NEA Sidesaddle Association

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NEA Sidesaddle Association

NEA Sidesaddle Association, oldest non-profit sidesaddle group in the country, providing education and promoting the contemporary use of the sidesaddle.

04/25/2025

ASK NEA: I have seen an "Empress" sidesaddle advertised. Who made the Empress and how do I tell if this is one? NEA ANSWERS: The Empress was possibly the first Asian sidesaddle imported and marketed through a U.S. business, that of Charlotte Kneeland's Side-Saddlery in 1986. The price made it appealing but, as ride quality differed from classic sidesaddles in use at the time, it did not sell well enough to continue importing. However, as the first generation of economy imports, it was perhaps the closest to traditional tree and exterior design. Click on images to learn defining characteristics and concerns.

12/11/2024

IF IT SEEMED THAT ECONOMY IMPORTS COULDN'T GET WORSE--we were mistaken; "faster/cheaper" has resulted in a synthetic covered "sidesaddle" for $400 Australian. Thanks to Stacey Rustic of FB page "Side Saddle in Australia" for bringing this to the community's attention. (let's hope the sellers don't learn of the post-Civil War U.S. patent for faux leather comprised of cardboard faced with oil cloth.)

Per Staci: Buyer beware!! This is NOT a real side saddle. Please don't be enticed by the cheap price. It's cheap for a reason!!
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/1088813746032094/?mibextid=79PoIi
Synthetic sidesaddle, A$400.00

07/30/2024

ASK NEA: What is the purpose of dee rings on the Cross Your Heart saddle's offside flap? Are they for some kind of appointment I don't know about? NEA REPLIES: Not for show ring appointments, but practical accessories when traveling on horseback in the late 19th century. (Do you suppose 3rd world manufacturers got the idea from a Victorian catalog or photograph?)

07/29/2024

ASK NEA: Why would a sidesaddle be made with two long balance billets, one on each side? Does that make it ride better? NEA REPLIES: The so-called "Cross Your Heart" sidesaddle is an economy import; 3rd world leather workers who've never seen a correct sidesaddle in person work from a photo or a "copy of a copy of a copy", guided by imagination instead of experience. Two long balance billets is a clear warning to shoppers, as is the upper pommel "over the vertical", the leaping pommel also set too high on the tree, and the dees on the off-side flap. This interpretation of a sidesaddle appeared about 20 years ago at Equine Affaire; no matter what might be written in its defense, this is what it looks like with a rider aboard.

06/28/2024

NEA'S ASSESSING UPPPER POMMELS Cont'd. Even correctly made sidesaddles can have their upper pommels knocked out of alignment by a tumble. Train your eye to look for a (1.) VERTICAL front edge; (2.) an inside surface ANATOMICALLY CURVED to cradle the rider's thigh: (3.) inside surface with NO WRINKLES; and (4.) triangular pommels that FOLLOW THE ANGLE of the upper leg.

06/14/2024

ASK NEA: I can't seem to get comfortable in my sidesaddle, and my upper leg gets so cramped that I have to stop and go astride. What do you think the problem is? NEA RESPONDS: We'll review several reasons why the upper pommel/fixed head may give you a bad ride, beginning with faulty design and construction of economy imports. Your thigh is circular in cross section so the inside surface of the pommel must be concave as well as placed low enough on the tree to allow your upper leg to cross over at the withers and your lower leg to contact the safe. No flag poles, no acute angles, no pommels "over the vertical"!

07/26/2023

ASK NEA: What IS the correct position of right thigh and lower leg for maximum purchase and security? NEA RESPONDS: The right thigh ANGLES from right seat bone to diagonally cross the horse's withers; the lower leg is correct when it is (1) "Knee to the Near Side"; (2) "Tighty Righty" from knee to ankle; and (3) Feet Parallel to the Horse's Side. These well-known riders are in "purchase position" and are ready to lock into emergency/reserve grip at a moment's notice.

Address

Box 224
Thompson, CT
06277

Website

http://sidesaddleinfo.com/

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