Trying the Stubben Edelweiss

Finally! This morning I was able to try the Stubben Edelweiss, C.S., Junior (16 inch, 32 cm tree).

Another photo of it on Scout, this time with stirrups:

Sitting in it:

Close up shot:

If anything, the seat may be a bit small for me; a 16.5 inch would probably be ideal, but I really, really, really like this saddle.

It is small, and that is what I need. I am able to get my leg on Scout's side without a large saddle flap interfering, and that is really nice. It is super comfortable and a high quality saddle. It is wool flocked, rather than foam; and it seems to fit Scout - you can't tell from the shaky videos I'm about to post out here later, but Scout really seemed to relax and really move forward once he quit being a pill this morning - (wish I had gotten more of his better moments on film rather than the not-so-pretty stuff, but beggars can't be choosers; happy to have someone videoing at least!).... Plus, the saddle is in amazing shape.

We'll ride in it several more times to be sure, but I am kind of thinking (and really hoping) this may be THE one...feel free to chime in and give me your opinion on it. I will send an email and photos to the saddle-fitter shortly to get her take on it as well.

As soon as the videos load, I'll post them out here.

Quick Saddle Comparison - Stubben Edelweiss, Jr. vs. Thoroughbred All Purpose

I was curious, so here is a quick saddle comparison between the Thoroughbred All Purpose from a few weeks ago and the Stubben Edelweiss, Jr. that arrived today:

Thoroughbred All Purpose (16.5 in., medium tree) :

Stubben Edelweiss, Jr. (16 in., medium-wide child's saddle):

Stubben Edelweiss:



Thoroughbred All Purpose:

Thoroughbred All Purpose:



The Thoroughbred was definitely a whole lot bigger on little Scout pony!

Not sure if I'll have anyone available to take pictures of us in the Stubben tomorrow, but we'll see!

Another Saddle to Try!

The Stubben Edelweiss, Jr. arrived today! I am so excited, I can hardly stand it! The saddle has been so well cared for, it feels like butter. Oh, so supple...

It is a 16 inch, medium-wide tree, and the fact that it is a child's saddle should help my short leg dilemma. Hopefully my legs will actually hang below the saddle flaps. Also, since it is a child's saddle, it should fit Scout's pony back.

Please forgive the quality of the photos. It was late and very dark when I took these, and Scout didn't want to stand still for a photo shoot. He was much more interested in the kids screaming in the tent in our back yard. :)

On Scout's bare back:

From the front, it looked like it could be too wide:

It definitely fits his short pony back:

With a saddle pad and tightened girth:

(It looked SO much better once it had the pad under it and the girth was tight.)

So, please say a little prayer and keep your fingers crossed that it fits us both. I am really tired of saddle searching...

And a really funny thing is that when I ordered Scout's bridle a year ago, I ordered it in dark brown, so it would match my other saddles. At first, State Line sent me the brown one in horse size. Of course it was entirely too large, so I had to send it back and wait on the back-ordered pony bridle for about 6 weeks. When it finally arrived, the pony bridle was the wrong color! Chestnut!! I was miffed, but I never sent it back because I didn't want to wait any longer for a bridle. Well, the chestnut pony bridle matches this saddle almost perfectly! (I'm taking that as a good sign!)

Check These Out - Old Scout Videos

I've uploaded the videos of Scout (Mr. Wiggles) before I bought him - they are below. He came from Fairplay Horse and Mule Company out of Georgia. Lynn O'Hara, the owner, has a wide variety of horses and ponies come through her place. She also gets a lot of rescue horses and horses that are run through the sales, and I truly believe her heart is in the right place. She was so patient and kind and worked with me to purchase both of these ponies. We bought Tonto from her back in 2003 and we purchased Scout from her on Dec. 31, 2010.

When I came across Scout on her site, I just liked him. I am a sucker for paint ponies, especially ones that have some spunk and love to jump. He was not the best mover in the world, not that good at all really, but there was just something about him that I liked, so that was good enough for me.

So, here are the videos she had of Scout on her site. I do not know the young lady riding him, but I thought she did a good job. He is kind of feisty and really choppy - that straight shoulder does not make for a nice daisy-cutter trot. As far as his background, I was told he belonged to a local farrier's son who rode him in the rodeo parades and on lots of trail rides. Lynn realized he liked to jump when they were filming him on their obstacle course. As they begin the course, the horses trot through ground poles. Scout tried to jump each one.

Scout in Round Pen

Scout Ridden English

Scout Jumping

Scout on a Trail Ride

Scout on the Obstacle Course

I don't know when these videos were made or how long Lynn had him, but she seemed relieved to sell him when we made an offer. He was definitely a very impatient pony who does not like to stand still or be away from his buddies. When we got him home, I came to realize just how nervous and impatient he was. He would dance around constantly in the cross ties and paw if he had to stand for any amount of time. If Tonto wasn't in sight, Scout would whinny like crazy for him. He wouldn't pull back, he would just dance back and forth, paw, turn his head and look around constantly.

Back in March of 2011, I took him to an in-hand clinic (photos below). He had to stand tied to a trailer for an hour before we got started. By the time it was time to take him to the arena, he had dug a huge hole in the ground from pawing. At least he didn't pull back, I thought. :) We started out in my English bridle and the trainer had me put him in the rope halter (in case you were wondering). It was a great clinic! I didn't realize so much work went into showing in-hand!

Scout was nervous and impatient in the cross ties when I first started back riding again in June. Lots of pawing, dancing around and acting silly. So now, I just lock Tonto in his stall with some hay while I groom and tack Scout up. When I am ready to climb on, I turn Tonto out and he hangs out with us while I ride in the pasture. I know it isn't good for Scout to rely on Tonto for comfort, but he has completely settled down and behaves nicely when in the crossties and under saddle. He also knows what to expect each time we ride, so he isn't so nervous. A long-time friend and I have a ride planned for Aug. 18. We're hoping to haul her horse and Scout to a friend's farm so we can ride in the arena. Tonto will be left by himself, but he should be okay. I think Scout will be fine since he will be with another horse.

On another note, the trial Stubben is due to arrive tomorrow afternoon - can't wait to post an update!

Videos from Yesterday's Ride and an Epiphany!

Here are some photos my son took for me yesterday. He is my young videographer and I appreciate him doing this so much! B will turn 11 years old on August 6. So hard to believe how fast time flies. I will have a 16 year old, an 11 year old and a 7 year old. I think it is good I am riding again so it will give me something to focus on rather than being depressed about how fast time is flying by with my precious kids.

Okay, enough of the sappiness!

Scout looks fairly decent here, while I look like I'm thinking really hard (Push your hands forward. Light contact. Steady rhythm. Don't lean, go straight.) But I still have chicken wings...I'll work on that, too. Just too many things to remember! :) I really want my pissy pony to be a happy pony. He doesn't seem to be as upset in this photo: 

Here Scout looks pissy:

He went to stretch and I didn't give enough with my hands. I also put my leg on and he didn't like that. He is extremely sensitive. I even discovered yesterday when I put my inside leg on him, he turns in that direction....I had no idea he would respond that way!

Here, he is hollow again:

I truly feel we get a tiny bit better with each ride. Poor fellow, I have basically been riding his legs off the last 4 weeks. He got 3 days off last week when we went to the lake, but I rode him Monday, he had Tuesday off due to storms, then I rode him yesterday and today. We ride anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour. Mostly walk, a lot of trot and little canter. I do give him Sundays off. :)

We do hill work almost every day as well, since our pasture is on a hill and the flattest place, where I work the ponies, is still on a slope.

After our ride yesterday, I had a small epiphany. What if I took off my spurs and changed his bit? I had been riding him with spurs to encourage him to move forward, but my leg isn't as steady as it should be, so I am probably jabbing him when I shouldn't be. He also chomps constantly on the eggbutt snaffle I have been riding him in, and it is not a happy chomping. It is a very aggravated, unhappy type chomping. I remember Enginerd recommending riding him in a french link or something similar rather than a plain jointed snaffle last year, so, I switched from this:

 to this:

Today was the first time riding him in the french link and without spurs. He hardly chomped on the bit at all. He moved it around in his mouth and lightly chewed on it, but there was no angry chomping at all. I wish my videographer had been awake to record the transformation to a happier pony! Scout still had some unhappy moments, like when I would put my leg on him, but he didn't seem nearly so frustrated by his bit. Maybe tomorrow he can get some videos of us going in the new bit.

These are the videos from our ride yesterday:

Video 1

Video 2

Video 3

Video 4

Video 5

I think he is beginning to move forward a little better - we have some good moments. :)

Keep your fingers crossed - I found a 16 in. medium-wide Stubben Edelweiss online yesterday and I am supposed to talk to the owner about it tomorrow....

New Goals

Okay, after getting this little Wintec to fit Scout better and freeing his shoulders up, we can move on to "going forward."

One of my very best, long-time friends reviewed the first videos I posted and shared her comments on them. I value her opinion and will definitely work on the things she suggested. Mainly - forwardness. We will work on longer reins and focus on forward, forward, forward.

My sweet little B took these videos yesterday morning and I like the last one the best.

Video 1

Video 2

Video 3

Video 4

Video 5

Video 5 shows Scout at a decent walk. Yes, he could be moving more forward, but this is the best he has walked under saddle since I've owned him. I wish I had allowed him to stretch completely out, but I was actually just giving him a break before asking him to do some more trot work. The memory card filled up, so this was as much as we got on video. I was pleased with this little bit of progress!

New goals:

1. Forward, forward, forward
2. Longer reins for now
3. Encourage more stretching
4. Be patient
5. Continue to build muscle
6. Find an appropriate saddle
7. Keep riding

We couldn't ride this morning - we had a tremendous round of thunderstorms roll through early this morning. The thunder woke me up at 3AM and I couldn't go back to sleep. The storm raged until after 7AM! Thank goodness for the rain though. We desperately needed it.

Hoping to get back on tomorrow so we can work toward our new goals!

Fitting Wintec to Scout's Back

Here are the Wintec gullets. The blue is the medium-wide and the black is the medium. I had been riding Scout in the medium, but his back tracings and measurements were medium-wide. No wonder he was testy under saddle. He was getting pinched in the shoulders! (Thanks for alerting me to that Ms. Nancy!)

(It is really hard to tell the difference in the medium and medium-wide gullets from these pictures, but I wanted to post them anyway.)

Below photos are of the medium tree:

The photos below are with the medium-wide gullet:

And medium-wide gullet with saddle pad:

With the medium-wide gullet, the saddle sits a little lower in the pommel. This saddle is a 15 3/4 inch, and it still dwarfs Scout! It is definitely a better fit for me though. I believe I need a 16 inch in something...

Scout was definitely better under saddle today, so I look forward to riding him in the medium-wide to see if it helps relieve his fussiness.