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== Reference to Australian saddles as Poley's == |
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The reference to australian saddle as poleys is from the livestock industry, cattle are either horned ( with horns) or poley (without horns). American saddles have roping horns, Australians do not use ropes to catch cattle , (except rodeo), so our saddle's are referred to as Poley stock saddles, the following article gives a short history of the evolution of theAustralian Stock poley. |
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[[User:Beaufort4352|Beaufort4352]] ([[User talk:Beaufort4352|talk]]) 06:28, 29 January 2012 (UTC)Kelly Logan, Beaufort4352. |
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Below is an article in "Outback maagazine Story By Pamela Robson, so ther could some copyright issues about public reproduction, however there is dependable info in the article |
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The perfect saddle is the Holy Grail of horse riding. Just gather together any group of riders – stockmen, polo players, endurance riders, camp drafters, showjumpers or jockeys – and they’ll soon get down to telling you that as each of us is different and each horse is different, the chance of finding the right permutation to fit human backside and horse’s back is up there with a lottery win. No two will agree on the perfect saddle because, like the Holy Grail, it’s always just out of reach. |
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One thing they will agree on, however, is that there have been some remarkable saddles and extraordinary saddle makers. Saddles have come a long way since someone threw a blanket or a sheepskin on their horse way back in the mists of time. And in the past 15 years, the saddle has probably undergone more development that at any time in its entire history. It’s largely for the good. |
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As community attitudes have changed towards animals, and scientific research has given us new insight into what makes them ‘tick’, we’re more concerned about the welfare of our horses. We’re less interested in the beautiful leather or the exquisite stitching – although a well crafted saddle can be a breath-stopping joy to behold – and we’re far more preoccupied with saddle fit and that the horse can do its job without injury. We’ve got better science and technology to help us do this. Anyone riding a couple of decades ago will recall in shame the white patches – saddle rubbing spots – on their horse’s back. Even as recently as a couple of decades ago, saddlers were often making saddles for undernourished, skinny station horses, some with spine curvatures. Saddles had to be built with a “banana bend” to fit the spine of the horse and had to accommodate its scrawny rib cage. Saddle sores and untreated injuries were commonplace. And while there were craftsmen saddlers making beautiful items there were also local tradesmen building bulky unwieldy burdens out of rough materials that suited neither rider nor beast. |
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No one knows who first thought of putting a saddle on a horse, but we do know that the Romans and Bronze Age Brits were using iron and bronze bits hundreds of years Before Christ that look just like the modern day snaffle. They also used leather reins but preferred to ride bareback. The Assyrians who lived in the area that is now Iraq, left sculptures and bas reliefs showing them going into battle in about 700 BC using decorated cloths fixed with a strap. The idea of having a saddle 'tree' to keep the rider's weight off the horse's back started in Asia in about 200 BC. Later the Romans had a peculiar-looking saddle made from leather with a rectangular seat with four upward points or horns. The rider sat between these short horns and used them for security. |
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Saddles weren’t used widely until mediaeval times. Crusading knights came back to Europe from the Holy Land with Arabian saddles. From there, two types of saddle developed: the Hungarian and the Moorish. The American cowboy (or western) saddle is the best-known example of the Moorish style, with a pommel and two girths, each tightened by a cinch strap. The English saddle is the most recognised of the Hungarian style. They have no high pommel and the stirrup is hung further forward. These two saddle types have led to the development of two distinct styles of riding. |
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As you might expect, the military has had a big influence on saddle design. Australia, too, has also played its part. Because whether you were going into battle or mustering cattle in the far flung reaches of the Australian interior, your life often depended on the strength and the durability of your equipment. |
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The Australian stock saddle came into being around the mid 1800s. The old pioneers soon learnt that the English styles of saddle they brought with them couldn’t handle the conditions; the terrain was rough and the horses often rougher. The leather could be salt rimmed from sweat, baked brittle by the sun, rain sodden or frozen. Whatever the conditions, a drover or stockman could expect to spend many hours each day in his saddle – and sometimes still be there when the moon came up. |
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Early Australian saddlers such as Jack Wieneke from Roma, western Queensland, started building bigger, sturdier saddles out of tough cowhide. They had big knee rolls, deep seats and high backs to help the rider stay put no matter what the topographical incline or equine inclination. They had higher pommels for white knuckles to grasp in moments of crisis. The idea was that no matter what the horse did under you, there was a fair chance you’d stay on board. And if the horse did, in fact, roll over the top of the saddle, it was less likely to snap in two. |
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Wieneke’s saddles became hugely popular with the stockmen out on the stations. He comes down the centuries to us as something of an entrepreneur and showman with strong and much-voiced opinions on how things should be done. The story goes that he got his first big break by taking a saddle to outback Queensland and putting it on a horse that was famously recalcitrant – under Jack’s saddle the horse became manageable. He called his saddle the Mitchell Break, after the town it all happened in and the effect the saddle had on the horse. Then he followed it up with the Roma Poley, the Charleville Poley and others. |
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Over the following decade, Wieneke’s saddles became more extreme. The knee rolls became deeper, the back and the pommel higher. Eventually the saddle became less practical and like most extreme fashions it had had its day. Horseman started seeking out a more conservative shape. Saddlers like George Schneider – credited with inventing the poley style of stock saddle – and craftsman English migrant John Hill – grandfather of the more famous Syd, established good solid businesses. Wieneke himself went into partnership with a number of other saddlers including Schneider and the Brisbane–based Butler Brothers who turned out his saddles on a production line. But invariably he fell out with them and went back to making saddles in his own way, each bearing the stamp: “A genuine, true to the label, Jack Wieneke, himself.” |
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Syd Hill was among a number of saddlers who paid five shillings or thereabouts for the privilege of making Wieneke saddles, and the originator himself was happy to sit back and take the licence money. |
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In the pre-car years of the early 19th century just about every small town in Australia had a saddler – HJ Holden’s father, James Alexander, was a saddler in Adelaide before he started making motor cars. But nowadays, the old-style craftsman saddlers are getting fewer. Grafton-based Warren Newcombe is one of them. He has been making stock saddles for 42 years. If you want one of the 50 or so saddles he builds each year, you’ll have to join the queue. The stock saddle – or the station saddle – is a much more refined piece of kit. He says about half of his buyers are people such as teachers, doctors and advertising executives who are into bush horse sports like campdrafting. Once it was only the station hands – who rode horses for a living – who bought stock saddles. |
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“Station saddles are less bulky, and more streamlined,” he says. “When I first started making saddles, there was a lot of padding. The rider used to sit way up on top of the horse. I could never understand why, even then. Now they want close contact – to be able to feel the horse and its movements. This means the saddle flaps are more streamlined, the leather softer, and the materials lighter. They still want the toughness. They don’t want the tree to break.” He still sees plenty of broken trees coming through the saddlery door. “Its amazing what they can do to them,” he says. |
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Warren makes his stock-saddle trees – the frame that gives the saddle its strength – out of beech wood with steel reinforcing. The leather is English and they are padded with pure wool stuffing. He likes to keep the materials natural. |
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He also makes a range of fender saddles, a style that has gained popularity in the past decade or so. Whereas the stock saddle, like the English saddle, has flaps either side and stirrups hung from narrow leather straps, the fender saddle has no flaps but wide panels of leather with the stirrups attached. They are a western-stock saddle hybrid with a western style of tree with a stock saddle seat. The fenders enable the rider to adopt a forward leg position and a more western riding style. Many people who work with unpredictable horses think the fender style gives them a better position. Warren uses tough but heavier American oak for the fender trees. |
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Schneider made the first fender saddle in 1925 and he was roundly laughed at. Warren gave it a go in 1968, and the response was much the same. However in the late 1980s, fenders started to gain in popularity. Now they account for a big percentage of bush saddle sales. |
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With saddles, it’s like everything else – you get what you pay for. Warren’s custom built stock saddles can cost anything up to $5500, but they’ll be a stable heirloom. At the other end of the scale, you can buy a mass-produced “Australian” stock saddle import from India for a little more than $300. |
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In these days of mass manufacture, Australia has become major force in saddlery. The Perth-based Bates/Wintec company is the largest producer of saddles in the world. Their success is down to their ability to mass produce saddles that are purpose-built for particular sports. The Bates cousins – Ron and Ken – have shown themselves excellent lateral thinkers in building up what was formerly a small family concern into a world beater. They’ve confidently adopted new technologies and brought in expert riders and sportspeople to help. These days, it’s the sports-playing customer who is driving saddle design, rather than the farmer or stockman. |
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Graham Aitken of Aitken Saddlery in Brisbane uses the analogy of athletics: “These days people don’t run in old sandshoes, they want high tech running shoes,” he says. “Just as running shoes help you run better, a well-designed modern saddle can help you ride better. They aim to place the rider in the best position whether it is for showjumping, dressage, endurance or eventing. If you ride bareback you naturally sit just behind the horse’s withers. If you sit further back you get bounced around. The aim of the saddle is to make sure that this is where the rider’s weight goes. It’s mostly common sense but somehow people have just woken up to it.” |
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Graham is a saddle fitter – a relatively recently developed, but most important profession. Now that we recognise that even the most expensive saddle can damage a horse’s back, the saddle fitter, along with the horse physio and the horse chiropractor, is an important member of the support team for any equestrian – even if they ride recreationally twice a week. |
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Each discipline has its own requirements: the dressage rider is looking for a deep seat and closeness to the horse; the show jumper and the eventer want a more forward position and a flat seat – so they don’t bump their behinds on the back of the saddle on landing. The endurance rider wants a saddle that can go for 160 kilometres at a time over all terrains, in all weathers and even at night, without rubbing, bumping, squeezing or otherwise damaging their horse. |
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The best saddles ensure the horse’s back is free to move and isn’t hindered by a too narrow gullet or wrongly-shaped tree. Expert riders will tell you that the difference a well-fitting saddle makes is huge – whether its dressage or endurance the horse steps out and is more “forward moving”. |
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There is one type of saddle, however, that stands separate: the racing saddle. These tiny saddles can be 15cms long and weigh 600 grams. Weight is all. Made from high-tech materials and tiny plastic half-trees, they have to be super-strong to withstand the forces placed upon them during a flat-out gallop. Given their microscopic size, they require that the rider is strong, fit and athletic. |
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The right saddle makes a huge difference to the experience of riding. It can help you stay on a belligerent horse. It can make life bearable – or otherwise – if you are in it for most of the day driving stock or pounding along a track as part of an endurance ride. It can help you jump a clear round, hurl yourself and your horse over three-day event tracks, gallop across a polo field, spin on a dime facing-off cattle or win at Flemington. |
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The saddle industry has transformed itself and although there are still plenty of station hands, the majority with their own stock saddle, as well as professionals such as breakers and trainers, the market has given way to the amateur sportsperson. |
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One thing that all riders will agree on is that having a close association with horses can be one of life’s most sublime pleasures. The old adage ‘the more you put in the more you get out’ was never truer than when it comes to the saddle. |
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This is an excerpt from a story in Issue 54 - August/September 2007 of Outback magazine. |
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Sandbox invite
"[The] readers will not be privy to the massive undercurrents of dross that underpins WP. They require well written, well sourced, encyclopaedic material that can inform, enlighten and satisfy their interest."
—User:Leaky caldron to User:ThatPeskyCommoner
Those interested may play in my sandboxes, in the archive list above, if they promise to behave. This means:
- No kicking sand
- No hitting other people over the head with toys
- No pooping, even if you are a cat and neatly cover it up!
- It's my sandbox, so I can throw you out if you misbehave! :-)
Happy Montanabw's Day!
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User:Montanabw has been identified as an Awesome Wikipedian, Peace, A record of your Day will always be kept here. |
For a userbox you can add to your userbox page, see User:Rlevse/Today/Happy Me Day! and my own userpage for a sample of how to use it. — Rlevse • Talk • 01:39, 13 January 2010 (UTC)
- Awww, gee! That was really super nice! Thank you! Montanabw(talk) 04:47, 13 January 2010 (UTC)
Yogo pre-FAC review
Thanks for getting Casliber to help here. He seems really good. PumpkinSky talk 12:54, 31 December 2011 (UTC)
Ridiculous
Just ridiculous. That's about all I can say about it.Intothatdarkness (talk) 20:11, 5 January 2012 (UTC)
- Hi lurker, glad to see you around! Montanabw(talk) 20:42, 5 January 2012 (UTC)
- Yeah. Just figured I'd chime in with some support.Intothatdarkness (talk) 21:03, 5 January 2012 (UTC)
- Somehow, it's pick on me day. Must be seasonal affective disorder for everyone in the Northern Hemisphere or something (including me). I think I'm being hammered on at least three different fronts. Stay tuned, probably going to get more interesting yet. Sigh. Montanabw(talk) 21:07, 5 January 2012 (UTC)
- Try being me for a day. ;-) Malleus Fatuorum 21:09, 5 January 2012 (UTC)
- I think that's sort of happening. Of course, if it sucks to be you even worse than it sucks to be me, maybe it's because I only called someone a jacka-- (even if I did it twice), whilst you went all the way to c--t... (don't you Brits say "whilst?" Is that correct use?) (grinning, ducking and running...) Montanabw(talk) 21:23, 5 January 2012 (UTC)
- No we don't. "Whilst" is just about anachronistic as "gotten". And to be honest, you only score a 4.6 out of 10 at best with "jackass". Malleus Fatuorum 23:23, 5 January 2012 (UTC)
- And some may wonder why I don't get more involved... Seems counterproductive. Some days I think this place needs Springer-style bouncers and a crowd to start yelling "Jimbo! Jimbo! Jimbo!" when the bell rings. But that may just be me.Intothatdarkness (talk) 21:11, 5 January 2012 (UTC)
- Yell something, anyway! Montanabw(talk) 21:23, 5 January 2012 (UTC)
- Maybe you should try something like "cranially constipated, verbally stunted festering mass of protoplasm." It may not be as elegant, but it should stump them long enough for you to make your escape.Intothatdarkness (talk) 21:26, 5 January 2012 (UTC)
- LOL! But if I do it today, the mad templater above will probably template me again. Horrors! Montanabw(talk) 21:53, 5 January 2012 (UTC)
- And here's the rub. You said "mad templater", a clear and unequivocal personal attack according to current Wikipedia policy. Malleus Fatuorum 23:31, 5 January 2012 (UTC)
- Jimbo! Jimbo! Jimbo! I need to stop trying to explain things.Intothatdarkness (talk) 23:18, 5 January 2012 (UTC)
- Heh! To be totally, absolutely, scrupulously fair – JLAN sent me a very nice, very supportive email when I was being put through the wringer. Speaking as an OCD-er, even the most obsessive among us have another side to us. Obsession's a bastard - both for those who have it, and for those who encounter it in others. We had the obsession-problem with that recent "difference of opinion" with the IP editor pushing the ADO site. Being obsessed by something is unpleasant; it interferes with our ability to view ourselves and those with whom we interact objectively. However, there are huge benefits to having OCD and being a Wikipedian ;P OCD is an illness; we obsessives sometimes just can't help ourselves, despite relevant medication. 30mg of Seroxat daily helps - but it doesn't heal. Pesky (talk …stalk!) 13:55, 6 January 2012 (UTC)
WP Dross
If it's that good you could at least have sent me a Barnstar! Leaky Caldron 11:44, 6 January 2012 (UTC)
- It was a beautiful, sensitive, thoughtful piece of writing, and did much to account for the fact that I'm still here. (>**)> Hugz to you (much nicer than barnstars). Pesky (talk …stalk!) 16:05, 6 January 2012 (UTC)
- CHeck out your talk page! Montanabw(talk) 19:24, 6 January 2012 (UTC)
- Thanks both! Leaky Caldron 15:09, 7 January 2012 (UTC)
New article
I just stumbled across Mesteñeros, a new article. It feels to me like this information would be better included in another article (the Mustang one, perhaps?) but I can't figure out exactly where. Thoughts? Dana boomer (talk) 15:40, 9 January 2012 (UTC) Also, speaking of those kinds of articles, there's still a merge tag on Buckaroo. Do you want to do the honors? Dana boomer (talk) 15:41, 9 January 2012 (UTC)
- Put a merge tag on Mesteñeros. We'll figure out where to put it. Montanabw(talk) 17:40, 9 January 2012 (UTC)
- Merged into three articles, decided the best redirect was actually to Vaquero, so did it that way. Now off to Buckaroo. Montanabw(talk) 20:22, 9 January 2012 (UTC)
Yogo reshoot 2
See Talk:Yogo_sapphire#Round_2_of_reshoot for new ones. These are much better if I can say so myself. Input appreciated. PumpkinSky talk 01:09, 11 January 2012 (UTC)
- On the dialup, page loading agonizingly slow. If no further response, give me 12 hrs to get back to work and on the wifi. Montanabw(talk) 01:36, 11 January 2012 (UTC)
Well done!
Hey Montanabw, I just noticed your new yogo sapphire images, and they are really outstanding! I'm very impressed with the time and effort you and PumpkinSky have put into this article, and especially how you're tackling the images which you've stated multiple times are very challenging to get. I think these are just what the article needs and should be one less hurdle for FA status. Seriously, I doubt I could get such quality photos, so really well done! Jessemv (talk) 04:05, 12 January 2012 (UTC)
- Thanks for the kind words, much needed in these dark days of winter! Montanabw(talk) 16:35, 12 January 2012 (UTC)
Azteca horse
Don't let it get to you. Count to 10, when you get to 9, start over. And then ...love as though you have never been hurt before. (Comes from a Hallmark card. But its still good advice)---Buster Seven Talk 21:31, 12 January 2012 (UTC)
- Smartass! (grinning, ducking and running...) Montanabw(talk) 21:34, 12 January 2012 (UTC)
I read the conversations on the Talk page. Hang in there, try to stay calm and neutral, and hopefully things will play out much better for you and your fellow editors of horse-related articles. Good luck. Jessemv (talk) 21:47, 12 January 2012 (UTC)
- I'm past neutrality, this is the 5th or 6th horse breed article this person has attempted to derail at GA, FA or Main page appearance time. I'd find it helpful if my TPS-ers would look at the issue that made me request the lockdown (which locked the wrong version with the stupid chart, but oh well) and the latest round of his proposed stuff that may or may not be in line with GA criteria (and reflects an ongoing pattern of this user to desire the creation of content forks) because I've seriously got to do some work at my RL today, not deal with this. I'm also tired of this editor picking on Dana, who doesn't deserve this. Montanabw(talk) 21:53, 12 January 2012 (UTC)
- This is precisely the kind of thing that I consider to be uncivil and disruptive, an example of what we all have to face on an almost daily basis. But there seems to be no way of dealing with it unless you can somehow provoke this editor into writing a naughty word. Malleus Fatuorum 22:10, 12 January 2012 (UTC)
- Concur. From my Wiki-lurking I've decided that one the things that really keeps me from contributing in a major article way are people who behave in this way. That and the folks who insist on inventing some sort of "Wiki-standard" for existing disciplines and then insisting that the existing standards are somehow "wrong" because they don't conform to the invented Wiki-standard. The debate on using "hands" for measuring horse height is just one example of this as far as I'm concerned. While it may be a fascinating behavior study from a social science point of view, it's very counterproductive and disheartening from a normal view.Intothatdarkness (talk) 22:17, 12 January 2012 (UTC)
- Yeah, and this time, the tendentious editor managed to provoke me, dang! (I think -- is
jackassa naughty word, Malleus? I took it back just in case it was...) You guys are champs, all. Just knowing that the good folks outnumber the people we want to describe with naughty words is heartening. Those who wonder why the top importance articles rarely are taken to GA or FA need only look at this stuff. Montanabw(talk) 15:57, 13 January 2012 (UTC)
- Yeah, and this time, the tendentious editor managed to provoke me, dang! (I think -- is
Laminitis x-ray
I put the original image back through photoshop and cranked the contrast down. The gray bar (radiopaque marker) is actually contacting the outside of the hoof (faint outline of hoof wall) and looks like it is in the film and not put there later. It looks so much worse than the nice digital radiographs that you linked because its an old, extreme close-up, cropped radiograph with high technique (really burned out, contrasty rad with loss of soft tissue detail) made with film. It was probably made with one of the old portable units and the maker only had one film plate on the truck :) There's not much more I can do with it, and I'll try to find a better one. Froggerlaura (talk) 01:42, 14 January 2012 (UTC)
- Sounds like best we can with what we've got. Wonder if the old X-ray I have could pass muster here? The vet who took it has passed away, I think I must be its owner now... I have a newer one, would need to vet who took it to give permission, I think... Montanabw(talk) 18:32, 16 January 2012 (UTC)
- This is addressed in Commons. Evidently two key questions are (1) are x-rays creative enough to be protected by copyright, and, if so, (2) are they works for hire, so that they would belong to whomever paid for them rather than the radiologist.--Curtis Clark (talk) 18:26, 17 January 2012 (UTC)
I started this article. Thought you may want to help out. PumpkinSky talk 15:36, 14 January 2012 (UTC)
- Is the total size of the property, cemetery, undeveloped land, and practice field 5 or 50 acres? I found both listed. perhaps the cemetery by itself is 5 acres. PumpkinSky talk 17:23, 14 January 2012 (UTC)
- Just made this: Template:Did you know nominations/Dearborn River High Bridge too (has a nice photo).PumpkinSky talk 00:43, 16 January 2012 (UTC)
- Not sure on size, whatever National Register says is probably the best you have. I made some edits on one of the others Montanabw(talk) 18:27, 16 January 2012 (UTC)
Latest pear and purple Yogo sapphire photos
See Talk:Yogo_sapphire#Latest_pear_and_purple_photos. Hope you think they're better, and just in time for the Great Wiki Blackout of jan 2012! PumpkinSky talk 01:05, 18 January 2012 (UTC)
Couple of articles for your perusal
I have (finally - i know i said i'd do them ages ago) created two new articles of interest to you. Both short at the moment, but i'll get round to improving at some point! Anything you can add would be great, or any links to WP:BUILD that i haven't done yet also appreciated.
Thanks! OwainDavies (about)(talk) edited at 18:50, 20 January 2012 (UTC)
I've changed my recommendation to "Keep" based on your outstanding work. Well done, friend! Cullen328 Let's discuss it 06:33, 22 January 2012 (UTC)
- As have I. It is clear that with your excellent contributions to the article, it passes WP:GNG. Good work! Till I Go Home (talk) 07:44, 22 January 2012 (UTC)
- I have withdrawn the nomination. Great work but I so think your comments about the due diligence before the nomination were unfair. I searched the article title and I think its generally reasonable for a new page patroler to work from the basis that the title of an article is what the subject is known as. Spartaz Humbug! 14:51, 22 January 2012 (UTC)
- As have I. It is clear that with your excellent contributions to the article, it passes WP:GNG. Good work! Till I Go Home (talk) 07:44, 22 January 2012 (UTC)
Kluge House DYK
See response there.PumpkinSky talk 12:26, 22 January 2012 (UTC)
A barnstar for you!
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The Barnstar of Diligence |
| Good work finding sources for Helena_Train_Wreck. Spartaz Humbug! 14:52, 22 January 2012 (UTC) |
a piccie
Hi Montana, I came across some pictures on Commons that I thought you might like to see, enjoy them and maybe you know of a better category for them than I could find.
ϢereSpielChequers 18:54, 22 January 2012 (UTC)
Cool! I added that one to combined driving, good categorization. Maybe give Pitke a heads up, s/he seems to be the god of horse photo categorization over at commons. Montanabw(talk) 16:40, 23 January 2012 (UTC)
War Horse
We just saw this movie. Great flick, as always with Spielberg. And for you stalkers, the horse lives. PumpkinSky talk 21:22, 22 January 2012 (UTC)
Yogo inline comments
OK, I've addressed your inline commments, except for one we need Vsmith to answer and the etymology we're still researching. PumpkinSky talk 22:39, 22 January 2012 (UTC)
Thanks everyone!
Thanks to everyone who weighted in on the Helena Train Wreck and everything else! I do apologize to anyone who was at the receiving end of any snark I had left over from my previous round of editing disputes that may have bled over into these discussions! You folks were a great bunch of people to work with, exhibited and assumed good faith at every step of the way and in general have helped me get back some faith in wikidom! Montanabw(talk) 16:19, 23 January 2012 (UTC)
- You are a great editor, the Wikipedian I trust most on all things equine. I remember how kind you were to me as a newcomer a few years ago, even while disagreeing with an addition I attempted. I look forward to many such interactions in the future. Cullen328 Let's discuss it 23:47, 25 January 2012 (UTC)
- Hey! Ya grew up good! Montanabw(talk) 23:52, 25 January 2012 (UTC)
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Reference to Australian saddles as Poley's
The reference to australian saddle as poleys is from the livestock industry, cattle are either horned ( with horns) or poley (without horns). American saddles have roping horns, Australians do not use ropes to catch cattle , (except rodeo), so our saddle's are referred to as Poley stock saddles, the following article gives a short history of the evolution of theAustralian Stock poley. Beaufort4352 (talk) 06:28, 29 January 2012 (UTC)Kelly Logan, Beaufort4352.
Below is an article in "Outback maagazine Story By Pamela Robson, so ther could some copyright issues about public reproduction, however there is dependable info in the article
The perfect saddle is the Holy Grail of horse riding. Just gather together any group of riders – stockmen, polo players, endurance riders, camp drafters, showjumpers or jockeys – and they’ll soon get down to telling you that as each of us is different and each horse is different, the chance of finding the right permutation to fit human backside and horse’s back is up there with a lottery win. No two will agree on the perfect saddle because, like the Holy Grail, it’s always just out of reach. One thing they will agree on, however, is that there have been some remarkable saddles and extraordinary saddle makers. Saddles have come a long way since someone threw a blanket or a sheepskin on their horse way back in the mists of time. And in the past 15 years, the saddle has probably undergone more development that at any time in its entire history. It’s largely for the good. As community attitudes have changed towards animals, and scientific research has given us new insight into what makes them ‘tick’, we’re more concerned about the welfare of our horses. We’re less interested in the beautiful leather or the exquisite stitching – although a well crafted saddle can be a breath-stopping joy to behold – and we’re far more preoccupied with saddle fit and that the horse can do its job without injury. We’ve got better science and technology to help us do this. Anyone riding a couple of decades ago will recall in shame the white patches – saddle rubbing spots – on their horse’s back. Even as recently as a couple of decades ago, saddlers were often making saddles for undernourished, skinny station horses, some with spine curvatures. Saddles had to be built with a “banana bend” to fit the spine of the horse and had to accommodate its scrawny rib cage. Saddle sores and untreated injuries were commonplace. And while there were craftsmen saddlers making beautiful items there were also local tradesmen building bulky unwieldy burdens out of rough materials that suited neither rider nor beast. No one knows who first thought of putting a saddle on a horse, but we do know that the Romans and Bronze Age Brits were using iron and bronze bits hundreds of years Before Christ that look just like the modern day snaffle. They also used leather reins but preferred to ride bareback. The Assyrians who lived in the area that is now Iraq, left sculptures and bas reliefs showing them going into battle in about 700 BC using decorated cloths fixed with a strap. The idea of having a saddle 'tree' to keep the rider's weight off the horse's back started in Asia in about 200 BC. Later the Romans had a peculiar-looking saddle made from leather with a rectangular seat with four upward points or horns. The rider sat between these short horns and used them for security. Saddles weren’t used widely until mediaeval times. Crusading knights came back to Europe from the Holy Land with Arabian saddles. From there, two types of saddle developed: the Hungarian and the Moorish. The American cowboy (or western) saddle is the best-known example of the Moorish style, with a pommel and two girths, each tightened by a cinch strap. The English saddle is the most recognised of the Hungarian style. They have no high pommel and the stirrup is hung further forward. These two saddle types have led to the development of two distinct styles of riding. As you might expect, the military has had a big influence on saddle design. Australia, too, has also played its part. Because whether you were going into battle or mustering cattle in the far flung reaches of the Australian interior, your life often depended on the strength and the durability of your equipment. The Australian stock saddle came into being around the mid 1800s. The old pioneers soon learnt that the English styles of saddle they brought with them couldn’t handle the conditions; the terrain was rough and the horses often rougher. The leather could be salt rimmed from sweat, baked brittle by the sun, rain sodden or frozen. Whatever the conditions, a drover or stockman could expect to spend many hours each day in his saddle – and sometimes still be there when the moon came up. Early Australian saddlers such as Jack Wieneke from Roma, western Queensland, started building bigger, sturdier saddles out of tough cowhide. They had big knee rolls, deep seats and high backs to help the rider stay put no matter what the topographical incline or equine inclination. They had higher pommels for white knuckles to grasp in moments of crisis. The idea was that no matter what the horse did under you, there was a fair chance you’d stay on board. And if the horse did, in fact, roll over the top of the saddle, it was less likely to snap in two. Wieneke’s saddles became hugely popular with the stockmen out on the stations. He comes down the centuries to us as something of an entrepreneur and showman with strong and much-voiced opinions on how things should be done. The story goes that he got his first big break by taking a saddle to outback Queensland and putting it on a horse that was famously recalcitrant – under Jack’s saddle the horse became manageable. He called his saddle the Mitchell Break, after the town it all happened in and the effect the saddle had on the horse. Then he followed it up with the Roma Poley, the Charleville Poley and others. Over the following decade, Wieneke’s saddles became more extreme. The knee rolls became deeper, the back and the pommel higher. Eventually the saddle became less practical and like most extreme fashions it had had its day. Horseman started seeking out a more conservative shape. Saddlers like George Schneider – credited with inventing the poley style of stock saddle – and craftsman English migrant John Hill – grandfather of the more famous Syd, established good solid businesses. Wieneke himself went into partnership with a number of other saddlers including Schneider and the Brisbane–based Butler Brothers who turned out his saddles on a production line. But invariably he fell out with them and went back to making saddles in his own way, each bearing the stamp: “A genuine, true to the label, Jack Wieneke, himself.” Syd Hill was among a number of saddlers who paid five shillings or thereabouts for the privilege of making Wieneke saddles, and the originator himself was happy to sit back and take the licence money. In the pre-car years of the early 19th century just about every small town in Australia had a saddler – HJ Holden’s father, James Alexander, was a saddler in Adelaide before he started making motor cars. But nowadays, the old-style craftsman saddlers are getting fewer. Grafton-based Warren Newcombe is one of them. He has been making stock saddles for 42 years. If you want one of the 50 or so saddles he builds each year, you’ll have to join the queue. The stock saddle – or the station saddle – is a much more refined piece of kit. He says about half of his buyers are people such as teachers, doctors and advertising executives who are into bush horse sports like campdrafting. Once it was only the station hands – who rode horses for a living – who bought stock saddles. “Station saddles are less bulky, and more streamlined,” he says. “When I first started making saddles, there was a lot of padding. The rider used to sit way up on top of the horse. I could never understand why, even then. Now they want close contact – to be able to feel the horse and its movements. This means the saddle flaps are more streamlined, the leather softer, and the materials lighter. They still want the toughness. They don’t want the tree to break.” He still sees plenty of broken trees coming through the saddlery door. “Its amazing what they can do to them,” he says. Warren makes his stock-saddle trees – the frame that gives the saddle its strength – out of beech wood with steel reinforcing. The leather is English and they are padded with pure wool stuffing. He likes to keep the materials natural. He also makes a range of fender saddles, a style that has gained popularity in the past decade or so. Whereas the stock saddle, like the English saddle, has flaps either side and stirrups hung from narrow leather straps, the fender saddle has no flaps but wide panels of leather with the stirrups attached. They are a western-stock saddle hybrid with a western style of tree with a stock saddle seat. The fenders enable the rider to adopt a forward leg position and a more western riding style. Many people who work with unpredictable horses think the fender style gives them a better position. Warren uses tough but heavier American oak for the fender trees. Schneider made the first fender saddle in 1925 and he was roundly laughed at. Warren gave it a go in 1968, and the response was much the same. However in the late 1980s, fenders started to gain in popularity. Now they account for a big percentage of bush saddle sales. With saddles, it’s like everything else – you get what you pay for. Warren’s custom built stock saddles can cost anything up to $5500, but they’ll be a stable heirloom. At the other end of the scale, you can buy a mass-produced “Australian” stock saddle import from India for a little more than $300. In these days of mass manufacture, Australia has become major force in saddlery. The Perth-based Bates/Wintec company is the largest producer of saddles in the world. Their success is down to their ability to mass produce saddles that are purpose-built for particular sports. The Bates cousins – Ron and Ken – have shown themselves excellent lateral thinkers in building up what was formerly a small family concern into a world beater. They’ve confidently adopted new technologies and brought in expert riders and sportspeople to help. These days, it’s the sports-playing customer who is driving saddle design, rather than the farmer or stockman. Graham Aitken of Aitken Saddlery in Brisbane uses the analogy of athletics: “These days people don’t run in old sandshoes, they want high tech running shoes,” he says. “Just as running shoes help you run better, a well-designed modern saddle can help you ride better. They aim to place the rider in the best position whether it is for showjumping, dressage, endurance or eventing. If you ride bareback you naturally sit just behind the horse’s withers. If you sit further back you get bounced around. The aim of the saddle is to make sure that this is where the rider’s weight goes. It’s mostly common sense but somehow people have just woken up to it.” Graham is a saddle fitter – a relatively recently developed, but most important profession. Now that we recognise that even the most expensive saddle can damage a horse’s back, the saddle fitter, along with the horse physio and the horse chiropractor, is an important member of the support team for any equestrian – even if they ride recreationally twice a week. Each discipline has its own requirements: the dressage rider is looking for a deep seat and closeness to the horse; the show jumper and the eventer want a more forward position and a flat seat – so they don’t bump their behinds on the back of the saddle on landing. The endurance rider wants a saddle that can go for 160 kilometres at a time over all terrains, in all weathers and even at night, without rubbing, bumping, squeezing or otherwise damaging their horse. The best saddles ensure the horse’s back is free to move and isn’t hindered by a too narrow gullet or wrongly-shaped tree. Expert riders will tell you that the difference a well-fitting saddle makes is huge – whether its dressage or endurance the horse steps out and is more “forward moving”. There is one type of saddle, however, that stands separate: the racing saddle. These tiny saddles can be 15cms long and weigh 600 grams. Weight is all. Made from high-tech materials and tiny plastic half-trees, they have to be super-strong to withstand the forces placed upon them during a flat-out gallop. Given their microscopic size, they require that the rider is strong, fit and athletic. The right saddle makes a huge difference to the experience of riding. It can help you stay on a belligerent horse. It can make life bearable – or otherwise – if you are in it for most of the day driving stock or pounding along a track as part of an endurance ride. It can help you jump a clear round, hurl yourself and your horse over three-day event tracks, gallop across a polo field, spin on a dime facing-off cattle or win at Flemington. The saddle industry has transformed itself and although there are still plenty of station hands, the majority with their own stock saddle, as well as professionals such as breakers and trainers, the market has given way to the amateur sportsperson. One thing that all riders will agree on is that having a close association with horses can be one of life’s most sublime pleasures. The old adage ‘the more you put in the more you get out’ was never truer than when it comes to the saddle. This is an excerpt from a story in Issue 54 - August/September 2007 of Outback magazine.