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Re: [RC] from western saddles to english - heidiAllright I have to admit this about myself, for right now I'm a western rider, riding a paint horse, just doing the recreational trail riding. (only till next year hopefully, fingers tightly crossed!) Anyway, I've tried an english saddle one time, and a plantation flat saddle on a gaited horse years ago. Allright folks, I don't know how your staying in 'em! I felt like I was on a "beanie" on his back or riding a fence post! That being on flat ground in an arena. So what type of english saddle would you say a "deep seated western rider" type need to make a good transfer to for security. There is no way in one single spin or jump would I be able to stay on, nor would I be able to ride up/down a hill without holding on to their ears!!! First off, I'd go with some sort of a dressage saddle, with a deep seat. Second, having been one who made the conversion from Western to English (albeit years ago) and who rode extremely "vertical" country at the time, I found that there was NO comparison between the two going up and down hills--the English saddle beat the Western saddle all to heck because the flexibility of the stirrup leathers allows the rider to get his feet UNDER him, no matter the angle of the horse, so there is some support there. With the Western saddle, my legs were perpendicular to the horse, more or less, at all times, and I could never get my legs where I needed my legs. What a difference to be able to get perpendicular to level for a change, instead of perpendicular to the ground! It does take some getting used to, though. Heidi =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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