Talk:Saddle seat

comment

Montana commented > (Revert linkspam, other style edits. Saddle seat is most definitely a form of English riding. It sure ain't western!) >

I don't care for the term "English" riding at all. To me, it is incorrect to lump the dressage seat, saddle seat, and hunt seat all in together. To me, the saddles and particularly the way one sits for each discipline, are very distinct and different from each other. Hunt Seat is a forward seat and quite different from both Saddle Seat and Dressage seat. Lil 18:51, 10 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Well, "English" is common usage to cover a wide range of disciplines. I think that what distinguishes "English" and "Western" here (Or "stock seats" used in Australia, South America or nomadic riders of Asia for that matter) is that we are looking more at types of saddles than rider position..."English" riding is in a saddle with stuffed panels, flaps, no horn, no swells, low cantle, etc. I mean, a jockey's saddle is still a variation on the "English" saddle. The Saddle Seat Lane Fox is just a saddle at the other extreme of the spectrum in terms of flap position and rider center of balance.

As for seat, saddle style is not always the determining factor. I can actually make a pretty decent argument (if a wee bit exaggerated) that reiners are in a similar seat position to a dresage rider (feet a bit more forward, but essentially an upright seat, legs underneath, see [here and here and a barrel racer "headin' for home" is in a full-blown two-point galloping position (as shownhere, even though in a western saddle (often with poor equitation, but who's judging)! I can also find photos of people on saddle broncs who are sitting almost identically to an Eventer coming down off of a big fence! (grin)

SO I guess all I will say is that the terminology is probably based on the saddle style and not the rider position. And if Saddle Seat people say they are "English" riders and their rule book says they use an "English-type" saddle, then I won't quibble. (smile) Montanabw^(talk) 20:26, 10 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]

If Saddle Seat riders don't mind their discipline being called "English," who am I to quibble? (I find the contemporary Western Pleasure seat to be very similar to that of classical dressage. It has more in common with Dressage than it does with Barrel Racing even though both WP and Barrel Racing use drastically different variations of "Western" saddles.) Lil 01:11, 22 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]

But here is some source material: USEF Equitation Rules. They break it down into "Western/Reining Seat," "Hunt Seat" and "Saddle Seat," with a nod to "Dressage Seat" However, the Hunt seat rules don't even specify a particular type of saddle (in theory, you'd be "legal" to ride "hunt seat" in a dressage saddle, though you sure wouldn't win); the Saddle seat rules say, "Flat, English-type, " and specifically ban the "forward seat" saddle. So, Saddle Seat riders certainly consider themselves in the "English" disciplines. Montanabw^(talk) 20:26, 10 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Debate

Saddle seat ruins breeds--look at the Arab and the Morgan. Apparently some people are now riding Friesians and Canadians in saddle seat, which marks the beginning of the end for those breeds too.

I don't compare correlation with causation. While it's true that the Arabian, a breed I know well, has probably not benefitted from the current obsession with high action that has been around since the 1980's or so, the breed was shown in Saddle Seat equipment and attire for a good 30 or 40 years before that with no ill effects. It has only been changes in shoeing rules and a push for ever higher action that has -- debatably -- "ruined" some representatives of the breed. though I don't know the Morgan world very well, I suspect that is also what has happened there.

The drive for more action has had bad effects on other breeds too--the American Saddlebred has some bloodlines that also have conformation defects (such as a too-long back) that are linked to breeding for action over long-term soundness, and Equus magazine did an absolutely horrifying expose on the Tennessee Walking horse industry in late 2005 or early 2006.

The article would be more complete with a section that references that Equus expose or a more recent source. I came here to get real facts when my kid came home crying, but the article currently makes no mention of any controversy as other Wikipedia articles tend to do. Predictive.posterior (talk) 19:35, 13 April 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Properly performed, Saddle Seat riding shows off the action and flash of naturally high-stepping, flashy horses. Like anything, it can go to extremes that become abusive. But the "rush" of riding a high-action horse to the peak of its ability is an absolute thrill. Because I refuse to shoe my horses to fit the current fads, I don't ride Saddle Seat much any more. But I miss it. Montanabw 18:59, 19 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

While some of the practices of Saddle seat are inhumane, one must look to all forms of competitive riding (and sport in general) and admit that abuse occurs in all divisions. If practiced properly and riding a horse suited to the discipline, saddle seat can be quite fun for both horse and rider. Quatrilho 21:53, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I learned to ride at a barn that trained performance Tennessee Walking Horses and from what I saw there, the reports of abuse are very exaggerated. The HSUS (which I do not support in any way) made several horrifying YouTube videos about the TWH industry. The problem is that half of them just show a skinny, sick horse with no proof of its breed. I think there's abuse in every breed and discipline. If you don't believe it, watch a video of the AQHA and their so called "Western pleasure class". White Arabian mare (talk) 18:29, 16 August 2015 (UTC)[reply]

new airline seat

steerage class airline seat invented in Italy... the "saddle seat" SkyRider with 58cm seat spacing...

Might need to disambiguate things...

76.66.200.95 (talk) 11:55, 15 September 2010 (UTC)[reply]

When the article is created, a disambig page could be created. Montanabw^(talk) 21:47, 15 September 2010 (UTC)[reply]