Foto Friday

 Instead of trying to recap everything for the past few weeks, how about I just sum it up with some pictures?

Fall is here (despite the current heat wave yesterday and today) and it was time to sort through all my blankets. Cinder has already worn her sheet for a week or so during our first rain storm because she is a princess who hates getting wet. Peebs on the other hand is very happy to be a muddy mess.

Cinder got her own custom saddle! I stayed with the Voltaire Palm Beach, just with different panels and a larger seat size. Cinder had outgrown the used one I got last year, and since it never quite fit me right and finding a used saddle with a larger seat size with short flaps is almost impossible, we decided it was time to go fully custom. It's beautiful and so comfortable to ride in. 

I had a lesson last week where Cin and I weren't quite clicking, so we ended on a good note and then A hopped on to take Cin over the new course that had been set that morning. 

A bunch of jumps had just gotten repainted and Cinder had to stare down a few of them, because DIFFERENT, but she was so good and so game. The yellow gate used to be a light gray, and Cinder was very concerned that it was now bright yellow. She didn't seem to care that the jump was 1.0m, her first at that height. She did jump it, but pulled the rail. 

Second time was easy peasy

Cinder is currently in her once a quarter "I like boys" phase and thinks the new OTTB gelding Spin is the best thing ever. I give it a week till she hates him again. 

I fed at Cinder's barn a few times last week while the regular pm feeding was gone and A was at a horse trial. I've helped A feed before, but never done it all by myself, and let me tell you, feeding 56 horses is a lot. I much prefer feeding the four horses at Peebs barn. 

Saddle Fitting Round The Last

 At least I hope this is the last saddle fitting round we do for a few years. I ended up buying the Voltaire Palm Beach I took on trial. It fit Cinder much better than Peebs' saddle, and was much more comfortable for me, and helpful for my equitation, than the Crosby. 

For as slick as the Crosby was on the flaps, it always felt like I had the stickiest of full seat breeches on and when I posted it was like my butt would come off the saddle but my breeches wouldn't

 

Cinder still has a little lingering soreness along the right side of her withers, but Surpass has been helping. Unfortunately I've run out, and everywhere is back ordered on it. Anyone have any luck using the human version, Voltaren? 

Unfortunately the Voltaire billets didn't work with the new super squishy memory foam girth I had gotten like two weeks before, so I had to order her a size up. Anyone want a lightly used 50" girth?

I haven't been able to ride much in the Voltaire since I got it because we've been having some majorly weird weather. It was 75* a week ago, then over the weekend we had thunderstorms (including a funnel cloud about 10miles south of me), and then Monday morning it snowed. It didn't stick (at least where I live) but it's been snowing/slushing/hailing/raining off and on all week plus being in the upper 30s-mid 40s temp wise. This is the first time in recorded history we've gotten snow in April. I'm getting really fed up with living through unprecedented events. 

Still my best boy

As for Peebs, he's loving the currently-retired life. He's back to 12hr turnout, and got the grass run off his stall opened up again. I pull him out a few times a week to groom and check him over, but otherwise he gets stuffed with cookies and enjoys life.

Saddle Fitting Round #2

 I have fallen behind on my saddle fitting recaps, but I'm going to try and remember what happened. The Voltaire rep did in fact keep her appointment and we ended up trying three different saddles that day. She did want me to try a fourth, their monoflap, but since I want to focus on the hunters and eq with Cinder, monoflaps aren't going to work. I'm sure for schooling shows I'd get away with it, but I know at rated shows that would be a big strike against us. 

The only pic I took when the Voltaire rep was here

I ended up liking the Voltaire Palm Beach. The Stuttgart felt like it put me in the back seat, while the Palm Beach felt much more balanced and my leg fell perfectly into position. We also tried the new Essential saddle, which is a semicustom, interchangeable gullet saddle. Basically, it comes with a narrow, medium, and wide gullets, and you can pick your seat size and either a short, medium, or long flap. I didn't like it, felt like it put me in a chair seat, but it was a 17" seat while I usually ride in a 18" so that could have part of the issue. 

The rep did note that Cinder is deceptively wide, especially through her shoulders and since she's still filling out, will most likely need a flap modification for her scapula. For Voltaire saddles, the rep recommended their Fin panels, instead of the Pro panels. All the saddles she had that day were Pro panels, so I couldn't see what that Fin would look like on Cinder. I did find a used Palm Beach with Fin panels in a 17.5" and a short flap, so I'm taking in on trail. Should be here Monday.

Anyone know how to read this?

 

In the mean time, I'm borrowing friend A's old Crosby Equilibrium saddle. It's a narrower than my County, and Cinder seems to like it currently, so yay! It's not a great fit for me, and is slicker than snot, but if works for Cinder I'll make do.
 

Saddle Shopping Sucks

We all know it to be true, saddle shopping sucks.  Especially if you have a hard to fit horse and a hard to fit rider on a budget.  I'm also about an hour and half away from any tack store with any decent used saddle selection and I've already called them twice about their inventory. 

I've been looking mainly at used County's, as I really liked them when I've ridden in them in the past and according to the saddle fitter they should fit Peebs.  But finding a wide or extra wide tree with short flap in my seat size was damn near impossible.  I finally said screw it and emailed the local County rep to bite the bullet and get us a new custom saddle.  I had to email her multiple times, and she said it would take a few weeks to get demos in for us to try.  That was over 3 weeks ago and I haven't heard anything since. I know I'm not a big circuit rider, or a big name trainer with a barn full of clients all buying saddles, but when you have someone ready and willing to drop $$$ with you at least email them updates. I can definitely say I'm not impressed with her customer service skills at all.  I'm not holding my breath for a new, custom County anytime soon.

So fancy!

Even though the first saddle fitter said French brands probably won't fit the Peebs as well as English brands, I thought I'd just try.  I contacted the Voltaire rep and she got back to me with in a half hour and said she'd be down my way next week and had a couple for us to try.  A+++ for customer service!  I've never sat in a Voltaire or seen on in person so I'm interested to try them out.

And of course, the day after making that appointment, I find the exact County I was looking for used. Right seat size, wide tree, short flaps, barley broken in. So I paid to take it on trial and it's being shipped from Virginia today.  Hopefully it will work, or a Voltaire will because I am DONE with saddle shopping!

Please, please, please work!!