To Tree or Not to Tree? – That is the Question.

There are so many saddles in this world, where does one begin? Saddle trees were traditionally made of wood, which is why it’s called a tree. Today, treed saddles are made out of various materials. Saddle trees can be made with wood reinforced with spring steel, wood combined with other metals or rawhide, fiberglass, synthetic polyethylene, and even plastic. Treeless saddles are often made with foam, felt and a combination of both or other materials to create panels for spine protection and a stiff pommel for wither protection. We want to get you into a saddle that works best for you and your horse, whether it’s treed or treeless.

Happy horse and rider, Nick Weber and his horse, Sensei, in a western treed saddle.

Action Rider Tack has been selling a variety of treed and treeless saddles for years, and through our experience with success and failures we have developed certain guidelines to determine whether a treeless saddle might be good for you.

First, let us state clearly that treeless saddles are not for everyone. However, when they do work it can be a great experience.

Here are a few reasons why a treeless saddle might be a good choice for you and your horse:

 

• You have a low withered, wide horse, or other challenging conformation issues, and every treed saddle you have tried digs into your horse’s shoulder.
• You have a gaited horse or big striding horse that is restricted by the tree of a treed saddle.
• You love to ride bareback and the close contact it provides, but want more security that a saddle can provide.
• You are a competent rider and feel a treed saddle is too bulky under you.
• You love the idea of being in closer contact with your horse and are willing to take the time to make the adjustments necessary to get comfortable riding in a treeless saddle.

Happy horse and rider in a treeless saddle.

 

Here are some reasons why a treeless saddle might not work for you:

• You are a heavy weight rider on a small/medium horse.
• Your horse has prominent withers and an exposed spine. This type of conformation can be difficult to achieve proper wither clearance and spinal clearance on horses with a treeless saddle.
• You require a lot of security in the saddle. A treed saddle with knee rolls, poleys, a pommel and horn are going to provide more security than a treeless saddle. There are treeless saddles with deep seats and knee rolls, but compared to a treed saddle with the same design, the treed saddle will most likely feel more secure.
• You cannot rope cattle or dally a horse on the horn of a treeless saddle.
• Mounting from the ground is important to you. Treeless saddles on some horses will slip when you mount from the ground. This is most often a problem on really round horses.
• You ride many miles each week, including lots of up and down on steep hills. It can be problematic to keep a treeless saddle secure while going up and down hill, especially on round horses.
• You stand in your stirrups a lot or like to jump. A treeless saddle cannot provide the support under the stirrup area that a treed saddle can. This also depends somewhat on your weight.

So, is there a weight limit to a treeless saddle? Generally speaking, the weight limit is around 170 lbs, but keep in mind there are plenty of exceptions. Depending on the size of your horse, it is possible to go over that limit. Riders who weigh above 170 lbs have ridden successfully in treeless saddles, but usually are on bigger, stout horses that can carry their weight with relative ease.

The US Cavalry came up with a useful guideline for how much weight a horse can carry without stress. According to them, the weight of the rider and his tack should equal approximately 20% of the weight of the horse. So, if your horse weighs 1000 lbs, both you and your tack should weigh approximately 200 lbs or less. This is only a guideline and there are exceptions of course, but this 20% figure has been backed up by recent stress testing.

Sometimes, you can increase that 170lb weight limit with a proper saddle pad using a combination of open and closed cell foam inserts and materials. The weight limit is also influenced by the position and skill of the rider, as that effects how the pressure from the rider is influencing the back of the horse.

In conclusion, we know that in the world of horses there are no hard and fast rules for fitting a living, breathing animal with an inanimate object on his back. We recognize there is a need for treed and treeless saddles, as the variables and needs of horses and riders are infinite.

 

September Action Rider of the Month – Sabine Bergmann

Sabine Bergmann with her home bred gelding, Chenquinello

Sabine Bergmann, is an Action Rider who lives in Wedemark in the district of Hanover, in Lower Saxony, Germany. With the extensive selection of quality tack and equipment available in Europe, we were surprised to receive an order for a Myler Snaffle Bit all the way from Germany. Sabine told us that she wanted a bit in 5 ¼ inches, which is the average bit size for horses in Germany. In the U.S., the average bit size is 5 inches.

Sabine Bergmann has four Hanoverians that she rides and competes in the world of show jumping. She bred and raised two of them herself. The first jumper she bred was Chequinello, who is now an eight-year-old gelding. Chequinello is out of a half blood mare and sired by Converter, an Oldenburger County Champion. Converter’s sire, Contender, was a producer of top dressage and jumping horses.

The second foal she bred was out of the same half blood mare, but by a different stallion, Champion FP. Champion FP is a talented jumping stallion who combines the bloodlines of two very successful stallions in Germany, Champion du Lys, a Selle Francais and For Pleasure, a Hanoverian.

Sabine competing in a jumping competition on her mare, Agneta.

She also competes her mare, Agneta, a talented show jumper by Acorado, a Holsteiner jumping and eventing stallion. Agneta is eleven years old and Sabine purchased her six years ago.

As an online company, Action Rider Tack has customers all over the world. The passion for all things equine brings us closer together. The world is still big, but our common ground – our love of horses, makes the world seem smaller.

The NEXT Generation of Action Riders – Photo Contest!

Large Marge and her foal Gracie, born in early April. Send in your photos for a chance to win one of the saddles pictured above!

It’s been a big year for us here at Action Rider Tack! We celebrated the grand opening of our brand new retail store front, as well as the birth of Megan’s baby Riley, and of course Carla’s very first grand babies: Gracie and Drew! In an effort to celebrate the ever-expanding next generation of Action Riders, we invite you all to share photos of your own Barn Babies and their Buddies, for a chance to win a brand new Barefoot Bellis or Barefoot Lilly Children’s Saddle, just in time for the holidays!

Baby Drew – Carla (owner of Action Rider Tack) welcomed her first grandchild on August 9th!

Whether they walk or crawl, on four legs or two, submit your photos to info@actionridertack.com with a short caption introducing your new Action Rider to the world! All photo submissions will be archived on our Next Generation Pinterest Board, available to browse on Facebook!

Miss Riley – Born in January to Action Riders, Megan and Tyler.

Each entry will be submitted into the pool of names, with one winning name to be drawn on October 20th, 2015. The winner gets to choose between a Bellis (blue) or Lilly (pink) saddle. The Barefoot Bellis comes in blue and black, and can also be ordered in a western version. The Barefoot Lilly saddle is available in pink and brown or blue and black, English only.

Please note, by sending in your photos to Action Rider Tack, you’re giving us permission to share photos and captions in an online photo collection.