Saddle success!

It fits!!!

Trailered Butch up to Jack's on Sunday, to redo the saddle to fit us both. What a master saddlemaker! And a grand host... put me up for 2 nights, and let Butch have the run of the place. Wish I had pics of Butch chasing his dog, Bo. (they were playing.) At least got pics of mule in the snow our 3rd day there...

I camped out in tent the 1st night, for practice. Glad it wasn't the 2nd, below-freezing night.

Turns out the saddle tree does fit Butch, as well as any tree can. He has a normal mule dip behind the left shoulder, and a deep dip behind the right shoulder, caused not by poor saddles but by poor trimming of his out-turned right foot. (A tree-maker and farrier came by and talked with me about the shoulder and Butch's feet, how to trim them to hold up on the ride.) He will always need some padding. So the shimmed pad I just bought was a good deal. Jack made custom-shaped felt shims to replace the ones that came with the pad. He also had me bevel the edges of the felt pad, something he said should always be done.

Next we strapped the fenders so they rest farther forward. The slit in the tree slants back at an angle and had been causing them to slide. That made a big difference (The straps were redone to attach slightly differently after this pic was taken):

We made front jockey covers to cover the straps:

Then Jack peeled back the seat to expose the ground seat. He shaved down some of the padding that was in the center,

and built up the front with felt layers, covered lastly with buffalo leather. He had me ride Butch for nearly an hour with the felt inserts, re-trimmed, then had me get up and down off the the saddle about a dozen times, fine-tuning, before glueing down the felt.

WOW what a difference! Now not only does it fit Butch, but it fits me like a glove and is so comfortable. And holds me in the way a beartrap style should, as I discovered when we were on our test ride. Monday was cold and gray, pre-snowstorm with 40-mph sustained winds, and we were riding alone in an unfamiliar place. A bevy of quail exploded under Butch's belly. He did a big, leaping spook and there was no air between me and that saddle. I felt very secure. Mission accomplished!

Can't believe I forgot to take a photo of the finished saddle. I'll try to remember to take one in the next day or so. It looks very nice, thanks to Jack, as he did most of the work on this repair.

He also adjusted Butch's bit and crupper, and is going to finish a britchen. Not to mention giving me a thousand tips about everything from saddle care to pack lengths to quick non-cooking breakfasts on the trail. I learned so much.

Still not enough, though. I'm pushing the launch up to end of March. And I'm letting go of being at any particular place on a particular date. I'll do my best to keep to a route for the reasons mentioned earlier, but I don't want any deadlines to meet. I'll be... hmmm, the word I'm looking for is... "meandering." Moseying along. And as for the route and length, they won't be set in stone either. If I veer off the route to visit friends or see a different place, that's fine. I might shorten or lengthen the ride. That's okay too. I might get to Missouri and decide to keep on going to New York. Or I might only make it a hundred miles and decide that's enough... it'll still be an experience and an accomplishment.

My nieghbor left a message, UPS delivered the package today. Saddlebags, 3-way hobbles, collapsible bucket, etc. Time for more training...