First off, happy Independence Day.  I'm an Army brat and I think any holiday of this sort is a great opportunity to show some appreciation for our military and their families.  So, many, many thanks.

Second, I tried my new saddle.  I'll write more about our little vacation in my next post, after I upload all the random photos I took. 

Okay, I've been trying to think of an adequate analogy for this saddle versus my Stubben.  And here it goes:  my Stubben is like my Subaru.  When it was first made, it was amazing and expensive and appealed to certain groups.  And while they are both still functional, the art of creation has improved significantly since then.  Now, cars have things like bluetooth and saddles have ..well, cushion.

It was like this.

Which would make this new saddle something like a few years old one-owner, non-smoking, garage-kept car.  Maybe like a cheaper Honda or something.  While it's not a Porsche, you still appreciate the fuck out of it because it also certainly isn't your seventeen year old Subaru with questionable brakes.

That's a lot of convulsion just for me to say that I love this damn Collegiate.  It was super cushy and super grippy and just overwhelmingly comfortable.  As with any saddle, the top priority is always the horse and I'm pleased to say that Archie seemed to enjoy it.  When I asked him to pick up the trot, he immediately stretched down through his neck and back.  By the end of our little ride, I was having to ask him to slow down.  Mr. Grumper-pants doesn't normally have to be asked to slow down.

I also got him to pick up the canter in both directions and opted to sit, to see how the saddle felt.  It was still amazing.  It tends to push me on my crotch, though, so I have to work to keep my shoulders back and to sit more on my seatbones.  I don't think this'll be a bad thing.

Ignore the too-big almost-white breeches with the purple studded belt and the white t-shirt.

Sweat pattern looks pretty even!