Pessoa Saddle Review: How Good Is This Saddle?

Pessoa make high quality saddles designed to increase the bond between horse and rider, by allowing a close connection between the horse and the rider’s aids. They offer professional saddles, born from over 50 years of experience in the horsey world, which are used for competing at the highest levels as well as for enjoying a comfortable hack. Pessoa are a well known, trusted and highly popular brand, meaning you will be in good company if you treat yourself to one of their saddles. Read my full Pessoa Saddle review to learn more.

Pessoa Saddle Review

Pessoa Gen-X2 Saddle 17 Medium Forward
  • It features grippy calfskin seat and molded knee pads, external contoured triangle knee roll, and fixed external thigh block.
  • The synthetic wool flocked panels are enhanced with Pessoa's AMS system.
  • The XCH system comes with medium gullet plate.

The Pessoa Gen-X2 is a classic looking saddle, with a beautiful shape and some useful features that enable a good riding position. It is made from quality materials – strong, durable leather – so you know it will last well, and it features calfskin covered leather flaps and seat that afford extra grip.

It has molded knee pads and a fixed thigh block, all of which help with leg position, and improves the close contact between the horse and your leg.

What Am I Buying?

This is a medium gullet saddle, with a lifetime guarantee on the tree (under normal conditions and with proper care, of course). The tree is adjustable within reason (ie you can’t make it fit a huge range of different sized horse, but you can adjust it to fit your horse better).

The leather is soft and supple and of great quality, meaning that it is easy to clean and will come up in a soft shine without too much effort on your part. It’s a beautiful color too!

This saddle allows your horse to perform at his best, partly because of the correct seat of the rider, and partly because of the close contact between horse and rider. The fact that is is comfortable on your horse’s back is a great feature too, because if he’s not comfortable you can guarantee he will let you know about it.

This saddle is not inexpensive, but I think it’s a great value for money. It’s my favorite English saddle brand, and I put it on the same level as Billy Cook amongst my Western saddles.

How Comfortable Is It?

The fact that this saddle puts your leg in just the right position is not only great for communication between you and your horse, but it also affords a lot of extra comfort because you don’t have to be constantly adjusting yourself. It has a thin layer of foam hidden underneath the flap and the jockey flap, which adds to the cushioning of this saddle.

The panels are flocked with soft, synthetic wool, meaning that they should be super soft and comfy, yet afford you the right amount of firmness too. The fact that it is comfortable for your horse too is a great bonus; there are no reports of “bad behaviour” caused by a bad fit with this saddle.

What Comes With It?

This package is a saddle, plain and simple, unlike some that come with accessories like stirrups or girths. This is actually great news, as although it’s nice to get freebies, you may have your own stirrups and girth that you have spent money on separately, and you have no need for extra bits and bobs filling up your tack room.

Pessoa Saddle Pros & Cons

Pros:

  • Durable wear guards – This feature means that you saddle should last even longer as it is reinforced where it’s needed.
  • Enhanced flocked panels – The synthetic wool inside these panels is comfortable, and they are enhanced with Pessoa’s AMS system.
  • Calfskin seat for extra grip – It’s always good to have a grippy seat, especially if you’re riding a fiery horse!

Cons:

  • More expensive than some – Obviously, we all know that we have to pay for quality. This saddle will cost you a bit more than some other models.
  • More of a general purpose than a close contact – This is a great saddle if you have a horse who automatically listens to your leg, not so much if he needs more contact.

Final Words

This is a great saddle for the price; comfortable, hard wearing, easy to clean and offers plenty of grip in the seat. It is ideal for those who are looking for a good saddle for hacking, trail rides, jumping and dressage, but perhaps not for the highest of high level competing.

Some users report that it puts them in the right position naturally, while others say the opposite – it clearly depends on your body type and shape as to whether this saddle works for you.

This saddle distributes your weight evenly on the horse’s back, meaning that he can hack, jump and perform dressage without any pain or discomfort. The GEN-X2 has followed the trend of the GEN-X, with its cushion-lined flaps and Euro-style stitching, and it offers the best of the old style in a new, updated version.

It is an all purpose saddle, meaning that you don’t have to feel as though you’re not doing it justice if you are only using it for hacking rather than competing at top levels. And, I know this is not the most important feature in a saddle – but it is really pretty to look at too!

Where To Buy?

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