User blog comment:1999of2019/A More Realistic Version of The Freshman/@comment-36277500-20190907125134/@comment-36277500-20190909141419

StoryGirl83 Considering horse ride... Well, I am urban couch potato as well, but I know some rudimentary things... For example: when you ride on a horse, you are shaking. And if you are riding for the first time, you are oversensitive and scared about it (later you get used to it). So if you don't want to fall, you hold the most stable object, and the saddle isn't such thing - your fingers may slip out of it. On the other hand, if you wrap your hands around someone's waist, your hands usually grab each other in one firm grip - there are less chance you'll fall.

When I was a kid, I read a lot of books and watched several movies where two friends were riding on a single horse's back (two knights, cowboys, young heroes etc.). In every illustration (books for children) or movie (also for children), the second person was holding first person's waist. Always! And nobody found it indecent or improper for children. Even if there were mixed couple - the prince was holding the reins and the princess was holding his waist - that was NORMAL in such circumstances.

It's the same thing as if you were riding on the motorcycle. If you grab a seat instead of the driver's waist, well... you risk falling onto the road. Extremely chaste, but equally extremely stupid.