What is the best saddle for a beginner?

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kit279

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My OH has expressed an interest in learning to ride and I have a great horse for that - my old polo pony who I would like to have a quieter life now who has just the right temperament for a beginner, well schooled, nice mannered and placid. The problem is that the saddles I have aren't really suitable for a beginner - I have some Butets which I love and an old polo saddle, none of which offer much by way of support for the learning rider, plus my OH is bigger than me and probably needs a bigger saddle. If he likes riding and wants to carry on, then he may want something a more high spec so I don't want to spend a huge amount. I think he'll probably start with some hacking and general schooling but he may at some point want to jump.

I was thinking about a GP saddle, which I don't like very much personally, but wondered if anyone had any recommendations?
 
I learned to ride, as did many of my generation, on a Barnsby pony club approved half panel saddle -no knee rolls nor extra support.
Why do you think these are needed except perhaps for a toddler with legs to short to reach past the saddle?
If a saddle that fits the horse is ok for his proportions then use that.
 
The main issue being that I am 5'3 and my OH is considerably taller than me so none of the current saddles really fit.
 
I am not an expert on saddles by any means but I personally have a wintec cair saddle and I feel safe as houses in it, doesn't feel "slippy" like some leather ones do and I think they are quite reasonably priced plus you can sometimes pick second hand ones up for a good price.

Thought it may be worth a thought just in case he doesn't enjoy riding too much and if he does then he can have a top of the range Ferrari/ Porsche (cant remember which one does saddles - was a thread sometime ago??!!;)) saddle later on

:)
 
Obviously one that fits the horse is a starting point. And one with a big enough seat to be comfortable for a man-shape (apparently high withers are a no-no!).

Although I do have dressage and jump saddles for my main horse, the one that is on loan has a nice GP which has the advantages that the loaner can do anything in it safely, it was relatively cheap for good quality (Ideal International Event) and I am not precious about it. If you buy a reasonable brand and model then it will sell as well again on Ebay so you won't lose much money. I like Ideals for being both easily adjustable within certain limits and easily re-sellable.
 
If I were in your position I'd get a male saddler who rides out to fit something suitable to your horse and OH, aiming for the GP type to start with.
 
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