How to Clean Your Leather Saddle
Care for your saddle properly to ensure it can provide years of service.

After every ride, wipe perspiration and footing dust from your saddle with a barely moistened rag. Pay particular attention to removing grime from the billet straps. These critically important straps are the most likely area of your saddle to wear first as they are exposed to horse sweat and are always placed under great pressure during use. They may require more frequent conditioning than other parts of your saddle.

Once weekly, clean and condition all leather surfaces of your saddle using either the traditional glycerin soap method or a specially formulated leather cleanser. The economical glycerin soap method of cleaning involves wiping your saddle with a moistened sponge to remove dust and dirt. Rub hard to remove grime. When the leather feels smooth and clean, rub a nearly dry sponge or rag against the glycerin soap bar. Apply a thin layer of glycerin soap (no suds during this step) to your leather to seal its pores and keep it soft, but not sticky.

Newer methods of cleaning your saddle involve convenient and easy-to-use tack cleaning and conditioning products; follow the manufacturers' label instructions on any product you choose. Almost every tack manufacturer has a recommendation or product preference for cleaning and conditioning its saddles, and some manufacturers produce their own. Additionally, some suede, buffalo or patent leather may require special care according to the saddle maker. Always follow saddle manufacturer's guidelines when considering commercial leather cleaners and conditioners.

One-step leather cleaners also condition your leather as you wipe away grime. Two-step cleaners usually advise following cleansing with a conditioner that will soften and protect the leather.

Guidelines for Sizing a Jumping Saddle to a Hunter/Jumper Rider
A jumping, often called close contact, saddle that fits you well will help you achieve a correct riding position for taking fences and working on the flat. You'll require a fairly shallow seat with a low pommel and low cantle. Depending on your preferences, you may want knee rolls and rear thigh blocks (these vary greatly between models) combined with forward, short flaps with padded knee pads. Stirrup bars may be placed in a forward position. Together, these design features will allow you to assume a forward seat position with a short stirrup length.

Typically, a jumping saddle will have a fairly narrow "twist" to promote a close contact feel, though it is an aspect of saddle tree design intended to accommodate the horse's shape more than the rider's. The twist is located behind the pommel at the front of the saddle's seat. The front of any saddle tree has a steep angle to accommodate a horse's withers, while the back of the tree has a flatter angle to accommodate a horse's back. The twist occurs where the bars of the tree "twist" to form the transition between the front and back of the tree. The width of the strip of leather over the twist does not necessarily indicate the width of the twist.

If you feel like you're sitting on a wide board when you sit in a saddle, then the twist is too wide for your build. A twist appropriately sized for you will allow your legs to hang down softly. If a twist is too narrow for you, you won't feel supported. A professional saddle consultant can be sure that your ideal twist is appropriate for your horse's build.

Jumping saddles come with many differences of seat depth, flap rotations and flap lengths to accommodate rider preferences. Consider these guidelines as you look for your perfect fit in a jumping saddle.

• Hip to knee length determines where your knee and leg fit in accordance to the angle and point of the flap. Look to fit this part of your leg first. The rotation and size of the saddle flap should complement the angle of your leg. Your knee should hit at the top point of the flap with at least two fingers to spare.
• Saddle seat size affects your comfort, ability to move and effectiveness in seat aids. Ignore the seat size measurement of the saddle and work with what actually fits your body. Every manufacturer's saddle seat sizing will feel different. Most saddles require that you fit between three to four fingers (a hand's width) behind your bottom and the tip of the cantle. If you feel confined in a deep-seated saddle, then try the next seat size up.
• Flap length is less important than the way the flap shape complements the angle of your leg. As a general guideline, the flap will fall only about a third of the way down your calf. The goal in determining flap length is to avoid having the edge of the saddle flap catch on the top of your tall boot or half chap.
• Riding style, your own personal preference, for any one factor of the saddle and your position as determined by your unique physical build is always important. If you feel confined or restricted in a saddle, or conversely, do not feel supported, try another saddle.