I was not intending to buy a trail saddle just yet, I was gonna wait another month, I saw a deal while looking on Craigslist for trailers to rent that I could not pass up, after a week I had to contact the seller. It was a Circle Y trail saddle for $485!!!! 5-10 years older yes but still in great condition! I went all the way down to Fountain to check it out and sit on the saddle in this lady's garage. It was very comfy feeling, just like I knew it would be. For those that don't know, Circle Y make great saddles and the cheaper models are usually in the $1200 range while the top models can be near $4k!! Julie Goodnight advocates for these saddles as they help keep you in the proper seat, dressage type seat that I'm used to, and she even has her own line of Circle Y saddles!!
I was hopeful that the saddle would fit Daenerys. A previous lady had taken the saddle, leaving a post dated check, but found it didn't fit her gelding and so brought it back since she wouldn't be purchasing the saddle. Sounded like it would fit Dani since the owner of the saddle said she used it on rounder Pasos and Arabs....hmmm. I left the check with the lady and headed home. The next day I brought Steve out with me to try the saddle on my girl. The night before I spent time on you tube revisiting how to cinch up a western saddle! LOL.
The saddle isn't as heavy as some western saddles can be so I already liked that. It fit on Dani's back nicely and I felt around under it without a pad on to see if there were any pinch points. Then I cinched it up. The off side billet is also a long latigo which is odd, usually there is a double leather off billet that is shorter on that side. Those are cheap though. I do have to say that it seems Western saddles are easier to get tight and then once I mounted up I noticed it didn't slip as much as my dressage saddle does, even though the dressage fits fine. It was comfortable sitting on the horse as apposed to sitting on a box in the garage. I'll have to adjust the stirrups until I find the right length since I shortened them too much but I was very happy with the saddle....especially for the price!!!
I had Steve hop up too and he liked this saddle much better than the dressage saddle when we tried it at Dover saddlery last year...it hits him in his butt bones weird. He'll be comfy riding Dani in this saddle if he ever does. Actually this is the first time Steve has been on my horse!!! Doesn't he look handsome? I seriously need to get him his own horse and get him hooked on riding!
I contacted the lady and said that she could cash the check, she was delighted I liked it and wished me happy trails....she'll get back to me in June when she finishes moving stuff from her ranch, there is a matching breast collar that goes with the saddle that she hadn't found yet. That'll be cool so I'll hold off buying one for now same with the off billet for the back cinch, I don't know it I will really need the back cinch since that's for roping cattle. Thoughts western riders???
I have more tack stuff in the mail already!
*New girth (since the one with the saddle is not 100%)
*Off billet
*Green saddle pad
*Leather Halter/Bridle Combo
*Another French link snaffle bit
*Green and tan rope reins
We'll be all set to ride WESTERN! Hopefully I can meet up with K at the riding club and see if we can do some trailer work this weekend...we'll see, it's Mother's Day and my family does things with my grandma, my dad's mom. There are also some small cattle pens at the riding club grounds that I could work with when I don't have access to a trailer. I also have a plan for getting Dani used to Uschi's trailer so we can ride together and also trailer to lessons at Laurie's! I'm hoping here in a couple weeks I can fork over some cash for 5 or 10 lessons. I'll have to ask Laurie that price because when you buy a pack she cuts you a deal....it's been a while since I bought a set! Anyhow, that's the most recent news. I'll try to get some pics of the barn I'm at now, it's nothing fancy but I love the MUCH shorter drive from work and home!!
4 comments:
Don't worry about the back cinch. Red is a trail horse and I've NEVER needed one. Just have a nice girth and be done with it. Lol!!
Very nice saddle, I have a circle Y myself, mine is a 14 inch barrel saddle, it's really nice, I love it! I would use it more but I'm attempting to find a better fitting girth. :) Dani looks great, so does Steve! :D
Kalin from Sittinginthesaddle.blogspot.com
Circle Y's are good saddles! I was managing a private barn years ago and the boss thought I needed a 'normal' saddle so he sent me out to buy a new western saddle for myself. Apparently he thought that western saddles were normal, and my english saddle was weird! I ended up with a new Park and Trail Saddle by Circle Y! I've often thought about selling it to buy a different english saddle, but I'm never going to spend that kind of money on a saddle again, and I rarely ride in it so it's in exellent shape. As long as I keep it in good shape I can have it forever. Plus it was the first saddle that was bought just for me! Not to mention I worked my butt off to earn that saddle!
I personally own 3 Circle Y's. They are my favorites and they are built to last. One of mine is from the 1970's and is a still in great shape. Then I have one show and one trail. I have tried other brands but they just don't fit my butt so well.
I strongly recommend the weaver air flex cinches to go along with your saddle. They seem to hold in place the best while keeping the pony comfy.
Yay!! It looks great.
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