Newbie New Tribe Saddle Question

HI all,
I bought my first saddle, a New Tribe Smoke Jumper from Sherril's and have a few questions. When I sit in the saddle the top of the waist padding really digs in right under my ribs and is quite uncomfortable. Hooking into the snap ring seems to really "pull" the waist band up towards my chest. I have a 34" waist and am normally proportioned. I got a medium.
Here are my questions:

Should I loosen the belt and let it slide over the bottom of my rib cage?

Would hooking into the leg "D" take some of the pressure off the wasit band.

Should I consider a different kind of saddle that has narrower waistband like the Elevation od the VArio?

Will it get more comfortable as the foam softens up as it is quite firm right now?

For the near future I will be using the double rope technique.

I got a New Tribe for my kids too and they had a blast yesterday hanging from a small dogwood tree in our back yard! A pic is attached. I Know!! Helmets are on the way.

Thanks for your site and all the information.
Matt Woodruff
Southern Pines, NC

A couple things I can think of...

What size do you have?

How are you clipping it in? One of your questions made it seem like you MIGHT be clipping in wrong.

Can you take a picture and show how you're clipping it? What you've described sounds like there's not enough tension on your legs and the waist band is being allowed to slide up much further than it should.

Welcome!

love
nick

Howdy BeechBum!

When I clip into the pear link on my Smokejumper saddle I find that I am similarly uncomfortable. However, I found that when I clip into the D-ring life is beautiful. Give it a try.

Also, the foam will break in quite nicely after a few climbs.

Beechbum, I have one of the Ultralight saddles from New Tribe and I see the same issue but I only use the side-d loops to secure myself when I am on the branches or as a secondary security loop around the tree while climbing. I would not use those loops to tie the main climbing line because the entire saddle tries to ride way up and it gets uncomfortable. If you tie to the center Delta Link there is not problem whatsoever and the saddle is actually very comfortable. I actually like this one more than my original New Tribe Saddle with the smaller padding around the waist. The padding gets softer and more pliable with use and the problem goes away. Climb On!

Thanks you everybody for the replies. Below are some photos of how I attached the saddle to the climbing line. I tried attaching it to the leg loop (not sure of proper name) as in photo 2 and it was more comfortable only my balance seemed more top heavy. Am I attaching the pear correctly when I do it this way? should the Pear go under or over the webbing in the loop or does it not matter? I also noticed that if I attached it as in picture 1 but didn't snug up the waist belt then it wasn't as uncomfortable but it slid a little further up my chest. Nick, I got a medium, my measurements fell right in the middle of the range for that size. One more question though, how tight should the leg belts be? they seem to be quite a bit bigger around than my thighs. Thanks again for your help and support.
Matt Woodruff
Southern Pines, NC

As far as I can tell from the photos there are a couple of factors contributing to saddle discomfort:
1. The saddle is too tight around the waist, you're just barely fitting into it, I think you need a size large (if the saddle you're wearing is a size medium). For instance if you climbed in cooler weather you have no room to add layers.
2. It looks like the leg straps are adjusted too high (in the back). The support straps should be adjusted so that the bottom of the leg support pads almost reaches the back of your knees when you are standing up straight.

With a more generous fit I think your saddle will be much more comfortable.

You most definitely want to be tied in to the pear screwlink on your Ultralight saddle. The Smokejumper saddle has a metal sliding D on the leg straps.

The New Tribe saddle is not designed to have the snug waist and leg strap fit that you see on many arborist saddles. I was just looking at the Ultralight and Smokejumper New Tribe saddles on the Sherrill website, in most of the photos the saddles appear to be fit improperly, the models have the leg strap cinched up too high and are wearing the saddles too low on their hips.
-moss

Good point on letting the leg straps hang low, moss. That made a huge difference in comfort for me as well.

I did not realize that this was an Ultralight saddle, without the metal D-ring. I'm not sure if it would be kosher to clip into the soft floating loop.

I ordered a larger size saddle , I will let you know how that works out. I also checked with New Tribe and they said that you can hook into the soft floating "d".
Thanks,
Matt

Originally posted by BeechBum
I ordered a larger size saddle , I will let you know how that works out. I also checked with New Tribe and they said that you can hook into the soft floating "d".
Thanks,
Matt

That should work for you, good luck with it. Also good to know that the soft D is a life support connection. I didn't doubt that it was but was more concerned that you would be way too top heavy hooked in there. Looking forward to your report on the new saddle.
-moss

I have ordered the brand new New Tribe "Tengu" model and will be happy to post a report when it arrives.
Moss, Thanks for the input. I checked out your Flickr site, Awesome Photos!!!
Matt

Originally posted by BeechBum
I have ordered the brand new New Tribe "Tengu" model and will be happy to post a report when it arrives.

What's the "Tengu" model? The Prince of Trees is always up to something interesting, first Tengu's Tips and now a Tengu saddle?

Speaking of which I made up a few footloops using the Triple Crown Knot as shown in Tengu's Tips , they were a big hit on a recent climb. My single loop foot prusiks are now obsolete.

Thanks for the comment about the photos Matt. Making photographs of tree climbing always leads to something good.
-moss

The large should fit you much better. I have a 34ish waist and the large works great for me. You will still occasionally need to readust your leg pads as you climb. You'll want to pull them as far down on your legs as you can. An easy way to do it while you're sitting in the harness while hanging from the rope is:

• lift your knee up in the air toward your chest
• hook your thumb on the legpad's webbing on the outside of your knee
• pull the legpad farther down your leg
• repeat as necessary for the other leg

One other thing I noticed is that the child in the picture also needs to have the legpads lowered.

Patrick

Moss, the "Tengu" is New Tribes new ultralight saddle. Apparently Sherrill had an exclusive on the ultralight saddle for the first year which is now up. From what Barbara told me it is basically the same as the ultralight but with a few enhancements, one being quick release leg straps. She said it will be on their web site by sometime next week. $175

Patrick, what do you think about a large belt with medium leg straps? That is actually what I ordered because the leg straps seemed fine to me, plenty of slack.

Thanks,
Matt

I received the size large Tengu saddle and you were exactly right, the bigger size makes it much more comfortable! The saddle is black with gray attachment points and quick release leg straps. I like it a lot. I would be happy to post a pic if anybody is interested. Is it normally ok to post pics here (small of course) or is it better to link them?

Matt

Glad to hear the diagnosis was on target! I'm a bit jealous, would like to try one of the Tengu saddles out