How to Get a “Velcro Butt” in the Saddle

There are 3 times we fall off.

1. The horse goes one way and we go another.
2. We consciously (or subconsciously) bail — also known as the “unscheduled dismount.”
3. Our horses want us off. (Bucking, rearing, having a nice roll in the dirt and forgetting there’s a passenger strapped on their backs… etc.)

There are a lot of exercises you can master in order to make each of these 3 options less and less likely to occur (and getting that “sticky butt” we all secretly desire.) But what I want to talk about is the mechanics behind these three types of falls and how the mechanics plays a major role in our ability to stay on.

So let’s talk about when the horse goes left, we go right or the horse slams on the brakes suddenly when we were “going forward.”

In order for us to fall off when the horse spooks sideways suddenly or stops and turns, our body and seat at some point during the movement of the horse, must be going in the opposite direction as the horse. This is known as our balance. If we are off balance, we will fall. The math seems pretty simple, but the bigger question is, “how do we not lose balance?”

You must learn to keep your seat and body constantly over the center of gravity of your horse… no matter what. That’s right. Even when we are not expecting it. If you’re seat can move freely with the horse’s motion, then when your horse changes the motion, a truly balanced seat will ride the “Wave” and follow your horse’s motion in the new direction.

Easier said than done, but there are certainly exercises and techniques to help develop your seat so that you can follow the motion of the horse even when your brain hasn’t consciously realized you’ve changed course.

Now for the second type of fall. The unscheduled dismount. In the moment when we lose balance, there is a split second. A fraction of a fraction of a fraction of a second where we have to consciously or unconsciously decide… Do I “ride it?” Or do I “depart it?”

Many times, the unscheduled dismounts was a decision we made to bail out because we were overwhelmed with what was happening that we couldn’t in the moment under stress figure out a way to make it end… other than to leave the situation entirely.

This can work when you land on your feet. But not all unscheduled dismounts end on your feet. You might not have realized that you subconsciously decided to throw your body into the fence or the rail (because why would you ever want to do that?!) but the reality is… it happens. And it happens more often then we care to admit.

So how can you fix something you aren’t even aware you are doing? This one is a mindset thing. We must retrain and reprogram our reflexes to react in a much safer way, by riding it, NOT by departing it.

And lastly… our horses WANT US OFF.

This one is never a good one because rejection is scary. Our horse’s rejection could come from a variety of reasons. It could be from pain, improper saddle fit, aggression, fear, nervousness, stress, anxiety, naughtiness, or—heaven forbid—they are just plain old feeling good (a little tooooo good, if you know what I mean…)

So how do we not fall off when our horses WANT US OFF. I mean, HELLO, even professional rodeo riders only last 8 seconds.

What if I told you there was a loop hole?

You don’t have to ride it. *Gasp!*

Wait, what?

That’s right. If your horse is going to buck or rear… why are you getting on in the first place? Sure, you need to know how to keep a balanced seat and go with the motion of the horse in case they try something unexpected once or twice (but we solved that in step one) but the bigger point to ponder here is… why are you trying to ride a horse you know is not wanting you up there in the first place?

The loophole is to work with your horse (even if its on the ground!) so that you can develop a relationship with your horse so that you KNOW you will NEVER have to ride a buck or a rear or a happy roll in the mud ever again.

So there you have it, folks. How to have a sticky butt… No Velcro required!