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Informasjon om sal og hest fra Sabine Ullmann.

Sabine Ullmann er tysk hestekiropraktor og står bak utviklingen og ideene om Barefoot bomfrie saler.

Explanation of Pressure point distribution/Saddle space (Forklaring av presspunkter og plassering av- og nødvendig plass for, sal)

It is a common misconception (particularly in western riding), that a saddle must have a maximum spread across the horse’s back for optimal weight distribution of the rider. However, if you look at a horse’s back closer (particularly a short-backed horse), you see that there is actually only a limited place that is suitable for carrying weight of the rider. The shoulder should never be carrying any of the rider’s weight, since the shoulder blade has a pocket on the top (about the size of a “hand”). The material inside this pocket can become inflamed or at the least painful, when a solid saddle tree constantly rubs against it as the horse is moving. This means, that the rider must ALWAYS ride BEHIND the shoulder, and anything pressing on the shoulder should only be flexible.

A horse’s vertebrae from the back of the withers point towards the back of the horse, but as you move along the horse’s back, after vertebrae #15, which points straight up, vertebraes 16-18 point towards the horse’s ears. In order for the horse to arch (collect) his back correctly while carrying a rider, the rider must not be putting any pressure directly in or behind this area (#15) where the vertebrae transition. The collection of the back is important (in any riding discipline) to correctly carry the rider’s weight, keep the optimal circulation in the muscles (thereby building up the muscles), and enable the lateral movement of the vertebrae. Therefore the rider must always sit in FRONT of vertebrae #15.

So, which area of the back is then still available for the rider to sit? The area behind the withers (#9) to the point where the vertebrae transition their direction (#15). This area is known as the saddle space (think “plateau”). This is the area where one would naturally sit when riding bareback. It’s an area that, on a short-backed horse, is not longer than 2 hands (8”). On horses with longer backs, there is a bit more room. But it is just as important to sit in this limited area on a longer backed horse, since the span of the “bridge of the back” is longer and these horses have a more difficult time collecting their hindquarters. Clearly, this disproves the theory that the saddle should be spread further across the back.

An additional point to why a horse is most comfortable when the rider is sitting only in the area of the saddle space directly behind the shoulder, is this is also the heaviest part of the horse. The heaviest part of the horse can naturally carry and balance out the weight of the rider.

The Barefoot saddle, unlike a treed saddle, CAN be placed over the shoulder, as the form of the pommel flexes with the soft nubuck leather underside and won’t be pressed onto the shoulder blade through the weight of the rider. Positioning the saddle from the shoulder backwards enables the rider to sit EXACTLY on the saddle plateau, where they should be. The rider in this spot will not interfere with or limit the movement of the horse’s shoulders, and also won’t be putting pressure on the rear vertebrae. Since the Barefoot is made only of soft, flexible materials (except for the fiberglass forms, which don’t carry any part of the rider), it can lie directly on the horse’s back without a wooden tree.

If there is no solid tree between my seat and the horse’s back, am I not sitting directly on the horse’s spine?

The seat bones of the rider are positioned left and right of the horse’s vertebrae. Additionally, the cushioned saddle seating area of the Barefoot protects both horse and rider from direct pressure spots. Barefoot also advises the use of shock-absorbent padding that gives additional cushioning of the vertebrae wings.

Why does a rider need to use a shock-absorbent pad under a treeless saddle?

On a regular treed saddle, the leathers/fenders are screwed onto the tree of the saddle. When the rider mounts the horse/saddle, the rider takes the tree of the saddle with them when standing in the stirrups to mount, or pressing in the stirrups while riding. The tree is carrying the rider’s weight, which is therefore well distributed (provided the saddle is well-fitting). With a treeless saddle, there is no tree to screw the leathers/fenders to; therefore heavier riders will add undue pressure to the horse’s back already at a light trot. Pressure distribution channels have been built into the Barefoot saddle, however, on a 200 lb rider, who rides endurance and puts a lot of weight into the stirrups, these pressure distribution channels no longer function as well. Therefore, it is always recommended that heavier riders use a shock-absorbent pad under a treeless saddle. With lighter weight riders, this is not such an important requirement, but is still recommended.

Sabine Ullmann

A saddle without a tree? How does this function?
The only saddle that is really flexible and moveable in all directions is one that does not have a rigid tree acting on the saddle position. Under such a saddle the horse can move with true freedom, its back can arch and thus enable lateral movement of the breast vertebral column. Following many trials and optimisations this concept was used to create our BAREFOOT saddle. Even problem horses have in many cases been helped by our saddle so that once again they are quiet when being saddled and more relaxed when being ridden.

Flexibility - stability – a secure hold on the horse’s back
The BAREFOOT saddle allows itself to be flexed in all directions. No hard, smooth leather is used in its but instead a vegetable-tanned nubuck leather which is open-pored and readily fits itself properly into the shape of the horse’s back just like a pair of Lederhosen takes the form of the wearer after a while. The raised front and rear of the saddle are filled and stabilised with a fibreglass form. This form part is removable in order to completely avoid undue pressure on any horses with very high withers. . Through these forms and through the positioning of the rider close to the horse the saddle achieves a very secure hold on the horse’s back and doesn’t even slip with horses that tend to be rounded and without prominent withers. Despite this, we still recommend that a mounting aid is used to save any damage to the horse’s spine.

Doesn’t this mean that I end up sitting on the vertebrae wings (spine) of the horse?
The seat bones of the rider are positioned left and right of the horse’s vertebrae. Additionally, the cushioned saddle seating area protects both horse and rider from pressure spots. We also advise the use of our special saddle underlay with pressure-absorbing inserts that give soft cushioning of the vertebrae wings.

Treeless riding feeling - who has the benefit?
The experience of sitting on a BAREFOOT saddle is rather like bareback riding, only more comfortable and safer in that the rider is supported by the front and rear raised parts of the saddle and also fenders or stirrup leathers can be attached. The BAREFOOT saddle is suitable for all kinds of riding. A further advantage of this saddle is that normally no specialist input is required for tests because the saddle fits almost every horse’s back, resulting in no pressure areas. The following points should, however, always be observed:
1. Every treeless saddle should only be ridden with an additional pressure-absorbing underlay.
2. For riders weighing over 90 kg we advise a treeless saddle only in certain cases. Questions on this aspect will gladly be answered by horse physiology specialist S. Ullmann.

Everything is carried on my back!
(By horse physiology specialist S. Ullmann) Good riding technique as well as sound training of the horse is especially important for the horse’s back. Here, the actual type of riding involved is not so important. Of much more moment is the anatomical, the physiological, requirements of the horse. In this context, the importance of using the correct equipment, especially choosing the right kind of saddle, cannot be emphasised enough. The breast section of the horse’s vertebral column is not created naturally for carrying the weight of the rider. The aim of schooling must therefore be to build up the horse’s muscles so that it is able to carry our weight without injury. A horse only becomes a true riding horse when it has leant to curve its back. Through this curving of the breast segment of the vertebral column the individual vertebrae joints are opened there is an improved flow of blood to the muscles enabling lateral movement of the breast vertebral column. If this motion sequence is hindered by a saddle that sits wrongly and is rigid or by the rider sitting too far back in the saddle, the horse cannot move its back properly. The BAREFOOT saddle positions the rider over the horse’s centre of gravity (breast vertebrae 9-13) and leaves the rear part of the breast spinal section free, the section in the vicinity of the vertebrae wings (breast vertebrae 15-16). This creates the optimum horse welfare conditions for riding. However, the BAREFOOT saddle cannot replace correct riding technique.