Sent: Wednesday, December 05, 2001 9:41
AM
Subject: RC: Twist?
A horse's shoulder and back have a certain shape
and width.
A saddle must complement that shape and width or
it will
hinder and hurt the horse.
Your pelvis has a certain shape and width.
The top of the
seat of the saddle must complement that shape and
width
or it will hinder and hurt *YOU*.
I think I first heard this particular insight
articulated by Deb
Bennett. The trees of most saddles are
designed with
a seat suited to the male pelvic girdle.
The female
pelvic girdle is at once both *wider* (to
accommodate
child birth) but also *narrower* (because women
are
generally smaller than men). A saddle must
be wide
enough to support your two pelvic bones, but
also
narrow enough to accommodate the natural
fall
of your hip and femur. (One of the more
common
complaints about SportsSaddles is that they tend
to
be too wide for some people and thus cause hip
pain.)
And that's about where my understanding of this
issue
ends. Synergist is the only manufacturer I
know of who
actually has you measure the width of your pelvic
bones
so that they can consciously construct a saddle
that fits your
pelvic assembly.
Linda B. Merims
Massachusetts, USA