Building a Better Saddle

By Rod Campbell

Illustration By Rod Campbell

After retiring from many years of breaking horses, my wife and I leased a thousand acre hill country farm. The only horses we had for the farm work were a three year old, a four year old and a five year old that had never been ridden. We also had an old quiet horse that was due to retire.

At this time I wanted to get a saddle that would be comfortable for both horse and rider, yet light and strong - something you couldn't fall out of if your horse started bucking on a hillside. But it was impossible to buy one so I decided to build my own.

With a chain saw I cut the shape I wanted out of a willow tree that had died standing so it was spongy and not likely to crack. I used this crude wooden saddle for many weeks on the quiet old horse due to retire with a sack over its back. I would carry a rasp with me and rasp off any parts that hurt me or the horse. By removing the saddle every hour or so it was possible to see where it was pressing too hard in one place, because the horse would start to sweat there. I kept this up until I had a perfectly shaped saddle that would sit close to the horse and was comfortable for horse and rider.

Once the leather was put on, everyone who saw it wanted to buy one. So I had to find a way of making two fibreglass moulds - one to fit the horse and one to fit the rider, and then find a way to join them together. This resulted in a hollow unbreakable tree that was stronger and lighter than any ever made. Many saddles were sold in New Zealand without any advertising. People from many parts of the world tried them then took them home to their own countries.

Unlike some of the heavy stock saddles that only touch a horse's back in four places, at up to ten pounds per square inch, this one fitted the horse and spread the weight over the whole area with pressures of less than one and a half pounds per square inch.

As a child, in about 1920, I had heard that a man named Winniki in Australia had said that a real saddle would never be made until a horseman made it himself. So he made his own saddle which was considered to be the best in the world and he guaranteed that he could ride any horse in it.

Many people have said they are able to ride horses in my saddles that they were never able to ride in anything else. With this saddle you sit so close to the horse it's almost like riding bareback and you are part of the horse. Adella, who won the New Zealand barrel racing championship, had to ride in one of my saddles because the owner of the horse wouldn't let any other type of saddle be put on his horse!