I have a comment on how a custom saddle was
improved upon in my case. I paid $2700 for a saddle to be made to fit my
Paint that was my Tevis horse. We didn't just use a wither tracing either,
we used photos and a guage for a complete accurate reproduction of his
back. Then in addition to that, he was built "downhill" so the maker also
built a rise in the front so that *I* sat level in the saddle. You have to
take the top of the saddle into consideration too, that you are riding level and
balanced.
I did 50's in this saddle, he always got A's and
never a sore back. However, one day I tried out a Wade tree factory made
Western cowboy saddle. The difference was that the tree is flared in the
front and reaches up and over the shoulder, rather than the forward edge being
in the groove behind the shoulder. My horse flew. He added an easy 3
mph to his gait and flew downhills. Did a 70 miler and he could have gone
on. I have used that saddle ever since. Cowboys designed in
generations ago because of it's ability to fit a variety of backs in their
remudas.
So, the other thing I have learned: Amigo had
learned to change his way of going in order to *avoid* any pain of the front
edge of the saddle pressing into his wide shoulders. Hence, never a sore
back. It didn't matter that it fit him perfectly, the horse is *dynamic*,
the saddle is *static*. So, when the saddle freed him up in the
shoulders, he was much more comfortable and used his natural gait.
