Long before dawn, you can hear the soft munching of hay and quiet nickering of horses at Pond View Farm as Sarah Doyle prepares for another 6 a.m. trip off-Island to a horse show.

Sarah moved to the Island in 1986 and began teaching riding lessons at Arrowhead Farm in West Tisbury. She began living on the Vineyard year-round after she took a job with the late Anne and Tony Fisher. She currently lives in Chilmark with her husband, Bret Stearns, and three kids, Jeff, 19, Ava, 6, and Graham, 4.

Sarah helped to start Arrowhead Farm’s summer riding program, and that is where she met the Fishers, who came there with their family for riding lessons. The Fishers later bought Blue Heron Farm in Chilmark and employed Sarah to manage their horses and barn facilities. “I adored my job with the Fishers,” she says. “Working at Blue Heron granted me the ability and opportunities to grow and learn with firsthand experience.”

She eventually began to help manage the 26-acre estate.

Anne and Tony Fisher were killed in a plane crash in 2003 and suddenly Sarah’s life changed. She eventually turned her considerable energy back to Pond View Farm, leasing the property from Nelly and Peter Rabinowitz. “Peter and Nelly made a deal with me,” she recalls. “At the time, Pond View was the oldest continually running riding program on the Island. All three of us agreed that the farm couldn’t be lost, so the Rabinowitzes decided to buy the property as long as I would lease it from them and run a successful riding program for kids.”

Although by this time Sarah’s work ambitions had broadened beyond the horse world, she remained passionate about the sport. “Working for a family such as the Fishers that competed nationally made me realize that every kid should have the ability to learn about horses and proper horsemanship,” she says. “I felt like riding was an integral part of Island life.”

She noticed that many Island kids dedicated themselves to the ice rink, practicing both hockey and figure skating. She recognized the same drive and responsibility in kids who became involved in the horse community.

Her determination to educate young Island equestrians has long fueled her. She believes that good horsemanship is universal — the skills and smarts you acquire, even at a young age, will carry over to any other equestrian community.

“Good horsemanship is good horsemanship,” she says, adding:

“I felt committed to helping kids grow, so I started a horse show series. The old shows were really great, but it seemed like real horse show protocol [including class-entry forms, timetables, and jump courses] was overlooked simply because we’re on Martha’s Vineyard.”

The Fishers had generously donated the ring at the Agricultural Hall, where Island horse shows still take place.

Equestrians prepare for competitions, on and off-Island. — Katharine Brine

“If you want something badly enough on the Vineyard, you can almost always meet people that will help you complete your goals,” Sarah says.

Sarah had her own opportunity to help someone achieve her goals when she met Tracey Olsen, a 14-year-old girl living in Oak Bluffs. “She was just this compassionate little girl who understood the Island and the Island people,” she recalls. “The best part is, she can ride with the best of them, but at the end of the day, she’s just as happy to teach a little girl who only wants to walk and trot on a pony.” Today Tracey is head instructor and farm manager at Pond View. Her background in dressage, coupled with Sarah’s background in the hunter-jumper arena, provide young equestrians with a well-rounded program.

Sarah says Pond View has evolved into more than just a riding stable. Families come from across the country year after year to share in the camaraderie and love of horses. “The magic of horses is such a common denominator for children here,” she says. “Pond View now has such a diverse mixture of kids of all riding abilities that are all friends with each other. It raises the bar all the way around.”

Some of the best instructors and judges in the country come to the Vineyard to teach clinics or judge the Martha’s Vineyard Horseman’s Council Horse Show. And with their extensive show records, many of the horses and ponies at Pond View are celebrities in their own right.

One favorite is Flash Me a Smile, an elderly chestnut pony. Years ago, Flash broke his leg while he was turned out in one of the vast fields at Pond View. The break was severe and no one thought the pony would survive. The Pond View kids pulled together and raised $11,000 to cover Flash’s veterinary expenses at Tufts Animal Hospital in North Grafton.

“The kids learned character, work ethic and teamwork. I am so lucky to be a part of giving that experience to children,” Sarah says. Flash beat the odds to recover and now spends his days teaching little ones the basics at Pond View.

Sarah has taken her Pond View team on the road to many nationally recognized horse shows, including the Mass Hunter Jumper Finals in Halifax, the Pony Finals in Kentucky, and the upcoming Head of the Bay Classic in Bourne. There she will board over a dozen horses and ponies and her students will compete on a national level. Her daughter, Ava, at age six is currently ranked number one in the short stirrup division in New England. The division is open to children aged six through twelve.

Learning to lead her pony. — Katharine Brine

When Sarah is not trekking off to a horse show with ponies in tow, she can be found up-Island, overseeing one of several properties that she caretakes. She credits her experience at Blue Heron as training for all the work she does.

“I love where I live, I love what I do, and I love who I do it all with,” she says.