Bareback: yay or neigh?

[f0rf31t]

Another funny story related to riding bareback: the one and only time I have, basically, fallen off a horse at a dead stop was because I was riding bareback (this was the year I spent an entire summer riding bareback to kind of re-learn some basics b/c I’d hit a growth spurt and that was my instructor at the time’s solution b/c said growth spurt threw my balance off a bit. I was 12 I think, I don’t know exactly how much I grew in the course of a year-ish but it was enough for me to need to kinda re-learn how to ride a bit, I think in 6th grade I was in the 5’2-ish range and then by 8th grade I’m pretty sure I was 5’6. Adult height is 5’7-5’8ish, think I was 5’8 by the time I turned 16.) in shorts.

I was in the round pen for some reason that day, or had ridden up there from the arena IDK now. I was riding one of the lesson horses, a really round bodied (I remember everyone describing him as the kind of horse where trying to get the girth tight enough on him was like trying to tie a piece of string around a barrel) QH with not the most well-defined withers. I was just wearing like, plain black cotton gym short type shorts I think, with boots, prob just a t-shirt or tank top, and I was trying to dismount.

My legs got stuck to the horse because both I and the horse were sweaty (typical hot, humid Midwestern summer day for my area). I kinda got my legs unstuck enough to start peeling myself off the horse’s back and then somehow got stuck just enough that I basically went over his side (not in a planned sense) and landed in heap. Horse kinda carefully hopped in the direction away from the crumpled up all arms and legs 12 YO girl on the ground and just looked at me like “what are you doing down there?” Got up, dusted myself off, went on with whatever I did the rest of that day. Only time I’ve fallen off at a standstill.

[Bluey]

My last ride was now almost 3 years ago, old Cushing’s horse seemed a bit off coming in to eat one morning.
Wondering if I needed to up his Prascend, or haul him to the vet for an early spring checkup, I decided later first to get on for a quick check, see how he moved.
I hoppen on bareback, walked and trotted a bit around the barn and yard and he seemed fine.
As I was sliding down the side, in landing my funky knees gave up on me and I ended in a heap underneath.
He didn’t move, just looked back at me like did you meant to do that?

When riding bareback, some times is the sliding off that is tricky.

[risuenaVT]

Theoretically the only reason why I don’t ride bareback more often is that I am short with short legs which make mounting a solid 16hh gelding a bit more difficult.That doesn’t completely stop me though, and I do especially like it in the winter because his back is warmer than his saddle. But also, I have almost wiped out mounting bareback so many times…

[quietann]

Picture me (5’2" if I stretch, not agile), Feronia (15 hands if she stretches), and a 2 step mounting block. No saddle; I had to give myself a pretty good launch to get onto her back. Except it was a little too good, and I went right over her back and landed in a heap on the other side. I definitely got The Look from her.

[2DogsFarm]

@Bluey

with the horse cantering on the longe line, makes it effortless, from both sides.

Maybe it’s because I was in my early 30s when I was taught vaulting, but I was in good shape physically.
I did aerobics (sometimes twice a day) & weightlifted. I just never had the spring in my legs to get on that way.
My trainer would run alongside me & boost me up
He had an actual leather vaulting surcingle with handholds he’d brought back from Germany.
He was also in his 30s, but really proficient, easily doing tricks like Scissor Kicks & Cossack Hang.
There were 3 of us who vaulted, all adults, but talk about a mixed bag…
I was 5’4", the other woman was under 5’ & her BF was over 6’
Somehow we managed, even formed a pyramid
The horse we used was a DraftX schoolie, who’d let us know he was finished with the lesson by gently bucking

[Bluey]

@2DogsFarm

Maybe it’s because I was in my early 30s when I was taught vaulting, but I was in good shape physically.
I did aerobics (sometimes twice a day) & weightlifted. I just never had the spring in my legs to get on that way.
My trainer would run alongside me & boost me up
He had an actual leather vaulting surcingle with handholds he’d brought back from Germany.
He was also in his 30s, but really proficient, easily doing tricks like Scissor Kicks & Cossack Hang.
There were 3 of us who vaulted, all adults, but talk about a mixed bag…
I was 5’4", the other woman was under 5’ & her BF was over 6’
Somehow we managed, even formed a pyramid
The horse we used was a DraftX schoolie, who’d let us know he was finished with the lesson by gently bucking

We taught first without a horse how to canter like a horse.
Then how to get on with horse standing there, is a trick to throw your upper weight down in front at the same time you throw your lower weight up, your middle the fulcrum.
Teacher helps you flip bumping your behind up until you get it.
Then put it all together when you canter along with your horse and at the right time let the horse’s motion effortless hoist you up there.
Works same from the other side and you can hop on and down on the other side and back on all in the same strides with the horse.

A bigger horse seemed to help 4’11" me, easier than a shorter horse, gives you more uhmp up there on the upswing.

[sophie]

LOL! I’ve done that too, but with a saddle, because I was pregnant and my balance etc. was all wacky. My Morgan mare just stood there looking at me landing hands first on the other side of her, while everyone around was rushing to me “OMG ARE YOU OK?”

No harm done, but how embarrassing.

I am short, too, 5’3 on a good day, but when I was young I was very agile (doing gymnastics regularly helped a lot!). I could stand by the horse’s shoulder, looking at the tail, grab mane with my left hand, and swing my right leg up and over while keeping my head and shoulder down. It worked on horses that were not too round and up to 16h tall.
But I was also very good at finding “stuff” to park my mare next to. Piles of bucket, a flatbed trailer, a tree stump, a boulder…anything would do. Still does, actually

[FjordBCRF]

I’ve always loved riding bareback. My fjord is quite comfy, but I still use a bareback pad most times because I have no butt and pointy seat bones so that’s more for him.

We rode out bareback today to go see our longhorn friends. It was our first outside ride all winter

[sophie]

I used to board my TB mare at a backyard barn. Only 3 horses, no indoor, only a flat area to ride on. We used to snow blow a trail and figure 8 in there, and in winter I would get on the spicy mare bareback, knowing that if she got too fresh I could take her in the deep snow to make her humble…

[FjordBCRF]

We both LOVE the snow, but its been too icy for the farm roads for the better part of this winter. Or WAY too cold/windy to want to be out in it if it wasn’t too icy . This week we have 4-5 days of above 40 degree temps so hopefully that will take us back down to ground zero.

My first barn was a trail barn with miles and miles of trails. There were three of us that rode consistently through the winter and after a massive snowfall, we played leapfrog plowing the trails all over the property. It was one of those super memorable awesome rides. Not bareback though!