Ad in collaboration with DP Saddlery LP and Deuber&Partner
The second saddle from Deuber&Partner is on the writing block today, you all voted for me to write about the DP El Campo first, so here’s the link to that post! This time, I’ll give you my first impressions on my dream saddle, the DP Jerez SKL. Let’s go!
If you are familiar with the legendary DP Bückenburger or Amarant, you might recognise the classical, historical design of the seat.  Its design was inspired by the original Baroque Saddle from the Marstall-Museum of the Princely School of Riding Art in Bueckeburg (Germany), and the Jerez features the same design, in a little more lightweight version.
The specs of my Jerez SKL:
Seat size: S1
Saddle leather: Havanna with antique finnish
Seat leather: Black aspen
Flocking: Medium
Channel width: Wide
Border tooling: G51 Small
Girth: Size 4, matching colours
Many are unfamiliar with this style of baroque saddle – and I fully understand why! In a world where you often ride English OR Western, the baroque saddles and tack often go under the radar for many, and end up looking like a proper curiosity.
The baroque saddles are often used for historical European riding, the “as old-school as you get it” way, for the Academic Art of Riding, Working Equitation, spanish/portugese traditional riding etc. In my experience, they have more opinions about your seat than a normal English saddle. What I really enjoy is that they allow you to, and almost empower you to, move and sit correctly. To some, it might feel a little weird to not have any support for especially your lower leg, but it’s something you get used to very fast. I love it!
The Jerez tips my pelvis just a tad backwards, which is something that helps me a considerable amount as a rider, as I tend to tip forward as a rider. Tipping forward ends up blocking my hips, and the movement from my horse. In many saddles I often feel like I am encouraged to sit straight up and down, and I end up fighting a little against the saddle. This happens far less in baroque saddles, and the unique seat of my Jerez tilts me in a far better direction. The saddle soft to sit in, but has enough structure to properly support my seat.
The picture below is one of my recent favourite pictures of my seat – Lillen is just happily trotting along and doing his thing, looking huge but nothing fancy… But I can see such an immediate and massive change in my posture. It is of course, for a stiff rider like me, a huge work-in-progress, and lots still need to improve – but I can SEE how this saddle allows me to get my pelvis where it has to be. I cannot wait to experiment with this, and learn how to sit better, and become a better rider.
In terms of fitting, it sat just perfect on Lillens back. Perfect. We’re still getting the saddle fitter out, of course, but once we put it on his back, it was as if the saddle makers at DP had made it just for him. Lillen really enjoys it. Brego, who got to model the Jerez and the matching bridle set (I had no idea they could use the black aspen leather as padding for the bridle and reins but they did! And it look SO GOOD) for some of these pictures, also felt amazing. It’s really a saddle that WANTS you to succeed as a rider.
I really like the feel of the black aspen leather too.
That’s all I have for you today about my first impressions on the saddle, as with the El Campo I’m planning on doing a review at 6 and 12 months too, and I cannot wait to see how we progress with these amazing saddles. Cue pictures!
And as you can see on the last picture there… Mother Nature had the audiacity to rain on my Jerez! So I had to run indoor with it (and the camera, haha!). I am planning lots of photoshoots in the near future.
Thank you so much, DP Saddlery LP and Deuber & Partner, I cannot wait to see where this saddle might take us!
I have written an update for this saddle! Here’s what two years of the Jerez has done for us (clickable link).
Emma
Emma Wold 
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