Dressage Saddles - worthy investment?

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SunshineTallulah

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I have a GP, but it does tend to lean itself more towards jumping, with the stirrup bars being a bit forward.

I am contemplating a dressage saddle.

There is a school of thought that a good GP should be good enough for all disciplines but I really struggle to get my legs in the correct position due to the stirrup bar positioining.

Will a dressage saddle help or am I wasting money?

Any thoughts?
 
I never regret getting my dressage saddle I ride a lot better in it, only use my GP for jumping and am saving up for a jump saddle
 
i am in exactly the same position. i have a forward cut GP, and am considering biting the bullet to become a 2 saddle owner.
i know that it would help with my position, and help with allowing my horse to use his shoulders more, yet i am still deliberating, and then comes the question- which one to get?
ill be interested to know what other people think
grin.gif
 
it will definitely help, as long as you get one with stirrup bars in exactly the right place for you, obviously.
a GP is a jack-of-all-trades. it is a compromise, no question at all. it isn't forward-cut enough for a true jumping position, or straight enough for a true dressage position, imho.
you do need to try quite a few to find out what suits your position, your legs, how big you like the blocks, etc etc.
£35 ish for a proper fitting session with local saddler, even if you don't buy anything and then decide to track down a 2nd hand one of the make and model you liked best, would be well-spent i reckon.
 
Hmmm, that is what I have been thinking.

I could keep my Black Country GP (Which is only 15 mths old) for XC & SJ & hacking.

Do people use Jump saddles for XC & SJ? Or special event saddles?

I participate in RC, trec, pleasure rides etc and not just dressage (in fact my horse hates dressage - well not hate but tolerates it - he prefers jumping).

OH will prob think its a waste of money as we are mega brill at dressage but I wonder if getting a dressage saddle will help us ?!
 
it will help, i'm 99% positive. if only because it makes you sit better and look more professional so the marks are better!
people do use jump as well as xc saddles for eventing, depends on length of rider's legs and how short they like to ride. for instance i can't ride shortish in a GP (tried yesterday in desperation!) because my knees come off the front straight away - see middle siggie pic, that's riding longish in a very forward cut wow. right siggy pic is in a normal jump saddle, not especially forward cut, see the difference?
most eventers use a dr saddle, and a forward-cut jump saddle for both jumping phases, shape and cut depending on preference of rider and shape of horse!
if you're not jumping huge fences, or riding especially short, you're probably fine in the GP though, if that's what you coped fine in before.
 
I part exchanged my GP for a new Albion K2 dressage saddle and don't regret it. It's improved my position on the flat and Gov is much more open through his shoulder.

I do more dressage than jumping but I bought an old Stubben Siegefried jumping saddle a few months later for about £150 for hacking and jumping. Its turned out to be a bit of a bargain as although it looks a bit rough around the edges its a very nice saddle to jump in and I always feel very secure and balanced in it, much more so than I did in my GP.
 
I guess the price of a good 2nd hand dressage saddle is a bit like asking how long is a piece of string?

I cant afford a brand new one unfortunately.... I may contact my saddler to get an estimate.

I am sure OH said he didnt want a summer holiday this year!
 
You don't have to buy a new saddle. Any decent saddlery shop should have wide selection of prices. I bought my 2nd Dressage Saddle from ebay. I knew what I wanted and I knew the size I needed. I paid £220 which was a lot cheaper than if I bought it in a shop.
 
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