Saddles -- educate me.

[Overpaid Slacker]

So, I need another hobby and means to push myself into a higher insurance risk pool. I've been horseback riding a few times in the last few days and I think I needs me my own saddle.

I've been reading up on what I can online, and there are some good sources out there, but I figured I'd tap this resource and simultaneously introduce a non-political topic.

I'm 6'5" and about 260#, so I'll needs me a big saddle. I believe 18" is about the largest (Western) saddle made (though in Australian styles they go to 20" which they say is equivalent to 18"). I'll be riding draft horses, so it'll need to accommodate large horses.

I'm willing to spend to get a good saddle, but I don't need anything fancy at all. A few long afternoon rides, with the occasional day/camping trip. I figure I want used (leather) and there are several options on ebay.

I'm thinking Western-style; but I'm not far enough down any path to be invested in any particular saddle style. Fer sure --> won't be showing/competing/barrel racing...

I'll worry about the armor and lances later...

Thanks in advance.

JP

[craigster59]

Is this what you're lookin' fer cowboy?




Seriously though, I have a friend who jousts with draft horses and he uses something similar to this:
http://www.chicksaddlery.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=402500

I can ask him for recommendations.

[craigster59]

Here's a link to his website. He's a good guy who wouldn't mind answering your questions.
http://www.jameszoppe.com/

[Overpaid Slacker]

Wow. Yeah, your buddy will probably know a thing or two about saddles! I'm looking around here for a Shire, Percheron and/or cross-breed.

Thanks!

JP

[MRM]

Are you sure you'll be riding draft horses? Draft horses are big, huge, giant horses like the Clydesdales that pull the Budwieser wagon. If you're riding those, you're in a whole different ballgame.

What kind of saddle you want will depend on the type of riding you like to do. Like cars, there is a trade off between weight and strength of the saddle. Ideally you want one that is light, supports you well and is strong. So light and strong equals more expensive. Are you going to be just trail riding, riding rough open territory, show riding, or some general pleasure riding? You almost certainly want a western saddle. What have you been using so far? Can you borrow different ones to get a feel for the features and size you're looking for?

A good, light saddle that fits you well is one of life's simple pleasures. It will make you a better rider and make riding imeasurably more pleasurable. To get the best buy, buy used. Go for as light and comfortable of a saddle as you can easily afford. Don't worry about it being used or old, a good leather saddle can outlast you as long as it's not abused. But pass on all abused saddles. If you ride a lot you won't regret getting the one that's the most comfortable.

[porsche4life]

Dont know much about saddles. Just always use my g/fs dad's saddle. Can tell you that if your are going to be riding for pleasure that a draft horse might not be your best choice. They are huge and can be slightly tempermental.

[Overpaid Slacker]

Given my size, I'll be riding larger horses, and I'll buy a "large horse" saddle.

Granted, they may not all be Shires, Belgians, Percherons or Clydesdales, but I'm buying for horse-size, and I'll probably be doing a substantial fraction of draft horse riding.

Some more backstory -- the current girlfriend comes from a family of horse folk. Her dad was flown all over the country to judge horses, and her grandfather just had (posthumously) a New York State Draft Horse Association's award named after him. So her family has a lot of knowledge about the whole horse thing, and I'm comfortable with large horses. I don't doubt that there are tempermental draft horses out there, and I'll lose 100/100 arguments with them, but I've met a number of docile, well-mannered draft horses, and that's what I'll ride... and ultimately, perhaps, buy.

No show riding, no barrel racing, no fancy schmancy stuff. Just a good, durable leather saddle that will fit larger (but not necessarily gargantuan) horses. I figure it'd be a Western style, but if someone can 'splain to me why/why not have a pommel, etc., that'd help.

Mickey (the girlfriend's father) is ridiculously knowledgeable about this stuff, but my access to him is sporadic (he is a mountainman) and I'd like to build a knowledge base before he and I have discussions about what to buy... plus, although he knows "everybody" in the draft horse scene in New York and can find me something sooner or later, I'm the one with Internet access, so if I can take what I've learned and find some options to bring to him, I get to leverage both his knowledge and the Internet's information.

As I mentioned... mostly trail and open ground (not work) riding. Likely to be mostly afternoon rides, with a couple of day/overnight camping trips a year. I've been using one of Mickey's old barrel saddles. The seat is not "long" enough (it's a 17) and the stirrups come up a bit short. I'll be in a few other saddles in the next couple of weeks, but, again, I'm trying to educate myself about what I should be looking/looking out for.

Thanks.

JP

[Heel n Toe]

http://www.ucalgary.ca/news/september2007/horseback

I can think of hundreds of hobbies I'd rather take up than getting on a huge animal's back... I've ridden a decent amount and came to the realization I didn't want to be up that high when said animal did something wild and crazy, but hey, that's just me.

Why do you "need" to move into a higher insurance risk pool... or were you kidding?

[Mule]

You'll need hip joint flexibility like Jenna Jameson to sit on a draft horse.

[Moses]

First, you DO NOT want a draft horse. They make poor trail horses. You want a Canadian Sport Horse. They are a mix, usually Quarter Horse/Draft (50/50). They are big, gentle horses. They saddle well (much better than a pure draft animal).

I spent a week this summer on a Canadian Sport horse in Colorado. Magnificent animal. Huge, stable and calm even though he was just a two year old.

As for saddles, buy a used saddle. They won't be as stiff. They are more comfortable. Don't buy a saddle until you've sat in it for a while.

Canadian Sport Horse.

[Overpaid Slacker]

Originally Posted by Heel n Toe

http://www.ucalgary.ca/news/september2007/horseback

I can think of hundreds of hobbies I'd rather take up than getting on a huge animal's back... I've ridden a decent amount and came to the realization I didn't want to be up that high when said animal did something wild and crazy, but hey, that's just me.

Why do you "need" to move into a higher insurance risk pool... or were you kidding?

As it happens, just about everything I like to do involves increased risk... but I was kidding about needing to move into a higher risk pool.

I'm approaching this with a healthy measure of caution. I figure if I ride the Aprilia to the barn, go horseback riding, and, in order to get home, co-pilot a small aircraft until I parachute out of it into my backyard, all the while smoking... I will be statistically deceased before I hit the ground.

JP

[Overpaid Slacker]

Moses --
When/if I buy, it will almost certainly not be a purebred draft horse. But I am a large dude, and I will be riding large (and sometimes draft) horses.

I like the Shires and a couple of the Shire mixes I've seen, but I'm in no rush to buy a horse. I'll ride as many as I can (that I should) and figure it out when the time comes.

EDIT -- suffice to say, I'm not committed to buying a draft horse, but whatever I wind up buying and/or riding long-term will have to be a larger horse. I'm not going into this horse thing with a "I need a Shire..." I'll buy a horse of the proper disposition and size when the time comes .. and it'll probably be a mix. But that horse, whatever the breed and nomenclature will be a larger horse.

Right now, however I want a saddle. Used, I agree. Leather, yup. It has to accommodate larger (incl. draft) horses, b/c that's what I'll be riding. Everything else about the saddle is still undecided.

JP

[Jeff Higgins]

If you can do all of that while drinking, you should come out of it unscathed.

[Seahawk]

Originally Posted by Moses

First, you DO NOT want a draft horse. They make poor trail horses. You want a Canadian Sport Horse. They are a mix, usually Quarter Horse/Draft (50/50). They are big, gentle horses. They saddle well (much better than a pure draft animal).

I spent a week this summer on a Canadian Sport horse in Colorado. Magnificent animal. Huge, stable and calm even though he was just a two year old.

As for saddles, buy a used saddle. They won't be as stiff. They are more comfortable. Don't buy a saddle until you've sat in it for a while.

Very good post. I grew up on a small ranch and currently have three horses (board three others). I also groomed race horses my senior year in high school.

I also am very good friends with a guy who owns and works draft horses. As wonderful an animal as they are, they are not good trail/rec horses...Canadian Sport Horses are.

Saddles? Used deals are everywhere. Look local. Most sellers will let you spend some time in it before you buy. Enjoy!

My Daughter is a very accomplished rider, just won the Maryland Pony Breeders with a rescue pony. She was also the Reserve Champion at the Maryland State Fair. We never buy anything new except for bridals.

Some pics from last year (not the rescue pony):

[Heel n Toe]

Originally Posted by Jeff Higgins

If you can do all of that while drinking, you should come out of it unscathed.

Yeah, being hammered is a definite plus if you get thrown off... that way you don't tense up as much and you break fewer bones.

When I think of horseback riding, I think of Christopher Reeve.

Without the Superman suit on.

I would rather do a lot of things than live part of my life in a wheelchair with a machine breathing for me.

There is so much great literature! Film! Cooking shows!

Okay, I was just kidding about the cooking shows.

[Overpaid Slacker]

I'll definitely look into this Canadian Sport Horse. Hell, I'm only an hour from the Great White North, it should be easy....

But let's not put the horse before the saddle, so to speak. Once we get beyond used and leather (and large enough for me and the horses I'm likely to be riding) what else? Tree, no tree? High cantle, low cantle? I mean, what?

I'm cool w/ horse opining, esp. as I know very little at this point, but I'm more in need of saddle info than horse breed suggestions. I know I'll be riding draft and quarter horses... that's just how it is, whether I wind up buying one or not. They're readily available to me at this point, and if I'm buying a saddle it has to accommodate them.

JP

[Burnin' oil]

[QUOTE=Seahawk;4159860]
My Daughter is a very accomplished rider, just won the Maryland Pony Breeders with a rescue pony. She was also the Reserve Champion at the Maryland State Fair.

Yet another reason not to like you, friggin' overachieving family guy.

And, don't forget that all horses want to do is kick your skull in. I can see it in their eyes. Nasty beasts.

[71T Targa]

Seahawk, Is the "rescue pony" named Misty?

[Overpaid Slacker]

I just started laughing about this ... I'm not the guy who doesn't know how to ride who goes out and buys the Harley to be kewl.

I do appreciate the emphatic "don't get a draft horse" advice, but it's not like I've got the checkbook out and the trailer hitched.

Alls I need right now is a saddle. That will fit large me and a large horse. With me on top and the horse below.

Story -- I ask Mickey how much horses cost. Not fancy horses, not cutie ponies, but a big, normal ridin' horse. He does that contemplative brow furrow for a second and says (not at all tying to be funny, this is just how he is): "Well, they're worth a dollar a pound, dead."

Pause.

Me: "Um, well. You see, I was thinking about a live horse. I'll worry about the scrap value down the road."

Mickey: "Well, you gotta establish a baseline price somehow."

JP

[Seahawk]

Originally Posted by phred68

Seahawk, Is the "rescue pony" named Misty?

Nah, Minney

But:

"And now we have a pretty one
for lonely lovers on a cool, cool night.



It's the great Erroll Garner classic, Misty.



And this one is especially for Evelyn".

Sorry for the hijack. Make sure you don't lock yourself into a saddle that won't fit a smaller horse. It is, after all, about them. You could go smaller with the right amount of padding and longer girth in the short term. Larger saddles on smaller horses is problematic.