Do you think bareback riding would improve a riders seat?

QueenOfCadence said:
However, please explain how you lifted yourself from your horse's back - not using any contracted muscles to get you there (since you could do it without clenching)? I'd love to know your secret
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I don't believe it's necessary to 'lift' yourself off a horse's back. A young Canadian girl I knew in Argentina jumped her mare beautifully bareback.
FTR, I've tried riding PF bareback and it's absolute torture because she's so narrow, and also very slippery :(
 
QueenOfCadence said:
I've jumped bareback a few times and I've been told how lovely and relaxed my seat looks - of course only I know that I'd prefer to have taken the jump with stirrups because it would've meant a lot less restriction for my horse

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You're actually putting your weight on your hands in this photo and, therefore, onto his withers. You're also folding far too much for the height of the jump, this would be true whether you were riding bareback or in a saddle. Jumping bareback you should still release with your hands.

There's no reason that you should stop riding bareback if you do dressage, it's a useful way of learning feel and brilliant for sitting trot. I agree with Black Horse, if you're gripping then you're not secure. There's no reason at all to grip when you're riding bareback if you have a secure seat.

I use a bareback pad now but always used to ride bareback a lot.
 
having ridden for 8 months bareback with out having sat in a saddle in all that time i can say yes i can sit to pretty much anything much horse throws at me whether that be a leap sideways when spooking, rodeoing in canter, bucking, rearing, spinning, rearing and spinning at the same time haha (not saying i couldnt sit to it with a saddle just that i probably wouldnt have been able to sit to it on my rather slippery horse before) although i have learnt some bad habbits like sitting on him like an arm chair and slouching as there isnt the support you get with a saddle but i think every so often it would be a very helpful thing :)
 
personally i hate riding in the saddle, i can't feel my horse properly and can't predict what she's going to do as easily, i ride bareback about 4-5 times a week for whole 45min-1h sessions, i concentrate better and relax, so does my mare, i only need to make a slight movement and she responds. in the saddle it takes both of us longer to concentrate and relax, plus i find her a lot more spooky in her saddle. yes i do have a more ''armchair'' like position but it doesn't affect me when i ride in the saddle which is rarely, only for hacking and competing. it has now got to the point where me and her jump better and more controled when bareback so i'm trying to find something that is as close to bareback as possible but is also competition legal. i feel confident enough to hack around the fields bareback and gallop bareback and jump up to 1.15 bareback :)
here's some pictures taken last week :)
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i believe that if i didn't ride bareback i would not be able to recover from this and jump the rest of the 1metre track without both stirrups:
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Sorry to slightly hijack this, but for those of you who have bareback pads, would you recommend them/are there any particular brands that are good? I'm debating getting one (plan for the summer is to do lots of bareback!), although on a budget and i've seen some ridiculously expensive ones!
 
azouria said:
Sorry to slightly hijack this, but for those of you who have bareback pads, would you recommend them/are there any particular brands that are good? I'm debating getting one (plan for the summer is to do lots of bareback!), although on a budget and i've seen some ridiculously expensive ones!
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I picked one of these up second hand for about £30
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Treeless-..._Equipment&hash=item564831b495#ht_2719wt_1185

a rip off of the extremely expensive one
http://www.equinewhispers.co.uk/sho...elle-premium-bareback-riding-pad/prod_10.html

Not that I've ever been brave enough to ride in it.....{hangs head in shame}
 
I think it depends on the horse. On a rounder, squarer backed horse it's good fun and helps with balance. On a narrower, higher withered horse it's sheer torture and I think it's difficult to work on one's position through the pain. Overall personally I prefer work without stirrups. If you really want a work out rising trot without stirrups is a real killer!
 
Booboos said:
I think it depends on the horse. On a rounder, squarer backed horse it's good fun and helps with balance. On a narrower, higher withered horse it's sheer torture and I think it's difficult to work on one's position through the pain. Overall personally I prefer work without stirrups. If you really want a work out rising trot without stirrups is a real killer!
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That's a good point you know.

How does one make schooling more calorie burning
lol.gif
 
I use a Best Friend bareback pad. Prefer to avoid stirrups with bareback pads by the way, as I don't think the pads are stable enough. I don't like the flat pads (like the shape of the Parelli ones) as much as the ones that have a bit of a lift for the withers.
I think riding bareback does help balance, as long as the rider can do it without using the reins as a form of support or for balance.
 
QueenOfCadence said:
For dressage? NOPE! It teaches you to throw your leg forward and sit in a more "armchair" position since it's more comfortable to sit like that bareback (your horse has a nice pad of fat on it's shoulder which for some reason attracts your leg :p). When I started getting serious about dressage I was told to stop riding bareback as often as I was as it wasn't doing my seat any good

I know I'll receive some backlash for this comment but it's the unfortunate truth :p

Here is a typical example of above mentioned "armchair" position (this is me :p - don't laugh):

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Actually, and at grave risk of making more "friends" this weekend, I would say that it is not bareback riding which was bad for your seat, but bad bareback riding.

It is entirely possible to sit correctly whilst bareback, without lazily sliding back into the chair position and leaning back, it just takes balance and practice - just as it is also possible to jump bareback without leaning your weight on your pony's withers :rolleyes:

I often school bareback, particularly if I'm doing mostly lateral work in walk and trot. F responds very well to the clarity of aids I can give bareback and the effects of those sessions are very evident when I next school in tack too.
 
I agree completely with JFTD.

I have ridden numerous different horses over the years and learnt the most bareback riding.

Given that a good majority of them were TBs. Well, yes I was in a bit of pain when I got off :D but I never fell into the armchair problem.

The best (and hardest) thing I have done bareback is rising trot. Holy heaven on earth you will be in a whole world of pain but wowsers, the improvement and outcome are so worth it.

Riding in a saddle you can end up in the arm chair position if you are not paying enough attention to your riding.

My instructor told me that I Had to stop riding bareback because I fell to pieces in the saddle. I discovered that regardless I fell to pieces in the saddle. How did I fix it? Stopped having lessons :D:D:D:D:D:D:D

BTW - I am never going to be a 'serious' rider, riding bareback is never going to interfere with my non-existent competition life :p
 
To those who say bareback is not suitable for dressage - Carl Hester never rode with a saddle until he got his first job after leaving school, which could explain why he has such a perfect seat. Correct bareback riding is not a chair seat. Being in such close contact with the horse allows the rider to adopt a deep three point seat with the legs hanging loose and down from the hips and balance coming from the core, with the body in the perfect shoulder, hip, heel alignment. Whilst a horse with a flat back and no withers is very comfortable bareback, high withered horses with a more prominent spine are not uncomfortable if the rider sits properly. The joy of bareback flatwork schooling and jumping is the horse is not restricted by having to wear a saddle so is far more free in their movement, whilst the rider can feel every muscle beneath them so communication between horse and rider - for example the weight aids - is more subtle and far more effective.
 
azouria said:
Sorry to slightly hijack this, but for those of you who have bareback pads, would you recommend them/are there any particular brands that are good? I'm debating getting one (plan for the summer is to do lots of bareback!), although on a budget and i've seen some ridiculously expensive ones!
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Zilco do a really nice one, I love it! £28 and it has A pocket each side for picnics or hoof pick etc and comes with a drinks bottle that slots neatly into one side

http://www.zilco.eu/products/794500
 
I second the Zilco Lissy Bear.

I have had mine for a few weeks now and love it. Super comfortable (can't feel my boy's wither through it). I have been riding in shorts and the fleece makes my legs itch and scratches the bare skin but I am not used to using fleece. Could also be the heat making my legs react to the fleece.

Others that I looked at in a numnah shape didn't have as much room and didn't have the side pockets, they are very useful (never would have thought I'd need them).

Very pleased with mine.:)
 
QueenOfCadence said:
For dressage? NOPE! It teaches you to throw your leg forward and sit in a more "armchair" position

I know I'll receive some backlash for this comment but it's the unfortunate truth :p
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No, good bareback riding is not like this at all, it may be more difficult for some people and therefore they will decide it is not worth the effort, but if worked on (the way you would work on anything else) my own feeling is that it is a brilliant way to develop feel, especially for children. Very little children have a very 'natural' way of sitting on a horse bareback which older people struggle to replicate.

QueenOfCadence said:
I disagree. I'd LOVE to see someone doing a light seat bareback without gripping:rolleyes: - It's impossible.
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No, it's not :)

shiny-ISH said:
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Fantastic photo :D

JFTD said:
It is entirely possible to sit correctly whilst bareback, without lazily sliding back into the chair position and leaning back, it just takes balance and practice - just as it is also possible to jump bareback without leaning your weight on your pony's withers :rolleyes:
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You said it better than me! I ride bareback a fair bit and think it is a very good way of improving my 'seat' but yes, it takes work, especially at first :)
 
Yes it would. When I went to USA for 3 months to learn more on western riding - I wasnt allowed to ride the horses with tack on untill I could ride and sit as if was riding with a saddle on.
 
I learned to ride bareback aged 10 on an old riding school pony with a high wither and narrow back, both having lessons and hacking out along main roads with a gallop along a dirt track half way round, so bareback riding has never been a problem - even now, 55 years later - but I can appreciate why people might think they have to grip to stay on. Have faith in your natural balance and sit tall. Get someone to lunge you at first -don't hold the reins, knot them, so there's no chance of you hanging onto them for balance and so you can just concentrate on your position.
 
I'm sorry but I don't agree with the comment that it's impossible to not grip whilst bareback...I school my boy bareback all the time due to not having a saddle that fits right yet... We do all paces (even gallop out hacking) jumping, poles u name it...I never feel unsafe and I never grip him either, I'm always loose. So no it's not impossible it just takes practice balance and confidence x
 
Booboos said:
I think it depends on the horse. On a rounder, squarer backed horse it's good fun and helps with balance. On a narrower, higher withered horse it's sheer torture and I think it's difficult to work on one's position through the pain. Overall personally I prefer work without stirrups. If you really want a work out rising trot without stirrups is a real killer!
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I totally agree with the the pain brought on by rising trot with no stirrups.

I was sore for days after doing it for 10 minutes!!
 
At risk of sounding like a complete idiot... ;) When rising trot bareback, do you grip with any of your leg to rise?? Or do you sort of bounce?

Rather daft question to ask having ridden for over 10years...but it was never explained to me when I had to do it. I was just told to rise! And not to stop!! Oh, and that canter was far more comfortable ;)

Ps Am about to rekindle my bareback riding after 5 years off thanks to this thread... my seat is in need of some attention after some nasty experiences, I need to relax again :)
 
anna22 said:
At risk of sounding like a complete idiot... ;) When rising trot bareback, do you grip with any of your leg to rise?? Or do you sort of bounce?

Rather daft question to ask having ridden for over 10years...but it was never explained to me when I had to do it. I was just told to rise! And not to stop!! Oh, and that canter was far more comfortable ;)

Ps Am about to rekindle my bareback riding after 5 years off thanks to this thread... my seat is in need of some attention after some nasty experiences, I need to relax again :)
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Good question. It wasn't explained to me either. I'd like to know too.
 
This has inspired me to try schooling bareback. I used to ride bareback a lot when I was younger but since I was about 13 I've only done it a few times........ Won't be cantering until we iron out the transitions though!
 
I have no idea about describing how to do rising trot bareback. I was never 'told' how to, I just 'did' it. It took a fair bit of sitting trot etc bareback first to be able to maintain rising trot though. To me, it doesn't feel like I'm gripping with my legs anywhere when rising bareback, but rather have my leg stable and down and under me and feels no different to having stirrups rising?
 
I much prefer to ride bareback as i feel aswell more 'connected' to my mare, and she definatly prefers it.

To make it more comfier i just use a elacticated surcingle and a thick poly pad.
 
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