I have hunted from a saddle about three years now. I feel more comfortable and have better control when in a straight tree. A bend in the tree located at your level will help pull you away from the tree thanks to gravity. Thats not a great thing when you need to work around the tree on your foot peggs. One tip on the comfort factor is a chest harness. My saddle has an elastic chest harness but adds no useful support. I purchased a chest harness from New tribe. New Tribe sells tree climbing gear from their online site. I hook my chest harness into my strap that connects me to the tree using a large carabiner. It does get in the way of drawing my bow but I have always been able to disconnect when deer come in. It makes my sit alot more comfortable for me. I am 265 pounds and have a bad back so I love anything that will help in that regard.