Bitless Riding, is it right for you and your horse?

If you are anything like me you are always looking for the perfect tool that will bring you and your horse closer in working harmony. Over the years I have tried all sorts of bits, saddle and to be frank some real gimmicks. About 5 years back I gave a bitless bridle a try and had some real success with it.
I enjoyed riding bitless so much that when I created the Horselife brand of tack I developed several styles of bitless bridles along with some treeless saddles, rope halters and leads. If you are not familiar with the premise of bitless riding it is basically riding your horse without a bit in it's mouth.
This is not a new concept horses were ridden without bits for a 1000 years before a bit was ever put in their mouth. There are several pieces of tack that qualify as a bitless bridle, some of the more common ones are bosals, hackamores, side pull, indian bosal and the cross over design bridle. The mechanics of these bridles basically work off the same principle, that is nose pressure, poll pressure and in the case of the Indian bosal curb pressure aswell. The cross over design works on nose , poll and some cheek pressure. The cheek pressure comes from the cheek straps being crossed underneath the horses jaw, when the right rein is pulled the left cheek strap is pulled and pushes against the horses left jaw teaching it to move away from pressure similar to a neck rein.
The benefit I have found from riding some horses bitless is a more relaxed horse, if a horse is comfortable they ride better and in some cases it has eliminated annoying tricks horses do like head tossing and lugging in order to avoid the bit. I also like the idea of having to rely on less gear to ride a horse. If you want to see the epitome of this go to you tube and search Stacey Westfall performing a reining pattern without any bridle or saddle.
Some bitless bridle manufacturers are making claims that all horses perform better in a bitless bridle. Even though I manufacture bitless bridles and often ride bitless I do not agree with such claims. Every horse is different and not all horses react the same to nose and poll pressure, some like it some don't. I have also found in speed events where other animals are involved like polo and team roping the bitless doesn't always give you the precision needed to quickly and safely cue the horse. For 95% of the riders who will try bitless this is not an issue. The majority of bitless riders are avid trail riders, beginners learning to ride on a good school horse or involved in arena work.
There is no substitute for good riding skills and good hands a bitless bridle in the hands of someone who is really pulling and yanking on a horse is going to cause more pain then someone who is quit with a bit, If you are heavy handed or have a horse that tries to evade the bit, tosses its head or a good all round quit horse bitless may be the answer.
You can check out my website for more info on Bitless and treeless riding
www.horselife.ca
thanks
Steve