From: tracy@scoraz.resp-sci.arizona.edu (Tracy Scheinkman)
Newsgroups: rec.equestrian
Subject: bareback riding and names (was: 3rd time's the charm)
Date: 10 Dec 92 23:27:05 GMT
Organization: University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ

In article <Bish.00gn@xanodria.UUCP> Bish@xanodria.UUCP (Doug Bischoff) writes:

>    On Riding:
>	1)  Are there any physical/mental problems to horse or rider
>	    associated with riding ONLY bareback?
	
	I very highly recommend bareback riding for those riders who
have developed a reasonably secure seat.  It will help you to become
even more secure in your seat and gives a great feeling of confidence.
	Unlike some people I don't feel that there are any major 
disadvantages to the horse from bareback riding.  Your thighs will
distribute the weight evenly and well over the horse and since you
move with the horse, where a saddle does not, you will not poke the
horse continuously in one spot to the point it develops a sore or
bruise.  My horse seems to prefer for me to ride bareback and my
dressage teacher who was previously against it has changed her views
seeing what we have accomplished bareback.  I can feel my horse's
back stiffen and relax much more easily bareback and react to help
her accordingly.
	The only problems you are likely to encounter are with a young 
horse who is not ready to do a lot of sitting trot, if you bounce a lot 
on a horse like this then the horse will put its head up and stiffen 
its back making the bouncing even worse.  In that case bring the horse
back to the walk encourage the horse to stretch and relax and try the
trot again at a slower tempo.  There is another alternative to this 
problem however, you CAN post when riding bareback.  It's just like posting 
without stirrups in a saddle.  
	REMEMBER to always try to move WITH the horse when riding bareback, 
especially allow your lower back to follow the horse's back.  This will make 
you a better rider when you return to the saddle as well as making the 
ride more comfortable and relaxing the horse's back.  You can even
enhance the swing of the horse's back at the walk to encourage the horse
to relax and step deeply under itself which will better prepare it for
the transition up to the trot.
	The same weight limitations apply to riding bareback that apply to
riding with a saddle.  If you are a big person, you need a relatively
big horse.  In general, your weight + tack should equal no more than
25% of the horse's weight, 20% on a young green horse.  My 14.1 hand Arab
mare weighs all of 800 lbs on a good day, thus she can carry up to 200 lbs
worth of rider and equipment, I weigh 154 lbs so I fit the limit.
	
>	2)  Aside from prolonged steep hills, are there any times when NOT
>	    having a saddle would prove limiting or DANGEROUS?

	ALWAYS ride bareback with a helmet!  (yes I know we sometimes
can't be bothered but it is a good policy.)
	Yes, when the horse acts up or is very frisky, sometimes it can
move very quickly and you may lose your balance and fall off.  You are
always going to be more secure in a saddle than bareback (except I feel
that the super flat show saddles used to show Arabs, Saddlebreds, Tennessee
Walkers and Morgans make me feel less secure than bareback because they
are so slick).  On the plus side, you can never be a victim of the dreaded 
foot-caught-in-the-stirrup type of fall (which I have witnessed! [the girl 
was VERY lucky and came out of it ok] For this reason when I ride English I
use Peacock style safety stirrups, they have rubber bands on one side
which release in the event of a fall.  Other better stirrups are 
available but they are very expensive.  And, no, the safety release on
the saddle doesn't work!) so when you fall off a horse you are riding
bareback you won't get dragged by a stirrup.  However ...
	NEVER ride a bareback pad with stirrups attached unless you also
use a properly adjusted (meaning somewhat tight) Western breastcollar
attached to the pad.  The kind that forms a V at the horse's chest and
attaches to the bareback pad's D-rings and has another strap that
goes between the horse's legs to attach to the girth is the best.  I
usually use a bareback pad because I don't want to get my pants sweated
up, however I don't use stirrups or a breast collar.  My friend, Teresa,
does use them very successfully.  I guess I feel if one is going to ride
bareback one should not generally use stirrups, sort of defeats the
purpose.
	Generally when the horse is dry the hair on the back is very
slick, but when the horse (and you) begin to sweat the sweat acts like
a watery glue to give you some friction and grip.
	Long rides are not a problem and some low hill-work can be done
bareback.  Bareback riding is a great way to stretch out a rider's injured 
back so that the rider sits evenly and balanced on the horse.

>	3)  Will insurance companies flip if they find out I'm riding
>	    sans saddle?  (Kinda like driving without a seatbelt, I guess.)

	No, they are far more paranoid about people who ride motorcycles
and don't even class riding as dangerous, except for jumping and cross-
country (someone else may have more up-to-date info, this was told to
me 3 years ago by the orthopedist who cast my broken ankle, yeah that
was a horseback riding injury, but I healed fast!)

>	4)  Will any stable owner in their right mind rent me a horse to
>	    ride bareback?

	Never.  Their insurance companies will have a hissy-fit!  The
only exception to this is as part of a course of lessons with an 
instructor in bareback riding.  (Another friend of mine learned to ride
at Northern Arizona University in a course where everybody started out
riding bareback and only when proficient switched to saddles.)

>    On Naming:
>	1)  I promised a horse when I was 5 that I'd name a horse after him.
>	    Are there big problems associated with changing a horse's name?

	Depends on the association with which the horse is registered.
The Arabian Horse Registry does not allow any name changes at all.
However the USDF allows changes of name (except that if you are competing
in All-Breeds Awards the horse must use the name registered with its breed
association).  Nicknames can be changed at any time.

>	2)  Who determines the name of a horse at foaling?

	Generally it is the owner of the foal.  If the foal has not
officially been registered when it is sold the name may be changed and
registered by the new owner.  However once the baby has been registered
then changes are under the jurisdiction of the registering body.

>	3)  When is this name determined?

	It depends, when our filly, Misty Mithril, was born we had a whole 
list of names we had come up with as possibles, but we had't decided, that
evening we went out to dinner and decided that Mithril fit her (it is
from J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings book series and is the Elvish
word for 'magic silver').  Unfortunately someone else had already read
the book and used Mithril for an Arabian so we had to ad something to
the name, we chose Misty because if we ever have a breeding farm we
will name it Misty Mountain Arabians.  (She's a grey by the way.)
	On the other hand I new someone whose foal was approaching its
5 month and still hadn't received a name.
	Prices for registering an Arabian go up after it is 6 months old
thus it is better to figure out the name sooner than later.  (And please
choose something with dignity and respect for the horse.)
  
>	4)  How late can it be changed to avoid re-training to a name?

	Depends again.  Most horses are not trained to come at the sound
of their names, mine are, but they are the exception not the rule.  If
you choose to retrain one it will learn as fast as it learns anything else,
i.e. if it is a fast learner then it will pick it up very fast, if a 
slow learner it will take a while.

				Tracy and Bruce (beautiful man) and
				Cachet (7 year old Arabian
				dressage mare, mother of Mithril) and
				Mithril (2 year old Arabian filly)
				and The Cats -- Isis, Artemis, Corwin,
				Freya, Glisten, Taliesin, and Tamesel