I’m not really sure what “camp” I fit into - all of the riding lessons I’ve ever taken were coming from the English disciplines. And I’ve known people whose heads would explode at the thought of some of the things I do regularly with my own horse.
When it comes to tack, I’m kind of a “mutt.”
I ride my TWH in an English bridle with small silver conchos where the browband meets the crownpiece (bought them at a craft store and put them on because I liked how they looked). The bit I use is a Robart pinchless walking horse bit. No massive 10" long shanks or anything dangly or wacky about the mouthpiece, and my horse goes light and relaxed in it.
And I ride in a western saddle (Tucker trail, Cheyenne model). Honestly, I could do without the horn. It just seems to get in the way most of the time, but everything else about the saddle I love, so I’m going to hang on to it for now.
When it comes to attitude, I have certain expectations for my horse. He is expected to ground tie. He is expected to wait quietly when we encounter a lot of debris on trail, and I have to dismount in order to clear it so that we can get through. He is expected to stand quietly if I have to dismount on trail for a “potty break.” He is expected to walk on quietly if I drag a tree limb alongside him while I am on his back, to move it off the trail. He is expected to share a hitching rail with other horses, without creating any “drama,” and to just mind his own business. He is expected to cross streams, whether they’re an inch deep or up past his knees. He is expected to go out on trail “solo” or ride in a large group without getting buddy sour or barn sour.
It is not necessary for him to spook at things like noisy machinery, cars, steamrollers, tractors, mowers, ATVs, dirt bikes, feral children, barking dogs, model airplanes, loud music, construction projects, large rocks, wildlife, hikers, hunters, mushroom-ers, or any of the other things we encounter in the real world.
There is no bubble-wrapping, there is no coddling, there is no psycho-babble about his “personality” or attributing his behavior to the alignment of the stars or whatever other excuses people use. I don’t freak out about stuff, so he doesn’t either. I don’t expect the world to come to a halt because it might bother or scare my horse. He does what he does, and he does it well, and that’s all I ask of him.