Hello Susan,
You have EXACTLY the same question I had when I first heard about the
saddles, and before I bought my first one. Actually, I have two -- bought
one used last year for a mare who's really talented but was often cranky and
sometimes sorebacked. Got the vet out, chiro, massage therapist, rested her.
The day she bucked me off (and I'm pretty hard to unseat) I knew I had to do
something more radical, and got my first saddle soon after. She liked it so
much that I saved my pennies and ordered a custom saddle - which I love.
Then the US distributor sort of lost interest, and asked me to jump in. I
love the saddles, my riding school doesn't pay that well, and I thought, "why
not"? Which is a pretty roundabout way of answering your question.
Anyhow, it seemed to me that there was an inevitable pressure point -- okay
four of them -- where the saddle attaches. What I learned is that the
panels, though flexible, are rigid enough to distribute weight evenly when
the blocks which attach the panels to the saddle are in the right place. One
of the critical elements to check in saddle fitting is that the entire panel
has contact with the side of the horse, with no gap along the panel between
the blocks. If there is any gap, the blocks need to be repositioned.
If you have a chance to let me know, I'd be really interested in hearing how
you heard of the saddles -- you said it was recently.
Happy trails,
Carmi