POINT OF VIEW
construction as well, with shoulder relief panels and wider gullet channels—but there is still some way to go. With jumping saddles, because of the fact that the rid-
er is often in a two-point position and out of the saddle, the horse’s needs probably play a bigger role in determin- ing proper fit. Unfortunately, too many of the jumping saddles I see on the market have totally disregarded the basic conformational requirements of the horse. Too many jumper riders still accommodate ‘fitting issues’ with pad after pad after pad—paradoxically negating the entire idea of ‘close contact’ jumping saddles. Most jumping saddles are still placed way too far for-
ward over the shoulders—and the irony here is that then even more pads are needed to bring the back of the saddle up to make it at least appear balanced and in a straight line from pommel to cantle. I was amazed to see one of our top jumper riders (who shall remain name- less) at a show just after I arrived from Germany in 1986 with—I kid you not!—two keyhole pads, a foam pad, and a sheepskin pad under his ‘close contact’ saddle. In Germany the jumping saddles I was used to were com- pletely different from what was being used here in North America—most were much ‘bigger’ and wool filled to be adjustable for fit like the dressage saddles, whereas here the fashion was the thinner close contact French-style jumping saddles. In my opinion, some jumping saddle manufactur-
ers have seemingly never studied equine anatomy; their gullet channel is still maybe two fingers wide, the tree points are forward facing, and there is no shoulder relief to accommodate the shoulders moving upwards and backwards during a jump.
Balance in Movement Whatever the discipline, however, the goal should always be for the rider to achieve whatever the momentary
60 September/October 2016
A jumping saddle (left) will generally have a flatter seat to allow the rider more freedom of movement as he or she changes posi- tion over jumps. A dressage saddle (right) will usually have many more options regarding seat size and design features to allow the individual a better opportunity to achieve the proper bal- anced position.
balance point for the horse is. This will constantly change during movement and is influenced by correct riding. Correct riding will only be supported with the proper saddle. A soft supple seat can only be achieved when the rid-
er moves in harmony with her horse—with both in bal- ance. The stirrup bars need to be the right length and in the right position, the twist needs to be the correct width, the seat width needs to be appropriate, and the cantle height also plays a role—regardless of discipline. Here is the crux of the issue: you simply will not have
the necessary support in a dressage saddle to work with the horse over a jump; you simply will not be able to do proper dressage in a close contact jumping saddle which does not allow the rider to sit properly balanced with a shoulder-hip-heel straight line. Swapping the saddles would be like running in high heels—sure you can do it for a short distance; or dancing ballroom in running shoes—you would never be able to glide across the dance floor. Equipment has been made a certain way for a reason and to fulfill its purpose. So the short answer to the original question remains ‘it de- pends,’ but really points to the need for discipline-specific saddles. A compromise option if budget is an issue might be to go with an ‘all purpose’ saddle—but even these can be made with a little more dressage or jumping feel, de- pending on what it is you’re likely to do the most. And remember, it will always be a compromise.
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