Okay, yesterday's ride was in a different saddle. It is a treeless saddle (in my favorite color), but I didn't have a special pad to go under it so I used a regular one. Big mistake. Chrome's back is sore today. I thought it would be okay since it was a short ride just to see if I could post in it better than the Aussie saddle. Since his back is sore I won't use it again until I can get one of the special spine relief pads. It might be a while though because those things are expensive!! I guess the good news is that every single time I've ridden in the Aussie saddle I have never gotten a response from palpating his back, so it must not hurt him. I guess for now I'm going to give up on trying to work on posting the trot and just enjoy trail riding my boy in the Aussie saddle until I can afford lessons and a new saddle or a new saddle pad.
I mentioned in my post yesterday that the ride was thirty minutes long (mostly walking because his stifles were locking, but he warmed up out of it; however they are locking again today...) and I did sort of figure out why I was having trouble with my lower leg. I was bracing on the stirrups with my legs away from his body. Once I wrapped my legs around him and kept my calf on him they stopped swinging as much. Unfortunately I am so long legged and he is so narrow that I have trouble keeping my toes forward with my leg on him. I'm getting so frustrated trying to figure all of this out with no trainer and improper equipment, so I'm just going to trail ride and enjoy my horse. Out on the trail is where my heart really is anyway. Later when we've recovered from the financial strain of moving and building a new house I'll get better equipment and start taking lessons again. For now we're going to just go have fun. Here are the rest of the picture. Sorry for the rambling and making no sense (headache). I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving!
One of the fallen logs we walk over to build up his stifles.
All done for the ride, so I dropped my stirrups.
This one cracked me up. We walked into a spider web and I was freaking out lol.
It's hard to tell in the top picture but it almost makes it look like the saddle has put your legs too far beneath/behind you. Did you feel like you were tipping forward? You look more correct in the photos were you have your feet out of the stirrups. Once again I wish you were closer. I'd love to help you out finding something that fit him.
ReplyDeleteI love his pleasant expression though! He is so super relaxed and looks happy to work!
(P.S. I've done the spider web thing too!)
I actually did feel like I was tipping forward! Good catch. I didn't notice that. I wish I were closer too. :)
ReplyDeleteTechnically you don't need stirrups to post :) Posting and two point without stirrups is actually a great way to build solid muscle really fast
ReplyDeleteI have that exact same saddle:) I love it (it is sooooo comfortable!) but I have also had trouble fitting it to my horses (even with a riser pad). If I ever stumble across anyone who has more experience with treeless saddles than myself I am going to beg them to help me fit the darn thing! Lol
ReplyDeleteWhen you can, you should have a saddle fitter come out and check your saddle. One of the issues with a treeless saddle is that the lack of tree allows the saddle to contact the spine of the horse and it doesn't distribute the weight of the rider across the widest area of the horse's back.
ReplyDeleteI really struggled with my Aussie saddle. It fit okay when I first got it, but got progressively worse as time went on. It dropped all of my weight onto his kidneys. It got worse as Ashke's back more and more developed. I loved the ride in an Aussie saddle but it hated Ashke's back. Aussie saddles are great for trails, but not designed for posting, because your legs are out in front of you.
Using a saddle fitter was the best choice I ever made. I was also really lucky that the saddle fitter had the perfect saddle for both of us.
You and Chrome look good together. And I would have freaked out at the spider web.
Spider webs are THE WORST
ReplyDeleteThanks guys! The saddle is comfortable for me, but it did make him sore so I'm not using it until I can get a saddle fitter or one of those saddle pads with a gullet (made specifically for treeless saddles). I'll keep you guys updated!
ReplyDeleteI'm going through saddle drama trauma myself. I haaaate saddle shopping.
ReplyDelete