With all the mail that comes across my desk, it takes something special to pique my interest. How about a riding catalogue featuring real people? Better yet, local riders, trainers, and horses I recognize! Forget flawless models, I like the sight of real people who look comfortable on and around horses. I got just such a treat when the catalog for F.I.T.S. PerforMax™ dropped onto my desk.

F.I.T.S. stands for Fun In the Saddle and was created by Portland’s Sheryl Rudolph. With a lifelong love of riding and a quarter-century of experience in technical apparel development, Sheryl had just the right skill-set to create a truly innovative and comfortable breech.

In August 2005, she launched her breeches line with a “form follows function” philosophy and a world-class design team. With a horsewoman at the helm, her breeches have well thought-out features that help you stick better in the saddle and, not inconsequentially, are flattering. Who here doesn’t want a better-looking butt?

How did she do it? Out of college, Sheryl landed a job with Speedo swimwear—one of the original users of lycra, a truly revolutionary fabric at the time. She later went on to do product development with a technical fabric mill, which gave her access to some of the most advanced clothing manufacturers in the world. With customers like Nike, Jantzen, and Columbia sportswear she was calling on some of the best creative design minds in the business—as well as working with state-of-the-art fabrics. The experience also gave her access to contractors throughout the region. When Sheryl was ready to take off on her own, she had the contacts and knowledge to make it happen. F.I.T.S. breeches are now available on-line and in select tack stores nationwide.

F.I.T.S.’ world-class design team includes the uniform-designer of the U.S.A.’s Women’s Olympic Volleyball, and Softball teams as well as the U.S. Women’s World Cup soccer team. With Sheryl’s leadership, the team’s mission is to optimize rider comfort and performance through innovative design.

After design and research, Sheryl sends patterns to a production company who produces prototypes. Prototypes are modified after fitting sessions and workable models are wear-tested by local riders and trainers, several of which were featured in the catalog that first caught my eye. (O.K., I recognized Dr. Lisa Metcalf’s horse first, then the riders.)

How does wear-testing work? “Several trainers wear the heck out of the breeches,” Sheryl says. “Riding seven to eight horses a day and wearing them while teaching.” Some of her best testers include dressage trainer Bernadine Diers; adult amateur dressage rider Tracy Frankel; dressage trainer Jennifer Schraeder, and eventer and veterinarian Dr. Lisa Metcalf.

After riding in the PerforMax breeches, wear tester Tracy Frankel said, “These really are my favorite breeches to wear. They have just the right amount of hold and support, which makes you feel, well, a little more athletic than you reall are.” In addition to wear-testing, Tracy designed the first F.I.T.S. catalogue, which was photographed by Mary Cornelius on-site at DevonWood Equestrian Centre in Sherwood, Oregon.

As part of the process, Sheryl wash-tests the breeches. “I see how I can destroy the breeches,” she laughs. Then, the breeches go back for more testing. Throughout, Sheryl collects comments on how the breeches perform. “While everyone say’s they’re comfortable, I like the negative comments,” she says. “They help me improve the product.” According to Tracy, the breeches wash beautifully, by the way, and get softer with use.

“So far, we’re doing everything locally,” Sheryl says. “We are really lucky to have Nike in this area. It keeps top-notch manufacturers in business.” Sheryl makes good use of this, by having her breeches produced in the Northwest, as well as tested.

Sheryl does most of her marketing and distribution work herself, and showing off her products at area shows. Her dog, Sprint, is a loyal companion throughout. Her husband also assists at shows when he can and has proven to be a good sport by acting as the company’s first male fit-tester. “We had a dressage barn in Minnesota with several male riders who wanted breeches and I needed to make sure it would work,” she said. “He looked really good in them,” she emphasized, “and the dressage riders were happy as well.”

F.I.T.S. breeches have several patent-pending features designed to make them more comfortable for riders of all disciplines. These include tiny perforations in soft deerskin leather full-seats and knees patches create more surface-resistance against the saddle. This gives much better grip than flat leather or suede, imitation or real. The perforations allow for much-improved breathability and more generous stretch-capacity than non-perforated materials. Sheryl, who wear-tests her own breeches, attests to the stick-ability of the leather seats. “I was riding a big, 17-hand Warmblood this week, who started bucking between A and C. Instead of worrying about getting hurt, I found myself thinking, ‘These breeches are great! I’m really sticking!”

Rather than using one single piece of leather, as in traditional full-seat breeches, F.I.T.S.’ full-seats feature segmented panels, to allow for complete freedom of motion. The revolutionary design enables riders to spread those seat bones for a deeper, more secure position in the saddle. The wear-testing team helped fine-tune the placement of the seams, for maximum comfort. “We had a debate about using deerskin versus cowhide,” wear-tester Tracy Frankel noted. “Deerskin was a clear winner for the patches.”

Obviously designed by a woman, for women, how about a breech with tummy control? The hidden “ab” panel subtly adds body core support while giving a smoother look to the tummy and hip. Sign me up. Sheryl calls it “body sculpt technology.” Wear-tester Dr. Lisa Metcalf, DVM described the cut as “flattering.” Her daughter, Katy summed it up with the words we all long to hear, “They make your butt look great.”

Like most riders, Sheryl got tired of cramming her foot into her boots. To address the issue, she uses a fine, lightweight fabric, called powernet, along the inner calf of the boot, to allow boots to slip on and off easily. The slippery, breathable fabric also gives you closer contact between your leg and your horse. After working with prototypes of the product, wear-testers gave a thumbs up to the inner calf placement.

One smart cookie, Sheryl’s breeches are available in white for showing and “in four dark and flattering colors.” These include cabernet (a deep, wine-color), earth (a rich, green/brown), and black. They’re available in sizes from extra small through large and come in knee-patch and full-seat styles. This Spring, she’ll offer shirts that complement the pants. According to Lisa Metcalf DVM/wear-tester, “The tops are fuzzy cozy and beautifully cut. They’re fabulous.”

You can check out F.I.T.S. breeches online, at their website: www.funinthesaddle.com. They are also available locally at Gallops Saddlery, Glisan Street Saddlery, Noble Saddlery, and Gift Horse Saddlery.

Come meet Sheryl and her product line at the Gallops Trunk Show in the vendor area of The Mane Event., February 17th through 19th at the Clark County Exhibition Centre in Vancouver, Washington.