Your Horse is lucky to have you invest your time to understand how saddles work. We're thrilled to share our 20 years of comprehensive research for your benefit. Here is our promise: it will pay off for both of you! You're about to discover the #1 reason why most saddles don't allow Horses to move freely. You'll learn why 2 persistent MYTHS ARE WORTH BUSTING. You'll understand why saddles you've been trying so far did not work...and you'll be empowered to do something about it! The confidence you'll gain through this process will make assessing saddle fit simple and straight forward. You will be able to custom tailor to the needs of YOUR individual HORSE! Plus, our team is highly skilled and always happy to help you! Natural Horseman Saddles, 2016. All rights reserved.
Are you aware your Horse s back lifts and expands horizontally as soon as he starts moving? This is the #1 reason most saddles don t fit: They simply don t have enough room to accommodate a DYNAMIC Horse body shape in motion. Even "custom tailored" saddles are built to fit the Horse's STATIC standing still shape. Effective MANAGEMENT OF THE INTERFACE between your saddle and your Horse s back is an essential component of good saddle fit. Shims facilitate this FIRST LINK between your Horse's body, your saddle and yourself. They help a "too tight" saddle and balance a good saddle even better. We ll educate you about why and where to put shims. The results will show in enhanced performance and relationship. Natural Horseman Saddles, 2016. All rights reserved. Natural Horseman Saddles, 2017. All rights reserved
There's an easy way to find out how far your Horse's shoulder blade moves back during forward or backward movement. There's also a simple way to simulate how significantly your Horse's back lifts in motion: Your horse's shoulder blade (scapula) is a paddle-shaped bone connected to the upper leg bone. Powerful muscles engage to pull it backward in full stride. If this apparatus is restricted by saddle/rider pressure, the results include pain, alteration of the horse's natural way-ofgoing and can result in serious damage. It is important for you to know how to locate the back edge of your Horse's shoulder blade. Trace the shoulder gently with your fingertips to feel the depression that marks the edge of the shoulder "at rest". Gently lift the leg by the knee and lead it forward to pinpoint the new position of the shoulder blade: now further back but still indicated by a depression that is easy to feel or see. It might be useful to have a friend help you but it can easily be done alone. From the moment the first step is taken, a horse s body becomes a totally new set of shapes: engaging muscles, tendons, ligaments and fascia to create movement. The vertical lift between wither and croup should be significant. By firmly tickling a horse s belly under the midline, you can observe the natural lifting potential of the back and visualize how much room your saddle should allow. You may want to use some chalk to mark the 2 locations and step back to take a look. When you see how far the shoulder moves back while your Horse travels (compared to when he is standing still) it helps you understand what it takes for your Horse s stride to be unrestricted. Natural Horseman Saddles, 2016. 2017. All All rights rights reserved. reserved The SCAPULA is actually a very large bone and needs lots of room to swing!
RETHINK SADDLE FIT TM Natural Natural Horseman Horseman Saddles, 2017. 2016. All All rights reserved.
A centered, 90 camera angle is extremly important 90 angle A "naked" (no saddle) profile picture with Horse standing still with head up, 4 feet square, on level ground Tickle/scratch your Horse s belly carefully, yet firmly enough at the midline to cause him to lift his back. Have a friend take the picture. Horse s profile including your current saddle placed in proper position but without a pad. Same profile perspective, showing your Horse with your current saddle and pad the way you normally set it up. Natural Horseman Saddles, 2016. 2017. All All rights rights reserved. Have a friend take a picture of you mounted including saddle & pad set up the way you usually position everything If you already ride with shims in or on top of your pad, please show us a picture of how you normally position your shims by laying pad on the ground and placing the shim so we can see if it is optimized for your Horse's shape
A centered, 90 camera angle is extremly important 90 angle A "naked" (no saddle) profile picture with Horse standing still with head up, 4 feet square, on level ground Tickle/scratch your Horse s belly carefully, yet firmly enough at the midline to cause him to lift his back. Have a friend take the picture. Horse s profile including your current saddle placed in proper position but without a pad. Same profile perspective, showing your Horse with your current saddle and pad the way you normally set it up. Natural Horseman Saddles, 2017. All rights reserved Natural Horseman Saddles, 2016. All rights reserved. Have a friend take a picture of you mounted including saddle & pad set up the way you usually position everything If you already ride with shims in or on top of your pad, please show us a picture of how you normally position your shims by laying pad on the ground and placing the shim so we can see if it is optimized for your Horse's shape
At the wither right where you locate the back edge of the shoulder blade while your Horse is standing still and square. At the back edge of where your Horse s shoulder blade swings when the leg is extended in stride per description on page 3 (pulling knee forward) Just behind the spot on your Horse s back where you would sit in your saddle. Note: This is likely not the same place where you would sit while riding bareback. Further back from that would be better. *A "Flexicurve is a flexible ruler, a handy tool to keep track of your Horse s topline changes. You are welcome to purchase one from us or supply your own. Natural Natural Horseman Horseman Saddles, 2017. 2016. All All rights reserved.
Using a measuring tape or long ruler, find the place down from the top of the arc where the horizontal span measures 14" (35.5 cm). DRAW A HORIZONTAL LINE AT THAT LOCATION. Measure down from the highest point of the *Flexicurve arc to the horizontal line and record that VERTICAL MEASUREMENT. NOTE: This is the most important measurement we have discovered is key to your Horse feeling great under your saddle. Why? Because if your Horse is WIDE at spot C yet narrow behind the shoulder blade, the muscles at A & B will likely re-develop if they are allowed to expand unrestrictedly in the future. Fitting the C measurement best at first facilitates this. 14" (35,5 cm) 14" (35,5 cm) 14" (35,5 cm) If your vertical measurement of A is 6" (15,2 cm) or more the shoulder is likely suited for our Standard (STD) wide gullet. Note: we devised this system of measurement and offer these suggestions based on our "law of averages" after measuring hundreds of horses through the years and recording data noting which size saddles rendered them most biomechanically efficient and comfortable Natural Horseman Saddles, 2017. All rights reserved If your vertical measurement of B is 5 1/4" (13,2 cm) or more the shoulder and back shape are likely suited for our Standard (STD) wide gullet. If your vertical measurement of C is 2-3/4" (7cm) or more, your Horse is suited for our Standard (STD) wide gullet. If the measurement is 2-1/8" (5.4cm) or less, your Horse will likely be most happy in our Superwide (SW) gullet. Natural Horseman Saddles, 2016. All rights reserved.
DATE: FIRST NAME: LAST NAME: CITY/STATE/COUNTRY: PHONE: EMAIL: AGE: HEIGHT: INSEAM: WEIGHT: INCHES CM LBS KG HOW MANY YEARS HAVE YOU BEEN RIDING? WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE DISCIPLINES? AVERAGE HOURS SPENT IN THE SADDLE PER WEEK? PER RIDE? HOW DO YOU RATE YOUR OWN CONFIDENCE LEVEL IN THE SADDLE? WHAT ARE YOUR PERFORMANCE/SHIP GOALS? WHAT SADDLE DO YOU RIDE CURRENTLY? (PLEASE NAME BRAND & MODEL) WHAT SADDLE PAD DO YOU CURRENTLY RIDE? (PLEASE NAME BRAND & MODEL) WHAT SADDLE MODEL ARE YOU INTERESTED IN AND WHY? BEGINNER CONFIDENT HAVE YOU RIDDEN IN ONE OF OUR SADDLES YET? IF SO, PLEASE GIVE US SOME PLEASE GIVE US SOME FEEDBACK ABOUT YOUR EXPERIENCE IN IT: WHY ARE YOU LOOKING FOR A NEW SADDLE / WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SADDLE FIT CONCERN? HOW DID YOU HEAR ABOUT US? WHAT IS THE BUDGET YOU ARE CONSIDERING INVESTING IN A NEW SADDLE? $ 4,000-7,000 $ 3,000-4,000 $ 2,000-3,000 Natural Horseman Saddles, 2016. All rights reserved. Natural Horseman Saddles, 2017. All rights reserved
HANDS CM NAME: BREED: HEIGHT: AGE: SEX: GENERAL PHYSICAL CONDITION: VERY ATHLETIC NOT IN TRAINING DESCRIBE HOW YOUR HORSE TRAVELS UNDER SADDLE: TRAVELING ON THE FRONT TRAVELING ON THE HINDQUARTERS HEAD CARRIED HIGH? HEAD NODDING UP DURING TRANSITIONS? NECK HELD STIFF? SMOOTH STRIDE SHORT GAIT LIFTING HIS/HER BACK? TAIL HOW SWISHING WOULD EVEN YOU WHEN RATE FLIES YOUR AREN'T HORSE S HORSE S AROUND? TOPLINE? ARE YOU AWARE OF UNDERDEVELOPED MUSCLE AREAS? IF SO, WHERE? VERY WELL DEVELOPED VERY WELL DEVELOPED UNDER DEVELOPED UNDER DEVELOPED IS YOUR HORSE BAREFOOT OR SHOD? HOW OFTEN ARE YOUR HORSE'S FEET TRIMMED? ANY MEDICAL ISSUES YOÙ ARE AWARE OF? DO YOU INCORPORATE CHIROPRACTIC CARE FOR YOUR HORSE? EVERY 4 WEEKS IF SO, WHEN LAST? BAREFOOT EVERY 6-8 WEEKS SHOD EVERY 12 WEEKS DESCRIBE YOUR HORSE'S ATTITUDE DURING SADDLING: DESCRIBE YOUR HORSE'S ATTITUDE UNDER SADDLE: SPOOKY / SOUR FACE OR MOVES AWAY WHEN APPROACHED WITH SADDLE? CINCHY? (OBJECTING THE CINCHING PROCESS) Natural Horseman Saddles, 2016. 2017. All rights reserved.