Anyone got a Wow Club or Competitor with FOAM panels (not Flair).

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Maia

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If so can you tell me what you think of them?

Horse, despite giving time to adjust (almost a year!) is fantastic in the Flair provided I sit still but if I have a sudden shift in weight (usually because the idiot has spooked!) immediately hollows and is clearly not happy.

Instructor suspects he does not like the feel of the air pressure changing suddenly though the saddle fits beautifully and his work is otherwise better than in previous saddle (wool flocked). We popped a port lewis impression pad underneath the saddle and I sat with a particular weight distribution (i.e. sitting more to one side than the other, standing in stirrups, tipping forward, leaning back etc) and after each "position" we looked at the pad and sure enough there was an increased pressure mark depending on how I had sat, moreso than with instructors foam flocked saddle which we also did the same thing with for comparision. Unfortunately her saddle doesn't fit my horse so can't compare his reactions.

However, instructor suggested changing the Wow panels from Flair to foam and see how he goes with them instead (cheaper than buying even another second hand saddle) before changing saddle completely.

So my question is - what are the Wow foam panels like?
 
Both my friends have had them. They sit you closer to the horse than the air ones and I really like them. Very smooth, very stable, just the right consistency.You can buy two shapes, flatter or deeper to the outside. If I didn't want the adjustability of the air, then I would buy them every time.

It is possible that your horse is sensitive to the airbag overlap, it's quite a common issue? I always use a geleze on mine - it's so thin that the fit is not affected but it stops the problem. Worth a try maybe before you invest in the foam?
 
Could well be a sensitivity to the airbag overlap but have tried prolite, geleeze and sheepskin with little or no improvement
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Good to hear a positive report though
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Can you tell me whether you can feel ANYTHING through the foam panels if you run your hands over them - how thick are they? My only concern is that Wow have informed me the air "masks" the inner structure of the panels which attaches it to the seat and I am therefore concerned you may be able to feel this with the foam?
 
The foam is reaasonably dense so as long as the saddle fits well it shouldn't be an issue. Do you know which size and style of panel you have as I may have a set of foam inserts to fit?
 
Thanks whatawizard.

Can I ask why you're selling yours? (PM if you prefer).

My current panels are a size 1, DWG, brown.
 
When using the port lewis, there would be increased pressure where you put the extra pressure but that would be the same with any saddle. If you put more pressure in a certain area then it goes through to the horse. However, flair would distribute and minimise the pressure far more than any other type of flocking. So although you see there is increased pressure, the flair would have reduced it to the best of its ability.

You said yourself that the horse was better with flair than with flock (although a different saddle so hard to compare accurately). i personally dont think that changing to foam will necessarily help, as if you put pressure in certain places in a foam panellled saddle this too would show on the port lewis and i expect it will actually show more.

Its worth trying if you dont mind paying to get it changed and maybe changed back again but it sounds like your horse is just sensitive. If your horse is going very well in flair otherwise you will just have to practice sitting still!
 
Thanks Teddyt - the port lewis is something I hadn't come across before instructor produced it the other day so its all quite new to me.

What did concern me though was that my Wow definately showed up worse/more defined pressure points than instructors saddle???

Horse is better in Flair but this could also be due to the work done - it took 3 months for horse to settle into it (fitter said some horses take a couple of months to adjust) so it wasn't an instant "wow, my horse goes so much better now" - just an overall observation over time. The reason we went for Wow is that horse is was still changing shape (ex racehorse) so when he outgrew his flocked saddle the Wow seemed much easier than getting another saddle which had to be changed 2 months later etc... Saddle has be checked and adjusted by fitter every 10-14 weeks so no fit isn;t the issue.

Sitting still is easier said than done, but I hear your point. What worries me is that my horse clearly isn't 100% happy in this saddle and so I am hesistant to keep using it if he genuinely isn't comfortable.
 
Only the flair, I have 3 of them. Maybe email first thought equine and ask for their opinion on your saddle and horse? Include photos if relevant and they may be able to help you.
 
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