The story of the BitlessBridle in Iceland

It was a total coincidence that I found the website of the Bitless Bridle in the spring of 2007. I was stunned when I read about the effects of the bit and at first I didn’t believe that the BB worked as well as it was claimed in the description. For a few days I studied the rest of the website and came to feel that, though it seemed quite unbelievable, I was reading the truth. My horses were already gone to the highland pastures so I decided to wait to buy a bridle until they were brought back again in December. I also felt that the bridle had to be sold in Iceland because no one was using this bridle in the country, nor any other bitless bridle for that matter.

By the Fall, a few Icelandic riders had already begun to talk a lot about the BB. My friend Hrafnhildur told me that I should hurry up and ask if I could sell the bridle in Iceland. I asked for permission, was accepted as a BBAC and felt very proud.  I’m most interested in the welfare of animals and I want in my life to be of help to animals, so selling the bridle in Iceland was a big step towards my goal.

My friend Harpa, our photomodel in November 2007

Most of the Icelandic riders were very interested in the bridle although a few were not so happy about the new riding device. My own horses totally changed with the BB and were so much happier. I now use nothing but the Bittless Bridle. My friend, Hrafnhildur has found a lot of benefits from the BB. She had come to a dead end with her mare Glóblesa (the name means, “a mare with glowing mane and blaze’’) which hates the bit. Today, the mare is just blossoming.

Between December 2007 to September 2008 I sold about 150 BB’s.  There are 30,000 –40,000  horsemen in Iceland and I am happy with the initial sales. The main riding season is from December to June – then horses go to the pastures. In July, me and Hrafnhildur attended a big horse competition called Landsmót where we had our own booth for the BB and for clicker training, which I am also introducing to Iceland.

Our booth at Landsmót

We took two horses with us and around 30-50 people came each time we gave an arena demonstration of bitless riding. I have to admit that I was very afraid before the first show. My head was totally blank and suddenly I forgot nearly everything about both the BB and clicker training. Hrafnhildur tried to cheer me up but she was also quite stressed because her horse was in the show and she was going to be riding it later on. Then I thought to myself – why am I doing this? And the answer came quickly – for the happiness of horses and their riders. Immediately, I wasn’t afraid anymore because it was up to me and Hrafnhildur to show the BB as well as we could for the sake of  the welfare of horses in our country. If we failed to succeed in every aspect of our work, so many horses and riders would miss the opportunity of benefiting from the BB. So - we gave four bold demonstrations during the Landsmót (the best horses compete and others are evaluated for breeding, many people come to see that) and they all went very well, especially the last two demonstrations. People were very interested and we sold nearly all of our stock there!

During the second part of the demonstration, on clicker training.

The rules allow us to compete with the BB in Iceland (as in all competitions for Icelandic horses around the world that take place under FIPO rules) but people are too shy to do that. That’s why I’m preparing my mare, Stilling (means ‘calm’), to be ready for showing with the BB and open the way for the BB in Icelandic competitions. Hrafnhildur is also preparing Glóblesa to do the same. Glóblesa and Stilling are both very promising and we believe that they can help us introduce the BB in action.

I’m a board member of The Animal Welfare Association of Iceland and I’m in contact with all the Nordic associations. I have been telling them about the BB so they can introduce it to their members and in their countries. I look forward to further work as a BBAC and I believe that Dr. Cook’s goal, and my goal – that the BB will first become an alternative to the bit and, in the passage of time, will eventually replace the bit – will come true if we all work as hard as we can with sincere hearts for the happiness of horses and their riders.
Best wishes to you from Iceland!
With deep respect,
Linda Karen Gunnarsdóttir

“One thing is certain: That is that the power of belief, the power of thought, will move reality in the direction of what we believe and conceive of it. If you really believe you can do something, you can. That is a fact.’’    - Daisaku Ikeda