New Things I have learned

This is information given to me by different sidesaddle riders. Please chime it if you have anything to add!

1. Sidesaddles are girthed up on the off side.

2. A Royal Warrant is a possible mark on the saddle with "By Appointment to [insert name of member of royal family here]". A company or individual who has provided goods or services to a "royal" that way can apply for the Warrant, which is good for a certain number of years and can then be renewed. It's great advertising, and of course still used--look in any Barbour coat! Anyway, if a saddle does have one, depending on whose name is given as the granter of the Warrant, it helps determine the earliest and latest years when a saddle could have been made.

3. The Impakt saddle pad is made out of some kind of foam. It feels weird, almost sticky. When it heats up from the horse's back it adheres to the back and also the saddle. I should say it adheres to a leather saddle, it wouldn't do the same with linen. After a ride I would carefully peel the saddle off the pad, then the pad off of the horse. The pad was always wet, but Marcel's back was always dry. It held the saddle where I put it without having to tighten the girth as much as you normally would with a sidesaddle. It did well with his wedges too. The felt has a bit of grip to it to hold the saddle and they never budged off the pad.


4. "A Queen" is a foam cushioning covered in sheepskin (can be faux) on one side to pad the fixed head. Extra wide elastic, 2" - 3" is used on the other side.

5. I have also learned how you girth up your sidesaddle TOTALLY depends on what kind and even what brand of sidesaddle you own. There are as many answers to this question as there are saddles! Uggghhhhhh!

Side Saddle Stirrups..

This is a chart showing many different kinds of stirrups used through the years..both for men and women.

..and this is the best stirrup to use if you are riding aside. It is a breakaway stirrup designed to do just what it is named for in case of a fall.

This is another safety stirrup called a Peacock. The rubber band should pull open in case of a fall with this design, but I do know of one instance that this did not happen. Thankfully the rider was not injured!

...and as beautiful as this antique sidesaddle stirrup is, it would be the most dangerous one to use.

OMG - OMG - OMG....

I did it...I took a HUGE chance and did it. I bought a side saddle! ...and I have taken a Enormous risk because I bought it off of e-bay..just what everyone told me not to do. Why???

1. The seller had a 100% approval rating.
2. The saddle is a Champion and Wilton.
3. I got it for a price that I could afford AND even if it does not fit my horse, I feel like I could easily get back what I paid for it, to invest into another one. BTW - I purposely overexposed these pictures to see the details.

Please please leave a comment if you are knowledgeable. I would love some feed back.

The seller posted a ton of pictures of the saddle...

Am I nervous??...

Yes! Until I get the saddle, see it, feel it and lay it on my horses back...

...I will be very nervous about this purchase!

..but you will be with me all the way..

..so good or bad, I will let you know what happens!~

More Period Costumes..

Just Breath Taking!!!

Costumes..

Some aside riders choose to ride in "period costumes" either for fun or in an event such as a parade. Most either make their own costume or have one made. This was the elegant inspiration for...

...this ladies costume!The amount of information and pictorials I have found on period costumes could take up to a year to post on, so I will touch on it here and there...just to keep this blog fun!

deleted

edited

What I Want...

...and the closest thing I have found!

Okay - so as you remember - this is what I want. Lovely isn't it!! This is actually a very rare historical riding suit.Rare because it has lasted almost 100 years and is still in tact and rare because it is a unique riding suit with its longer coat. Most hunt riding habits (historically and current) have short coats.

This is the closest thing I have found so far. This is a pattern by Ageless Patterns (https://agelesspatterns.com/) and yes, it is a pattern for a sidesaddle suit. If I used it, I would have to lengthen the coat though.

This is that same pattern made up. It is stunning. Way more fabric than a hunt seat rider would want, but just beautiful for a Saddleseat class at a horse show!

Fashion! Saddleseat and Sidesaddle

There are tons of posts I can do on Sidesaddle fashion...and I will...but for now - I am going to concentrate on what I need for riding American Saddlebreds aside!

Lets start with what a rider wears when riding astride. Here is a formal "tux" Saddlesuit. Note the top hat, satin lapels, satin stripes down the pants, a bow tie, cummerbund or vest...Black or Navy are the acceptable colors. This would only be worn in 3-gaited or Park classes held after 6PM.

Here is an informal day suit worn in all pleasure classes day or night. I know you cannot see it - but the back of the longer riding coat is split to lay nicely over the horses hips...

..and as you can see in this photo of my Daughter Joy, the bottom sides of the jacket will flap back as you ride, making the color choice of the jacket lining very important!

To comply with the Saddlebred code of fashion and yet blend in the sidesaddle skirt, I need a suit like this one...

..cut and tapered to fit the female body better, yet still having the longer jacket design.

What are all These Straps for?

Okay - ignore the cute little sandwich case on the offside of the saddle! The large strap going under the saddle is the main girth, acting as all main girths do on every type of saddle.

The smaller strap is called a balance girth and does just what it says. It helps to balance the back on the saddle and keep it from slipping and-or turning.

removed

removed

How Do You Sit on That Thing???

Positioning your legs. For a correct stirrup length - there should be 1 inch from the bottom of the leaping horn to the top of your thigh. You should sit straight up and further back than if you were riding in a normal hunt or dressage saddle. If you are accustom to riding saddleseat (which is what I ride) you already ride sitting straight and further back

As for mounting; I have been told that when you begin, it is easier to mount as you would an astride saddle and then swing your right leg back over the pommel while keeping your back and behind straight.

Images removed

Since this is a new blog....

..and it is specific to one subject, I have already gone back to add and edit information. If you are learning along with me, look back at old entries and look for new information usually preceded by the word EDIT!

If you are reading this and are an experienced sidesaddle enthusiast, please leave me a comment if you have information to add, correct or just want to let me know I am not the only one who is smitten by this sport!

Thanks~!
Julie

Basic Sidesaddle Information..

..that I probably should have posted in the first entry on this blog!



..and a view from the bottom.

..Bad Saddles and the Dangers of Using Them!

Here is a picture of a very cheap Sidesaddle. Saddles like this one are offered on E-bay, everyday for about $200-$300.00. They are made in 3rd world countries and have terrible workmanship, poor quality leather and not even decent copies of real sidesaddles.

One of the first things I learned about sidesaddles, was that they must fit the horse so that the rider could balance. One of the features of a good sidesaddle is that the left underpanels are stuffed more than the right, since that is the weight bearing side. If not, the saddle will slip forcing the rider to lean to the right, just to stay on!.
A saddle that slips makes for an unhappy rider. A poor fitting saddle so tightly bound around the horse, so that it will not slip makes for an unhappy horse....and we NEVER want an unhappy horse!

This is a photo of a good quality, well "flocked" (stuffed) sidesaddle.Edited to add:
A good refurbished Sidesaddle should cost around $1000.00 and up. New models usually run $2000.00 and up....ouch!