I came to my favorite saddle out of desperation.  I had two young Spanish Arabian horses to start and condition for their career as distance horses, and nothing at all in my barn, leather-wise would fit them.

Nothing that my network of riding girl-and boy-friends had in THEIR barns would fit them.  I know, because we all gathered at a local arena one night and everyone brought me saddles to try.  I'd take saddles off of complete stranger's horses to try.  I'd take saddles off of a complete stranger's HUSBAND's horse to try... no luck.

I'd been riding with a girlfriend that owns gaited horses, and she rides a treeless saddle.  I really liked the look of it, so I borrowed it for a ride to try it.  Liked the seat well enough, but there was just an immense amount of "stuff" between the horse and I - knee rolls, padding, more pads, you name it.  And the stirrup hangers put my legs in a funky position (I'm sure this is a professional term...).  Yet another friend knew I was in the hunt for a treeless, and sent me to a website where I promptly ordered the least expensive saddle they had.  The saddle arrived and I immediately went out and placed it directly on my gelding's back with no pad.  It fit like a glove.  No extra padding, no knee rolls, no extra stuff.  So far, so good.  I put the pad on and attached all the fittings - I chose english leathers and a dressage girth, although you can choose western fenders and riggings as well.  Got on.  I was a little concerned about the saddle slipping since there isn't a tree, but had no problem at all.  That was it.  I've never looked back and have been hooked ever since.  The fun part of this is seeing my die-hard cattle raising, showing and roping girlfriends riding THEIR treeless saddles - also a move born of desperation because of an inability to fit a traditional saddle to hard-to-fit horses.

The difference in my horse's way of going was immediate.  He stopped bucking down hills - well, can you imagine doing really steep grades with a rigid tree (and 120 lbs. on top of that) gouging you in the shoulder muscle? I could immediately feel him round his back up underneath me when I went to collect him. I can feel his heartbeat, I can feel him sigh, and I can feel his back hollow when his head comes up to stare down that dang turkey hen...

The interesting and totally unexpected side effect of riding treeless is that MY body doesn't hurt anymore.  I found this out kind of by accident.  I had loaned my treeless to a friend to try before she ordered hers, and I was riding my English Ovation.  One of the most comfortable all purpose saddles I've ever ridden -yes, it has a tree.  We just dinked around for a couple of hours, and when I got off of my horse that day, I could hardly walk.  My back was sore, my hiney was sore, my knees hurt.

If asked to describe the saddle I'd say that it's a hybrid.  People who ride english are immediately at home in them because they recognize the girth system - billets and a dressage girth (yes, there is a saddle with a western rigging available at the end of August...).  People who know me would say I ride english, but I consider myself a distance rider - my clothes and my tack might look english, but that's only because I want the most out of my ride, and no seams between me and my horse.  People who ride western still wear their boots, spurs, western headstalls, hats and use saddlebags.  It isn't a show saddle - although, once again, there will be a dressage model available that will be legal to show in.

Riding treeless has been described as being as connected to your horse as you can possibly be, and still have a saddle on.  My saddle weighs 8 lbs. without fittings.  It fits everything from a pony to a Percheron, and everyone from a kid to a 350 lb. man.  Heavy riders do very well in the treeless saddles, there are special pads that provide all the protection to the horse's back that is needed, and from the horse's standpoint - it has to beat that same 350 lb. on a rigid tree.

This spring, my gelding and I competed in our first Competitive Trail Ride together.  It was my first CTR in 15 years.  My gelding came in with a perfect score - meaning his condition was good, no back or other soreness, pulse and respiration checks all good, etc.  I knew we had done the conditioning for the ride with no soreness, but actual competition is much rougher riding and I knew that would tell the true story.  Here's the biggest deal - before this saddle, I was ALWAYS the one doing tack adjustments, I mean, get off the horse, scoot the saddle back or forward, dink with the pad placement, tighten it up - you name it.  I rode this CTR with no breast collar, no crupper and the saddle never moved.  I go straight up and straight down, and my saddle is still positioned over the correct vertebrae when I'm done.

Treeless saddles aren't for everyone.  They ARE for people who struggle with body pain in either the horse or themselves.  They are for people who trail ride for pleasure, they are for people who start young horses, they are for people who love to jump their horse, chase cows (as long as you don't try to catch one), team pen, sort, distance ride or do speed events (can you say "Extreme Cowboy Race?").  All treeless saddles are NOT created equal, so I'm always available to answer your questions about what to look for.

Thanks for letting me share my story with you.  For more information you can contact me at EquineBodyShop@gmail.com, (402)253-2116 or (402)630-4633.  I'm the local Midwest distributor for the Black Forest Saddle line and can get you the best price on whatever saddle you choose.