A girth is a girth, right? Wrong!
Your saddle girth is a very important piece of equipment and the choices you make will impact the following:
Saddle Stability
Yours and your horses comfort
Your centre of balance
Positive and Negative effects on your horses gait
That initial statement is bold, but very true, do not underestimate the importance of your girth. www.saddleseurope.eu along with Saddles Ireland have been selling the Prolite girths for well over 15 years. We have never had a Prolite product warranty claim or a manufacturing fault reported. Saddles Europe has a long standing reputation for truly caring about the products our clients buy, all of our products are very carefully chosen. You can be assured that if we are doing a product review, analysis or offering advice it's because the product is well worth your attention. This is most certainly the case with our best selling girth the Prolite Anatomical Girth. I will be looking at the affects that any girth will have on a riding saddle and why you should therefore be seriously considering the Prolite Range of Girths. At www.saddlesireland.ie we automatically give you the best online prices anywhere in Ireland, N. Ireland, the UK and Europe by default. To absolutely further guarantee this fact apply the code PRICE-BEAT-1000 at the checkout and you will receive a further discount guaranteeing your new Prolite Girth will cost less than any other outlet in the Northern Hemisphere. OK, so now you are aware that our online prices are, always have been and always will be cheaper than the UK and the rest of Europe let's look at the those previously mentioned girthing aspects..........
Saddle Stability -
The more stable your saddle, the more you and your horse can concentrate on the task at hand. Stable saddles are imperative - Imagine your saddle slipping left or right, front and back whilst you are trying to perform any horse related manoeuvre including riding in a straight line at walk. Imagine your horse trying to carry out these manoeuvres whilst you are unstable.
As Ireland’s go to saddlery and Europe's main online saddlery our True Master Saddle Fitter Lauren Coxhead SMS MSF MSFC is contacted daily by riders who have issues with their saddle slipping. Generally there are 4 reasons for poor saddle stability -
1. A poorly fitting saddle - Obviously with a poorly fitting saddle you are going to struggle to rectify this with any girthing solution, including using a Prolite girth. A skilled saddle fitter could offer short term solutions, but essentially you need a correctly fitting saddle in combination with correct girthing. Correct saddle fit is imperative, once achieved the saddle will make even contact with the horse and distribute weight evenly, leading to increased stability.
2. Your horse has a forward girth groove - Many horses have a forward girth groove - The girth groove is where the girth should naturally sit and if that point is forward of the saddles girthing points, the saddle is going to be pulled forward. There is a solution the Prolite Anatomic Girth. Most riders are familiar with the anatomic girth - The anatomic girth is shaped to sit forward of the saddles girth points which in turn holds the saddle in the correct position whilst facilitating the forward girth groove. We help riders daily with this issue and virtually always rectify the issue with a Prolite Anatomic Girth.
Incidentally all Prolite girths are anatomically shaped, it is the curved and contoured shape that makes the difference with a forward girth groove. It is important to realise that Prolite girths are not limited to horses with forward girth grooves, they are also a very effective girth on any horse, in any situation.
3. You or your horse, or a combination of both are one sided or un-balanced - If either of you are one sided (pretty much all riders and horses are to some degree) then you run the risk of exacerbating stability issues with poor girthing. Due to the exceptional stabilising characteristics and the anatomical nature of the Prolite girths, the effects of balance issues are more often than not alleviated or negated. Nearly all of our elite level riders use the Prolite Anatomical Girth or its full leather cousin, the Fairfax Anatomical Girth to gain that extra grip. That one fact alone speaks volumes.
4. Your horse has changed shape - Even if the saddle was good, things can change and your saddle can start to slip - Your horse always changes shape! This seems to be something many riders do not realise, the extent to which a horse can change shape in it’s topline, girth, shoulders, neck and withers can be quite drastic. Even elite level horses who are exercised at the very highest level go in and out of shape. The shape of your horse is changing constantly! As your horse changes shape by muscling up or down, going in and out of work or seasonal changes, you can feel the effects in your saddle’s stability. In drastic situations saddle fit needs to be considered. However with minor changes, the effects can be controlled using various measures such as correct girthing. Hence the need for a premium quality girth such as the Prolite Anatomical Girth.
For what the Prolite Anatomical Girth offers they are not expensive, considering they provide such outstanding results.
Yours and Your Horse's Comfort -
OK, so we have outlined the positive effects the Prolite Anatomical Girth will have on yours and your saddles stability, which will lead to increased rider confidence. But what about your horse’s comfort. A comfortable horse is more likely to be a happy forward going horse.
Prolite ‘Is Not’ just a brand name!
Prolite is a specifically engineered material aimed at the horses comfort.
Many if not most girths on the market are simply, just girths! They tend to be the same with slight variations, but essentially they are just girths that are badged or branded. This is not the case with the Prolite Anatomical Girths.
We, as a saddle fitting and retail outfitters, could approach a leather works today and order 100+ girths and have them badged and branded, but we don’t. Why? Because they will never be as good as the Prolite Anatomical Girths! Fact.
We do not exist to fool you with branding, we are here to help you with real life solutions! The Prolite Anatomical Girth is one such solution to your girthing issues or as a go to everyday girthing option.
So what is the Prolite Material?
The Prolite material is an impact absorbing material that returns to shape. It is contained within the the girth as a core. The high tech robust synthetic outer covering has properties that keep the girth cool, dry and breathable, it is also antibacterial and hypoallergenic. In combination, this results in a girth that is hugely durable, non stretching, impact absorbing, saddle stabilising and comfortable. There are no other girthing options offering these credentials to the same degree.
The Prolite material reduces peak pressures by a minimum of 25%, it absorbs impact from strikes and blows or rider movement.
The Prolite material disperses pressure points over a wider area.
Prolite absorbs lateral movement remaining still and locked against the horse.
The Prolite Anatomical Girths have been extensively tested using pressure mapping and gait analysis technologies and have been proven to improve horse gait! But as a saddle fitting outfitters we do not need fancy technologies for evidence, we see the multitude of positive effects these girths offer, everyday.
In our extensive experience, no other other girth offers the same levels of consistency as the Prolite Anatomic Girths.
Your Centre of Balance -
It goes without saying that good rider position is paramount to a riders riding success. The Prolite Anatomical Girth will go along way towards stabilising your saddle, it will absorb lateral movement as previously mentioned and due to it’s anatomical nature will hold in longitudinal movements also - Stable girthing will help keep good rider position and will mean you can ride quietly and more effectively and allow your horse to do the same.
Positive and Negative Effects On Your Horses Gait -
We all love to see horses stride out, jump higher and move more freely. Due to the comfort and anatomical nature of the Prolite Anatomic Girth your horse will have more shoulder clearance, this will have obvious effects on gait.
Pliance and Bio Mechanical testing has proven this for a fact.
Daily we see all horses improve greatly when using the Prolite, even the elite level horses we work with see gains in their jumping and reach during their dressage manoeuvres.
So now you know the reasons why you should be seriously considering using
Prolite Anatomical Girths - However there are a couple of factors you need to consider.
1. Sizing - The Prolite Anatomical Girths, are measured in the standard fashion from buckle end to buckle end. The Prolite Anatomical Girths do not stretch over time like lesser girths do, if your measuring your old girth you need to take this into consideration. Also the Prolite Anatomical Girths and the Fairfax varieties do not have elasticated buckle ends. We recommend when measuring for a new girth to either A) Measure your old girth from buckle end to buckle end allowing for any elastication. Or B) With your saddle un-girthed in position on your horse, measure from the 3rd hole up from the bottom of your saddles girth strap, to the 3rd hole up on the opposite strap - this method will allow for the buckles to sit nice and tightly up under the saddles flap when pulled up tight. Always remember…. a long girth (jump/gp/show) would be as short as possible for horse and rider comfort and a short girth (dressage/jump monoflap) would be as long as possible for the same reasons.
If you have any doubt, contact us at www.saddleseurope.eu/contact and we will do all we can to help and advise.
2. Girth Width - The Prolite Anatomical Girths come in two widths,
Narrow gauge and Standard gauge. The Narrow gauge will fit all horses, big or small! But, if you have a larger horse with a wide rib cage leading to a wide gap between the front legs you could use the standard gauge girth gaining slightly more contact through it’s increased surface area.
We recommend that if a gap of 20cm or more exists between your horses front legs, then a standard gauge girth could be used. Indeed Prolite say themselves that if you can fit a standard 20cm sweat scraper between the horses front legs, then you could opt for the standard gauge girth.
3. Discipline - The Prolite Anatomical Girth comes in Dressage and GP/Jump varieties.
Choose a dressage girth for your dressage saddle or for your monoflap jump saddle.
Choose a GP/Jump girth for your GP, jump or show saddle.
And now there is a Pony Specific Prolite Anatomical Girth for Ponies and smaller saddles.
4. Orientation - All anatomical girths should be fitted with the curved section of the girth facing forwards towards the head of your horse. The Prolite girths have the front of the girth clearly marked.
So there you have it - Prolite Anatomical Girths are awesome, that is why we as Ireland's premium saddle outfitters endorse them in combination with correct saddle fit for the very best results possible.
Now all you have to do is choose between Black or Brown.
And please choose your retailer carefully, Remember www.saddlesireland.ie offers the highest levels of on and offline service, always with you and your horse’s best interests at heart.
Added to this we also offer the very best online prices available anywhere in Europe including the UK and N. Ireland, we permanently carry every size and colour of Prolite Girths in stock.
Simply add the following code PRICE-BEAT-1000 at the checkout to absolutely guarantee the best price available anywhere in the Northern Hemisphere.