Couldn’t resist the comic relief of this VERY SHORT rider.
We’ve discussed saddle fit for the heavier rider in a previous blog, but I have recently been asked several times about what issues to consider for the extra tall or extra short rider, who both seem to have troubles finding saddles to fit properly. Obviously there are considerations for all body types, male or female, which unfortunately too many saddle manufacturers do not look at in their saddle designs. Too many saddles are still very much ‘cookie-cutter’ models.
You can pretty much turn some of the stuff I’m going to say now around by 180⁰ to accommodate a taller rider. To create a saddle for a short rider, just shortening the flap will not create a better fit (as just lengthening it doesn’t always work for the taller rider. You need to consider flap angle and position of your knee pad and thigh roll). When the knee roll or the leg support of the saddle hits your knee, it can turn your leg away from your horse, and it will be difficult to keep your lower and upper inner leg against the horse.
The first thing to do for better saddle fit is to get a saddle with a narrow twist. The twist is very often misunderstood. People think it is in the crotch area. However, the twist is the part of the saddle that is between rider’s upper, inner thighs. A wide twist under a short rider makes even more room away from the leg and the rider will sit as if on a barrel, unable to get her leg on the horse. Women, in particular, are much better off with a narrow twist because of the way their pelvises are shaped.
I have worked in Germany, England, Canada, USA, Australia and South Africa and in each country the twist is called something different. Basically, it refers to … Read the full article here.
~ Jochen Schleese CMS, CSFT, CSE, courtesy of Saddlefit 4 Life
