I have observed that many endurance riders ride with a very loose girth. I
have often seen a girth so loose you could pass a hand between the girth and
the horse. I have observed this with different girths, horses and riders,
so there seems to be nothing in common. Obviously this requires a very
balanced rider. It has been my experience that a breast collar and crupper
help keep the saddle positioned properly, and even on my rather rotund mare,
I don't have much side-to-side slippage.
One way of checking your balance is to stand on side-by-side bathroom scales
. The weights should be identical on both scales. Many people are "one
sided", thus causing saddle slippage to one side.
Hope this helps.
-------- REPLY, Original message follows --------
Date: Saturday, 23-Sep-95 06:45 PM
From: Satori3@aol.com \ America On-Line: (Satori3)
To: Endurance Forum \ Internet: (endurance@moscow.com)
Subject: [endurance] Any recommendations for good endurance saddle girth?
I have a wonderful endurance saddle (made by the Arabian Saddle Company).
The only problem is that when I'm riding trails all day (up and down steep
hills), the girth (a leather one) somehow isn't keeping my saddle in place .
(It's lightweight and so am I.) I tighten it throughout the day (I even
have strong male friends tighten it for me) but my saddle unfailingly slips
to the side (ever so gradually and sometimes not so gradually on rugged
terrain when I need it the most). The girth was so tight by the end of the
last time I rode that my horse had some puffy girth sores (ouch!). I've
tried a cloth girth--that was even worse. Now, the owner of a local tack
store has recommended what they call a Eurogirth (looks like extremely thick
, somewhat coarse cloth--to the tune of $99). The Eurogirth is suppose to
be all the rage in European riding circles. Frankly, I don't give a damn
what's the "in" thing; I just want something that's going to keep my saddle
in place for the long haul and not cause my horse discomfort. I have talked
to a few people about neoprene girths--some say they're great; others say
they wear too much on the horse's hide. Then, I hear about biothane girths-
-but will such a girth keep my saddle in place? AGGGHHH! I'm sooo
confused! I don't know of anyone 'round here who rides as hard as I do (on
an English-style endurance saddle, at least), so I'm not sure I'm getting
information from people who know what is needed for challenging trail riding
on a saddle like mine. Now, I'm asking what ya'all out there think? I'd
like to find a girth that fits the bill without going broke trying to find
it! Thanks in advance for any advice you can give me. Send suggestions to
satori3@aol.com.
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