Strada Saddles

I have a Strada dressage saddle and a jumping version too. Love them to death and they are great for your horse. They are super saddles but you will either love them or hate them. If you prefer the big bucket, massive knee roll dressage saddles where you cant feel your horse or move your legs then dont buy one. Mine is like a security blanket, you can feel your horse so much better. Thoroughly recommend them.
 
I have had my Strada for several weeks now and I must say my 14.2hh welsh D goes very nicely in it - good freedom of shoulder movement. For me it took a while to get used to the way the stirrups are set as further back than I am used to, also the saddle is fairly flat (albeit comfortable and great quality leather). Too compensate for that I have sewn a piece of sponge into the seat saver to raise the pommel so I feel that I am sitting into the saddle more (which does the trick for me). You might say well if you have to do that the saddle isn't right for you..... well that might be so but it really does fit my horse and I am adjusting and the more I ride in it the better it feels. At the end of the day if your horse looks forward to the saddle going on and feels happy I think you will have a better relationship/ride.
 
I have a Strada dressage saddle and have been as pleased as punch with it! The leather quality is excellent, the fit superb and most of all, my horse loves it.

Other people are surprised by its close contact fit and comment about the lack of deep seat and flatter knee rolls (though you can have large knee rolls ) but it is designed to be best for the horse - which is important.

I think the main positive i found was the standard of fitting - Ilga was with me for hours and certainly didnt rip me off like other companies who poorly fit and then charge to come out over and over again. She is an excellent saddle fitter and her saddles are of a high quality. I also bought a beautiful girth and leathers along with the saddle cloth with the clever non slip design. Best buys ever!!!!

Customer service is as good after the purchase as it is before!

My horse is a flat backed, low withered, round ribbed cob with large shoulders, his saddle fits like a glove.
 
I should first say that in case you don't know I fit traditional saddles and flexi panel saddles. I have only seen two Strada saddles, both "fitted" to a TB and neither fitted. I think the fitter admitted she couldn't do anything more and that she could see they weren't ideal and took them back. Someone else on the yard had a less than positive experience with them. I do worry about the hardness of the panels - the owner felt they never warmed up enough as they never got soft and her horse hated them as she moved off so he never relaxed,. They do only cover quite a small surface area and are very close contact, hard to balance a saddle (front to back balance) on higher withered type shapes with only flat trees and thin panels..

Yet I read of lots of people who love them and I certainly have no problem with flat seated open dressage saddles - mine is the same, though a flexi panel saddle, and I mainly fit wide horses so I fit them flat as well :D

They are nice quality leather and well stitched etc.

And I should say that do bear in mind that moving where you sit on a saddle by using a seat saver that shifts your weight backwards or forwards will change the weight distribution in the saddle, and therefore the fit of the saddle. The saddle SHOULD indeed fit both of you with no such adjustments.
 
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