GP saddle for rider with long leg?

[AmeliaA]

Any suggestions for a GP saddle which will suit a rider with long legs?
currently in a 18inch fieldhouse but it puts me in the most horrific chair seat

 

[sbloom]

You'll find that likely to happen with a lot of them. The chair seat is because of the shape of the seat and the placement of the stirrup bars, most GPs bars are a bit forwards, and it gets worse as you go to a larger seat. What's your budget and what sort of shaped horse?

 

[AmeliaA]

You'll find that likely to happen with a lot of them. The chair seat is because of the shape of the seat and the placement of the stirrup bars, most GPs bars are a bit forwards, and it gets worse as you go to a larger seat. What's your budget and what sort of shaped horse?

£1500 budget max. Open to any suggestions, I mostly hack but do a little schooling and jumping too but will never be above maybe 75

 

[dixie]

The Jeffries F1 jump might suit.
I’m 5ft 8 ish and is very comfortable.
I mostly hack but have jumped decent courses in it in the past.
Ive also liked the Black Country Wexford in the past but you might find the same arm chair seat with that.

 

[sbloom]

£1500 budget max. Open to any suggestions, I mostly hack but do a little schooling and jumping too but will never be above maybe 75

I mentioned horse shape because we could recommend a hundred saddles but if it doesn't fit your horse then it's no good. However that actually applies to riders in many ways, a chair seat can be caused by too wide a twist, too narrow twist, too narrow a seat, too thick a flap, too large a seat...and there are other minor aspects too. It is strongly related to how long your upper leg is compared to both your lower leg and your foot size too, the longer the femur and shorter the foot (ie the more typical female build) the further back your bars need to be, and the more your thigh needs to drop to get your foot underneath you.

Is there a good fitter locally who is good at rider fit who could help you? If you can find something with the right shaped seat and flap for you, and a reasonably set back stirrup bar then it is possible to find a GP that aligns you correctly but it's an art and science.

https://www.facebook.com/beaumoorse...WR2a321g9KHawMK5Qy4tGBKUTJwifNqgZtM9zzcW8juYl

 

[AmeliaA]

I mentioned horse shape because we could recommend a hundred saddles but if it doesn't fit your horse then it's no good. However that actually applies to riders in many ways, a chair seat can be caused by too wide a twist, too narrow twist, too narrow a seat, too thick a flap, too large a seat...and there are other minor aspects too. It is strongly related to how long your upper leg is compared to both your lower leg and your foot size too, the longer the femur and shorter the foot (ie the more typical female build) the further back your bars need to be, and the more your thigh needs to drop to get your foot underneath you.

Is there a good fitter locally who is good at rider fit who could help you? If you can find something with the right shaped seat and flap for you, and a reasonably set back stirrup bar then it is possible to find a GP that aligns you correctly but it's an art and science.

https://www.facebook.com/beaumoorse...WR2a321g9KHawMK5Qy4tGBKUTJwifNqgZtM9zzcW8juYl

sorry completely missed the part about horse shape! He’s a cob with a fairly short back, high withers and fairly broad shoulders - I don’t think he’s a difficult fit but does seem to be changing shape every 6 weeks at the moment ? I’ve got the saddle fitter out next week so I’ll ask them if they have anything they could suggest

 

[sbloom]

sorry completely missed the part about horse shape! He’s a cob with a fairly short back, high withers and fairly broad shoulders - I don’t think he’s a difficult fit but does seem to be changing shape every 6 weeks at the moment ? I’ve got the saddle fitter out next week so I’ll ask them if they have anything they could suggest

Yeah that's not the easiest shape to be fair, and the wider the ribcage of the horse the harder it is to be able to stay over your feet. You may need a style of saddle that is designed to lift you up higher off the horse to allow your leg to drop underneath you. What I will say is don't be guided by easy "rules" such as you needing a narrow twist, or you need a bigger seat to give you upper leg room...keep reading around rider fit (that link above, I put a lot of stuff on FB) as every horse-rider combo will need a different solution.

 

[AmeliaA]

Yeah that's not the easiest shape to be fair, and the wider the ribcage of the horse the harder it is to be able to stay over your feet. You may need a style of saddle that is designed to lift you up higher off the horse to allow your leg to drop underneath you. What I will say is don't be guided by easy "rules" such as you needing a narrow twist, or you need a bigger seat to give you upper leg room...keep reading around rider fit (that link above, I put a lot of stuff on FB) as every horse-rider combo will need a different solution.

That’s exactly what’s happened, I’ve got an 18inch seat to accommodate my leg but all it’s doing is sticking me into chair seat. I can keep a semi correct leg position for maybe the first 5-10 mins of a ride but as soon as I start trotting my leg creeps up, knees over the flap and it is SO difficult to keep my leg in the correct position - feels like I’m working against my stirrups leathers if that makes sense? I could be completely wrong and it’s all rider error but to get my leg in (almost) the correct position my stirrups have to be far too long. Can’t help but feel I always look disproportionate in my saddle too, it’s like even when my lower leg is in alignment my thigh still looks cramped up
I think he does have a wide rib cage - anyone who gets on him for the first time can barely walk when they get off!!
I’ll definitely keep reading up on it - I’m up in Cumbria so unfortunately not an area you cover!

 

[Hackback]

It can be done - I've now got a nice little Farrington WH saddle 17" for my short backed Arab. When the saddle fitter pulled it out I scoffed and said my legs definitely wouldn't fit into that! But she persuaded me to give it a go and bingo. I don't know how it works (I suspect for the reasons sbloom explains above) but it does. Keep persevering!

 

[sbloom]

That’s exactly what’s happened, I’ve got an 18inch seat to accommodate my leg but all it’s doing is sticking me into chair seat. I can keep a semi correct leg position for maybe the first 5-10 mins of a ride but as soon as I start trotting my leg creeps up, knees over the flap and it is SO difficult to keep my leg in the correct position - feels like I’m working against my stirrups leathers if that makes sense? I could be completely wrong and it’s all rider error but to get my leg in (almost) the correct position my stirrups have to be far too long. Can’t help but feel I always look disproportionate in my saddle too, it’s like even when my lower leg is in alignment my thigh still looks cramped up
I think he does have a wide rib cage - anyone who gets on him for the first time can barely walk when they get off!!
I’ll definitely keep reading up on it - I’m up in Cumbria so unfortunately not an area you cover!

Yep, you're experiencing most of those aspects of rider fit that I'm talking about and you ARE fighting your stirrup leathers, but it's the bar position that's the issue. In an 18" saddle, for a slim rider, or a rider with a short front to back pelvis, you're going to swim in it, and unless you have a short femur and long foot then the bar is unlikely to ever be far enough back for you, they can only go so far. A smaller seat size may help, but going smaller can also make the seat wider.

This is when people start looking for more forward flaps, higher set blocks etc, thinking they need more room at the front, they don't, they need a completely different fit for the rider to allow the thigh to drop, even in a jump saddle, to get the rider more over their feet.