2-13-04
As it turns out, you don’t really need a cantle or a horn to stay on your horse. The first time I rode in the Boz bareback saddle and tried to practice keyhole I did though. I slid back about ten inches and balanced on my horses’ face when she took off. Since then I learned that I really didn’t know how to ride and this saddle taught me along with many trips to Boz for lessons. You know the story Romeo and Juliet where they just couldn’t live without each other so they killed themselves? Well if I couldn’t ride in this saddle anymore I just don’t think I would ride anymore and I don’t think I would have horses anymore. That is how strongly I feel about this saddle. I don’t get on anything without it, young or old, first ride or 1000th ride. The only thing I can’t do in this saddle is rope in it because it has handle instead of a horn. Talk about safety, what would you rather take in the sternum, a horn or a handle if you could choose? Not only that but it is a whole lot easier to hold on to that handle when a horse wants to be stupid. Sure I have fallen off of it before and you know what? My stirrup came off with me as the horse ran away. I use to ride in a treeless saddle with my feet rubber banded in and one time I completely flipped with my horse at a full run and she was laying on me and could not get up because my foot was stuck in the stirrup. I had to jerk my foot as hard as I could to break the rubber band and let her get up. If you ever lose your stirrups in the Boz Bareback saddle it is because you are riding on your seat and not your feet and then its time to go back to the practice pen and reevaluate your ability to ride. And even then if you lose your stirrup, it is easy to find because of how the stirrups are hung on the saddle.
The best thing about this saddle is the security it offers once you’ve learned how to ride in it. Because of where the saddle puts you on the horse, essentially you sit in the middle of a teeter totter so when they buck or rear, if you just stand up in your stirrups you really don’t take the buck as hard. It fits everything, from my yearlings to my 16.2 hh QH gelding and I really can do everything in it. I jump, barrel race team pen, you name it I can do it. It is extremely light weight, my knees and ankles never ache after long trail rides. I get maximum security because of the English stirrup leathers and I can move my legs wherever I want. The saddle pad is really easy to clean. I just stick mine in the washer machine and let it air dry and there is hardly any leather on the saddle rigging to oil. It is very low maintenance. I would NEVER go without this saddle and there are a lot of things I would give up just so I could have it. If I were considering buying it again, I would beg, borrow, or whatever just to get the money to buy it. Not only that but don’t ride in it unless you are ready to put the money down for it because you will just be sick to your stomach when you have to get back on and ride in your piece of sh—saddle.
Becky Amio