Optimal Fit Saddle Services LLC

09/28/2026

09/28/2026

Small, iconic, and undeniably Aviar. Our signature feather isn’t just a detail on your saddle, it’s a promise of effortless freedom, precision engineering, and performance so light it disappears beneath you.

When you see the feather, you know you’re riding in a class of its own.

09/27/2026

Saddle fitting services will be available at USDF Region 4 Championships at the National Equestrian Center in Lake St. Louis on Wednesday afternoon September 30th. PM or call to schedule.
Best of luck to all!

09/24/2026

09/15/2026

In yesterday’s posts about behavioural issues, saddles and pain, I said I’d share a few real-life examples I’ve personally come across over the years.

So. Gather round. It’s Jackanory time.

A few years ago, I had a client with a lovely horse she mainly rode Western.

They were brilliant together. Happy horse, happy rider, absolutely no problems.

Then she decided she fancied having a go at dressage, so she called me to fit a dressage saddle.

She chose and designed a beautiful saddle. I fitted it, delivered it, she loved it, horse went beautifully, everyone was happy. They trotted off into the sunset and I was looking forward to watching their dressage career blossom.

A few weeks later, the phone rang.

There was a problem.

Her horse was sore. And lame.

But only in the dressage saddle.

In the Western saddle? Fine.

Well. Bu**er.

Obviously I went straight back out.

I checked the saddle. And checked it again. I watched the horse. I checked everything I could possibly check.

And I couldn’t find anything wrong with the saddle.

I told her I didn’t think the saddle was causing the problem.

And this is a really important bit of this story:

♥️ She trusted me.♥️

Despite the fairly compelling evidence of:

Western saddle = sound horse.
My shiny new dressage saddle = lame horse.

She didn’t immediately decide I’d sold her a dud saddle. She didn’t demand her money back. She didn’t pop onto Facebook to announce that her saddle fitter had RUINED HER HORSE. And threaten to sue.

She listened when I said, ‘I don’t think this is the saddle. Let’s get the vet.’ Believe me, even though I was sure I was right, even I questioned myself.

And I made damn sure I was there when the vet came, given the symptoms, I knew exactly what the vet was likely to think too.

(It’s the saddle.)

Except I was convinced it wasn’t.

My suspicion was actually kissing spine around the back of the ribs affected by the dressage saddle, but effectively bypassed by the Western saddle.

So the vet listened to me too.

We X-rayed the back.

Clear.

Oh.

Bu**er again.

The vet looked at me and asked:

“How sure are you that it isn’t the saddle?”

100%.

So he carried on looking.

And X-rayed the hocks.

And there it was.

Both hocks were basically rubble.

Which left one fairly massive question.

Why the hell was the horse sound in the Western saddle?

Because over time, the horse had developed a way of loping in his Western work that allowed him to avoid loading those painful hocks in the same way.

Put him into a dressage saddle, change his frame, ask him to bring his hindlegs underneath himself and push differently…

And suddenly the problem became visible.

The dressage saddle hadn’t caused the lameness.

It had exposed it.

And I think about this case a lot.

Because that client could VERY reasonably have blamed the saddle.

The vet could VERY reasonably have blamed the saddle.

On the face of it, the evidence practically had a flashing neon arrow pointing at the saddle.

But bodies are complicated. Horses compensate. They alter movement patterns. They find ways around pain.

And sometimes changing one thing doesn’t create the problem.

It simply makes a problem that was already there impossible to hide.

It’s also why the relationship I have with my clients, and with the vets, physios and other professionals around me, matters so much.

Because sometimes we need to be able to say:

“I know it looks like my bit. But I don’t think it is. Keep looking.”

And for someone to trust us enough to do exactly that.

More Jackanory real-life saddle fitting stories tomorrow.

Pop x

Ps edited to add, I am very lucky and we have excellent forward thinking vets near me but this particular vet was from Tower Equine Veterinary Surgeons so they deserve a shout out! Cos they could easily have dismissed the behaviour as a saddle fitting issue.

08/30/2026

In our workshop, precision isn't a goal, it's the baseline.

08/30/2026

Congratulations to Custom Saddlery sponsored rider Kate Fleming-Kuhn!!

The Dressage Foundation is pleased to present a $15,000 award from its Dr. Anne L. Barlow Ramsay Fund for U.S.-Bred Horses to Kathryn Fleming-Kuhn (IL) and Maurine Swanson (PA). Established by Dr. Barlow Ramsay’s daughter, Barbara Cadwell, this award aims to recognize and promote the excellence of top horses bred in the United States. 🇺🇸

Vholt, bred by Maurine Swanson and owned and ridden by Kathryn Fleming-Kuhn, received this $15,000 award as the highest-scoring U.S.-bred horse in the Developing Prix St. Georges Championship at the recent U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions. The owner and breeder will receive $7,500 each. Vholt is an eight-year-old Oldenburg stallion by Vitalis, out of Rhiddle.

Kathryn Fleming-Kuhn is a USDF Certified Instructor through Fourth Level and a USDF bronze, silver, and gold medalist. She said, “Thank you for this award from the Dr. Anne Barlow Ramsay Fund for U.S.-Bred Horses. I purchased Vholt from Maureen Swanson when he was just two weeks old. We’ve been together a long time, and he is a really special horse. I am grateful for the U.S.-breeders who supply such wonderful horses. This award will enable me to continue my education with Vholt. Thank you to those who make this possible through The Dressage Foundation!”

Maurine Swanson, breeder of Vholt, has bred warmbloods for nearly five decades, producing hundreds of foals. Her program has yielded numerous Dressage at Devon champions, elite mares, and stallions.

The $15,000 Anne Barlow Ramsay Award for U.S.-Bred Horses will be awarded to the owner and breeder ($7,500 to each) of the highest-scoring horse, with a minimum score of 65 percent, at the Developing Prix St. Georges Championship at the U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions.

Barbara Cadwell, daughter of Dr. Barlow Ramsay, said, “My mother chose to be an American citizen and believed strongly in the American dream. Her support of U.S.-bred horses comes from the patriotism she held for our country and belief that U.S.-bred horses have an important place in the sport of dressage. I dream that this Award, in my mother’s name, shines a light on top American-bred horses, their owners, and their breeders. I hope to see more U.S.-Bred horses competing at Festival of Champions in the future.”

Read more at https://bit.ly/3ShOsfV

Photo by Susan J. Stickle

08/29/2026

The Dressage Foundation is pleased to present a $15,000 award from its Dr. Anne L. Barlow Ramsay Fund for U.S.-Bred Horses to Kathryn Fleming-Kuhn (IL) and Maurine Swanson (PA). Established by Dr. Barlow Ramsay’s daughter, Barbara Cadwell, this award aims to recognize and promote the excellence of top horses bred in the United States. 🇺🇸

Vholt, bred by Maurine Swanson and owned and ridden by Kathryn Fleming-Kuhn, received this $15,000 award as the highest-scoring U.S.-bred horse in the Developing Prix St. Georges Championship at the recent U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions. The owner and breeder will receive $7,500 each. Vholt is an eight-year-old Oldenburg stallion by Vitalis, out of Rhiddle.

Kathryn Fleming-Kuhn is a USDF Certified Instructor through Fourth Level and a USDF bronze, silver, and gold medalist. She said, “Thank you for this award from the Dr. Anne Barlow Ramsay Fund for U.S.-Bred Horses. I purchased Vholt from Maureen Swanson when he was just two weeks old. We’ve been together a long time, and he is a really special horse. I am grateful for the U.S.-breeders who supply such wonderful horses. This award will enable me to continue my education with Vholt. Thank you to those who make this possible through The Dressage Foundation!”

Maurine Swanson, breeder of Vholt, has bred warmbloods for nearly five decades, producing hundreds of foals. Her program has yielded numerous Dressage at Devon champions, elite mares, and stallions.

The $15,000 Anne Barlow Ramsay Award for U.S.-Bred Horses will be awarded to the owner and breeder ($7,500 to each) of the highest-scoring horse, with a minimum score of 65 percent, at the Developing Prix St. Georges Championship at the U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions.

Barbara Cadwell, daughter of Dr. Barlow Ramsay, said, “My mother chose to be an American citizen and believed strongly in the American dream. Her support of U.S.-bred horses comes from the patriotism she held for our country and belief that U.S.-bred horses have an important place in the sport of dressage. I dream that this Award, in my mother’s name, shines a light on top American-bred horses, their owners, and their breeders. I hope to see more U.S.-Bred horses competing at Festival of Champions in the future.”

Read more at https://bit.ly/3ShOsfV

Photo by Susan J. Stickle