tack trials + tribulations

Believe it or not, we're just a week or so shy of celebrating 7 months since Mondeuse joined the family! 

my selected trio of trial candidates on display at the Maryland Saddlery!
L to R: County; Amerigo; Voltaire

Things got off to a rocky-ish start when we descended into an alarming period of potentially serious unsoundness just 2 weeks into having her. Recall, Doozy's hind left leg -- which was recovering from significant wounds after a fence accident before I adopted her -- absolutely exploded into persistent and systemic cellulitis. 

this is all for you, Dooz! bc it turns out we kinda like you <3

Even as that infection slowly subsided, we still weren't out of the woods -- and the mare blew an enormous abscess out of her coronet band on the same leg. Probably all related, ya know?

only two actually came home tho -- another shopper happened to come into the store with the explicit purpose of taking the County home on trial, while i was still hangin out browsing the aisles. like, had apparently been searching for that exact spec saddle, and hustled over as soon as she could. the shop owner was basically like, 'Sorry it's already been claimed for trial!' but c'mon, no way. i just picked it kinda on a whim, ya know? anybody who knows the pain of saddle shopping would pay that forward and let the lady take the saddle, and i was more than happy to just say, "please, it's all yours!!"  to do anything else is basically begging to be cursed in saddle shopping for all eternity amirite?? lol...

That whole song and dance consumed the better part of 4 weeks, with no clear answers on whether it was likely the cellulitis would be a chronic or recurring issue bc of all the trauma that leg experienced.

first up - the Amerigo! not gonna lie, i have a strong preference for monoflaps

Meanwhile, I was also getting to know Doozy better. She's a very sweet horse with a strong desire to connect with the people around her --- both qualities I'd observed at the adoption facility that played a large part in my decision to take her on.

it's hard to get a symmetric pic no matter what lol, but doozy def is not a symmetric horse either

But ya know. I also thought she was on the quiet side of the spectrum. In retrospect, however, as she recovered from her infection it became clear that.... It wasn't so much that she was being "fresh" now; but rather that she'd likely been "subdued" previously bc of the brewing systemic infection. And I ended up with quite a bit more horse on my hands than planned. 

tried really hard to get her all straight and square for this pic, and this was still the best i could do

C'est la vie, amirite?? Soon enough, tho, we kinda got our sea legs under us and, in October, I invested in a 'beater' saddle to get us going. 

I had hoped the saddle would be good enough to last us a few months while Doozy gained weight and I evaluated the relationship. Tho, things took a bit of a twist when the mare filled out enough to actually make Charlie's drool-worthy French monoflap a passable fit!

padded and girthed and ready to go!

Tho ya know, Charlie and Doozy are... not the same size haha. Over time, Doozy has made it clear that "passable" isn't good enough any more, and there's just a little too much movement and "chatter" with Charlie's saddle. 

second saddle: the Voltaire! i sorta wished this one would be instantly rejected

Meanwhile, tho, Doozy has absolutely proved that she's a pretty cool horse. And has already started getting out and doing the things. She's also gained weight easily, put on condition nicely, and never misses a meal. So while realistically she probably will keep changing shape over time, I feel reasonably confident that she's a lot closer to a sustainable body condition now than she was 6 months ago.

was less careful with lining up square symmetric shots too bc i didn't want to like this one..

All this to say, the next saddle I buy for her will be with a longer term intention. Which means... I have to love it, like I love Charlie's saddle. 

alas, tho, this beautiful saddle also looked quite sittable!

The best part about having a "normal" sized thoroughbred tho is that... options abound!!! It took approximately 3 minutes to select a few *very nice* trial options at our local consignment shop, and literally both of them so far look like strong candidates to actually purchase. 

and so it got padded up and girthed too!! sans sheepskin tho, bc it would need a lower profile half pad. good enough to go without for the trial tho!

I really like a minimalist saddle when it comes to weight and layers of leather --- monoflaps strongly preferred. I like to basically feel like my entire inseam has direct connection to the horse, and particularly down the calf I don't like feeling like there's a 'ledge' or gap where the flap ends and my calf transitions from resting against the saddle to resting against the horse. 

Amerigo!

I also like a saddle that fits with a half pad. I dunno, ymmv. I like having that extra little bit of cushion there for when I inevitably do weird unbalanced things like get left behind or sit like a potato or whatever lol. This isn't exactly a requirement, but I feel like having that space also gives me more options for managing fit on a changeable animal.

Amerigo the second time (last night)!

Both of these saddles are very nice, and extremely comfortable to sit in. And there aren't any immediate red flags with either --- tho potentially things to keep an eye on with both. 

Voltaire!

I am biased toward the Amerigo bc it's a monoflap, first off. But also I kinda feel like overall the flap shape gives me more options for stirrup length too -- which is nice bc I'll likely end up riding a lot of dressage tests in whatever jump saddle I buy. 

But I also liked the Voltaire a lot more than I wanted to, to be perfectly honest. And in every ride with both of these saddles so far... I've honestly felt like, "yep I could buy this saddle."

ladies and gentlemen, take your bets!

So I'll keep riding in both. Definitely want to jump in both, preferably at a time when I can get video to review. And more than likely, I'll end up extending the trial for at least one - if not both. Mostly to give Doozy a chance to make her opinions clear too. 

So ya know. Wish me luck haha! And let me know what you think too --- tho, obvi, only if you're gonna be nice ;)