Mad River Valley Icelandic Horses, LLC is an Icelandic horse care and training facility overlooking the Sugarbush ski slopes in Warren, Vermont. We practice Iceland-inspired, science-informed training, teaching, and husbandry. We pride ourselves on always putting the horse's needs first, and teaching compassionate, balanced horsemanship and riding methods to our students.

About Us:

We offer lessons to riders of all ages and abilities, full-service boarding, and training for Icelandic horses starting at age 4. We are proud to specialize in gait training and starting young horses under saddle using gentle, reward-based training methods. Our head trainer and teacher, Jess Haynsworth, has a diverse equestrian background and extensive experience training, riding, managing, and competing on Icelandic horses in the US and abroad. She has served on the Board of Directors for the United States Icelandic Horse Congress, and currently serves on the Education and Promotions committees for the organization. She also serves on the Board of Directors for the Northeast Icelandic Horse Club as the Youth Director, and is an occasional contributing writer for magazines such as Tölt News, The Icelandic Studbook, and The USIHC Quarterly Magazine. Jess lived in Iceland for several years, working as a horse trainer for Efri-Rauðilækur, one of the most successful breeding farms in Iceland. Through our close friendship with Efri-Rauðilækur, we are thrilled to now offer horse sales and imports, as well as clinics in the US and occasional riding trips in Iceland.