Comments on How to Ride Bareback

Always pick a good horse to start riding bareback on (perferably a shorter one). Get your confidence at a halt, then work up through all of the other gaits. Pick a horse that is not easily spooked, and has solid, fluid movements (so you don't get unseated). A bareback pad will keep you off sweaty fur.

For more stability and comfort for both you and the horse while riding with no saddle, consider using a pad and lounging/vaulting roller.

If your horse is rather tall (usually 14 hands and up), and you have a hard time getting on without a mounting post, use this tip. Tie your horse up with the reins or a lead rope. Have someone calm your horse (do not try this with a horse that is easily spooked). Walk away from the left side of the horse about 5 feet, then run up to the horse and vault yourself up onto its back. Once your stomach is over its back, swing your right leg over, and sit up. This is very easy, and if you need extra assistance, have someone push your right leg up as soon as you jump up. I have tried this many times, and it works.

This is an excellent exercise for improving balance! When you go back to the saddle, you are more aware of your leg, seat, and balance. However, regardless of how tame your horse may be, there are little things that you can do to make your horse uncomfortable or annoyed. For example, I rode bareback, and when I cantered and trotted, I subconsciously tucked my toes underneath his elbow, which then caused him to buck! So, don't grip with your feet!

When riding, don't let your legs scootch up under you (as if you're sitting on a chair). Keep legs long. If you sit with your legs up, you'll have no balance! DON'T GRIP with the knees! Keep your weight in your lower leg, not gripped on the horse's sides.

When riding bareback, don't be afraid of holding on to the mane if you feel a little unbalanced. Better to be safe than sorry and falling off.

When riding your horse bareback, if you feel a little unbalanced, it is OK to hold on to the horses mane. Horses don't have as many nerves in their neck as we do. It won't hurt them to grab onto their mane.

When you are cantering bareback, it is much more comfortable for the horse and the rider (and safer to lean forward and hold the reins close to the neck of the horse. When you have to turn a corner you are more balanced and in charge of the horses mouth, also grip you legs firmly but not tightly.

While trotting bareback, I find it easier to stay balanced if the lower parts of my legs aren't on the horse, especially when I'm making turns.

If your horse starts bucking while you are riding, sit back, hold on, and pull gently on the reins. If you fall off and are not seriously hurt, get back on to show your horse that he is not the boss!

Be sure not to spray silicone-based products on your horse where any part of you will be touching before riding bareback. If you do, it will be very slippery. Also, be sure the pants or jeans you wear are of a non-slippery material.

when riding bareback, use a stirrup leather around the neck to hold on to, as it will stop you leaning forward, which sometimes happens if you hold onto the mane. pay attention to your hand position, as bareback riding is all about BALANCE. keep hands level, back straight, and legs long. do not grip, or you will tense the whole of your body and unbalance yourself. practice LOTS OF CIRCLING before trotting etc. as this will help you to lengthen legs and keep your balance. A 10metre circle is harder than trotting in a straight line. If you are not confident at trot, do it very slowly to get used to the horses movement.

When you first learn to ride bareback get used to the feeling over time work yourself up through the walk, trot, and sooner or later the canter.This is what I did and I ride bareback EVERYWHERE!!

A good seat is acheived with a lax posture. A western slouch is often more effective than an English seat due to the fact that there are no stirrups to stabilize the side-to-side motion. Keep a relaxed back and your weight in your tailbone/lower legs.

If you first get a horse, don't ride it bareback. Take time to get used to the horse and how it feels. I didn't start to ride my first horse bareback until about the second year I had her. Try not to ride a horse that has a bumpy trot or doesn't have smooth gaits. You should use a bit if your horse is used to one. If the horse spooks, you will be able to pull it back.

It helps if you are comfortable/confident at a sitting trot before attempting the trot bareback (you can post but only if you've been doing it properly - without relying on your stirrups). Also, I find the most unsteady part of riding bareback is canter/trot downward transitions. Those first few trot strides can be pretty springy so grab the mane!

Personally, I have found that it is extremely comforting for the horse to simply feed it some tasty food initially, and let it become familiar with you for a few minutes. This helps enormously to calm it before going bareback.

When you are trotting along or cantering, if you feel unbalanced, hold on to the mane and grip with your knees.

The usual way to mount a bareback horse is to take a grip of the mane with the left hand, place the right hand flat on the horse's hip, and hop up with help from the hands to become belly-down across your horse's back, then swing the right leg over. If a slope is handy, take advantage. Another way (for the more athletic or agile) is to stand by the horse's head facing the opposite way to him and with a good grip of the mane, go forward and bounce hard off the left foot in co-ordination with traction on the mane. Throwing the right arm over at the same time helps to turn the body so as to land in the riding position. When young I could do this with a rifle in my right hand; the extra weight actually helps, being a sort of counter-balance. It needs some practice and a horse tame enough not to emigrate while you are in mid-air ! If no slope is handy and the second way is not an option, take the stirrups from your saddle, slide the stirrup of one all the way down to the buckle, remove the other stirrup iron completely and join the two leathers together, thus doubling the length with the stirrup iron at the buckle end. Pass the assembly over the horse's back with the stirrup at the suitable height for mounting (usual side), pass the other end behind the offside leg, forward and up the right side of the neck. You can then grip the tail-end of the leather together with a handful of mane with your left hand and mount as easily as into a saddle. You can carry the device with you easily. If you're planning to take your horse into the water, just let it enter the water and climb onto it's back when it has gone deep enough into the water.

The best way to learn to ride a horse, so that you have great balance, a terrific sense of being at one, and an altogether better understanding of your horse and the way s/he moves, is to learn to ride first off bareback on a calm and sensible horse.