I think as long as what is used, be it tack or training techniques, suits that particular horse then it isn't wrong. I'm not knocking your approach but I've known some horses who wear minimal tack & are NH trained who are quite frankly dangerous if a situation gets "interesting", it can be just as much a fashion as purring certain pieces of tack on & it isn't, in my opinion, suited to all horses.
When I look at the yards I've been on there have been a lot of horses hacked out in basic tack - I won't class a correctly fitted running martingale as a gadget since it's often there as a neck strap for the rider & should have no effect unless the head is raised above a certain point & the reins are short enough - and others with more on but ridden on a loose rein so there's no effect unless it's needed.
Sadly with some horses in some situations schooling/training is not the answer no matter how well or how long it's done for. With how busy roads are safety has to be key, you don't have the time or space to sort things out. Likewise on busy sponsored rides / show grounds / hunting fields etc it isn't fair on other people to have your horse out of control or pratting around, it feels a bit like bad drivers who say they've never had an accident but they've seen a lot.
The other factor is the rider. I used to put my welsh in a stronger bit for a friend to ride because she had limited strength & grip in one hand & arm. He was ridden on a loose rein so it had no effect most of the time but it did mean if she needed it she had a stronger bit to compensate for her problems. Again looking you'd ever know that & would think the wilkie was unnecessary.
When I look at the yards I've been on there have been a lot of horses hacked out in basic tack - I won't class a correctly fitted running martingale as a gadget since it's often there as a neck strap for the rider & should have no effect unless the head is raised above a certain point & the reins are short enough - and others with more on but ridden on a loose rein so there's no effect unless it's needed.
Sadly with some horses in some situations schooling/training is not the answer no matter how well or how long it's done for. With how busy roads are safety has to be key, you don't have the time or space to sort things out. Likewise on busy sponsored rides / show grounds / hunting fields etc it isn't fair on other people to have your horse out of control or pratting around, it feels a bit like bad drivers who say they've never had an accident but they've seen a lot.
The other factor is the rider. I used to put my welsh in a stronger bit for a friend to ride because she had limited strength & grip in one hand & arm. He was ridden on a loose rein so it had no effect most of the time but it did mean if she needed it she had a stronger bit to compensate for her problems. Again looking you'd ever know that & would think the wilkie was unnecessary.
