McClellan Saddles

I have been doing some research on saddles for an article I'm writing for Western Shooting Horse Magazine and have learned some things about saddles in general. As many of you know, the McClellan saddle is designed for the welfare of the horse and not necessarily the rider. It is basically an endurance saddle with "hard points" on it for hanging equipment. The most annoying feature of the McClellan is the "center fire" rigging. That is, the rigging is placed at the center of the saddle so the girth goes around the middle of the horse's belly. This is a common feature of endurance saddles because it keeps the rigging out of the way of the horse's elbows when he's walking. However, if you're trying to do performance work on your horse you need to cinch your saddle down near the front of the saddle to keep it from moving forward and loosening the cinch. The military thoughtfully provided a surcingle (basically a large woolen belt) to help with that problem so you could have the best of both worlds. The surcingle can be placed near the front of the saddle so you can cinch it down as you would a normal working saddle but without interfering with the horse's movement. The center fire rig keeps the saddle from tipping forward (like a flank strap) while the surcingle keeps it from slipping and getting loose. The military saddle is designed to be used with a surcingle and is not safe to use without it. The rigging on western saddles comes in all kinds of different configurations. Each type of rigging is designed for specific uses. It is important when choosing a saddle that you get the right type of saddle for the job you plan to do and if you are using a McClellan, it is important that you use the surcingle and install it correctly.