Bucking

[nellythehorse]

Most of my falls have been as a result of bucking. Now I have a fear of horses bucking.

I'm scared to ask the horse to go forward in fear he'll buck and I'll come off. The last time I fell off I tapped (not smacked, just tapped) the horse with the whip because he wasn't going forward and he put his head down and buck-buck-bucked, and I went splat:(

Is it common to come off when the horse bucks a few times? I feel useless. I didn't think bucking was a big deal but it never fails to launch me over horse's head.

Please don't tell me it's my fault for tapping the horse for playing up. My (very good) instructor told me to. Am I just too rubbish to ride these kinds of horses? How do you manage to stay on when the horse bucks?

:(

[Lubii]

Breathe, and breathe agian, What you need to do is when the horse bucks and you can usually feel its bum hunching up first but when it dos but SIT UP! push those lower legs forwards and pull the horses head up.
Easyer said then done but if you can do that you have a uch better chance of staying on.
ETA: I have gotten to a stage that when a horse bucks with me i just give them a firm wallop with my crop and if they do it agian they get it agiann untill they reailse its easyer not to buck.

[LongShot]

Aww, there are a little girl at my farm with this problem, everytime she tapped him with the crop he'd give the hugest buck the little pony could, it nocked her off a fiew times and she became aftair to ever tap him with the crop~even when he needed it.

What you need to do is try and feel when the horse is getting ready for the buck. You'll feel him round up him body and lower his head and next you know his buck is up in the air! To stop this you have to make sure

-(most importantly) Is It something you're doing? *** your heel in his side or up his flank? Or is this bad behavior? If it's the little bugger being mean, then it's correction time.

-If you're feeling nervous like he's going to try ~Don't let him lower his head this is how the horse is able to buck BUT if his head's up, his butt can't go up at the same time. As long as this horse doesn't rear, you've got the horse played! Don't rip his face off though, just a stern hold up with his head and you sitting up and heels down, the only way to win tug-of-war with a 1000+ pound animal is through your chest and back with a good seat!!

-Some horses will stop if you leg them forward if they start to crow hop before the buck.

-If your RI thinks the horse needs to get it out of there system, then you might have to let him take a buck or 2, you just need to lean back and heels down! Just as your RI what is best for the particular horse you're on, some horses buck when they're proud of the job they've done (A huge black horse I rode a fiew times did it after some of his courses and I just had to let him give a little kick because he'd get more mad if you didn't let him take a small kick)

Don't scare yourself more then you need to! He might not do it next time!! Keep up the good work and Happy riding!! :D

[horse_crazy]

you did better then me!! one buck and I'm off! lol But it's only in trot that I fly off. But that was last year when my ballence wasn't great, and it's now come a long way and is near perfict, and I haven't had a horse buck since . I agree with everything everyone has said.

[KateWooten]

Me too, I'm afraid. Bucking just gets to me. Anything else, pretty much, I can deal with ... but bucking, you just don't know when it's going to land you on the ground :( That's why I have the one-rein-stop really well practiced to stop all that before it really even starts. Otherwise I'd be a nervous wreck by now !

[ClaireBear_nz]

Most of my falls have been as a result of bucking. Now I have a fear of horses bucking.

I'm scared to ask the horse to go forward in fear he'll buck and I'll come off. The last time I fell off I tapped (not smacked, just tapped) the horse with the whip because he wasn't going forward and he put his head down and buck-buck-bucked, and I went splat:(

Is it common to come off when the horse bucks a few times? I feel useless. I didn't think bucking was a big deal but it never fails to launch me over horse's head.

Please don't tell me it's my fault for tapping the horse for playing up. My (very good) instructor told me to. Am I just too rubbish to ride these kinds of horses? How do you manage to stay on when the horse bucks?

:(

My philosophy is to set your weight back and grip really tightly with your eyes up. Don't worry about what you look like but keep your head up, your weight back and yourself anchored in a sense.

:o Way too much experience with that one!

[julia gulia]

My philosophy is to set your weight back and grip really tightly with your eyes up. Don't worry about what you look like but keep your head up, your weight back and yourself anchored in a sense.

:o Way too much experience with that one!

You are the Queen of the bucking broncos :D

I also apply pressure on the mouth which is released as soon as the horse even thinks about relaxing. Then it's groundwork and flexing and the one rein stop. Can't leave home without the breaks in working order .

[Fanshawe]

There's no need to feel useless for coming off after bucking- especially several of them! I was lucky in that I used to ride a horse that would buck almost every hack (from sheer delight rather than pain!) but her bucks were really really easy to sit to as she didn't intend to get me off. That gave me the experience I needed so that it was easier to sit to ones that weren't so comfortable! Eventually you will learn the signs and be able to stop them.

Oh and if you get a chance to go on one of the mechanical bucking broncos then ask them to give you a couple of goes so you can practice with sitting back/back loose etc etc :D I now take great pleasure in getting on (normally in a ball gown!) and staying on longer than the men who cling on for dear life and think strength works best! :D

Having suppleness in your lower back helps so being worried about it makes it worse as you tense up! The advice above is what I would do and also check you aren't being too restrictive in the reins when you use the whip ask with the leg.

Don't worry too much about it. Most riders come off with bucks and might be worth speaking to your instructor for some more help/confidence building.

[Sticky's GF]

I think everyone has pretty much said this already....but what I tend to do when my horse bucks is litterally throw my weight back, and pull his head round to one side as hard as I can and shout 'NO!' Prior to coming onto NR I'd never heard of a one-rein stop, but I think it is similar. Basically horse cannot buck with any conviction with his head to one side.

[xloopylozzax]

i would always keep the head up. like already said if the head is up the horse cant gets it back legs up.
my mare bucking bronoco-ed with me in a open field- it was blatant she was trying to get me off. (no pain etc)

i stayed on for the first group (constant bucking for 30/40 secs) then just before she stopped bucking in the 2nd group i "dismounted"

my mum was absolutely sh*tting herself when i flew off ended up laying in the grass on my back laughing!

blackie came back aswell when she realised she couldnt get home (railway crossing barriers were down)
silly mare ;) i took her for a gallop anyway and rode her back to the yard.

if you fall off always get back on- because next time you might not be able to!

good luck anyway :D

[carrimclaren]

To be honest i'd probably suggest asking to be swapped to a different horse if it always the same horse that does it. It can go either way. You will either get used to the bucking and in the end it'll be not a worry or it will knock your confidence to the point where you don't want to get on. I'd hate for it to be the second. Maybe you could swap to riding a different horse, get your confidence and then when you feel ready swap back to the bucking horse.
I own a bucker and she's evil when she gets going. She'll buck and after about five if you're still onboard she'll drop shoulder and spin. The unfortunate thing is it's so quick 90% of the time you're off before you know it.
Don't feel bad about coming off, bucking is extremely difficult to sit esp. if you're scared to death and on edge the whole time. As everyone else has said, you'll feel the back end sort of coil up and tense. If it's only when you tap the horse then you need to prepare. I found with my mare the key was to sit up, lean back slightly, put your feet forward slightly but still keep your leg wrapped round and try and get their head up. The key is to also try and go with the movement and not to let your weight be tipped forward. But to be honest it's one of the hardest things to get over, or at least thats what i found. I was lucky though in a weird way, my girl was so bad, when anything else bucked it felt mild so once i realised i could sit those i felt a little more confident about riding her through it.
Good luck and if you really are worried and it's not doing you any good then def. swap horses. It's not worth it if you're not enjoying yourself. The only i kept at mine was through sheer stubborness and the fact i owned the bloody thing :rolleyes:

[JOJOBA]

Last time I came off it was due to a huge rush forward and then a buck (well, actually 4 broncs, I sat 4 then became airbourne off my 17hh horse) so now Im scared of both - losing control forwards and bucking. My old horse is the only one I know who can do enormous broncing bucks WITH HIS HEAD UP. It's not fun.

My mum's TB used to buck for England, but he always gave you warning - he'd put his ears back, back off a stride, sort his legs out, then launch; by which time you were already leaning right back :p.
With the TB he's a really lazy so and so, and he has a 'wall of resistance'. You'd ride him a bit, then he'd start playing up, you get through that and he'd work really nicely. But the number of times Ive seen people launched off him or dangling round his neck etc :rolleyes:. He used to be on working livery and when I first joined NR someone PM'd me (cant remember who now, sorry!) saying he'd thrown their friend out of the school into the paddock!
But for some reason his bucks never worried me, and even after owning him for 13yrs Ive never fallen off him.

Hector bucked once properly in the whole time I had him - he backed off in canter, I flicked him with the whip and he bucked. It was so unexpected it threw me all the way up his neck with my arms almost round his head. But I knew him so well that I thought it was hilarious, especially because he looked horrified at his own nerve and behaved really well after that :p.

With Jack though, he spooked and shot forwards, I pulled to stop him and he chucked his head down and put in 4 big broncs. I was in a GP saddle (really not used to them) with a very flat seat, I had been riding on a long rein and wasnt expecting it and I just FLEW. Did a complete turn in the air too! Then didnt even have the luxury of lying on the ground feeling sorry for myself because he spun round and I had to scramble out of the way so I didnt get trodden on.

My old loan pony had a funny trick of reversing into the ride, bucking, when he first arrived :rolleyes:.

Bucking never used to bother me too much (even the TB's patented move, which is to buck and then kick out at the top of the buck, so the saddle whacks into your bum and gives you whiplash!), but since having Jack the idea of even a small bunnyhop frightens the life out of me.
I too have perfected the one rein stop for such situations, but having seen Jack buck and bronc in circles, completely oblivious to it, Im going to have to find a very special pony to restore my faith.


Confidence is a fragile thing, if you dont enjoy it then stop riding the horse for a bit - you dont seem to be getting along. Riding is supposed to be fun so ride a different horse to remind you why you took up this hobby, build your confidence and balance up, then try again :)

ETA: I have gotten to a stage that when a horse bucks with me i just give them a firm wallop with my crop and if they do it agian they get it agiann untill they reailse its easyer not to buck.
I have no sense of self preservation with the TB - I flicked him once and he bucked, and whilst I was hanging round his neck I flicked him again, and he bucked again, and I, with no stirrups and clinging on, growled at him and gave him a firm shove forwards and he trotted on and behaved perfectly, as I attempted to regain the stirrups and push myself back into the saddle.
That was in my younger, more carefree (and less breakable) days though.


xxx

[perkypinky]

My lil pony bucks when he gets a tap with the whip - so i know how you feel - i too am reluctant to discipline him in that way as a result. He also will buck if kicked too hard or if he spooks at something or if he gets excited!!! luckily he hasnt, as yet, ever put his head down and bronced!:eek: I would have never considered buying a bucker as it is a trait i really dont like - but the boy i bought him form had never had one buck from him! (really true!:)) So, anyways, he is bought, completly loved, paid for and mine, so its something i have to learn to live with - at the beginning i was really daunted by it and got very down, but slowly with weekly lessons i am learning how he 'ticks' and am coming to terms with him. And hopefully it will make me a better rider. :):o good luck - my 'bit' of advise is not to get too hung up on it if you can possibly help it - but if it becomes a huge problem then i would say to change the horse if possible. :)

[inhs]

id say a different horse.. but also, maybe suggest to your Ri taht maybe a vet check & tack check might be an idea as horse might be in pain, which might be causing the bucking. worth being able to rule it out as a cause.
:)

[titch_]

Belle Bucks,

I also get nervous to push her on incase she bucks.

Im now getting used to it and she is starting to buck less.

How do i stay on? i have no idea!

[grrrktg]

prob being really thick but can some one explain the one rain stop...i lucky my mare dose not buck much just the odd one if we out on a fast ride and that just cause she enjoys it i think

[LongShot]

prob being really thick but can some one explain the one rain stop...i lucky my mare dose not buck much just the odd one if we out on a fast ride and that just cause she enjoys it i think

I think they're tring to get at stopping your horse by turning the horse's head in to there shoulder like a bend? When a horse is running away people always circle in to stop them I think this is what they're getting at.

[JOJOBA]

The way I do the one rein stop is that you actually drop one rein, take the other rein in both hands and turn the horse in a sharp circle.
Doesnt work once they are already running off / bucking, but if you get the feeling of when they are about to do it then you can get it in and it usually stops it.
Doesnt work at speed though because it's dangerous to do.

xxx

[fimonkey]

Aboslutely DO NOT try the one rein stop at any kind of speed! If your horse is tanking off with you and you pull it's head to one side, it'll continue to tank forward but won't know where it's going, and will also loose balance giving a very high risk of it landing on it's shoulder....

Saw it happen to a friend once.. not a pretty sight!

[nellythehorse]

Oh wow thank you so much for your responses:o You have made me feel better.

The Bucking + me going over horse's head has happened on two horses 3 times now (BOTH called Jack! maybe it's something in the name JOJOBA?!?) and they're both on working livery and not typical school horses.

I refused to ride Jack #2 today:o felt a bit silly but at least I enjoyed the lesson without worrying.

I've witnessed a similar thing with the 'one rein stop' at speed :( Horse was out of control, rider basically grabbed the bit ring on one side and the horse lost his balance and ended up on his knees. Scary stuff, but I can see it could work when horse puts his head inbetween his legs and broncs. It's just everything happens so fast when it's happening and before I realise I'm on the floor!

[KateWooten]

The one rein stop is a TRAINING METHOD.

DO a simple search on here ^^ up there, where it says 'Search' and type ion "one rein stop" and press Go. It's not rocket science.

Or, just listen to the insane rantings of people who've seen some idiot pull their horses head round and have fall over. For Crying out loud. THAT IS DANGEROUS. But it is NOT a one-rein-stop.

Good Grief. Dressage means torture, yeah because I've seen someone do it really badly. All riding schools are terrible, yeah, because I've seen some kid ride badly once.

If you do not know what it is then PLEASE stop trying to tell people what it is.

[JOJOBA]

Is my interpretation correct Kate (of course used as a training method alongside other things - not simply as something you do whenever your horse is naughty)?

I personally found the way we used it very useful, averted quite a few Jack tantrums (but not all, sadly).

xxx

[KateWooten]

Yep, from what I've read of how you've been working with it, you're on the right track, Jo. We start the one-rein-stop at the age of about 1/2 hour old ideally. It's a long-term life-long training thing, asking for - and not stopping til we get - softness in the head and neck, leading directly to 'softness' in the mind. It's something we do from the ground, over and over and over with the disengage, until it's a completely conditioned response, before we ever attempt it from the saddle - At a Halt !!! Which we do a thousand times, before we do it at a walk. Which we do a thousand times before we do it from a trot.

And by the time you've done all this, is so ingrained - it's a conditioned response for both horse and rider - any sign of trouble and you just stop it, right there.

It so annoys me when despite having gone on about this and bored everyone to death, you still get people sayinig "well, I don't know what they're going on about, but I expect they just pull the horses head off and everyone dies in a mangled heap"

No. We don't. And to say that is silly. It'd be like me taking my any old horse and beating him over a 4 ft show-jumping course and getting us both killed. OOoh that's so dangerous and stupid that show-jumping, it gets you both killed. Well, yes, if you approach it like a complete idiot it does !

[Harry Hobbes]

...can some one explain the one rain stop...There's a rather complete discussion of the whys and wherefores of the one rein stop in this thread:

http://www.newrider.com/forum/showthread.php?t=67557

...and as Kate has indicated, there are many other threads herein that discuss the topic.

Best regards,
Harry

[jumpingkatey]

Katey doesn't really ever buck that much but a couple of years ago she started bucking when I asked her to work.It was all because of there being a new horse on the yard!
She would normally be trotting round the school nicely and then you would get to the other side of the school and she would stop dead and start going backwards then shoot forwards and buck!

[levi1739]

The way I do the one rein stop is that you actually drop one rein, take the other rein in both hands and turn the horse in a sharp circle.
Doesnt work once they are already running off / bucking, but if you get the feeling of when they are about to do it then you can get it in and it usually stops it.
Doesnt work at speed though because it's dangerous to do.

Is my interpretation correct Kate (of course used as a training method alongside other things - not simply as something you do whenever your horse is naughty)?

No, your interpretation is not correct. Though the one rein stop is used to help influence a horses mind by good trainers, it would never be used in the manner described above.

In Bill Dorrances book he talks about "folks starting a ways up the line from where they are". I find that quite fitting for many folks.

Harry's older post is a great resource for those that are ready for it.

http://www.newrider.com/forum/showthread.php?t=67557

Others may want to "move back up the line a ways".



Keep on, keepin on

Jack

[carrimclaren]

The Bucking + me going over horse's head has happened on two horses 3 times now (BOTH called Jack! maybe it's something in the name JOJOBA?!?) and they're both on working livery and not typical school horses.

I refused to ride Jack #2 today:o felt a bit silly but at least I enjoyed the lesson without worrying.



Never worry about how silly you look when your safety is involved. If you enjoyed the lesson that's all that matters. Take a step back, enjoy yourself and give yourself time to progress. Honestly, once you're more confident etc. i bet you'll probably want to get on jack 2 and take up the challenge. 4 years ago when i came back into riding i refused to ride a notorious bucker at the stables because he'd had no end of people off, he'd tried it with me and i narrowly escaped but i didn't want to go through it again. I was a very novice rider and i had confidence issues. I didn't need that adding to them. I got the mick taken etc. but i stuck to my guns. My life, my bones, my hobby :)Although i am an ignorant bugger most of the time anyway :p
Also to be fair i've found that when they're working livery horses and not RS horses they do tend to have a few more quirks (this is just based on my own opinion from the various places i've been).

[peronacedressag]

A bucking horse is ahrd to ride.....period. It has 100% NOTHING to do with the kind of rider you are. Did you know that Klimke got bucked off of Adlerich at the Olympic warm up ring?

The only thing I can really tell you is this.

1-Ride another horse that never bucks to get your confidence back up.

2-Get a bucking strap.

[Mareish]

A bucking horse is ahrd to ride.....period. It has 100% NOTHING to do with the kind of rider you are. Did you know that Klimke got bucked off of Adlerich at the Olympic warm up ring?

The only thing I can really tell you is this.

1-Ride another horse that never bucks to get your confidence back up.

2-Get a bucking strap.

What do you mean by bucking strap :confused:

I always thought bucking straps were those cruel things used in rodeo's to enrage an animal into broncing, not curing it ?!?

[Harry Hobbes]

What do you mean by bucking strap :confused:
See the photos...

It's that leather strap buckled around the fork (i.e., "pommel")...

It is sometimes refered to as a "nightlatch."

[Mareish]

Ah so not one to make a horse buck then :p

[Harry Hobbes]

The buck strap is there to grab on to in order to pull (or keep) oneself down in the saddle (when encountering rough seas and in danger of being washed overboard). We use the strap because the saddle horn (contrary to popular opinion) won't keep the rider down in the seat (although it may keep the rider from falling backwards). As you can see by that post horn on the pictured roping saddle, it is way too big to use as a handle; hence the buck strap.

Best regards,
Harry

[aussieannie]

Most of my falls have been as a result of bucking. Now I have a fear of horses bucking.

I'm scared to ask the horse to go forward in fear he'll buck and I'll come off. The last time I fell off I tapped (not smacked, just tapped) the horse with the whip because he wasn't going forward and he put his head down and buck-buck-bucked, and I went splat:(

Is it common to come off when the horse bucks a few times? I feel useless. I didn't think bucking was a big deal but it never fails to launch me over horse's head.

Please don't tell me it's my fault for tapping the horse for playing up. My (very good) instructor told me to. Am I just too rubbish to ride these kinds of horses? How do you manage to stay on when the horse bucks?

:(
Bucking is a skill horses learn for defense and fun. If you are falling off with a simple buck then you need to hold on with a neck strap and read your horse prior to a buck and STOP it happening. If your horse is really laying into it and absolutely bucking you off, then falls will be more and more. This is a dangerous and will lead to an injury. Get an expert to look at your horses back do some work on the ground with th whip and work it out. BUCKING IS a resistance to something
good luck

[kaytenherponies]

My advice.... simple.... heels down lean well back and hang on for dear life. My horse has learned to do a terrific rodeo since he had a bad back, its horrid and damn scary. I try to go with the flow until it is over. Im lucky in the respet of my horse just bucks and plunges in a straight line (touch wood) I know if he twisted would probably be off in an instant.

Incidently does anyone else have a cob that does whopping great "tail over riders hat bucks?" or am I the only fortunate soul????

[Mareish]

Incidently does anyone else have a cob that does whopping great "tail over riders hat bucks?" or am I the only fortunate soul????

NOPE, YOU ARE NOT ALONE ;)

[Blair Witch]

I'd suggest going for riding lessons with a competant coach to build up your confidence again.

[orbvalley]

umm - think I'm developing a phobia. Interested in this thread after my experience on Monday of a days trekking on a bucking horse. Somehow managed to sit them all but it was horrible. Having read the whole thread, bucking's obviously more common than I thought!
The thing that was scaring me most was exactly what a few people have said - a tap with the crop or one small squeeze would have resulted in her tanking off (which she did do at one point).
Will do what seems the sensible suggestion and spend some time on a nice quiet horse for a couple of lessons and try and forget about it:rolleyes:

[chickyd444]

my horse has only done small exciteable bucks - but unfortunately he only gets excited when we are doing a fast canter or gallop:eek::rolleyes:, i tend to sit back, drop heals and keep reins tight so he cant drop his head and shoulder, he will only do one or two so i can usually ride through it - thank god :D

[chickyd444]

might help if you can attach an 'oh sh!t strap' to saddle or a neck strap ;):p

[orbvalley]

might help if you can attach an 'oh sh!t strap' to saddle or a neck strap ;):p

LOLOLOL:D

[kaytenherponies]

might help if you can attach an 'oh sh!t strap' to saddle or a neck strap ;):p

We call it an "Oh crap strap" :D

[gordysgirl]

The one rein stop is a TRAINING METHOD.

DO a simple search on here ^^ up there, where it says 'Search' and type ion "one rein stop" and press Go. It's not rocket science.

Or, just listen to the insane rantings of people who've seen some idiot pull their horses head round and have fall over. For Crying out loud. THAT IS DANGEROUS. But it is NOT a one-rein-stop.

Good Grief. Dressage means torture, yeah because I've seen someone do it really badly. All riding schools are terrible, yeah, because I've seen some kid ride badly once.

If you do not know what it is then PLEASE stop trying to tell people what it is.


I can see your point but is there any need to be quite so blunt about it?!
Although you obviously have strong views the first part you wrote about 'it not being rocket science' seems quite unnecessary!

"It so annoys me when despite having gone on about this and bored everyone to death, you still get people sayinig "well, I don't know what they're going on about, but I expect they just pull the horses head off and everyone dies in a mangled heap"

Not everyone knows what a one rein stop is - they were trying to be helpful & suprise suprise - not everyone in the world has read all your posts! Like me!