as it is clear, correct, and active.
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But if you’re not chasing scores then why does that matter? I don’t see how showing HC in a dressage show would be any better than showing WD and potentially not getting great scores (although frankly I don’t think that’s an issue from the classes I’ve seen).
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I suggest then that you start with the FEI. (It has already been suggested that you put in a rule change suggestion to USEF/USDF…) After all, USEF rules for dressage (and other disciplines) largely follow FEI standards. They already recognize Reining… so, why not?
And of course what I meant was, dont expect to rules to be set aside just because you do not like them or think they should change “NOW!”. There are processes and proceedures. Join with the intent to change the rules sure, and if it doesnt happen to your satisfaction, dont renew.
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Why No Western Saddles Allowed in Regular Dressage?
Simply, because it is not a “Western” event. Deal with it.
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