Sore down below....

DabDab said:
A good fitter should take note of both you and horse, but finding a good fitter and then them finding you a saddle can be a minefield. My most recent saddle was a made to measure for both me and horse and it's heaven. But all my other comfy saddles have really just been a case of trial and luck.
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Brilliant thank you, fingers crossed I’ll find a saddler as good as yours!
 
Tihama said:
I was told once - sit on your ar$e not your **** 🙈

Not very sympathetic but it did concentrate the mind 🤔

Is the twist in your saddle too narrow maybe OP?
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That will be ingrained in my mind the next time I ride. I’m not sure it’s a school horse so it’s a case of making do until I have my own 🙂
 
I was told I was sitting on my fork and needed to sit back. I used a sanitary towel and canesten cream when I did 3 days neck reining over the Pennines. Fun times! Eventually, day 3, I was stood up in the stirrups.
 
FF it would be a good idea to go to saddlery shops and have a sit on the type of saddle you think you may want ,and within your budget, keep a list of the makes and models and then when you get your own horse they could be the first ones that could be tried on the horse, then you will speed up the buying process. and will be half way there. it can be quite difficult to fit both horse and human and obviously horse is the most important but you need to be comfortable as well.
 
A saddle too small will leave me unable to walk....you could have a delicate word with your riding school...about a bigger horse/saddle?

Although if chafing is the case maybe some gel seat breeches would help you stick?
 
there are so many variables, what works for one person will cripple another. It's a tough time when you're not riding your own horse and can't choose your saddle.
Padding & anything grippy makes it 10 times worse for me :oops: Aside from Wintecs which I simply can't stand for a moment, I find most saddles OK for an hour or so provided they are *in balance*. The saddle I'm using for one of mine at the moment is deeply uncomfortable if it just slips back a fraction, it goes out of balance and then tips me onto the front. I wonder whether the RS saddles are as well fitted as they could be?
 
I’m so glad that the only time o have ever had this problem was from riding in a thong... which was my own fault. That was bad enough, can’t imagine every time I sat on a horse! Ow!
 
I have found the gel out seat really helps me and making sure I am sitting well especially in walk as this is the pace that causes the damage. I only started having this problem in my 60's and I'm sure it's linked to being post menapausal so I am now using an oestrogen cream from the doctor to see if it helps.
 
I would look at your saddle before anything else: I remember riding in a Thorowgood once which had a high pommel and cantle, and after about an hour in it, I was in agony!! Plus the dang thing gave me terrible water-works problems afterwards too. Never ever again will I ride in a saddle like that! It may be you need to look at your saddle's curve from pommel to cantle, and (obviously bearing in mind the shape of your horse's back as well as) possibly look at "flatter" saddles rather than ones which are hugely curved. It might be worth facing the embarrassment and taking a good saddle fitter into your confidence to get something that is right for you and your horse.

The other obvious things to consider are what you are actually wearing. I find bog-standard Primark seamless full pants are best for riding, they stay where they're supposed to whereas bikini and hi leg ones don't!

Also you may need to consider what shower/bath products you use "down there", as well as what you wash your clothes in. All of which things I have had to stop and think about.

You may find a padded seat helps you?? I did try a Heather Moffatt seat-saver thing, and it was bliddi awful! Made things worse, much worse, not better, and I stuck it for about half an hour then the thing had to be ripped off!! Like riding on sandpaper, Jeez, awful thing! But some people swear by them.

Hope you get this sorted. Pardon the pun, but it IS pants............ :)
 
I'm sat at my desk reading this thread and crossing my legs in sympathy for you!

I think I get off pretty lucky, I can happily ride in a thong without any discomfort really. Perhaps I have 'bits' of steel... Can't deal with lace though - OP, I'm sure you will have done, but do stay away from anything lace based. That does chaff!
 
Sprat said:
I think I get off pretty lucky, I can happily ride in a thong without any discomfort really. Perhaps I have 'bits' of steel...
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I was thinking the same! I can ride in any type of underwear without any problems! :eek:

Tihama said:
I was told once - sit on your ar$e not your **** 🙈
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I do generally live by this after riding for weeks in a saddle that didn't fit me and would tip me forward, I learnt very quickly to keep that area away from the saddle!
 
I generally find that anything that falls into the 'big knickers' variety tend to have too much material, which then seems to bunch up and make everything rather uncomfortable.

I did however make my eyes water the other day when jumping in a g-string over a particularly terrifying fence, there was much contortion going on afterwards to try and right myself!
 
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HEM said:
I was thinking the same! I can ride in any type of underwear without any problems! :eek:



I do generally live by this after riding for weeks in a saddle that didn't fit me and would tip me forward, I learnt very quickly to keep that area away from the saddle!
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Omg I wish I was that lucky, it was only a problem when I was younger riding a certain horse because of the saddle but now it just seems to be every time I ride just not as bad!
 
Sprat said:
I'm sat at my desk reading this thread and crossing my legs in sympathy for you!

I think I get off pretty lucky, I can happily ride in a thong without any discomfort really. Perhaps I have 'bits' of steel... Can't deal with lace though - OP, I'm sure you will have done, but do stay away from anything lace based. That does chaff!
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Like most of us I’ve learnt the hard way with lace 😖
 
People don't realise how much impact an out of balance saddle can have - not only will it harm your horse but it can cause you to not be able to get your leg underneath you, give you lower back pain, make the seat feel harder, narrower or wider, rub in weird places. It's critical and is why having really regular (3 monthly is the ideal) saddle checks should be more routine.

So, have your current saddle checked. If you decide you can't live with the saddle then forgive me, but I, and a lot of others in the field, think that female friendly saddles are more marketing than anything else. Sure, they might work for some, but there's more variation in pelvis shape WITHIN the female, or male, population than there is between the two and I do not struggle to get women comfortable in the supposedly male saddles (!) that I fit.
 
sbloom said:
People don't realise how much impact an out of balance saddle can have - not only will it harm your horse but it can cause you to not be able to get your leg underneath you, give you lower back pain, make the seat feel harder, narrower or wider, rub in weird places. It's critical and is why having really regular (3 monthly is the ideal) saddle checks should be more routine.

So, have your current saddle checked. If you decide you can't live with the saddle then forgive me, but I, and a lot of others in the field, think that female friendly saddles are more marketing than anything else. Sure, they might work for some, but there's more variation in pelvis shape WITHIN the female, or male, population than there is between the two and I do not struggle to get women comfortable in the supposedly male saddles (!) that I fit.
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Completely agree however it’s not my horse, the stables I’m at I ride three horses. One privately owned and two owned by the riding school and seem to have the same problem with all three. Was thinking it was my position in the saddle but my instructor said im in a good position! Definitely will be a massive priority when I get my own! Not really sure what I should be looking for when the time comes if I’m honest
 
FizzyFran said:
Not really sure what I should be looking for when the time comes if I’m honest
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You can't predict what you will like until you start to try saddles, and even then a "wide twist" in one saddle doesn't mean another wide twist will ride the same. I would always recommend buying off the peg wherever possible with a trial period, some saddles come with a full 14 day ridden trial where you can eliminate issues like this. If you go custom then I'd want a trial in a saddle with the same seat at least.
 
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