EA Mattes Athletico Short Girth Slim Line Leather
Specifically made for horses with an athletic, wedged shaped body. In a way it solves the reversed problem that the crescent girth was designed for. The saddle tends to slip back, also pulling the girth backwards, because all the lines of the horses body: back, ribcage & sternum to belly taper towards the rear. So instead of opening to the rear this girth simply opens to the front.
Slim-Line girths feature a detachable sheepskin cover with leather closures and a leather base rather than the traditional quilt fabric, for a sleek, low profile appearance & ease of cleaning
- The same beautiful design refined for a more elegant appearance
- High quality leather base & tabs on girth cover
- Detachable lambskin cover
- Flatter and slimmer than the original quilted version
- Special interior design for pressure distribution
- Added elbow space
- Lambskin provides good pressure distribution, reduces friction and is temperature balancing
- Available in black, brown and champagne coloured leather
- Wool colour can be selected from our full range of colours
- Easy care in the washing machine
To avoid rubbing and chafing we, at MATTES have developed a very special girth design. Integrated cross-webbingsand spreader inserts result in perfectly even pressure distribution and prevent wrinkling or contraction of the girth. The narrow part gives plenty of room for the elbow movement without loo- sing stability. The anatomy of the horseis also very important.
***Stock colours available Black, Black/White & some Brown. Please enquire to check if your size/shape is in stock, otherwise this can be backordered which takes 4-8 weeks depending on when you place your order (we place our EA Mattes orders on the 20th of each month) Special sizes can be made 50cm to 120cm - We carry 60cm-90cm generally
- Since lambskin has an open structure, air can flow between the fibres, therefore it equalises temperature, it is ideal in summer and winter
- Can absorb up to 8-times its wool weight in moisture before it feels wet
- The resilience of the wool is ideal for pressure distribution
- The upright standing wool fibres can slide against each other, therefore absolutely no friction or chafing nor rubbing on the horses skin
- Lambskin, because of the afore-mentioned structures, allows development of the muscles
What shape do i need?
Contoured - The contoured style is the one with shaping on both edges. The contoured girths are good for horses with good conformation. The elbow section is cut back to allow extra room for the elbow movement.
Asymmetric - There is also the asymmetric style which has shaping on one edge and straight on the other edge. This is good for horses with more bulge below and a wide ribcage and/or with awkward girth position. The deeper recess in the elbow area allows even more clearance for the elbow, than the Contoured girth.
Crescent - Available for wide barrelled horses with a narrow front & bulging ribcage starting directly behind the elbow. Often to be found in short backed horses (typical for arab mares) where other girths don’t give enough room. The Crescent girth is cut in a way that it opens to the rear in the sides and below to accommodate the far forward reaching bulge.
Athletico - Specifically made for horses with an athletic, wedges shaped body. In a way it solves the reversed problem that the crescent girth was designed for. The saddle tends to slip back, also pulling the girth backwards, because all the lines of the horses body: back, ribcage & sternum to belly taper towards the rear. So instead of opening to the rear this girth simply opens to the front.
Elastic on girths explained
The girths are elasticated, and yes EA Mattes have engineered them with precision to provide the right degree of elastication required for a Dressage Girth
Elastication for the dressage girths is achieved by attaching the buckles to the girth with heavy elastic. This provides a small amount of stretch which is all that's needed in a dressage girth. It basically allows the horse to breathe comfortably, and enough movement to allow the horse to be flexible through the ribcage, whilst remaining supported through the sternum, at the same time preventing the saddle from moving around.
The long girths on the other hand have a few centimetres of elastication. This style of girth requires a lot more stretch as there is a lot of movement when a horse is galloping/jumping/hacking than when dressage schooling/competing/etc on an arena.
Colour choices
The Mattes girths are available in a wide variety of colors to suit your personal style whether you want conservative, show ring appropriate black or a pop of bright color with Raspberry or maybe Teal to match your saddle blanket! Click here to check out the options & please list in your order comments your preference if ordering custom
More information on the background of EA Mattes & their girth design
Mattes has studied girth design since 2002 and found girths that are correctly designed but not very well made, some which look correctly designed but are outright wrong, and those that are just plain wrong for the horse's body.
One of the basic problems found was that the pressure distribution on the sternum did not work, mostly because of wrong construction. Even with a wide central plate, the pressure is actually only concentrated along the centre of the sternum, sometimes in an area only 2-3cm wide.
Mattes girths have internal straps working against a plastic centre-piece, resulting in equal pressure distribution on the sternum.
Mattes girths also feature the unique Soft-Edge design where the edges are soft and well rounded.
We only stock black quilt with black lambskin in crescent & athletico shapes. Other shapes are fully stocked in black, brown & black/white combinations. Any other shape/colour combination must be back ordered. Please allow 4-8 weeks for any customised order.
Important Information:
*Please note there is a possibility of dye bleeding from dark or bright coloured sheepskin onto light coloured quilt. A slight staining is possible from dark or bright coloured wool onto the hair of grey/light coloured horses. Fading of the wools surface is also possible, due to the composition of the horses sweat, which varies horse to horse.
*Please note there are no returns on custom ordered products, All Mattes long girth items are custom orders. Please ensure you have selected the correct style, size and colours.
*Please note all Mattes orders are made per customer order, Allow 4-8 weeks turn around time. Stock colours are Black, Black/White & Brown.
