If you are above a horse’s withers you will not be as affected by the horse’s rear end bucking. My horse likes to give a little buck for fun when out on a trail ride behind other cantering horses and I always get in two-point when we canter on the trail behind other horses anticipating that potential joyful buck. So my advice is getting above the withers. Pulling the head up is another good bit of advice. I still like the advice of not riding bucking horses, but if it can’t be avoided, get above the withers in two point if you know a buck is coming.
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How a pro does it: 
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=10157750391775379&t=1
Not suggesting you are up to this–darned few people are. But jockey is keeping the head up and letting the horse go forward.
Talk to your trainer. And rest up and get well.
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What a great video! Cool head and a very good bit of riding.
OP, the unfortunate truth is that the best way to learn to ride a buck is to, well, ride lots of bucks. Unfortunately this is not the safest thing to do, and it generally involves getting bucked off a fair bit! I had a very naughty pony to whom I credit my ability to sit a buck, but there were a lot of falls, bruises, and solo walks back to the barn involved in learning that skill!
I would encourage you to focus on developing your balance, particularly through strengthening your core and legs. Practice lots of two point and standing up straight at all gaits, while turning, and while going up and down hills if possible. I like the poster who referred to it as “surfing”- it sounds oversimplified, but the key is really learning to keep the horse underneath you, wherever it may go. This doesn’t just go for bucking- if you ride long enough, you will have horses spook, spin, and possibly (but hopefully not) slip. Developing the muscle memory and balance to stay centered over the horse will keep you off the ground.
In the interim, have a chat with your trainer about learning how to prevent the buck. Not only is it an important skill, but feeling confident in your ability to stay in control will likely boost your confidence and diminish any fear you may have as you return to riding.
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Apparently, it didn’t get rid of it.
Maybe the pain is back (bold part in second quote)
now he would usually just give a bit of a kick if the rider uses too much whip (he’s a very lazy pony), but I heard that he has not bucked for quite a long time. Maybe he was in a bad mood that day
« Too much whip » shouldn’t be allowed.
« Very lazy » = in pain - not well trained.
« bad mood » = in pain; lessons horses’ health should be better managed - not well trained/unsuitable for beginner lessons.
anyways I think I won’t ride him in the near future
Good.
I would still look around for better riding instruction.
Bucks will happen - but very sparsely and not from lesson horses.
Once you have better riding skills and you feel ready for more complex rides, you find younger horses/less educated to train (still with the help of a good trainer.)
There really is no point for you to « ride the buck »… you are not paying to train the horse, you are paying for learning how to ride - I find it really appaling that you have to come here and ask such question as if it was « normal ».
Your trainer should have give you directions during and after the lesson - and she should have been very apologetic…
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When you feel it coming on, pick their head UP. They can’t buck that hard if their head is up. Then I would add some leg to get them forward and moving out. And it also serves as a “don’t even think about it” message. As far as your body, it’s best to just remember to sit deep but honestly that comes with time. The more you ride and the stronger you get the more “sticky” and you get in the saddle. Once you get really strong you’ll get to a point where if they throw a little buck your leg and core strength will keep you in place and you’ll be able to say “well that was cute” and continue on!
One of the main take-aways from the video is no stirrups = longer leg = the old race track addage: The longer you ride, the longer you ride. It’s much easier to stay on a bucking horse if you immediately free yourself from your stirrups; you’ll have more leg to grip with and balance yourself. Stirrups can be a semi-static pivot point; tend to pitch a rider forward in the same direction the buck does.
In synergy with ‘no stirrups’ is ‘leaning back’ – as this jock does. He’s using his long rein hold as leverage to balance upper body + helps keep horse’s head up. A whole process of quick thinking, muscle memory and learning what works.
But I agree with what @alibi_18 said: There really is no point for you to « ride the buck »… you are not paying to train the horse, you are paying for learning how to ride.
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To sit a buck, you need a chair seat.
That’s exactly what the jockey in the video has done. Bring your legs up and out of the stirrups, where the knee-to-ankle portion of your leg is clamped onto the horse ahead of your body if your feet end up behind you, it is pretty much always game over. You want your leg out in front.
Then bring the horse’s head up and to the side. It’s harder for a determined horse to yank it’s head down (and pull you forward) if you get it’s neck curled around. Also harder for the horse to rear.
But yeah, I wouldn’t ride a bucker that wasn’t mine. The horses that have ever seriously bucked with me all were rescues with serious previous-owner issues, and now that I have a job and a mortgage, wouldn’t do it again.
It’s handy knowledge to have for just in case, but like others have said, the description makes me wonder if it’s a pain problem.
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Unless you are taking lessons in order to ride saddle broncs in a rodeo, you should not be learning to ride on a horse that bucks.
Don’t ride the horse that bucks, and if that is all that is available for you to ride, please find another lesson barn. It is not OK to use horses that buck in a lesson program.
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The shape a horse makes during a buck is not dissimilar to the shape they make going down a down bank or a drop fence. Experience XC schooling, eventing, or foxhunting will give you good survival skills for being in the right balance with the horse to stay with it no matter what’s going on under you.
The OP is a beginner, 3 yrs of riding, and is nowhere near XC schooling.
And jumping around in a controlled way, while the form might be similar, is quite different when the legs are going sideways in an abrupt way.
Horses aren’t « out of control » while jumping - and that’s a big difference, especially for a beginner rider.
Is a person doing XC better at sitting a buck? Obviously, but when one is ready to ride XC, I hope they are more solid in the tack than a beginner on the flat.
All horses can buck, lesson horses included. OP isn’t getting bucked off every other lesson, it’s happened twice? IMO it’s not a sign of being overhorsed if it’s that infrequent of an occurrence. People can have off days, horses can have off days and I firmly believe that if you want to be a good rider, you have to ride horses that are a little more of a challenge. Obviously it’s a balance and you have to be really careful but a novice with a good seat and under instruction should be able to ride a greenie that needs some miles. It kind of blows my mind that that makes so many COTHers clutch their pearls.
If this rider has been bucked off the same lesson horse twice then I am willing to bet that so have others. No. Lesson horses should not do this and if they suddenly start doing it they are probably in pain so the reason needs to be found.
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I think that’s a good way to be a permanent beginner if you have that mentality. I’ve seen plenty of “lesson horses” that will buck if you’re loose in the tack. Trainers just have to know if the student they put on that horse is advanced enough for that horse. That doesn’t make anyone reckless. A good lesson program SHOULD have more advanced horses for students to move up on. After you’ve been riding for a few years and have a decent seat, the horses won’t be so forgiving.
I think it’s kind of ridiculous to think of this as a black or white issue of either the horse bucks or it doesn’t. I mean my horse doesn’t buck but if a beginner got on and started flopping around on her back she probably would.
This is totally in the instructor, you do not put the beginner flopping around on just any horse. If the same horse is bucking people off it is the instructor’s fault, not the horses.
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That’s exactly what I’m saying. But to say “if the lesson horse bucks why is it a lesson horse?!” I mean… come on. All horses CAN buck. Someone getting bucked off twice in 3 years is no concern for outrage. I’m sure OP is a competent rider and is usually a good fit for that horse but either she or the horse or both just had an off day. It happens.
Getting bucked off once in a blue moon? Sure. That’s the reality of riding horses. It always has a small chance if happening. My “would trust her with anybody” mare bucked me off awhile back. A week later I’m the one kicking myself. She was getting ready to pop an abscess and I was too sense to read her objections.
My point is, if this is turning into a regular or semi-regular occurrence, it does not benefit the OP to risk getting hurt.
It’s one thing if it’s your own horse that you’re learning how to handle. The OP does not own this horse, is not responsible for the horse’s behavior. The OP does not have the power to investigate or treat possible pain causing the bucking. The OP has nothing significant to gain from riding someone else’s chronic bucker, and plenty of things to lose, like losing riding time while waiting for a broken wrist to heal.
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As above I am not talking about a lesson horse that bucked once in 3 years. I am saying if several are bucked off in a week or 2.
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It blows my mind that you think it’s OK for a trainer to put a beginner on an animal that is known to buck. It’s counterproductive.
Many a person (child and adult) has lost interest in riding and quit, or has developed fear issues, due to being poorly mounted as a beginner. I have never known any quality lesson program that put novice riders on horses that buck. Good programs choose their lesson horses wisely and take good care of them.
“All horses can buck”. That’s true, but not all horses do buck. and quality lesson horses do not buck unless they are in pain. If the trainer is unable to find and maintain good lesson horses (that don’t buck) than a change of lesson program is definitely in order.
No one here is “pearl clutching”. Most of us just know the difference between a quality lesson program and a poor one, and this one sounds like a poor one.
Riding is risky and safety is the #1 priority of a qualified instructor. No knowledgeable, competent instructor puts a beginner on a known bucker.
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The video is useful for you to ascertain what really happened and how/why you fell off. Oftentimes especially with beginner riders the event feels much different than it actually was.
I find that there are different types of bucks and staying on depends on what they’re really doing. A horse that’s more crowhopping, lightly bucking while moving forward is one you can stay up and over a bit, almost letting them just carry on underneath you while you get their head up and push them forward. You see this in some of the big jumpers where the rider stays over the withers and the bucks just stay underneath and behind them. However - this is something that only an experienced rider should do, because it can easily turn into a big buck if you aren’t ready!
A real buck where the front end stops, shoulder drops, and hind end launches, you want to have your shoulders back and leg in front of you, core strong - but not stiff in the saddle or the horse’s force will meet your tightness and propel you more. You want more of a soft strength - some softness to absorb the energy but strength to keep from being thrown off.
In general, a horse that’s moving forward with his head up can’t give a real strong buck. He can leap around but that’s much easier to stay on (for an experienced rider) than true bucking.
Watching rodeo bucking horses, while fun (I love watching it personally!) doesn’t really translate. The riders’ whole goal is riding the full out bucker in a really specific style and position, which they are scored on. They’re one handed and in saddle broncs hold a lead rope and in bareback are tied in (like bull riding). It’s very exaggerated compared to what we typically encounter in our riding, and their style and method of staying on reflects that.
Experience is everything. At your skill level you shouldn’t be riding buckers (although every horse, even lesson horses, can buck from time to time). But you can work on your leg strength, core strength, and overall position, and all those things will help if and when a buck (or a spook or a whatever!) happens.
