Ridecamp: [RC] re: Finding your saddle size

>And many people will fit > their hinny
> to the saddle seat and not take into account the length of their >
legs. > Lots of people find themselves banging their thighs against the >
pommel of> "western" style endurance saddles because they are in too
small of a > saddle> for the sport. 

Be careful about going up in seat size if you're short.  I just about
worked myself to death last week riding a 16" seat Desoto while my
Ortho-Flex got repaired. My feet were so far out in front of me and I
kept coming down so far *back* because the seat was so big.  Major spasm
between the shoulder blades from trying to get over my feet.  My hips
would probably suggest a 15" Western Seat, but my OF has a 14" which puts
my butt over my feet and I ride best in it.  It is a snug fit and when I
first got it I got smacked in the rear a few times going up hills but I
adapted and no more problems.  It has big knee rolls but maybe since my
legs are so short, they work great.

When I borrowed a bunch of trees from the local saddle makers I was
shocked to see how much bigger the horse's back part of the tree got
every time the seat area went up.  I don't know how big riders ride small
horses simply because it would be very hard to find a tree designed for
both.  If you get a chance, try sitting the same tree, with 2 different
seat sizes on your horse and look at the difference in fit *he* gets.

Angie

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