# Mustang Soft Ride Saddle



## Avna (Jul 11, 2015)

Is it rigid in any way? I understand that bareback pads do not distribute your weight evenly enough to be comfortable for your horse on any real length of a ride, and that stirrups actually make that worse. But once you have a tree, it has to have the right spinal clearance. 

Not seeing how a semi-formed closed cell foam would address those issues.


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

I went to the website you mentioned and read the reviews of purchasers of this...
Most gave a thumbs up and said it was very comfortable for horse and rider. 
Not many though made mention of ground-mounting just riding and sitting in the thing.

My concern would be ground mounting if you needed to...would it stay put as you pulled yourself up from the ground...you could do some nasty torquing of the spine just as any saddle can when ground mounting or worse if it really spun with weight on it..

I love to ride bareback, I do...but when I ride bareback there is nothing between me an the horse...
For trail riding...not so sure this is where I would be venturing with a set-up like this.
It does look rather flimsy and sounds kind of it too.
It is a glorified bareback pad, that is it..

When I'm going trail riding...my saddle _is_ going with me.
I want to know if I need or choose to get off and remount I can and not have to rely on finding a high tree trunk, log or ditch to stand my horse in. That could result in a long, long walk for me at times if I had this set-up...
I just can't imagine this being stable enough to allow me to get astride safely without it turning, shifting and that could cause discomfort let alone be downright unsafe for horse or rider.

_Proceed with caution is all I would recommend._
:runninghorse2:...
_jmo..._


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## Avna (Jul 11, 2015)

Come to think of it, I know someone with a saddle that looks just like that and may be that exact one. No, you cannot mount from the ground, nor even put a lot of weight in one stirrup. At least with her saddle and her horse. I went on a trail ride up a steep hill with her and she came off her horse once because the saddle slid to the side. I'd say it would be fine for fooling around on a gentle slow horse on flat ground close to home. Also for going swimming with your horse, I bet.


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## JCnGrace (Apr 28, 2013)

I have one. I'm not disappointed with the quality and it's very comfy but I've not used it hard. Like Avna suggested I've only tooled around in the pastures with it. The one thing I really don't like about it is all the heat you feel through it. I keep thinking I'm going to try putting a saddle pad under it but haven't done it yet. For one I don't know how that will affect the stability which I find to be very good. I have not tried mounting with the stirrups but my niece did with her niece holding on to the offside stirrup and she said it didn't budge then used it again to dismount without someone holding on and it didn't slide. She's a little younger and a lot taller than I am so I might have a different outcome if I tried it. LOL Stirrups are removeable so you don't have to use them at all if you're worried about safety. 

I ordered the large seat and that's none too big. I feel like I'm taking up all of the seat but I'm not used to high cantles on my saddles. It has D rings to attach a breast collar (added stability for trails) and in the rear so you could attach saddle bags. My niece liked it well enough that she's saving to buy herself one. Comparing the price of other bareback pads you're paying almost as much for one that is nothing more than a saddle pad with a cinch as what this one cost so I spent a little extra money for this one and am not sorry I did.


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## loosie (Jun 19, 2008)

Hi, Yeah, as with bareback pads & many treeless, there is no weight/pressure distribution, and this is a problem especially regarding girth & stirrups. In order to minimise this, girth should not be done up extra tight, and stirrups should not be used for standing/mounting in, just for balance.


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## Smilie (Oct 4, 2010)

loosie said:


> Hi, Yeah, as with bareback pads & many treeless, there is no weight/pressure distribution, and this is a problem especially regarding girth & stirrups. In order to minimise this, girth should not be done up extra tight, and stirrups should not be used for standing/mounting in, just for balance.


Agree.
Personally, if you wish to ride bareback, short amount of time, then do so.
If you wish to do some serious riding, buy a saddle
If you don't like a saddle with a standard tree, then buy one of the newer treeless saddles, which are , in my mind hybrids, between a treed saddle and those first truly treeless saddles that had no structure to take direct baring weight off of the spine
Ask yourself if you would rather carry weight just slung on your back, or weight distributed by a good fitting back pack


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## JoBlueQuarter (Jan 20, 2017)

Thanks for all the replies! I would use it mostly on my filly. For now just to get her used to having something on her back for a relatively long period of time, and then when I start easy riding. The one I'm thinking about is used, so I will be sure to check if it's still in safe condition. There are two to chose from, so hopefully at least one of them will be good! I've been reading reviews, and most people say it will stay put if you use a breast collar.


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