[SweetSavannah]

how do you train a horse to go side saddle? i mean, i know about the whole use a cane instead of your right leg thingy... but what about when i actually get the saddle, how do i get her used to my weight, weight of the saddle, and the different feel of a side saddle?

(side saddles are ******** heavy! and high! like a giant ironing board except lots heavier)

i've only ridden her in a light dressage/show saddle and i'm worried the weight will a) give her pressure sores b) scald her back) c) make her buck due to the weird feel with me flopping around in it!

any tips?

oh and anyone know where i can get a sidesaddle?

[Xiphias]

When my friend and I decided to do sidesaddle with our hunter geldings, we just put the saddle on them and lunged them, then we got on and started riding them, we were lucky to have horses that were good at picking up their leads automaticly, you can use a dressage whip also on your legless side, we never encountered any problems as far as the saddle bothering the horse, we used a heavy western type of pad on her horse, he had high withers as do a lot of tb. horses, I just used a custom made fleece pad for the sidesaddle.....have you joined the International Side Saddle Orginisation (SP?) they have a wealth of information...Riding Side-Saddle Information and history of this elegant style of riding, including associations, books, photographs, and associated links. English and German translations.
http://www.damensattel.org/indexe.htm hope this helps ... Cathy

[Fox Glove]

I have a good friend who rides aside.
She fox hunts aside as well , crazy !

I do know the saddle fit is important, and there is an off side girth
that keeps the saddle in place.
She had her saddle stuffed to fit her horse ,
at an Amish saddle maker.
I see side saddles on eaby, and they can be found many other places as well.

When the National Horse Show was still at the Garden
they had a Side Saddle classes, flat and over fences.
The woman I know placed second.
Beaten by Joy Slatter who had won the Maryland Hunt Cup that year,
and was the first woman to ever do so.

Ronald Regan had the ISSO ride in his inagural prarade.

Here are some links, if you take SS up ,
please post your progress..
It has a long, and very interesting history,
I have seem some very early saddles,
the striupp irons were as big as a childs bracklet,
just the very tip of a toe would fit..
Amazingly brave women,
who paved the way for us !

http://www.sidesaddleaustralia.com.au/other_links.htm

http://www.ability.org.uk/ridding_cl...nizations.html

http://www.sidesaddleinfo.com/handbook.html

Side saddles for sale
http://www.sidesaddleaustralia.com.au/For_Sale.htm

Have fun!
Paula

[SweetSavannah]

update!

i've started on my journey to ordering a saddle in. i've got just under half the money i need to do it so a couple of months of careful saving should see my dreams realised. im so excited!

ive ordered the cane already as its actually cheaper from the custom place than in the shops ($115 custom, $160 retail!) so hopefully in a few weeks i'll have a proper cane to use instead of my crummy dressage whip which doesnt do the same job cos its so bendy!

has anyone heard of using a gel pad when riding in a side saddle? im really worried about hurting my horses back and i have a gel pad i use with her normal saddle. do you know of anyone whos done it before and did it work?

thx for all the links i've already looked at sidesaddle australia but i'll have a peek at the other sites too!

[Xiphias]

My friend used a gel type pad under hers for showing her tb. it worked fine....Cathy

[Shotgun93]

I would be worried about the weight tipping a pelivs or moving a vertebrea or rid out of place. I guess I have never really thought about riding side saddle.

I suppose that you would want your horse to be very responsive to indirect rein though.

[Xiphias]

Actually when riding properly in a side saddle, your weight is centered over the horse's back...you are not leaning over to the side....Cathy

[Fox Glove]

Yeppers Cathy.
It really is an amazingly balanced and secure seat..
You can have the saddle stuffed to fit your horse , its not a fortune either.
Most side saddles are'nt as heavy as the average Western saddle..

Have fun,
I wanna see pics
Paula

[SweetSavannah]

ah you can bet your life i'm going to be putting piccies up when i get my saddle!

i started training my horse with a thick-ish dressage whip yesterday just going through our regular warm up routine. i think having a set warm up routine was the best thing i ever did with that horse! now whenever i am introducing something new she has a warm up routine that she knows inside-out. she knows what she has to do and she knows what i am asking her to do. so even though i had the dressage whip instead of my right leg she knew i was asking her to trot, canter, circle, walk etc!

at first she was a little upset about the whip. she was like "but you havent even asked me with your leg! why are you using the whip straight away?" but then eventually she realised i was using it to replace my leg altogether and once she figured that out she was much happier.

i also draped my leg over the saddle to mimick the sidesaddle position. she got the idea of what it feels like, even though i'll be sitting further back on a side saddle than in a dressage saddle. at least i know she isnt going to freak out when she realises my legs are on the one side!

*yes i was truly amazed about the position you ride in. you actually face square to the horses shoulders with your hips and shoulders and all the books on position say "a rider riding aside should have their seat and upper body exactly the same as a rider riding astride". its really amazing! and apparently a orse that was going to be "hard to break in" was broken in side saddle first because the secure fittings (leaping head) helped give the rider a better chance to stay on!

*oh great i will be able to use my gel pad then! thats fantastic! i definately dont want her to get a sore back cos of the saddle being heavier or cos of me having to sit further back. i dont think it would encourage her to like sidesaddle if she got a sore back from it all the time! at least this way she can adjust slowly!

[horsegent]

My wife and 2 daughters all ride side saddle and on Boxing day they always hunt side saddle. I've some very nice photos of them riding out together last year.