Meyerhoff first tried riding in the bare bones saddle last fall, on Fortuna, another of his competition mounts. He found that the petite mare, who was often back sore, went much more comfortable in the race training saddle. Meyerhoff says that the saddle allows him to truly feel his horse—all along their back—and forces him to ride better, as there is a very specific area of the saddle where he must ride to stay in balance. He compares riding in the treeless race training saddle to riding bareback, but with stirrups.

Meyerhoff first used the unusual saddle in competition at the Tryon CCI4*-L in both dressage and showjumping, but he competed in the cross-country phase of the Kentucky event in the saddle as well. A formidable cross-country course in a traditional saddle, the weather made conditions even trickier, but Meyerhoff persevered in his unconventional tack to finish with no jumping faults and just 31.2 seconds outside of optimum time.

Read more at Eventing Nation.

The post A Racing Saddle On The Cross Country Course? Meyerhoff Shows How It’s Done appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post