One Strong Case for Treeless Saddles

Just wanted to give you a little Svenna update- she has changed SO MUCH since I bought the Freeform. Her back looks incredible. Really, her whole body has muscled up properly because she can get over the back and really work. See the before and after pix below.

I love riding in it (more balanced than my $4000 custom saddle ever was), although it probably took a solid two or three months to get the panels and stirrups placed juuuust right. Now it's absolutely perfect. Svenna loves it, too. She moves out great in it.

Svenna before and after six months with her treeless saddle, rear view.

Svenna before and after six months with her treeless saddle, left view.

Svenna before and after six months with her treeless saddle, right view.

I ended up putting the panels pretty far back and with a very wide spinal channel. See snapshots below. It is super balanced and stable on her very round back- I can even get on from the ground if I absolutely have to. I also like how the front part of the panel fills in under my knee; it makes the saddle fit me a bit better and more securely. It took a lot of fussing to figure out this arrangement, I tried lots of different pads and panel placements, but I'm very happy with the result. Her sweat marks have also been great with this arrangement.

—Caroline Bingham