Bareback Riding Tips

Riding bareback is something you often see in movies, but there is a lot more to it than just jumping on and riding off into the sunset. You might be surprised at how sore you are afterward or how hard it is to stay balanced without the security of the saddle and stirrups. 

Getting Started with Riding Bareback

Just like riding in a saddle, it’s important to have a helmet, proper footwear, and an adult watching when riding bareback. The easiest horse to ride bareback is a horse with low, round withers and a flat spine that doesn’t jut up like a rooftop peak. 

If your equine bestie isn’t quite that shape, it’s OK. You can still ride bareback with the help of a bareback pad, and maybe even an additional thick pad under that for extra bony-withered horses, like Thoroughbreds. 

It’s also important to make sure that the horse you will be riding tolerates being ridden bareback. One way to test this is to ride him with a saddle and see how he reacts to you riding without stirrups or even walking and trotting with your legs dangling and swinging a little bit. Once he has been desensitized to this, you can try bareback.

Mounting

Have a parent or friend hold your horse at the mounting block in case you need to do some extra wiggling to get settled. The taller the mounting block, the better. After all, when riding bareback, you don’t have a saddle and stirrups for aim.

If you don’t have a tall mounting block, get a little springy in your knees and ankles like you would for a leg up, and as gently as possible, swing up, aiming for the center seam of your pants to line up with your horse’s spine. It helps to keep your upper body a little lower to your horse’s neck than usual so that you can get maximum swing through your legs.

Position

Your position when riding bareback will be a little different than normal. You will want your legs positioned slightly in front of you and your knees a little higher than they sit when you have a saddle. This will push you back onto your tailbone and seat bones, allowing you to stay balanced using your core and thighs, preventing you from falling back or sideways and accidentally pulling on your horse’s mouth for balance. 

Keep your toes lifted; this helps activate your calves so that your thighs aren’t doing all the work for your whole leg. 

Walking

Once you have the feel of the walk and are comfortable going around corners, try a smaller circle. Really tune in to how your weight is positioned over your horse, correcting yourself if you are sitting harder on one seat bone or the other. 

Trotting

When you are feeling secure at the walk, try some trotting. Trotting can be tricky when riding bareback because it’s so bouncy, but the secret is to not let your legs fall from their position and hang loose. This is because the weight of your legs hanging long will rock you forward. If this happens, you will lose the strength of your core and the grip of your thighs, and you will get lost in the bouncing. 

You may want to trot in short, straight lines for a while as you get used to it. While you are more comfortable and building strength at the walk and trot, you can get more connected with your horse’s motion and footfalls within each of these gaits. 

Practice feeling whether your horse is using his limbs evenly to push himself in a straight line and see what you can do to help correct him when he gets crooked. 

This is also a great time to practice collecting and extending. Notice how your seat and the motion of your hips play a big role. Limit the motion of your hips to shorten the step and push and follow with your hips in a big sweeping motion to lengthen the stride.  

Cantering

As long as your horse has a quiet canter and a prompt canter depart, cantering is almost easier than trotting when riding bareback. Be sure to keep your knees slightly lifted like you did for walk and trot. 

The trickiest part of cantering is coming back down to the walk. Be sure you saved enough energy and strength to keep your balance and absorb your horse’s motion as he comes down to the walk through the trot; it usually feels really bumpy after the canter! 

Key Takeaways for Riding Bareback

Don’t be surprised if you get tired. Riding bareback is very different than being able to rest your weight in your stirrups. For both you and your horse’s sake, you’ll want to keep the first few bareback sessions short and build up to longer rides. You don’t want to risk getting tired and accidentally slipping off. 

Enjoy this new skill and remember: With lots of practice, you can do anything bareback that you can do in a saddle!

This article about bareback riding tips appeared in the November/December 2023 issue of Young Rider magazine. Click here to subscribe!