Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

I have both the Wintec Endurance and the Dressage Pro, with CAIR panels, and 
the changeable gullet, and also the dressage 2000 and the dressage Sport 
(older models without CAIR and changeable gullets).  I love dressage saddles, 
and I love Wintecs.  BUT I found the Endurance model really set me in a chair 
seat, and wasn't very comfortable for me, so I bought the Dressage Pro 
equipped the same way.  

I feel very centered on my Anglo-Arab mare, and in perfect position to post.  
I started my mare under saddle, then as soon as she could handle 45 minutes 
under saddle, started taking dressage lessons on her.  It helped both of us 
SO MUCH that I strongly recommend it to anyone who does not have a strong 
equitation background.  She is a great horse to ride, in part because I know 
how to control her at all times, and keep her straight and balanced.  

As far as the way the saddle fits, I originally started with her mom, a 
purebred Arabian, in a western saddle.  When I found out the saddle didn't 
fit, I went without until I found one I liked, and it was the Wintec Dressage 
Sport.  After having every saddle I put on her slide up her neck, it was the 
first one that didn't move.  I have ridden up and down lots of hills on both 
of my girls, and the saddle only slips if I'm not girthed up snug enough.  I 
tend to ride with a fairly loose girth, but go up a notch or two for hills.  
I think the amount of saddle movement has at least a little to do with the 
rider, because my girlfriend and I can ride the same horse in the same 
saddle, and I have a lot less movement than she does.  She tends to ride more 
crooked than I do, and her horses tend to have more issues with saddle fit 
than mine.  

I want to comment on back conformation also.  I've noticed that a lot of 
horses, especially Arabians, have a cylinder or sausage shaped body, and the 
shoulder blades, instead of coming closer together at the top near the 
withers, are widely separated.  Even if the horse HAS withers, the overall 
shoulder/wither area is very wide, and hard to fit a saddle to.  I think the 
laid back shoulder allows the shoulder blades to come closer together at the 
top, thus making it easier to fit a saddle to the horse.  Also, while the 
shoulder blades should lie smooth against the body, it helps to have a small 
pocket behind them, at least in placing the saddle and having it stay there.  
While a horse should have well sprung ribs, if they are TOO well sprung, you 
get the sausage shaped body.  I think the ideal shape for a cross section of 
the torso would be a  teardrop.  I actually like a horse that is somewhat 
narrow, but very deep chested.  They still have the room for big heart and 
lung capacity, but the shoulder lays flatter against the body, and they are 
easier to fit a saddle to.  The narrower horse is also a better radiator, 
thus easier to keep cool.  jeri

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