Gaucho Takes a Tumble
Photo Credit Unbridled
Horses were first domesticated in the Asian Steppes, for they had gravitated to that huge, lush grassland as it emerged from the last ice age. Early in the Neolithic Pluvial, they would have been a prized quarry for hunter-gatherers, but probably one of the most difficult to bring down for walking hunters, given their alertness, mobility and speed. Nonetheless, the unique ability of horses to survive brutal Steppes winters when the grass is under crusted snow, by breaking the crusts with their hooves, would have provided a priceless advantage to early Steppes pastoralists who otherwise could not raise cattle, goats, and sheep. Thus, Steppes herders would have been highly motivated to domesticate horses, perhaps more for their contribution to year-round ranching than for their tasty meat. But herding horses is impossible on foot.
So, despite the paucity of archaeological evidence of horse riding in the 4th millennium BC, and the huge difficulty of doing so compared to riding with today’s English and Western saddles, bits, bridles, reins and stirrups, it obviously was done. The only question involves when, where and how. The best way I know to illustrate the difficulty of this issue is from my personal experience with horses.
If you follow my description below of the hazards and how I finally learned to ride a horse, you’ll understand how Steppes horses were finally ridden by the first horsemen in the 4th millennium BC.
Chinese Plowing With Simple Plow
As a child of seven or eight, I was given the opportunity to ride atop a plow horse named “Sally,” who was led around by my uncle Joe, holding the reins. I don’t know how it happened, but Uncle Joe lost the reins—I’m sure inadvertently—and I found myself riding in the gravitational direction of all nags, returning to the barn at increasing speed. Since there were numerous apple trees around Aunt Mary’s farmhouse, and these stood between Sally and the barn, she very efficiently chose her route under a low branch, which swept me off her back. My riding began with bareback, and nearly ended on my first ride. I’m sure many Steppes teenagers couldn’t resist joining the stream of crippled and dead who first tried riding a horse and, at best, ended up on the turf with significant pain.
Rearing Horses video—I survived that
Unsurprisingly, I didn’t seek out a horse for another twenty years. Probably never would have, if my wife Nancy hadn’t put the idea in my head that it would be cool to take riding lessons in New England. Like most women, Nancy took to horseback riding preternaturally. We took English riding lessons, and rented horses after the lessons. During those couple of years, I added key experiences in Equestrianism which were undoubtedly essential steps for those Steppes lads. Perhaps a gal had been successful first. As I applied my lessons and practiced the various gaits, I had a galloping horse collapse under me. Then, having learned absolutely nothing about the use of reins, stirrups, the aids, and weight-shifting, I finally put together a perfect storm and a white stallion reared up, and I short-reined him—and over backwards we went. Only because I fell away from him, and his hooves fell on the other side, am I here today.
Polo Pony video—I thought I could
Consequently, I wasn’t looking for my next ride. However, eight years later, we found ourselves living in Montevideo, Uruguay, where at that time their Army still had a cavalry. We joined the golf and tennis clubs, and, at Nancy’s suggestion, the Club Hipico Alemán, in Carrasco. Nancy enjoyed riding with the moms from the expatriate community. One day, I agreed to go with her and ride. I even had fine tan jodhpurs, handmade riding boots, and a well-fitted helmet before I went. As I strutted up to the stable to take a horse, the groom mistook me for an accomplished rider (clothes make the man!) and gave me a polo pony mare named Carpintera. As we trotted off to enjoy the endless clay roads—a perfect riding environment to mask my ineptitude—I lowered the reins and whoosh, Carpintera made the wind whistle in my ears as she raced a few hundred yards up the straight road, and then slowed down, which wasn’t something I was sure how to do in a pinch. I was now hooked on riding Carpintera. But, I hadn’t learned anything since that near-fatal Lone Ranger mishap on my last ride in New England. The fuse was burning.
Runaway Horse video—I survived that
Some months later, I was riding with a buddy on the way back along a straight road, when Carpintera decided to go back to the barn faster than I had in mind. She galloped about a mile at polo pony speed and I was so exhausted staying in the saddle, and fearful of falling off and breaking my neck, that I prayed for the Lord to stop the horse. Carpintera listened to Him and stopped gently. I then walked her back to the stable. When the grooms saw her lathered up, they said, “Oh, Señor, you shouldn’t be so hard on the horse.” When I told them what happened, I watched the blood drain out of their faces. Then they gave their verdict, “You must not ride this horse. We will give you one you can handle.” Now, I saw the justice in their words, but who wants to drive a Prius after stepping out of a Ferrari? I wanted to know what I had to do to earn back the right to ride Carpintera. They said I would have to take lessons from the Maestro, who was a Captain in the Uruguayan Cavalry. It was then that I applied myself to learning Equitation.
The next week in Buenos Aires, I bought a book written in Spanish titled El Arte De La Equitación, by Juan M. Romero Blanch. That book was my textbook, and my time in the training corral was my lab work.
Bareback Riding video 1 video 2 video 3 La Maestra of bareback—without reins!
The first surprise with the Maestro was that I would be trained while riding Carpintera bareback, without reins. I would train in an oval corral with thick, soft earth. What the Maestro wanted to see first develop was my “seat,” best described as riding comfortably adjusted to the natural back of the horse at various gaits. Amazingly, this didn’t take long, and I soon felt comfortable riding around the oval at a gallop. Then he had me stand on the horse’s back (he held a tether) until I could handle a gallop. Next, he had me ride on all fours on Carpintera’s back, then flip myself around facing backwards, and continue switching back and forth. In a few months, I brought Nancy, now pregnant with our son David, to the club to see me do an impromptu dressage in the big white-fenced corral. I put my hands behind my back and under my belt, and led Carpintera in a forward walk, trot, canter, and gallop, backing up, and turning right and left on a dime. I then approached Nancy at the fence, and took my bow. She has never forgiven me.
If you want an analytical presentation of bareback riding, watch this excellent bareback video.
The above illustrates the hazards the plainsmen pioneered to finally ride the better-natured of their horse herd, breed them for temperament, and gain the ability to herd horses, bovines, sheep and goats.
Of course, the Steppes plainsmen didn’t ride bareback first. The sufficiently domesticated horses would have first pulled plows, sledges, carts with solid wheels, then wagons. Some kid would have rode one yoked to a plow first. But, having been an impetuous boy, I’m sure boys were also pioneering equitation in the corral. There’d be boys who wanted to ride horses, because these were the fastest animal—like I wanted to fly fast airplanes. As with airplanes, many would’ve died building the necessary knowledge base to ride like the wind.
Thanks for visiting,
R. E. J. Burke