Détente Kestrel Dressage Saddle Price: $2,495 Leather: Premium Supplex, Hydro, or Memel; $500 for Calf seat and pads Colors:  Brown (black by special order) Panels: Détente Enhanced Panel; 100% British wool with wool felt lining for enhanced support and stability; Leather Panels (serge available by special order); Panels gusseted front and rear Tree choices: Sporthorse Tree M, MW, W; Haven tree for flatter, broader backs (M, MW, W, XW); FWB tree for the fantastically wide back Seat sizes: 16, 16.5, 17, 17.5, 18, 18.5

Détente Kestrel Jumping Saddle

As the Irish say, "Pretty is as pretty does," which is true. The best horse is not always the best looking, and that goes double for the best saddle. So we would love the Détente Kestrel jumping saddle anyway for what's on the inside, even if it weren't as beautiful as it is on the outside.

As with all saddles in the Détente range, the Kestrel has a large, supportive, shock absorbent bearing area, equivalent in concept to a running shoe on a human athlete. Hand-made in England on the wood-spring Heritage tree, the Kestrel honors the best traditions of British saddlery: building saddles on horse-friendly trees with deep, springy, wool-filled panels. These are saddles designed for function - from the horse up to the rider rather than the other way round - in distinct contrast to many of today's sexed-up, trendy jump saddles manufactured on "adjustable" synthetic trees with unforgiving foam panels, designed far more for rider appeal than for optimum horse fit.

The Kestrel is the jump saddle that modern sport horses would design for themselves if they had opposable thumbs. They don't, of course, care at all what their saddles look like, but there are riders who will appreciate the Kestrel's square-cantled, classic profile, which is more than a match for the withering scrutiny of the fashion-conscious hunter-ring.