The Tölt Tales

Welcome to The Tölt Tales podcast.

This podcast is dedicated to our best friends, the Icelandic horses. The show features interviews with breeders, trainers, riders, and enthusiasts who share their knowledge, experiences, and love for these remarkable horses.

Music by Cob

Subscribe Listen in podnod RSS feed Show website

37 episodes
Updated July 20

Episodes37

Newest first

July 20 · 1 hr 9 min
Episode 29 - Ditte Sommer
In our newest episode, we had the pleasure to talk with Ditte Sommer. Ditte is known on Social Media for working her horses on the lunge, with impressive videos of tölt from the ground. We talk about how she is involving the horses actively in the training, the importance of finding calmness, the equipment she is using and her new project DS collective. You can follow Ditte: https://www.dittesommer.dk/en https://dscollective.dk/ https://www.dittesommer.dk/en/seesaw https://dscollective.dk/programs/4-groundwork-exercises-for-a-strong-foundation?category_id=285577 https://www.instagram.com/ditte_sommer_dscollective/ Join us now! Music by Cob. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @the_toelt_tales.
June 8 · 51 min
Episode 28 - Julie Darbon-Guillin
In our new episode, we talked with Julie Darbon-Guillin, a french rider living in Denmark. Julie moved to Denmark for the excellent training opportunities, but still keeps close contact with the FFCI, riding for the french national team. We talked about work-life balance, training, competing in different countries and her horse Byrnir. Join us for this very french episode. https://www.instagram.com/julie_darbon/ Music by Cob. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @the_toelt_tales.
May 25 · 1 hr 29 min
Episode 27 - Lala Bensson
In this episode, we talked with Lala Benson, about how she started with Icelandic horses, after meeting Guðmar in Kentucky. From Palomino ponies with amble, quarter and Arabian horses to Leiri, a true master shaping her as a person, we speak about shared experiences with the loss of horses, her move to Iceland, and studying at Holar University as the first American. We learn about Lala's passion of being a musician, part of the Knights of Iceland showcasing the breed, riding other breeds. Lala´s openmindedness gave room for trust, in horses that might need a different approach than a normal bridle. Being now located in Washington, she is sharing knowledge, giving back to the community to grow the passion for the Icelandic horses. https://www.knightsoficeland.com/ https://www.valkyrieicelandic.com/ https://www.resonantriding.com/ https://www.instagram.com/invaderlala/ Music by Cob. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @the_toelt_tales.
April 27 · 52 min
Episode 26 - Martin Rønnestad
We had the great chance to catch Martin Rønnestad in between teaching in different countries to chat with us about being the new team leader for Norways young riders, his training philosophies, inside leg-outside rein and his new horse Kjalar. We talked about his experience competing at the World Championships, riding not only Icelandic horses and how he is training. Get ready to ride without stirrups! Come and join us for this super interesting episode. You can follow Martin: https://www.instagram.com/martin_ron/ Music by Cob. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @the_toelt_tales.
March 30 · 47 min
Episode 25 - Ásta Björk Friðjónsdóttir
Þetta reddast - Everything will work out. For this episode, we learned the motto many Icelanders live by. Ásta is taking us in episodes produced for EidfaxiTV behind the scenes of Meisteradeild competitions, young horses at Skipaskagi and something super interesting - the export of a horse. Come and listen to her amazing adventures and get exclusive insights into the life of a horse person. https://www.instagram.com/asta.bjorkk/ https://www.eidfaxitv.is/dagur-i-hestamennsku https://www.eidfaxitv.is/a-motsdegi https://www.eidfaxitv.is/videos/asta-dagur-i-hrossautflutningi Music by Cob. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @the_toelt_tales.
March 16 · 49 min
Episode 24 - Easyflix with Lisa Brimm
In our latest episode we sat down with Lisa Brimm, co-founder of the platform Easyflix. Lisa and Tobi create training videos, documentaries, podcasts and other media to share knowledge about the Icelandic horse world. with this approach, they are very inclusive, showcasing also other gaited breed like Speed Racking horses. Lisa shares some of her adventures with us, why it is good to have a plan B and how they select their content. Come and join us for this interesting episode! Go and follow Lisa, Tobi and Easyflix https://easyflix.tv/ https://www.instagram.com/lisabrimm_/ https://www.instagram.com/tobschiegl/ Music by Cob. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @the_toelt_tales.
March 2 · 55 min
Episode 23 - Ísólfur Líndal Þórisson
We got the lucky chance to talk to the new Coach of the National Team for #Icelandichorses, Ísólfur Líndal. We chat about his tasks as team coach, head teacher for the second year students in Holar and his own breeding. We also dive into working with young horses and what is required to become a better rider. Join us https://www.isoonline.is/ https://easyflix.tv/who-is-our-new-coach-isolfur-lindal-iso/ Music by Cob. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @the_toelt_tales.
February 16 · 58 min
Episode 22 - Vibeke Thoresen
In our latest episode we talk with Vibeke Thoresen, a Norwegian living in Iceland. Vibeke worked with trotting horses, studied in Holar and is teaching in Wyoming and Alaska. We talk about training systems, how assessing the horse before a lesson and without equipment can help the training, tölt from the ground and working at Hestaland. Join us for this interesting chat! https://vibekethoresen.weebly.com/ https://www.instagram.com/vibekethoresen/?hl=en https://hestaland.net/ Music by Cob. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @the_toelt_tales.
February 3 · 35 min
Episode 21 - A year of Tölt Tales
This is already our 3rd season!!! We wanted to take a bit of time to do a recap of our 1st year of podcaster and take the opportunity to reflect on some of our guests and episodes!! We would like to thanks of our guests from Sabina to the last one Catherine and obviously thanks all of our listeners for being with us on this journey. 2026, year of the (icelandic) horse promise to be exciting with new guests, new point of view, new travels and project. We will come back very soon with new episodes during this seasons and bring new format this year. Like, subscribe, share, rate... our podcast it helps us to reach even more people!! 2026, Let's Go!! Music by Cob. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @the_toelt_tales.
Dec 22, 2025 · 44 min
The Tölt Tales Fika - Catherine Holland-Bax
For this Christmas special, we talked to Catherine Holland-Bax, author of the book "Little Viking Horse". Catherine shares how Fleygur, the horse of her late husband Roger, became an inspiration to write a book about adventures from the perspective of an Icelandic horse. Ariane read this book in one sitting, being hooked on the trust and friendship transpiring to the reader. Catherine understands perfectly to take you with on the experiences of Fleygur. We hope you enjoy this episode as much as we did recording it and can recommend to read the book. https://littlevikinghorse.com/our-story/ https://littlevikinghorse.com/the-book/ https://eponawise.com/little-viking-horse Music by Cob. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @the_toelt_tales.
Dec 22, 2025 · 48 min
The Tölt Tales Fika - Tölt Together
Two Podcasts meet! We had the chance to chat with Arnella and Juha from the Tölt Together Podcast. Arnella and Juha know each other and worked together for many years, have both been very successful in the Icelandic horse world representing Finland, and are genuinely nice people to talk with. Join us chatting about how they started with Icelandic horses, their podcast and a lot of off topic stories. https://www.instagram.com/tolttogether/ https://open.spotify.com/show/7aP56V4I7ucevZdPk4r39x Music by Cob. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @the_toelt_tales.
Nov 24, 2025 · 48 min
Episode 20 - FFCI
For the last episode of season 2, we had the chance to chat with Caroline and Lucile, both involved in the breeding section of the FFCI (La Fédération Française du Cheval Islandais). We learn more about one of the first members of FEIF, what is means to have an Icelandic horse in France, how national and international events are supported and what the goals are for the future. Join us! https://www.chevalislandais.com/ https://www.chevalislandais.com/la-race/ https://www.instagram.com/ffci_chevalislandais/ Music by Cob. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @the_toelt_tales.
Nov 10, 2025 · 56 min
Episode 19 - Elina Enzian
We managed to spend some time with Elina Enzian, one more amazing person gravitating around our favorite horses. Elina is helping people all over Sweden with loading and help owners to change behavior of their horses. We had a lot of fun of getting to know more Elina and her background, her technique as well as her passion for the icelandic horses. You can find Elina here: https://www.instagram.com/enzian.equus.education https://enzianequus.se Feel free to reach out to her if you want her help. Like, subscribe and share this episode!!! This is helping our podcast growing Music by Cob. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @the_toelt_tales.
Oct 27, 2025 · 1 hr 13 min
Episode 18 - Nils Christian Larsen
For out latest episode, we visited Nils Christian Larsen, in the middle of Jutland near Herning, where he showed us around his amazing establishment Kronholt. Nils is a professional rider, trainer and colour breeder of Icelandic horse, but also has a passion for "big horses" and is an educated chef. We had the pleasure to ask him about the nickname "Mr.10", being a member of the norwegian national team and that learning is a journey. Come and join us! https://www.kronholt.dk/about-kronholt https://www.kronholt.dk/ https://www.instagram.com/kronholt.dk/ https://www.instagram.com/nilschristianlarsen/?hl=en Music by Cob. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @the_toelt_tales.
Oct 13, 2025 · 41 min
Episode 17 - Viktoria Östlund
Join us for an insightful conversation about feeding with Viktoria Östlund, a passionate expert whose life revolves around the unique Icelandic horse. Viktoria is an educated Animal Science Agronomist, is the current head of development at Flyinge, she brings her scientific rigour to the world of equestrian sports, teaching the critical subject of feed science to university students at SLU. Viktoria breaks down the specialised nutritional needs of the Icelandic horse. Discover how their unique background influence their diet, learn about the latest research, and get practical tips to ensure your horse performs its best. Whether you own an Icelandic horse or simply want to understand the science behind equine nutrition, this episode with Viktoria is a must-listen! https://www.roslovsholm.se/om-oss https://flyinge.se/person/viktoria-ostlund/ https://blogg.lrf.se/skribenter/viktoria-ostlund/ https://hastsverige.se/foderstatsprogrammet/ Music by Cob. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @the_toelt_tales.
Sep 29, 2025 · 47 min
Episode 16 - Kristín Halldórsdóttir
In this new episode, we chatted with Kristín, who is responsible for the Icelandic Horse History Center (Sögusetur íslenska hestsins) in Hólar i Hjaltadal. Kristín tells us about the latest and permanent exhibitions, invites people to come chat with her in the educational corner, but also shares with us her experience being involved in Worldfengur. We hope you enjoy this episode as much as we and that we all meet new Year during Landmót in Hólar! https://www.sogusetur.is/ https://www.horsesoficeland.is/news/icelandic-horse-history-center-marks-new-chapter https://www.feif.org/2025/06/03/the-icelandic-horse-history-centre-opens-its-doors-again-this-summer/ https://www.northiceland.is/en/service/the-icelandic-horse-history-centre Music by Cob. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @the_toelt_tales.
Sep 15, 2025 · 46 min
Episode 15 - Jeff Rose
In our latest episode we chat with Jeff Rose, vice president of the USHIC, residing in Colorado, US. We met Jeff during our stay at Hestaland in the spring of 2025, where we had a super nice conversation. We stayed in contact with Jeff and decided to invite him to our podcast. You can listen to what it means to have an Icelandic horse in the US, the USIHC, what it means for the US team to travel to competitions and what the future holds. Join us https://www.feif.org/feif/members/united-states-of-america/ https://icelandics.org/board-of-directors https://www.instagram.com/p/DIwnHImTN1g/ Music by Cob. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @the_toelt_tales.
Sep 1, 2025 · 32 min
Episode 14 - Johan Häggberg
In episode #S2E4 we talk with Johan Häggberg, rider, trainer and international FEIF judge. We managed to catch Johan inbetween A finals for the World Championship, while also being able to train for him. Johan tells us how he started riding, when his father bought 100 #Icelandichorses, explains why a correct seat is important, and that you need to have a trainer you can trust. Music by Cob. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @the_toelt_tales.
Aug 18, 2025 · 51 min
Episode 13 - Hestakofi
In episode #3 of our second season, we met up with Tim Reinert, the co-founder of Hestakofi. Tim is a trainer veterinary naturopath, who experienced first hand the problems of Icelandic horses suffering from sweet itch, eczema and other skin conditions. The idea of Hestakofi, a name taken from his Grandparents farm, was born; to improve the life quality of horse with skin problems with natural products. Tim shares with us how to help your horse with sweet itch or after being exported, we talk about sustainability and what problems even horses in Iceland can have. https://hestakofi.de/en https://hestakofi.de/en/pages/holstic-care-concept https://www.instagram.com/hestakofi/?hl=en Music by Cob. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @the_toelt_tales.
Aug 4, 2025 · 59 min
Episode 12 - Libea
In episode #12, we take our listeners to Brittany, France talking to Lisa and Tabea, the women behind Libea. Originally from Germany, they both fell in love with Brittany, France. Here, they are establishing their own breeding, training horses and riders, offer rides on the beach and bring the Icelandic community in France forward with their own association. Join us in listening their interesting journey! https://www.instagram.com/libea.hhd/reel/DAqxrhWo2Lm/ Music by Cob. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook, @the_toelt_tales.