Christie Saddlery Fitting the Saddle To You and Your Horse By Nancy Brannon Lary Cox started his work career as a residential house framer and builder, with a “hobby” on the side of building saddles. By 1987, his “hobby” had grown into a full time business and he left his “day” job to build saddles full time. He and his wife Ann now own and operate Christie Saddlery in Alvord, Texas. Lary is a meticulous saddle maker, taking great measures to make sure that his saddles are properly balanced and fit both the rider and the horse. His Saddle Fitting DVD gives a detailed introduction on how the saddle fits and affects the horse’s movement and the rider’s position. The first step is to understand the rider’s and the horse’s centers of balance. To find the center, divide the rider’s body into three planes: the lateral: in line with the ear, shoulder, hip and ankle; the medial: from the center of the face through the navel to between the feet; and the transverse: a horizontal plane slightly below the crest of the hip. The center of balance for the rider is the intersection of these three planes, slightly behind and below the belt buckle. The same applies to the horse. The lateral plane is from the point of the shoulder to the point of the hip. The medial plane is a vertical line through the center of the spine. The transverse plane is in line with the 14th vertebra. The intersection of these three planes is the horse’s center of balance. “The horse can carry us in and out of a balanced position,” Lary said. “But we see better performance and less fatigue by maintaining a centered and balanced position.” “Gender makes a difference in center of balance. A woman’s hip is generally behind the center of balance of the pelvis, so she tends to ride with her hips slightly forward. A man’s hips are forward of the center of balance of the pelvis, so he tends to sit more on his pockets,” Lary explained. The proper construction and balance of the saddle is the key element. “Many saddles are made with the low point of the seat just in front of the cantle. This puts the rider behind the center of balance of the pelvis, forcing the rider’s hips back. It puts the rider’s weight on the rear third of the tree and moves him behind the horse’s center of balance. His hips rock back, knees and feet turn outward, and this makes leg contact with the horse difficult because contact is with the back rather than the inside of the thigh and calf,” Lary said. “If the low point of the saddle is in the proper place and concave, this allows the rider’s hips to rock slightly forward, putting the leg in a better position and giving a sense of sitting IN the saddle rather than ON it.” Lary explained how the distribution of the rider’s weight affects the horse’s movements and performance. Ideally, the rider should put 1/3 of his weight in the seat, 1/3 on his thighs, and 1/3 in the stirrups. This will center the rider’s weight over the horse’s base of support. If the rider’s hip rocks back, this causes stress to the first and second lumbar vertebrae of the horse’s back, where the weight is carried by muscle rather than skeleton, and sores the horse’s back. “It is important that you maintain balance consistent with your discipline and select equipment that allows you to do that,” Lary stressed. “The tree is the foundation of the saddle,” Larry said. “It needs to be compatible with the horse while standing, but more importantly, when in motion.” He explained the five parts of the saddle tree, and how they affect the horse’s performance and comfort. “The bars are what’s on the horse’s back and where all the problems come from. The purpose of the bars is to distribute the weight evenly over the entire surface so the horse can comfortably carry the weight of the rider without creating spot pressure. The difference in the angles of the bars from the front of the saddle to the rear of the saddle is called the 'twist,’” he explained. Next he illustrated the skeletal framework of the horse, who has 18 ribs and 18 thoracic vertebrae. “The muscles provide motion; they only contract to move the muscles to which they are attached. As they contract, they swell or bulge. The top of the scapula rotates toward the rear as the horse’s foreleg moves forward, bulging the muscle behind it right at the 'toe’ of the saddle bar.” He showed how performance problems and discomfort can occur with an ill-fitting saddle and/or an out of balance rider. “You can have a good fitting saddle and the horse can still develop a sore back due to an out of balance rider.” The amount of rock in the saddle relates to the horse’s ability to lift his back. “It is very important in all movements that the spine be free to move,” Lary said. “The 14th thoracic vertebra is the center of balance in the horse. This should also be where the center of the bars of the saddle sit and the rider needs to be balanced in relation to this point.” He described what happens to the horse when an out of balance saddle puts the rider out of balance. The most important part of the video comes at the end when Lary shows his method for measuring the horse’s back n measurements which are used to build the saddle tree to fit the particular horse. The measurement method “was developed by a man in Australia,” he said and uses template cards that measure three places on the horse’s back. “It’s not enough just to measure at the withers,” but to properly build a saddle, the saddle maker must utilize the measurements at all three points across the back. The next two cards used are the “rock” templates that determine the shape of the pads of the saddle. Lary specializes in trail, endurance, and western style saddles. But his principles about balanced saddles that fit the horse’s back and put the rider in a balanced position are applicable to all types of saddles. For more information about Lary Cox and Christie Saddlery, visit http://www.christiesaddlery.com/ or call (940) 427-3260. The Saddle Fitting DVD is available for purchase from his website.