Today’s a fitting day to show the next video in the Schleese saddle fitting video series as today my saddle fitter came to the barn for our spring tune up.

I like to have my saddles fit before hunting season begins because galloping in half seat and jumping fences for a couple of hours in a saddle that’s creating pressure points is a sure fire way to end up with a horse with a sore back.

The good news is that my saddles fit just fine — even the new (to me) saddle that I bought a few weeks ago.

The topic covered in the video below, wither clearance, is an important one for me because

Freedom has fairly typical TB withers. Far more prominent than my Trakehner ever had. Refitting Kroni’s saddles to Freedom proved somewhat challenging in that regard because when I first tried my favorite jumping saddle on Freedom, it sat too low. Adding more wool helped but  I still need a bit of extra lift which I achieve through using a Mattes correction pad. This is a case where pads with saddle fitting shims can help you make a saddle that’s slightly too wide fit your horse comfortably.