PLN
The "contact" problem. A dozen bits tested, numerous bridles, a team of specialists – and no lasting improvement. Until it turned out that the cause lay elsewhere entirely: in the saddle. Top dressage rider Natalia Plata, who went through this journey with her most challenging horse and the Prestige Brillante saddle, talks about how one change can unlock a horse's work in a single training session.
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Championships and Mature Self-Confidence
- Natalia's Horses - Five Personalities, Five Different Schools
- The Problem with Magic - When "Contact" is Actually the Saddle
- First Ride in Brillante - "The Problem Disappeared in One Ride"
- When to Check the Saddle - What to Look For
- What a "Comfortable Saddle" Means to Natalia Plata
- Recipe for Consistency and Daily Routine in the Stable
- Quick Shots
- Where to Buy and How to Choose a Prestige Brillante Saddle
Introduction
In dressage, the saddle is the most important point of contact between rider and horse. It determines the rider's seat, the precision of aids, and whether the horse has the freedom to work its back and shoulder. The problem is that not every horse explicitly signals discomfort – some have a high pain threshold and "hide" it during work, while the rider searches for the cause everywhere...
Natalia and her horse Magic's story is a concrete case study of just such a "before and after" effect. We talk about the diagnosis, the first ride in the Prestige Brillante dressage saddle, the visible change in the horse, and the philosophy that the horse's comfort is more important than the rider's comfort – yet one begins to stem from the other.
Championships and mature self-confidence
Kinga (Equishop): Natalia, first of all, huge congratulations on your results at the recent European Championships in Hungary! How do you remember them?
Natalia Plata: Really great – I'm happy and satisfied with the rides, but also with the atmosphere. There was enormous support from the team girls, we talked a lot. There was no rivalry between us, everyone cheered for everyone and wanted the best for each other.
I'm glad we managed to get into the final again. It's a big achievement, especially since after the first day I wasn't in the lead, and that place hadn't been lucky for me before. It was good to break that streak – the individual went great, the freestyle could have been better, but I'm still happy. Especially since this is my last year in the youth category.
This success is not just mine. Many people contributed to it: my parents, who give me opportunities and thanks to whom I can ride at all, my trainer Daniela, who guides me daily, my vet who ensures the horses are in the best possible condition, and of course Dolcetto himself. He is not an easy horse either, so despite our long cooperation, nothing is ever certain.
Kinga (Equishop): Do you still get stressed before big competitions?
Natalia Plata: Not anymore. I've been competing since I was 11-12 years old, and these were my eighth European Championships. Whether it's regional, national, or European championships, I treat them like any other competition. I just try to enjoy myself and make the most of the opportunity I'm given.
Kinga (Equishop): Did success in younger categories build self-confidence or rather pressure?
Natalia Plata: For me, it built self-confidence. The more I achieved, the more motivated I became – and the more clearly I saw that I was becoming a better rider. I always believed and still believe that I haven't reached my maximum. That's why I train every day.
Kinga (Equishop): Which competition shaped you the most?
Natalia Plata: Many competitions left a lasting impression – four European Championship finals in three age categories, or 80% from one of the international judges in freestyle. But the European Pony Championships in 2021 shaped me the most.
That whole season wasn't the best, and I honestly wondered if I should even compete. Ultimately, I went and achieved the best results of the entire season, and also the best in my entire pony career. I realized then that sometimes you have to listen to your intuition, and above all, never give up.
Natalia's Horses - Five Personalities, Five Different Schools
Kinga (Equishop): What horses are you currently working with?
Natalia Plata: I have four horses and one foal. The fact that I don't compete with two of them doesn't mean they've been put aside – they are horses for the future, with whom I simply don't rush to competitions and enjoy working at home.
My main horse is Dolcetto, whom I've had since I was 14. I've gone through all age categories with him. It might seem like he's easy because we have so many achievements – but that's not true. He's a strong individual, he's afraid of many things, and at the same time, if he feels support from a human, he's capable of doing a lot for them. He's adorable and the funniest in the stable. He's 19 now, but young 4-5-year-olds are next to him, with whom he goes wild, so he's experiencing his second youth.
The second one is Fenoman, called Maciek in the stable. He's completely different: calm, kind, a big teddy bear to hug – he's over one meter eighty at the withers. We joke that the shortest rider has the biggest horse. At work, he's a "diesel" type: he needs to warm up, and the more collection he has, the more gas. He's not afraid of anything, but he can be treacherous – he can seem well-behaved, but when he takes off, he's hard to stop.
The third is Magic Guy – the most difficult horse in my stable. He's very hot-headed, gets nervous quickly, and needed a lot of time to mature. Yet, he's my most intelligent and hardworking horse, a perfectionist – when something doesn't go his way, he gets angry with himself, not the rider. He's very sensitive. It was for him that I decided on the Brillante saddle, and it is in him that I place my greatest hopes. At competitions, he's a showman – he performs better than at home, he loves decorations, applause, attention. He's the only one in the arena who gives a million percent of himself.
The fourth is United VHS, a six-year-old – a trouble-free horse, very easy to ride, a bit like Fenoman. Last year, I competed with him in L-level classes, but there's no pressure, he also just needs time.
There's also a filly, a foal – Se Lavi E Belle S – whom I bid on last year at an auction with Mateusz Cichoń during the Polish Young Horse Championships.
We joke with the breeder that she's a literal reflection of me – we even have the same facial expression.
She went to that auction thinking she'd come back with a foal, and I went thinking I wouldn't buy anything. It ended up the other way around. When the filly entered the arena, my heart started beating faster – I called my mom, who only asked if I liked her, and said: then bid. Se Lavi – the name fits the circumstances.
The Problem with Magic - When "Contact" Is Actually the Saddle
Kinga (Equishop): Our saddlery collaboration started with Magic. Could you please tell us what the problem was?
Natalia Plata: Magic is a very sensitive, but specific horse – he has a high pain threshold. If something hurts him or is uncomfortable, he won't show it in his behavior; he was never lame. Instead, you immediately feel it when riding, after a few minutes.
Since I bought him, the biggest problem has been contact. He would get nervous, wouldn't take contact or would take too much, it was constantly unstable and irregular. With such an ambitious and intelligent horse, this severely limited his forward work. With more difficult elements, it also affected his movement – he opened his shoulder less in trot and canter.
Kinga (Equishop): That must have been frustrating – you believe in your skills, you have a team of specialists, but the result is still unsatisfactory.
Natalia Plata: We tried everything. We went through probably every bridle, we had about 10-15 different bits – and nothing helped. We were going in circles, always doing the same thing.
More than frustration, it was worry. With a horse like that, work should be easy and fast – a few years ago I thought I would compete him in juniors and young riders, that he would be my main horse. But he fell behind. The hardest part was that we didn't know what it depended on. We checked his health – everything was fine. We tested bridles and bits – nothing worked. It was hard for me to believe that the contact problem was mainly due to the saddle.
Kinga (Equishop): When did the suggestion arise that the saddle might be the cause?
Natalia Plata: It was quite a spontaneous decision. It started with Magic's behavior indicating that he had matured and that work could finally pick up pace. Then there was the matter of his build – he's a typical "square": short, but very well-developed back. All my saddles were either too narrow for him, or, like Fenoman's saddle, too long for his short back.
Magic is also the least comfortable of my horses – he has a big, bouncy movement. And I tend to ride in more spacious saddles, with plenty of room for my leg. I knew that with a horse like him, I needed a saddle that would hold me a bit, otherwise I wouldn't be able to stay in place. So my trainer and I started to think – not so much about the brand or model, but about what the saddle should look like to be good for both the horse and me. Daniela came up with the idea of trying Brillante, because one of her clients had one. We decided that one try couldn't hurt. And as soon as I sat in it, I was completely won over.
First ride in Brillante - "The problem disappeared in one ride"
Kinga (Equishop): Do you remember your first ride and your first few minutes in that saddle?
Natalia Plata: My first thought was shock and disbelief. Suddenly, I could actually get proper contact – I just felt it. It turned out that the problem, which had been with us for years, disappeared in one ride.
I couldn't believe that just changing the saddle could have such an impact on this horse.
Kinga (Equishop): And from the horse's perspective - how did you know it was good?
Natalia Plata: At first, you could tell he was surprised himself and didn't know what to think of it, because it was a completely different saddle from all the previous ones. But during the ride, he felt free and comfortable, as if the saddle was made for him. And most importantly, the contact problem disappeared.
Kinga (Equishop): You once said that the horse "started moving at all". What exactly changed in his movement?
Natalia Plata: After a few months of work, it was very clear that he was using his shoulders much more freely and extensively – in both trot and canter. All the work started to progress at a pace that few would believe. I also noticed that he was using muscles he had previously used little or not at all. He built up muscle, clearly feeling good.
I've had this saddle for a little over half a year. One can speculate, but I think if he had gotten it a few years ago, everything would look completely different today.
Kinga (Equishop): How long did it take you to realize that this was a lasting effect, not just one good day for the horse?
Natalia Plata: After a few rides. I had the opportunity to test the saddle before I decided on it, and each time the contact problem remained eliminated, and the work progressed. That's when I realized that the first ride was not a coincidence.
When to Check the Saddle - What to Look For
Kinga (Equishop): What signs during riding should prompt a rider to check the saddle?
Natalia Plata: It's hard to give one universal indicator, because not every problem is the horse's or equipment's fault – some stem from our riding. Every horse is different, and each will show discomfort differently. That's why each case needs to be approached individually. I myself have four horses and ride in different saddles, different brands and models – and to the question of why this particular saddle for this horse, I would answer differently for each one.
The key is to know your horse well. Then you'll sense when something is wrong. Among common things, I would pay attention to how the ride feels: whether the horse is stiff, whether it bends less on one side, whether you feel discomfort in your seat, whether what used to work well suddenly goes worse, or whether its willingness to work decreases. It's also worth looking at the simplest things – its posture and behavior when being saddled, its behavior in the stall. Sometimes, an outside perspective reveals the most.
What a "comfortable saddle" means to Natalia Plata
Kinga (Equishop): In one sentence - what surprised you most about Brillante?
Natalia Plata: That it's genuinely comfortable.
Kinga (Equishop): And what exactly does "comfort" mean to you?
Natalia Plata: With this horse, I used to be thrown around and bounced quite a bit, but in Brillante, I feel connected to the saddle – the seat is soft, and most importantly, the saddle holds me. The blocks are positioned in such a way that I rest my leg differently and sit completely differently. There were saddles after which my legs ached after just one ride; after Brillante, nothing hurts. I have no complaints.
But for me, the most important thing is that the horse functions well in it.
The comfort of my horses is paramount to me, and only then comes my own.
Recipe for Consistency and Daily Routine in the Stable
Kinga (Equishop): Natalia, you are among the European elite. What is your recipe for consistent results?
Natalia Plata: First and foremost, trust between horse and rider and the well-being of the horses – that they feel good and nothing ails them. They are our partners; without them, we wouldn't be here. And on my part: hard work and perseverance. I believe there are no impossible things – only those that require more work, time, and dedication.
People don't realize how much I work. In summer, I spend all day at the stable, riding 5-6 horses a day – not just my own, because thanks to Daniela and the Barłomino stable, I have the opportunity to ride other horses and develop. And I'm not picky: a three-year-old or a fifteen-year-old, dressage or show jumping – I take everything, because every horse teaches something new and is a new experience.
Kinga (Equishop): What does your day at the stable look like?
Natalia Plata: The hours vary – sometimes we start at seven, sometimes at ten, finishing at 4 PM or 7 PM. When I'm at Daniela's, I stay overnight and we travel together. It happens that before I even eat anything, I'll have worked with 4 horses.
Sometimes I saddle up, ride, take care of one horse, and then get another. When we're in a hurry, Daniela or her groom Lena change horses for me on the fly – I dismount one and get straight onto the next. On top of that, lunging, helping with the paddocks and the horse walker, and preparing "boxes," meaning feed for the horses. For myself – somewhere in between. I simply do everything they ask of me.
Kinga (Equishop): How do you deal with pressure when one mistake can decide the outcome?
Natalia Plata: For me, it's hard to even talk about pressure anymore. I've learned that the only person who can put pressure on me is myself. Many times I've heard that I "must" do something – but I believe I don't have to do anything, because I'm not a robot, just as my horse doesn't run on buttons. I do what I'm capable of on any given day, and I enjoy where I am. I live in the moment, because you never know what fate will bring.
Kinga (Equishop): And when the result isn't what you hoped for – do you need time for emotions, or do you analyze immediately?
Natalia Plata: It depends. After some rides, I'm angry with myself because I know I could have done better. Sometimes, however, things happen that are beyond anyone's control. I get sad, like anyone, but after a defeat, I rise even stronger – every unsuccessful start is a motivation for me. There's no greater motivation than failure.
Kinga (Equishop): Does success make you complacent?
Natalia Plata: I wouldn't agree with that generalization – it all depends on character and humility. A series of failures will motivate some, while others might get discouraged. Successes motivate me because they show that I'm on the right track, and since I've achieved something, I can do more. But anyone who rests on their laurels and believes they are the best will stop developing.
Kinga (Equishop): What are your sports goals for the near future?
Natalia Plata: I don't actually have specific plans. I'm glad that working with the horses at home is progressing well, and that brings me more joy now than competitions. There's no point in planning too far ahead – I've often had plans that didn't materialize because situations or horses changed. It's best to focus silently on oneself and do what you do best.
Quickfire Questions
Kinga (Equishop): If you could move to one international dressage center?
Natalia Plata: I'd love to see the work at Van Olst's or RS2.
Kinga (Equishop): Your biggest authority in dressage?
Natalia Plata: There isn't just one – I take something different from every good rider. But I've long admired Lottie Fry with Glamourdale, and for some time now I've also been watching Marieke van der Putten, among others, on Zantana RS2.
Kinga (Equishop): Result or good feeling after the ride?
Natalia Plata: Good feeling.
Kinga (Equishop): A good trainer is for you...
Natalia Plata: Someone who believes in me, even when I doubt myself.
Kinga (Equishop): A good saddle is for you...
Natalia Plata: Comfort for my horses.
Kinga (Equishop): The feature of Brillante you value most?
Natalia Plata: The fact that my horse finally started to function in it, that work is progressing, and that he feels comfortable.
Kinga (Equishop): One word describing you as a rider?
Natalia Plata: Determined.
Where to buy and how to choose the Prestige Brillante saddle?
Magic's story clearly shows that a properly fitted saddle can unlock a horse's potential faster than another bit. If you're considering a similar change, the Prestige Brillante is available in several finishes – Brillante K Elite, Brillante K Forte, Brillante K Lux, and Brillante K D – and selecting the right model and size is best done in consultation with the Equishop Fitting Center at ul. Oświęcimska 9 in Ruda Śląska.
It's worth complementing the saddle with the recommended Prestige A52 RP dressage girth; why this particular model gives the horse more freedom is explained in our review of the Prestige RP girth.
Other dressage riders also share how the Brillante affects a horse's performance – Klaudia Nalepa on the free shoulder and freedom of movement for the horse and Gabriela Jaworska on the Brillante K AS X saddle. The full range of saddles and accessories can be found at the Equishop store.
All photos used in the article are by Łukasz Kowalski.
