Am I on a horse or a cement block?

I normally use the Freeform saddle on both my riding horses, even though there is about a 500-pound difference in their shapes.  That's one of the many things I like about it -- it fits everybody.

But when contemplating taking both Hudson and Starlight out on a ride together, I had a problem.  What saddle to put on Hudson?  I have three possibilities in my collection of used saddles, and one was the Abetta endurance with a hoop/Arabian tree.

As a test, I put it on her and rode in it.  I have never been keen on it, but now I'm sure it's the most God-awful uncomfortable thing I ever sat on.  It feels like I'm riding on a square block of wood, somewhere high above her back.  It bruises my thighs and I cannot get my balance in it.  Hudson, oddly enough, did not seem to mind it, except I think she thought there might be something wrong with me, flopping around up there like that.

With that appealing description, the Abetta is now for sale at a bargain price.  If I didn't describe the way the it feels well enough, the photos should do the rest.

How she looked before the ride. Yeah, I was skeptical, too.

How I felt during the ride. Except I wasn't smiling.