Okay then. It seems standing vs running for hunting is a lively topic of discussion. I prefer no martingale, and I wouldn’t put any horse of mine in one – which has nothing to do with whether they are useful. Of course they are and if you want to use one because you need a little more control, please do and please use the type you are more comfortable with. I’ve been hunting since I was 8 (16 years), and standing has certainly been the standard on horses beside me on the hunt, and ‘usual tack’ for horses I have ridden when my own was laid off or I was training a hunt horse for sale. This means hundreds of horses, in plaits, with well dressed riders, and if using a martingale, most likely it was a standing. So all of this is because when asked what the proper tack and outfit was for a hunt, I repeated exactly what it says in my code of conduct. I’m not a standing martingale salesperson. I called up the Secretary, and from my hunt’s standpoint, a standing martingale is correct turnout for hunting, mostly for the sake of the rider who otherwise, once horse hit field, would have a lunatic to control. Horses are surprises. A horse with his head between his knees or in your face, nose higher than his ears is not a horse that can be controlled. You can also much easier throw your reins to someone in an emergency or when you have to pony a horse. Tough to do with a running. I personally like that it acts on the nose when you’re in the mouth enough in the hunt field, especially with a head tosser.
In terms of safety, the only way a horse is getting tangled up in one is if it’s a double-jointed rhythmic gymnast or if it was improperly fitted. There has to be something wrong with that horse if it can get it’s leg up there. I have seen photos of horses jumping 1.20+ stone walls and heavy brush in standings, with great bascule, well adjusted, with no question that it would land properly. I swear that a standing martingale properly adjusted will do what it is intended to do and not interfere with a horse’s jump. If the horse is behaving, it isn’t used at all. The only problem with standings is when swimming in really deep water or going through a bog, or something beyond the scope of normal riding; then unhook it. Those used with a breastplate are often on little snaps. How many times does your horse have to swim a river compared to the times it throws its head or does something stupid before you can gain control? Think of all the times you jump hog holes, blind ditches, drop fences, slip on a hill, go up/down a really steep creek. Then all those standing martingale users would have dead horses. And that’s just not happening.
I’ve also hunted in Virginia in America and there were certainly many standing martingale users at a traditionally decked out formal hunt. Perhaps not the side saddle riders. I’m not informed on martingale use with side saddles. But standing martingales all the same.
