I had the Classic Saddlery dressage out on trial all last week, so of course, we did a lot of dressage.
Tuesday Bailey was good, as I talk about in my last post. Thursday morning, Bailey had a teeth floating appointment so I got to the barn super early to get her ridden before then. She was still inside, and despite not having been turned out yet, she was pretty darn good. Quiet and forward again, and her canter has either improved because of the saddle, or the saddle makes it actually feel like a canter and not like a legs-going-everywhere kind of floppy thing. However, her sweat marks left some things to be desired; long, somewhat wide dry spots where the panels would be. I had played with the tree, and decided to play with it again before Saturday.
Teeth floating itself went well; the vet was in and out quickly and while she definitely needed it, she didn't seem adversely affected by the procedure. She was still her usual hungry, stall walking self. I took the saddle over to a local repair place on Friday during my lunch hour to have the rip looked at, and delightfully it doesn't *need* repair. I need to be careful to not injure it further, but it doesn't adversely impact the use of the saddle... so I can repair it myself, or stick some tape over it, or have it repaired as time and money allows. The saddler also showed me that black saddle soap exists and how amazing it made my saddle look - definitely getting some!
Saturday came, and after a morning photo shoot with a client, I pulled BB out for one last ride in the Classic. My bid on a lovely used buffalo leather model had been countered higher than I was willing to pay, so I was starting to look at my options and be unhappy. But really looking at it, the saddle isn't that bad. The scratches are hidden when I ride, and honestly... the unsightly damage is just unsightly. But I don't look at my saddle, I ride in it. I had forgotten until writing this that my Vision has a cut in the seat; unsightly, but has NEVER been a problem. It looks the same as it always has, despite many miles. I had a so-so ride; the horse was definitely not magically softening her jaw because I dropped money on her teeth (shocking, I know) but after a bit of wrestling, she settled and gave me some lovely work. I decided, on my way back, that I hadn't successfully narrowed the tree to what I needed; when I was in the tack, I felt like her withers were nearly touching the top of the gullet.
But I pulled my stirrups off and got it ready to go back to St. Croix... and when I arrived, they asked if I wanted to put an offer in. I mentioned the rip and other things, and the gal who was helping me conspiratorily said she'd offer $550 for it. I said, ok, lets do that. And she called, and left a message, and I was all ready to leave when she got a call back with a counter - $600. And I took it.
So I own a dressage saddle now, bringing my total saddle count up to 5. Jesus.
It's time to sell some saddles!
Tuesday Bailey was good, as I talk about in my last post. Thursday morning, Bailey had a teeth floating appointment so I got to the barn super early to get her ridden before then. She was still inside, and despite not having been turned out yet, she was pretty darn good. Quiet and forward again, and her canter has either improved because of the saddle, or the saddle makes it actually feel like a canter and not like a legs-going-everywhere kind of floppy thing. However, her sweat marks left some things to be desired; long, somewhat wide dry spots where the panels would be. I had played with the tree, and decided to play with it again before Saturday.
Teeth floating itself went well; the vet was in and out quickly and while she definitely needed it, she didn't seem adversely affected by the procedure. She was still her usual hungry, stall walking self. I took the saddle over to a local repair place on Friday during my lunch hour to have the rip looked at, and delightfully it doesn't *need* repair. I need to be careful to not injure it further, but it doesn't adversely impact the use of the saddle... so I can repair it myself, or stick some tape over it, or have it repaired as time and money allows. The saddler also showed me that black saddle soap exists and how amazing it made my saddle look - definitely getting some!
Saturday came, and after a morning photo shoot with a client, I pulled BB out for one last ride in the Classic. My bid on a lovely used buffalo leather model had been countered higher than I was willing to pay, so I was starting to look at my options and be unhappy. But really looking at it, the saddle isn't that bad. The scratches are hidden when I ride, and honestly... the unsightly damage is just unsightly. But I don't look at my saddle, I ride in it. I had forgotten until writing this that my Vision has a cut in the seat; unsightly, but has NEVER been a problem. It looks the same as it always has, despite many miles. I had a so-so ride; the horse was definitely not magically softening her jaw because I dropped money on her teeth (shocking, I know) but after a bit of wrestling, she settled and gave me some lovely work. I decided, on my way back, that I hadn't successfully narrowed the tree to what I needed; when I was in the tack, I felt like her withers were nearly touching the top of the gullet.
But I pulled my stirrups off and got it ready to go back to St. Croix... and when I arrived, they asked if I wanted to put an offer in. I mentioned the rip and other things, and the gal who was helping me conspiratorily said she'd offer $550 for it. I said, ok, lets do that. And she called, and left a message, and I was all ready to leave when she got a call back with a counter - $600. And I took it.
So I own a dressage saddle now, bringing my total saddle count up to 5. Jesus.
It's time to sell some saddles!
Yay! Congrats on the saddle!
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