Riding bareback - help or hinder?

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CobsGalore

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Does riding bareback help or hinder the horses back muscles? For instance, if you were to ride bareback for hours over a long period of time, would it cause pressure points and damage the horses back muscles?
 
Interesting thread.
I've spent the last couple of months riding bareback while waiting on a new saddle. You can certainly feel the horse working properly. I'm quite small but have a boney butt and was concerned at times it may be uncomfortable for the horse. However he had his little ears perked the whole time and what I really found interesting was that his back would suddenly heat up, really quickly and not gradual at all like I expected. I don't gallop and jump bareback but everything else yes. I think it should be ok as long as ou sit properly and take the weight through your bum and upper leg properly.
 
I ride bareback a lot now - I just don't trust saddles anymore, having had bad experiences even when using different makes and different saddle fitters.

I have never heard of anybody reporting white marks or muscle wastage as a result of bareback riding, whereas I have repeatedly seen this as a result of saddle problems.

However, I still seem to get comments along the lines "bareback concentrates the pressure whereas saddles spread it".

I was interested to see this article recently, giving a different perspective :http://www.equisearch.com/horses_care/health/the-biomechanics-of-riding-bareback
 
This is really interesting.

My daughter loves riding bareback & i often think that the horses go much better then, rather than under saddle.

We went to do a couple of dressage test today, the mare was lovely and active but resents being told what to do! Daughter was rather fed up, but in one of the outdoor warm ups there were several jumps set up. She whipped off the saddle (arena was empty) & flew around the course. Result - mare happy, daughter happy.
There were some mutterings about H&S, but i just muttered back about PC training & enjoyed watching them.

Is it a lost art? Does everyone still do it? Daughter has friends that have NEVER done it.

We wish that they'd introduce bareback eventing, might stand a hope in that :-)
 
Back in the day when I was teaching (before health and safety went mad) I used to let my clients ride bareback for the last ten minutes of their lesson. They had great fun, and it really helped improve their balance.
I'd also use bareback for riders who had hopeless balance, purely because they HATED going bareback, so I would threaten them with "If you don't sit properly on that saddle I'm going to take it away!"

Haha, oh how I miss teaching :p
 
I used to love riding bareback, I grew up doing it, we did have saddles and I did ride in saddles but I was very happy to ride bareback quite often too.
My back is not good enough for bareback riding and to absorb the movement sadly
I always found my horses went well bareback
I would be interested to know if the horses back is better for being bareback or if not, interesting topic
 
My saddle was lent out, ending in a broken tree ( many years ago), at the time I was travelling around the country on horseback. I spent up to 6 hours a day riding, my horse was happy never had any problems.
 
CobsGalore said:
That's a very interesting article, thank you for posting the link.

What if the horse isn't very well muscled over its back, does that put a different spin on the question?
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Good point :)

I do use a pad when riding outside the field (I know the article says not to, but my pad doesn't slip - I would imagine it's only the ones with stirrups that slip and they sort of defeat the purpose!). Pads can have different levels of padding so that might go some way to making up for less padding on back?

My horse - fortunately, despite the saddle misadventures - has a lovely broad well muscled back so is very comfortable to ride bareback. Previous bareback ride was a lovely cob (we even managed a fair bit of bareback jumping) and she also had a broad flat back. I would probably wimp out if horse had muscle wastage leading to really prominent withers :D:eek::D
 
I broke Shy bareback (as per benefits thread - couldn't afford a saddle ;):o)) and we still love to go out and about BB - but as he can be a bit "unpredictable" I prefer to ride in my Barefoot - similar feeling, but less likely to go out the side door.
 
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I think that throughout history all horse riding cultures have ridden in saddles eventually, there must be a reason for this. Riding bareback long term tends to promote a hunched back and gripping knees (from the rider, I hasten to add); not that useful for most modern horse sports.
 
Cortez said:
I think that throughout history all horse riding cultures have ridden in saddles eventually, there must be a reason for this. Riding bareback long term tends to promote a hunched back and gripping knees (from the rider, I hasten to add); not that useful for most modern horse sports.
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Possibly more to do with men riding first perhaps? ;)
 
ChristmasSparkles said:
Possibly more to do with men riding first perhaps? ;)
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Astute observation ;)

Maybe because I'm very conscious of it, but my position is better bareback. Maybe it's my saddles, but I seem to fight to have my leg in the right position, even in dressage saddles. Bareback, I can have a nice long leg, and if I gripped with my knees, I know I'd fall off pdq :)
 
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Brightbay said:
I would probably wimp out if horse had muscle wastage leading to really prominent withers :D:eek::D
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Thanks for everyone's input! It's nice to hear so many people enjoying bareback riding. I do think that riding schools should re-introduce it for kids to learn balance. Health and safety seem to have gone mad.

If a horse did have muscle wastage, do you think that riding bareback would help to build up that muscle again? Treeless saddles are recommended for horses with muscle wastage, although they do spread the weight more evenly than just a bottom!!?
 
I have ridden out on hacks bareback several times, having forgotten to put my saddle in the car.

I have really enjoyed the rides, up to 2 1/2 hours each time. My boy didn't seem at all phased though I admit to getting off a couple of times to give his back a break, I tend to do that when saddled anyway. We did a lot of trot, no canter, not suicidal! He didn't seem to notice the lack of saddle.
 
My mare certainly goes better bareback, I have been seen to surcingle a prolite pad once or twice which was very comfy! My position and balance improved no end this summer after hacking and schooling like this.
 
Love riding bareback as I'm too lazy to tack up. I think you can really feel how they move plus Iove to feel the warmth on my bottom im sure it makes you stick more.
Trotting is ok just sit nice & deep, cantering is the best such a lovely fluid movement. My cob is ideal being quite broad for bb riding but my god, my legs & hips know about it after a 2 hr ride ;)
 
Definitley helps.
As a kid rode bareback most of the time until my parents could afford to buy a 2nd hand saddle. Even then would still ride bareback a lot. Was great fun.
When teaching my daughter the basics, she rode without a saddle and I am convinced that her seat is better for this. We both still ride bareback now and again though mainly on the Fjord as it is like sitting on a sofa.:D:D
 
debsey1 said:
Trotting is ok just sit nice & deep, cantering is the best such a lovely fluid movement.
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We walk and trot BB, but haven't yet had the guts to canter! It's not the cantering that scares me, its the transition from trot to canter. My 5 year old is still very unbalanced and it can be a little hairy even with a saddle on!!
 
its the transition from trot to canter.
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It's the downward transitions :D Cantering is easier than trotting, on the whole, but downward transitions can throw you forward on the withers if not smooth. Or if your horse decides to demonstrate how well they've grasped canter to walk :D

I spent quite a long time training hoss to trot quite slowly and smoothly, so trot is comfortable (for both of us, I think) unless he gets a bit excited, when I do rise slightly to the trot. Done for any length of time, this develops thighs of steel and core muscles very rapidly :D
 
Brightbay said:
I spent quite a long time training hoss to trot quite slowly and smoothly, so trot is comfortable (for both of us, I think) unless he gets a bit excited, when I do rise slightly to the trot. Done for any length of time, this develops thighs of steel and core muscles very rapidly :D
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Sounds the same as my horse. But how on earth do you rise to the trot bare back? Gonna have to try this!
 
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