A LETTER FROM BOB MARSHALL
PRESIDENT OF SPORTS SADDLE, INC.

Welcome to a whole new riding experience. Never before has a saddle been offered that gives the rider as much comfort, as much feel and contact with the horse, and at the same time as much security and balance as the Sports Saddle.

The Sports Saddle is designed to be the most comfortable, best balanced, best fitting saddle on the market at any price. To keep the rider comfortable, secure, in good balance and to fit the horse securely and comfortably.

I find that my horses are calmer, more relaxed, respond much quicker, and move much more freely when being ridden in a Sports Saddle.

Do not be miss-lead by the low price of this saddle. It was my goal when I started designing the saddle to make the best-balanced, most-comfortable, most advanced, design saddle at any price. But I also wanted to produce a saddle that anyone could afford.

Because of the balance and closeness of the rider with the horse, it is amazing how quickly a horse responds to the riders’ leg cues and body movement. Young horses move much more freely and seem much more comfortable in a Sports Saddle than in a regular saddle. I have had young horses starting to do roll-backs and side-passes with only a few weeks of riding.

I have had over twenty-five years experience in both saddle making and horse training. The Sports Saddle has evolved from decades of experience working with some of the top horse trainers and saddle makers in the United States. At the present time, we not only build a large number of traditional leather saddles in our shop but also build custom saddle trees for some of the most accomplished saddle makers in the trade. We have many years experience in designing not only saddles and saddle trees. But, also custom fitting saddle trees to many problem horses that were "hard to fit."

The Sports Saddle will fit more horses than any other saddle on the market that I have seen. The front part of the tree being independent of the rear or cantle section, it is free to conform to different width shoulders and different height withers of many horses because the angle of the tree bars is not rigidly set as in regular saddles. When cinched down the tree angle automatically conforms to the horse's shoulders.

When first built this property was not realized. It was only after riding the Sports Saddle on a large number of horses that it became evident the saddle automatically adjusted the angle of the tree to the horse when cinched down.

I have ridden horses with wide, low withers; tall, thin withers; and everything in between, and the Sports Saddle fits more horses!

May you always ride a good horse and a comfortable, well balanced, and good fitting saddle.

Sincerely,

Bob Marshall
President
Sports Saddle, Inc.

© 1990 Genie Stewart-Spears

This is a picture of Bob Marshall test riding one of the prototype Endurance saddles. The following text is Bob's explanation of the Sports Saddle.

Because the saddle is made with two independent tree sections, it allows the saddle to flex as the horse moves, trotting, loping, turning, etc. The two independent tree sections are made of wood and are covered with fiberglass for added strength.

The saddle is made up of three main sections or parts:

1. Front tree section.

2. Rear or cantle tree section.

3. Main body or pad section that rests on the horse's back and is under the front and rear sections and connects the sections together.

The rider sits between, not on the two tree sections, directly on the saddle pad section. There is no rigid saddle tree under the rider.

There are no bulky riggings, buckles, or rings to rub your legs or the horse. The stirrup and rigging straps are made of heavy weight treated nylon. These straps are embedded in the center of the pad section of the saddle, so the straps are padded from both rider and horse.

The pad section is made of a closed cell neoprene foam material that does not absorb moisture, i.e., the same type of material used in scuba-diving suits.

Many people when they first start riding cannot afford a good quality saddle and they end up with a cheap, poorly made, ill-fitting saddle that is uncomfortable to both horse and rider and doesn't put the rider in the correct position on the horse and does not keep the rider in balance and rhythm with the horse. The end result is the horse gets sore and acts up. The rider gets sore and galled, is not comfortable and secure on the horse and perhaps even is thrown or falls off when the horse moves suddenly.

Often times the person then gives up riding altogether, when if only they had a comfortable, well-balanced saddle they felt secure in, they would have kept riding and enjoying horses for the rest of their life.

The Sports Saddle was originally designed to be a saddle for people just starting out with horses and for people that rode only occasionally.

It was hoped that with the comfort and security they experienced with the Sports Saddle would let them enjoy riding more.

The unique design of the Sports Saddle has many people using it to train their young horses for such events as western pleasure, reining, barrel racing, dressage, endurance riding, etc.

Let us know what your needs are. We can custom build a saddle just for you. It is possible for us to position the rigging and stirrup straps to fit your particular needs.