Our regular monthly blog called the “Saddle Stitch” may include anecdotal experiences of working with clients all over North America at all levels and dealing with all sorts of saddle fit and behavioural issues resulting from poor saddle fit. Additional contributions may include: Ambassador Rider Highlights; certified saddle fitter profiles; rider testimonials; and educational courses that have recently been held.
Saddle Stitch: Your Monthly Internal Schleese News & Updates NEWS: Happy New Year 2020! Happy New Year and New Decade to you all! We hope you’ve all had a wonderful holiday season surrounded by family and friends. We’d like to take a moment to reflect on 2019 was such a phen...
Continue readingRead about Featured 3S Ambassador, Quote of the Month, Where is Jochen and more! Saddle Stitch: Your Monthly Internal Schleese News & Updates NEWS: Quartet Dressage Saddle Launch We are celebrating this special month with the launch of the Quartet dressage saddle! The Quartet is ...
Continue readingBarbi Breen-Gurley and Vindictor It is my great pleasure to share with you the success story of one of my longtime clients and friend – California trainer Barbi Breen-Gurley. I met Barbi in the mid-1980s through my wife, whose old university roommate was a good friend of Barbi’s and introduced me to her. Before Barbi committed her heart and soul to Schleese, I worked ...
Continue reading2019 Winner of Female CEO of the Year Award Talk about Girl Power! Check out this amazing award we won from the international trade council conference held in Chicago last week, highlighting Women in Business with the “Female CEO of the Year” award. They had 3800 applications with 60 finalists of which we were one. We are so...
Continue readingNEWS:2019 GO Global Awards FinalistWe are pleased to announce that we have been selected as Finalists for the Go Global Awards presented by the International Trade Council. Visit www.thinkglobalconference.org or www.goglobalawards.org for more information! Enter to Win Contest – Northern California and NevadaThis month we are launching another social media priz...
Continue readingArizona
Jun 14, 2021 -Jun 20, 2021
Florida
Jun 18, 2021 -Jun 28, 2021
Northern California - Nevada
Jun 18, 2021 -Jun 27, 2021
I have a 12 year old Pura Raza Espanol (PRE) horse who has proved to be a real challenge to fit saddle-wise. He is classically Baroque in shape with a short back, big shoulders, wide chest, and thick muscled mutton withers that have been the downfall of two saddles. After I noticed the deterioration of his back muscles I tried adjusting his current saddle to no avail. I had seen Jochen Schleeses videos online about saddle fit and how he developed the Obrigado saddle. I understood everything the Lusitano breeder mentioned in the video had been explaining to him. I was fairly certain that was the saddle for me so spoke to a number of women in my barn who ride in the Schleese saddles for feedback. After listening to the fourth woman rave excitedly about her Schleese saddle (my inquiries included an equine message therapist who owns a mare from the same breeder as my guy and rides in the Obrigado) I called for a fitting hoping for miracles. It was pretty close to that. Natalie put a 17.5" Obrigado on my fellow, which was ½ inch smaller than my other saddles. She assured me I wouldn’tt feel the pressure on my pelvis that always caused me to go with the 18"seat. The funniest thing was my horse’s expression. As we tightened the girth he turned and looked at me as if to say, "Hey what is this? It feels different." I got on and yes, there was a miracle. Or as close to one as one could get having a horse go from stiff on the bit and hollow through the body, to yielding in all places, rounding into contact and actually executing a 10 metre volte softly with no resistance. The counter canter no longer felt like I was seated on a whirling blender, with my horse twisting wildly under me as we came around corners. The canter was up in front and I started exclaiming about my new horse! Perhaps the biggest reveal for me was when I dismounted. For the first time in 2 ½ years I got out of the saddle with no pain in my lower back or left hip. My legs weren’tt even stiff. The saddle literally corrected my posture each time I felt myself slipping. It helped me regain that three point seat they all rave about in the books and there was no constant dragging my legs back to get them into position. I could not believe the fit of a saddle could make such a difference not only for my horse but for me as a 5'3" petite woman. I actually apologized to my horse for putting him through two bad fitting saddles. He is a very charitable fellow so I think he forgave me.
