Smart Saddles or WoW saddles - have you got one?

[Lucky788]

Keen to hear from people who have or ride in one?

I have one on trial and horse is moving beautifully but before I take the plunge I’d like to hear from people who ride in them?

Also interested in the wow saddles altho doesn’t seem to be a local fitter

Thanks

 

[SEL]

I have two in WOW saddles

My littlest cob had a Smart saddle on trial about 3 years ago but we just couldn't get it to stabilise and it gave her a sore back so I returned it. The HO tried everything to make it fit but after about 7 days I couldn't even run my hand down the pony's back without her flinching. She is very wide and they were quite narrow I felt.

WOW have been a game changer for her because they can fit odd shapes but you really do need a decent fitter

 

[Fluffypiglet]

I also use a wow and my horse loves it. Many changes have been made without much difficulty and we have a great saddle fitter. However I agree that’s the key. You need a good person to get you started. I can now do minor changes (headplate) myself and just use the fitter to check my homework every 6 months or so. No real need but it reassures me.

 

[Leafcutter]

I had my traditional cob in a Smart pro dressage, not the native base though. It fit him really well and didn’t move at all, even when he did a 360 and run! I loved it too, only sold it as I lost the horse.

 

[Wizpop]

Another person here with a WOW saddle. I’ve had it on 2 horses so far and it’s now being refitted for a third. I was able to sell panels and buy secondhand to suit each horse. Horses went well in them. But, as has been said, you do need a good fitter. Some do travel and cover a large area. The Smart saddles were a bit too wide for me, although I do know people who have them and get on well with them.

 

[saddlesore]

I have a Smart saddle, native base VSD. Really comfortable and my boy is very happy in it

 

[ycbm]

I have owned WOWs for years. I bought them because of their adjustability and then found that the horses love the freedom in the shoulder from having a carbon fibre joint in the tree to let the front arch swing.

Unless you are happy to fit them yourself you really need to be in an area covered by a fitter.

Some people hate them, the occasional horse dislikes the air filling and quite a few horses can feel the airbag overlap, for which reason I would never ride in one without a sheepskin half pad or similarly protective saddle pad.

 

[ihatework]

I had a wow on a horse I couldn’t get happy in a conventional saddle. It did the job great and she loved it.

I got used to it over time ….

I’d fully intended to keep it and use it on subsequent horses but in all honesty didn’t like it enough, so am back in conventional saddles with a sigh of relief!

BUT would go back if I needed to for the horses sake in future

 

[Pebble101]

I have Flair in my dressage saddle (put in by WOW). It's brilliant but you need someone knowledgeable on the ground to adjust it.

 

[silv]

I love them and wouldn't have anything else. My warmblood has one set up for dressage but I also use it to hack out even day rides, it is so comfortable. My crossbred mare has one set up for GP as I hunt her. I find them incredibly comfortable and the horses both go really well in them. Plus I like the idea they can be adjusted/refitted to any horse. All my friends who have ridden my horses say how much they like the saddles.

 

[ozpoz]

I have a Smart dressage saddle and I love it. My horse has the most well muscled back that belies his age and is comfortable and free - I feel very comfortable and balanced. I’ve ridden in these saddles for a few years now and the lightness of them is also a bonus.

 

[saalsk]

I have had my WOW on 4 different horses now, and love it. It took a bit of getting used to for me, in terms of sit/feel, but the horses have all been happy with it from day one. Agree that they need careful, knowledgeable fitting/adjustment (as all saddles should be) but if you get a good fitter, who explains what they are doing, how to do it, and why, and the basic *physics* of what you are doing, it doesn't take too long to learn little adjustments for your own horse, as you usually know how they are/how they feel/how their stride feels etc. Like ycbm, I wouldn't use it without a pad. The thing I would change, is its weight - mine is old now, and one of the heavier models - they are much lighter now. I can't justify a new WOW just for weight (I am well within the person+saddle limit, I suspect me trying to get it onto my 16HH lad is more challenging than him carrying it and me !), as these 2 are the last horses I will be using for riding. When they become field ornaments, I will sell the tack and stop riding.

Having said that, I also have a non branded, synthetic treeless I got on ebay for about £45, for breaking in purposes. Have used it on the current 2, and they both like that one as well ! Very different feel for the rider, but being able to directly compare how they are with each, I can honestly say the horses showed no preference ! (My bank account did..). It means I can ride/lead when I hack, and then swap from horse to pony during the ride, so they both get some ridden work.

I suspect I got lucky with the treeless being comfy for the 2 of them. I wouldn't choose it for faster/jumping based rides, but for pootle/hacking it is great. I ended up with the WOW after the more usual try-every-branded tree'd saddle shenanigans, with one of us (and sometimes both !) hating version after version - sore back, shuffly strides, bad behaviour and so on before trying a WOW with horse 1.

Good luck with which ever you choose.

 

[Ratface]

I had two. The first one was years ago: it fitted the horse very well but was heavy. I gave it to a friend whose horse went well in it. The second one, for a different horse, was much lighter, and again the horse went very well in it. I sold the horse to a friend and the saddle went with him. They continue to be very satisfied with it.
These days, I use a Christ Lammfelle sheepskin pad and love it. My horse is a tall, spooky Arabian and I can feel what he is about to do just before he does it. It also has a grab handle on the pommel. I always keep one finger under it!