bareback pad with safe, usable stirrups

My kids were on and off their horses bareback all the time as were their friends--I have never heard of a horse getting hurt by a bareback rider. I have heard of and seen horses sored by poorly fitting saddles or poor quality saddles, or horses that have been scared by poor equipment. I guess an over weight person that was a bad rider might be able to hurt an extremely skinny horse or one with really bad conformation but other than something like that I think that is something someone made up. Or was afraid to ride bareback and used it as an excuse.

The horse my DD rode miles bareback in the mountains was just a horse, one that the government either owned or leased and nothing special. It had just come off winter pasture and was not conditioned after a 6 month layup. It was not sore, and did 20+ miles most days the rest of the summer. We often rode bareback as kids as well, no sore backs. I'll go with years of experience, not something that someone posted on the net, or some study that supposedly exists.

You take one of those bareback pads, fitted or not, cinch it tight enough to say mostly in place, put an overweight novice rider on it and you may very well see sores. Of course, an overweight, poor rider is more likely to hurt a horses back no matter how they are riding.

We always had one of those old style pads in the tack room when I was growing up and the old rancher would never let us use it because he felt they were dangerous. Being so much smarter than him, I figured I needed to give it a try and found they do slip terribly, even when you recruit a well meaning uncle to tighten the cinch.

Long before my kids were old enough to go digging in the tack room for their own great ideas, the old rancher and I took it out and burned it before it got somebody hurt.

We did have one around too, I cut the stirrup leathers off before I tossed it out.

The only time those old type bareback pads would work was if a barn cat was perched on it- and they hung on for dear life. Just sayin'.

__________________
People say I can't multi-task. Well, I can tick you off and amuse myself at the same time.

"The Domestic Horse: The Evolution, Development and Management of its Behaviour" by Daniel Mills and Sue McDonnell.

Damage attributed to bareback riding and pad saddles:
1) Spondylotic spurs of new bone on the vertebra.
2) Impinging dorsal spinous processes
3) Fissures through the epiphysis
4) Osteophytes on the vertebrae

I will note that horses found in archeological digs were not nearly as old as our horses get to be.

Research papers using modern testing techniques I'll just post the authors and the synopsis:

A comparison of forces acting on the horse's back and the stability of the rider's seat in different positions at the trot.

Peham C, Kotschwar AB, Borkenhagen B, Kuhnke S, Molsner J, Baltacis A.


Source

Movement Science Group Vienna, Clinical Department for Companion Animals and Horses, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria.


Abstract


The aim of the study was to compare the stability of the rider as well as the forces acting on a horse's back with different seating positions at the trot (sitting trot, rising trot and two-point seat). The same experienced rider was mounted on 10 sound horses trotting on a treadmill. The kinetic data were recorded with an electronic pressure mat, placed under a well-fitting dressage saddle with no saddle pad. The rider used three different seating positions, each for 20 s. Right forelimb motion was used to synchronise the pressure data with the stride cycles. To determine the rider's stability, the movement of the centre of pressure (COP) along the transverse (X) and longitudinal (Y) axes was calculated. The force was taken as the sum of all segments of the pressure pad multiplied by the area of the pressure pad. The maximum force and the X- and Y-deviations were evaluated using ANOVA for repeated measures with a Bonferroni Post hoc test. The stability of the rider in the Y-direction was significantly highest in the two-point seat, followed by the rising trot and the sitting trot, respectively. In the X-direction, there was no significant difference between the three positions. The significantly highest load on the horse's back was at the sitting trot (2112 N), followed by the rising trot (2056 N) and the two-point seat (1688 N). The rider was most stable in the two-point seat while transferring the lowest load on the horse's back. The rising trot was found to be more stable and less stressful for the horse's back compared to the sitting trot.

Copyright 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Forces and pressures on the horse's back during bareback riding.

Clayton HM, Belock B, Lavagnino M, Kaiser LJ.


Source

McPhail Equine Performance Center, Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences, D202 Veterinary Medical Center, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA. claytonh@cvm.msu.edu


Abstract


The objectives of this study were to measure forces and pressure profiles when riding with a conventional saddle compared to bareback riding. An electronic pressure mat was used to compare contact area, mean total force and pressure variables for one rider riding seven horses at sitting trot with a conventional saddle or bareback. The use of a saddle was associated with a larger contact area and higher mean total force compared with the bareback condition. Mass normalized mean total force for bareback riding was lower than expected based on the rider's body mass, suggesting that shear forces exerted by the rider's thighs were not being registered by the pressure mat. In spite of the lower total force, the bareback condition was associated with higher average pressure, higher maximal pressure and larger area with mean pressure >11 kPa. Focal pressure concentrations were present beneath the rider's ischial tuberosities in the area of the horse's epaxial muscles when riding bareback but not when using a saddle. It was concluded that bareback riding was associated with focal pressure concentrations that may increase the risk of pressure-induced injury to the horse's epaxial musculature. The findings also emphasized that researchers should remain cognizant of shear forces, which may not be registered by the pressure mat, but may contribute to the effects of riding on the horse's back.

Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.


Science for those who care. Anecdotes are nice but that's all they are.

I think there is a possibility that any horse found in an archeological dig was not feed like horses are today, there may be differences in the structure of the horse as well.

The other studies used way to small a number of either horses or riders to prove anything ---this is just at first glance.

I think you can find some type of study proving almost anything on the internet, especially since you have to "publish or parish".

A good study would compare today's horses being ridden bareback to today's horses being ridden with saddles. Breeding has changed things over time.I also think you need a much larger sampling to prove much of anything.

I'm sure nothing would even begin to change your mind so ~shrug~

Not enough data and too many variables for me. 7 horses & 1 rider just don't make a good base for the entire study. Questions about that rider, their weight, proficiency riding bareback vs saddle, etc. Interested that the article did mention something about not taking into account the riders thighs and pressure in that area??? I swear when I did lots f bareback riding as a teen I had serious muscular thighs and mostly rode using them.

__________________
Eagle Quest Morgans
http://www.eaglequestfarm.com
Quality Morgan Horses

It really does depend on the build of the horse, to wither there might be damage done to the horse riding bareback or with a bareback pad.
I have her checked every year with a Horse Body works person and a Vet. No issues for 10 years.

To add it depends on each horse's build, it also depends on how a person rides.
If you sit light, and only use your upper legs, there will be little pressure on the horse's back.

Dyfra is very short backed... shorter backed than Arabs. She is wide, broad shoulders,no withers great hind quarters.
I have ridden her bareback or with the Sensation Hybrid for nearly the whole time I have owned her.
She is too wide and too short backed for most saddles..

Also used a "Port Lewis Impression Pad", which I highly recommend with looking for any saddle. It can tell you what pressure points there are.

I tried 35+ saddle on her, including ones, that were supposed to be for horses as wide and short backed as she is.
The worse impressions on her back... where all the treed saddles.

Found out, she would need a specially made "Hoop" tree saddle,,, the traditional A frame had the wrong shape.
Back then, only Hoop treed saddle I could find was being made in the UK, by Black Country Horse.
She also let me now, politely Thank goodness... that a saddle wasn't a good fit.

The Best impression on that pad at the time.... The Startrekk, Treefree Treeless saddles..and later Sensation Hybrid... perfectly even, no pressure points.

The worse treeless,, the Freeform, ... could be because they were in an A frame design...original Barefoot.. etc..
and every Treed saddle. Pressure points were extreme.

Though I do not understand why you think Bareback is worse than with a Bareback pad?
My Bareback pad is thin.... very grippy so it won't roll but it will not offer any protection to the horse's back. It is just there to keep my pants clean.

There are a lot of good folks here, with real working knowledge. Not just what the read off the Net.
They, along with me, do not like to see folks get hurt.

__________________
Shari

Who'da thought that such a simple topic would turn into such a big deal.