# icelandic horses for endurance?



## Mulefeather

With proper conditioning and training, just about any breed can be an endurance prospect. The only issue you may run into is that their heat tolerance is not as great as an Arabian's, they're built to withstand cold, but not heat. You may have to take more precautions with making sure he/she does not get overheated (clipping, sponging, monitoring temp more closely, etc). They tend to be tough, sturdy animals, and some people do use them for endurance. 

As far as the size issue, Icelandics tend to be short, but wide, so they will take up a lot of leg generally, and it's rare to find one that goes over 14HH. They carry average-sized adults just fine. The weight limit for most pony trekking outfits in Iceland is 220 lbs, they are built to carry weight.


----------



## Saddlebag

A small group of them were ridden from the east coast of Canada to Gimli Manitoba. The one fellow was 6' and likely 180 and those little horses could tolte for miles.


----------



## Yogiwick

Our mare is on the small side 12.3hh roughly. I know it sounds tiny...but:










I am 5'3" and probably close to 160 /) in this pic. She is clearly NOT suffering. Yes I swear she's 12.3hh, the dog is 28" at the shoulder lol. She just looks so big!

My mother is 5'6" and around 180 and while she never works her and does look a little awkward she is absolutely fine.

As far as competitive endurance I would not recommend it. For endurance basically meaning long trail rides? Absolutely, that's what they do!


----------



## Chickenoverlord

Im just gonna say this.... ITS SO FLUFFY IM GONNA DIE!


----------



## Yogiwick

I always think they look like ewoks from Star Wars XD. Particularly the ears.

She IS pretty cute .

They are REALLY fun horses so even if you don't end up doing endurance it may be worth building an extra stall haha! We got our mare from our neighbor. I had ridden her once (long story lol) and when she was looking for a good home I instantly started begging lol. My mother very quickly caved after riding her! lol. 

Size wise you are absolutely fine. They are Viking horses! You're light enough to ride any medium/large pony up and as seen in the pic above they do take up a lot of leg and can carry a far heavier rider!

They have very thick double coats in the winter. She would be fluffier if she didn't rub out all her hair every summer! (DO be cautious- imported Icelandics are very prone to developing their own sort of sweet itch which can be severe, they just don't have any natural immunity to that type of bug)


----------



## PSNapier

I'm not sure if this is true of Icelandics, but I know there are several Paso Fino lines that are being bred for endurance- I wouldn't be surprised if there were Icey lines being specialized for it as well.

At anyrate though, I say go for it! The ponies are such fun! <3


----------



## The Equestrian vagabond

John Parke's indomitable icelandic pony Remington did not just accumulate over 11,000 miles in endurance, they won the Pard'ners Award in 2006, and Remington was the first Icelandic elected to the AERC Hall of Fame last year! Yes, Icelandics can be ridden in endurance, if they are conditioned and ridden properly!
First Icelandic Pony Named to AERCâ€™s Hall of Fame | Horse Journal
go for it and good luck!


----------



## PSNapier

> John Parke's indomitable icelandic pony Remington did not just accumulate over 11,000 miles in endurance, they won the Pard'ners Award in 2006, and Remington was the first Icelandic elected to the AERC Hall of Fame last year! Yes, Icelandics can be ridden in endurance, if they are conditioned and ridden properly!
> First Icelandic Pony Named to AERCâ€™s Hall of Fame | Horse Journal


Oooh, what a fun read! And interesting to see yet another Sensation treeless saddle... it seems like a lot of Icey owners really like them! Thanks for sharing.


----------



## Gossip

Icelandic horses are AWESOME at endurance, I think you should go for it. I went on an icelandic horse trek and we went for four hours easily. We climbed over slippery rocks and things too, so they can adapt to different terrain really easily.


----------



## Zexious

Yogiwik--Soooo cute :> What is their gait like?


----------



## STT GUY

We rode for a week with a lady who has an Icelandic. We were in the mountains above Santa Barbara, CA and the trails were challenging is places. Her 6 year old did really great and while I wouldn't call him "fast" he was extremely steady at a moderate pace and was able to keep that pace for hours.


----------



## Yogiwick

Zexious said:


> Yogiwik--Soooo cute :> What is their gait like?


She's a BLAST to ride. Just her personality. Gait is a lot of fun and they have several. She's not super set in hers but does it well and does a lovely trot and such to boot.

Yesterday ended up going "bridleless" (aka no hands lol) on the trail and she was just chilling with my dog at heel. There's a barrier of rocks and she went over and I was waiting for her to hop her way over and she stepped over like they weren't even there and they're probably a foot tall or so.

So the gaits are awesome (even the "normal" ones) and leave me grinning but she's just so laid back and bombproof like you don't see in other breeds. She is unphased by EVERYTHING. I have not seen her look more than once at the worst things, if she even looks at all. But she's plenty opinionated (ponies ) and very independent and even if her attitude is "yes silly person?" as she does her own thing she's still amazing. Not at all boring and not overly stubborn. An interesting mix but FUN FUN FUN. 

As a comparison, I also own a MFT and her gaits are more comfortable...methinks cause her legs are shorter? LOL He is super comfy and very fun to ride but has bigger movement (he's 15.3 and she's 12.3 lol so I really do think it's the legs). The MFT is a bit of a mess gait wise as well. Yes I have two gaited horses while not being a gaited horse person and knowing the minimal lolit just worked out that way.


----------



## jaydee

They wouldn't have any problem with the length of the ride, the terrain or the weight of the rider but I don't think they'd be competitive against Arabians in the speed factor.
They are thicker skinned to cope with harsh weather so won't cool down as fast in hot climates either


----------



## grayshell38

Recently met a pair of Icys that were doing pretty happily at slow 50's.


----------



## NorthernMama

Icelandics may be quicker than people realize. I went on a short practice (aka fun) endurance ride a couple of years ago. There was a fat, sway backed, ill-trimmed Icelandic there and I REALLY wanted to tell the little girl's parents that she probably shouldn't be taking that horse out on an endurance, but vets were there and cleared the horse to go. So, OK, away we all went. 

That little Icelandic's WALK had to be held back all the time because he was too fast! That was the very first time I had ever been on a group ride where I actually had to trot my mare once in a while to keep up. My mare is ALWAYS faster than everyone else at a walk, but not that time.

Don't let their size and cuteness factor fool you - they are durable and fast ******s!


----------



## NightFell

If he gets the okay from the vet, I'd say go for it! I've had the pleasure of riding my friend's Icelandic mare and she while small in size, she had a TON of go power and her canter was smooothhh. Her trot speed is comparable to my NSH mare I'm hoping to gear up for endurance rides next season.


----------



## NorthernMama

I think I may have messed up... possibly the horse I recall was Fjord, not an Icelandic... jeepers... now I'm going to have to go back and check my pictures...


----------



## Yogiwick

I wouldn't call Icelandics speedy. They can be. They're also so small that they need to move faster just to keep up. Well a small Arab and a large Icelandic aren't that far off. But I just don't see them being competitive.


----------



## frlsgirl

Icelandics are popular in Germany; I rode several when I was a child. They are short but sturdy and they can be fast...the only time that I got seriously hurt in my entire 10+ years riding history was when a little Icy gelding ran off with me and I took a tumble into a rock-filled ditch. 

They do have a lovely thick mane; perfect for storing car keys, hair clips, cell phones etc


----------



## ChitChatChet

The Equestrian vagabond said:


> John Parke's indomitable icelandic pony Remington did not just accumulate over 11,000 miles in endurance, they won the Pard'ners Award in 2006, and Remington was the first Icelandic elected to the AERC Hall of Fame last year! Yes, Icelandics can be ridden in endurance, if they are conditioned and ridden properly!
> First Icelandic Pony Named to AERCâ€™s Hall of Fame | Horse Journal
> go for it and good luck!


Oh. My. Word!

Remington is 26 years old and STILL doing endurance rides. :shock: I am impressed!

Such a great story, thanks for sharing!


----------



## jaydee

The famous Icelandic tolt gait
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7rWeWymJDw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80zZy8OaUsw


----------



## Yogiwick

I like this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPfo3aOodTg

It's an older gentleman and he has different video but it's nice to see the horse put through it's paces, cause they can and will do a ton more then just tolt!


----------



## NorthernMama

I rode an Icelandic once. Three of us went out initially. They put me on one that I'm sure had Cushings so I didn't ask it do do much. I wasn't too impressed with mine. Anyway, later two others joined up with us on horses and the ponies had no trouble at all keeping up - after an almost 3 hour ride.


----------



## ChitChatChet

NorthernMama said:


> I rode an Icelandic once. Three of us went out initially. They put me on one that I'm sure had Cushings so I didn't ask it do do much. I wasn't too impressed with mine. Anyway, later two others joined up with us on horses and the ponies had no trouble at all keeping up - after an almost 3 hour ride.


I had donkeys and belong to BackCountry Horseman years ago. We went on a trail ride with another couple who where riding Icelandics. The gals Iceland knew she couldn't make it toe the line so we put her on one of our donkeys and my Dad rode her Icelandic. The horse must have know my dad meant business. Perfect horse. LOL The donkey wasn't out to see who was boss so the gal had no problems on her.


----------



## fireandicehorse

Yogiwick said:


> I wouldn't call Icelandics speedy. They can be. They're also so small that they need to move faster just to keep up. Well a small Arab and a large Icelandic aren't that far off. But I just don't see them being competitive.


That is not true at all. My main riding horse is a 14 hand Icelandic, and I have two other Icelandics also. I rode with some people on Arabians about 2 hands taller, and we kept having to wait for them to catch up. I can't even ride with non gaited horse people most of the time because they go too slow.


----------

