Got the Saddle, But......

My flaps for my Wow saddle arrived and they are perfect! Yay!

Ignore the messy tack cart.

The saddle sits too low behind and I need different panels! Boo!

Yes Cisco, that saddle does make your stomach look big.

Of course, saddle shopping just couldn't be simple.

The flaps arrived on Friday last week, so I picked them up from the post office on my way home from work and dashed home to put the whole thing together. Which is much easier to do when you use the right size of bolts. Ten minutes of cursing because I couldn't get the bolts to catch was solved when I went to the Wow website and discovered that I was probably using the wrong ones, and when I grabbed the slightly longer bolts (that I thought went through the multi-layers at the front) the panels and flaps went on super quick.

Wow flaps can be adjusted in two different positions. Mine can be set to the standard position, or rotated back, which equals about an inch difference. I was actually quite worried about the size of the flap and thought it looked very straight, so for the first ride I set it to the standard position. Nope - my knee still sat a solid inch behind the knee blocks. For the next ride I rotated them back, and my knee sits in the perfect spot right behind the block.

The first ride before I rotated them back.

So the flaps are perfect. I don't know that I've ever ridden in flaps this short - I don't usually have this much stirrup leather below the flap!

The saddle looks rather ridiculous though perched on top of Cisco. My fancy new Lemieux pad doesn't really fit it very well either. I'll be shopping for pony sized saddle pads in the future.

Maybe an excuse to get this holographic saddle pad from Punk Ponies? (Can't decide if it's hideous or if I need it.)

But you've probably noticed the problem. The saddle sits far too low behind.

I added some air to the rear Flair panels between rides 1 and 2, but it needs more than that. I'm pretty sure that I will need panels with rear gussets in them to bump the back up. I'm not going to find those used within the next short period, so I'll end up ordering new one$$. It might also need a different headplate in front.

It's not really all that surprising, as when I used the gauge last fall there were times when the correct setting seemed to need the deeper gusset setting. 

Update - I just heard back from the fitter, and I can put way more air in the panels than what I have in there. So I'm going to try that today first before completely panicking and eating my weight in chocolate.

The good news is that I feel super secure in the saddle and Cisco's canter is the best it's been.

An 8.0 for regularity at the canter ain't too shabby!

Time for some trial and error to get it figured out. I'm not ready to give up on it yet. There are still lots of things to try, and believe me - nothing is going to fit this horse very easily!