Fleeceworks perfect balance half pad skin#
Fleeceworks perfect balance half pad full#

Fleeceworks perfect balance half pad full#

Sometimes we don’t need the full footbed, sometimes just adding a little gel insert where the heel is rubbing does the trick. If we consider a shoe that fits well but has just enough extra room, that gel footbed now becomes incredibly comfortable! It adds impact protection and it fills in the extra space, making that shoe feel like a custom fit. This is “adding extra socks to a shoe that fits”. This is a very nice half pad, and will provide a lot of cushion and impact absorption, but it is not a good combination with this saddle on this horse, and this combination will likely lead to a very resistant ride due to the restriction of the muscles around his withers. With this very thick half pad, the saddle is now “sitting on” the sides of his withers, all the way to the very top! Too much clearance on the top of the withers, not enough on the sides. If the shoe is a perfect fit, even adding a gel footbed can make the shoe fit too snugly and suddenly the footbed which should create extra comfort instead causes the opposite. If the shoe fits perfectly, a thin sock is a great thing, but an extra sock will make the shoe fit too tightly. The half pad is like an extra sock or an insert in your shoe.

Does all the “extra cushion” make those shoes even more comfortable? Or instead are the shoes now uncomfortably tight and restricting? What about two pairs of extra thick socks for even more added “softness”? At what point do those comfy shoes start to be really painful? Now imagine wearing an extra pair of really thick wool socks in addition to your regular socks in your favorite running shoes. This sock is like your regular saddle pad. Assuming they fit well, a regular pair of socks (which also fit well!) enhances the shoe-wearing experience and makes them more comfortable, less prone to rub, and also extends the life of the shoe by absorbing sweat.

To use an analogy that’s been used so many times… think about your shoes. On the other hand, with such a wide range of half pads available, it is tempting to choose one for the wrong reasons, thinking that you need one because so many other riders are using one, or because it is the trendy thing right now, or because what horse wouldn’t like extra cushion under the saddle? At its worst, the plethora of half pads available are encouraging riders to try to “fix” a saddle that totally doesn’t fit by adding lots of extra padding… which of course doesn’t work! Unfortunately, this flawed logic only leads to uncomfortable horses and frustrating rides. On the one hand, buying a half pad is a much smaller investment than buying a new saddle, and for the almost-fits-perfectly saddle, the right half pad can be exactly what the doctored ordered. Whether you choose your half pad for the softness that offers extra cushion for our horses’ backs, the pretty colors that contrast our saddle pad so beautifully, or the inserts that offer extra shock absorption or the ability to shim up the saddle… half pads are becoming almost as much of an art and science as saddle fitting!

Fleeceworks perfect balance half pad skin#

The pillowy soft material is perfect for horses with sensitive skin and gives you some peace of mind knowing that your horse can remain comfortable throughout your entire ride.So many of us use them, and for so many different reasons.

This pad comes in all-purpose, dressage and jumping options and helps to regulate temperatures and wick away moisture from your horse’s back while in work.

And if their No Bow Wraps can really work wonders on my horse’s legs after a tough workout, imagine what a pad infused with Celliant® could do for your horse’s back? For those of you not familiar with Celliant®, it is a fiber that is filled with thermo-reactive minerals that takes your horses own body heat and transforms it into infrared energy to improve blood flow and relieve sore, tired muscles and joints. I am a BIG fan of Draper Therapy products and refuse to use any other wraps than their Celliant® infused No Bow Wraps on my horses. We’ve teamed up with the crew at Draper Therapies to list off five of our favorite saddle pads that prevent and repair back issues while you ride! Thankfully, there are a wide variety of padding options that can help you reduce the stress on your horse’s back. A sore back can really zap your horse’s performance potential.