By Diana Bezdedeanu
Portraits by Elyse Bullard
Madison Bonamarte wholeheartedly believes that being an equestrian means following your intuition—whether it’s the horses you connect with or the variety of training techniques you bring into each ride.
“When I was little, my dad took me to a barn and said, ‘You can have any pony you want,’” Madison recalled. “I tried all the fancy ones—the polished movers, the pretty jumpers—and then I saw Bandit. He was an Appaloosa, covered in scabs from fly allergies and honestly wasn’t much of a jumper or great on the flat, either. But 6-year-old me didn’t care. I loved him because no one else did and I was convinced he was going to be my star hunter-jumper pony.”
That scrappy spotted pony kick-started a lifelong love for horses, with Bandit passing away at an impressive 39 years old last year.
Education
After Bandit came Hercules, a pony Madison showed in the medal classes, the two of them competing frequently at Lamplight Equestrian Center in Wayne, Illinois. “I basically lived in the stall with my ponies as a child,” Madison quipped.
When her family moved to Wisconsin during her teenage years, Madison swiftly transitioned into the eventing world, as the sport had a larger presence there. She embraced the multi-phase discipline, going Prelim at 13 years old on a horse named Pippa. Eventually, Madison began working with off-the-track Thoroughbreds, training them for lower-level eventing and ultimately finding their forever homes.
“I’ve always loved the process of developing a relationship with each of my sales horses and getting them to a place where they’re ready to move on to shine with someone else,” Madison said.
Madison attended Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) from 2011 to 2013. She was a business major, but equine education remained an integral part of her life through classes in FGCU’s horse care management and veterinary assistant horse care program. Upon graduation, Madison founded Lake Geneva Equestrian Center in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, running a thriving boarding and training business for seven years. With a team of students passionate about eventing, she traveled across the country with them to compete—from Kentucky to Montana to Florida. It was during those Florida trips that she reconnected with longtime friends Zach Ketelboeter and Hannah Herrig-Ketelboeter, co-founders of TerraNova Equestrian Center, in Myakka City, Florida.
“I grew up with Zach and Hannah,” Madison said. “When I came down to Florida six years ago for their wedding, they told me what they envisioned with TerraNova and here we are today!”
TerraNova Equestrian Center
Two and a half years ago, Madison accepted a full-time position at TerraNova as a rider for Zach and Hannah’s horses and an instructor in their lesson program, which includes hunter-jumper, dressage and eventing. Madison is now the director of stable operations and equine programs at TerraNova.
“If you ask me what discipline I truly belong to, I’m not sure I can give you an answer,” Madison admitted. “I’m in the jumper ring one minute, warming up a student for dressage the next. But at the core, my work is always about one thing: building a stronger relationship between horse and rider. That’s what I’m best at—helping people listen to their horses and develop a true partnership.”
Madison credits Laine Ashker, five-star eventer and Grand Prix dressage rider, for shaping her riding fundamentals. “Horses truly are my biggest teachers. I’ve ridden incredible horses and had so many wonderful mentors along the way, but Laine is hands-down the biggest influence on my training. She gave me a restart in eventing and dressage. I believe that if you can do eventing, you can really do anything because there’s so much that goes into riding all three phases. Having a proper foundation makes branching off into the jumper or dressage world a lot easier.”
Now based full-time in Florida, Madison still rides her own horse, Ben, along with many of her clients’ horses and continues to compete in the jumpers. Another special horse, Balou—whom she acquired from Olympic eventer Caroline Martin—recently found his forever home.
At 33 years old, Madison has spent more than half her life teaching. “Watching my students achieve their goals and enjoy the process of education along the way gives me purpose in life,” she said. “Educated riders lead to happy horses.”
Passing a Good Mindset On
That passion has shaped Madison’s outlook as a mentor for the next generation. “It’s very common for young riders to get burnt out because this sport is hard, mentally and physically, on the body,” Madison said. “If nothing else, enjoy your horse and have fun. Most likely, if you’re enjoying your horses they will enjoy you, too, and the success will follow.”
The horse comes first, always. “If I’m having a bad day, I don’t even get on a horse,” Madison admitted. “If you’re not in the right head space, your horse feels that.”
Madison has channeled that advocacy into a summer camp called Equilibrium for young equestrians that she co-leads with Libby Neily, another instructor at TerraNova. Equilibrium focuses on balance, mental wellness and the joy of being an equestrian from the ground up. “As mentors to these kids, it’s important that Libby and I ensure that they not only enjoy the sport, but also understand the failures that come along with it. Rarely do we learn from our successes; we learn the most from our failures. And that’s the only route for growth.”
For Madison, this all ties back to sustainability in the sport. “As trainers, we need to be more mindful so that we can have the next generation of equine enthusiasts. It’s so important for us to make mental health as much of a priority as physical health, for both horse and rider.”
Her philosophy applies equally to adult amateurs, aspiring high-performance riders and the youngest beginners. “There’s a quote I live by that states ‘Good leaders make you believe in them, and great leaders make you believe in you,’” Madison said. “I want my students’ horses to be happy and I want them to feel confident that I’ve given them every tool that they need to be successful on their own. It’s easy to say, ‘I want a relationship with my horse’—but will you put your horse before your own personal goals? At the end of the day, we aren’t just competitors: We’re horsemen, first and foremost.”
So how does that happen? Good mentors, proper training and foundational knowledge about equine behavior. “Knowing what horses need to be happy—24/7 forage, herd interaction, ample turnout—that’s key,” Madison said. “Understanding how your horse speaks to you. Recently, one of my clients came in with her beautiful Grand Prix horse and wanted to work on certain movements. But her horse came out with different needs, so I said, ‘Today we need to stretch and do some relaxation work instead.’”
That kind of flexibility—and the willingness to adapt—is a sign of a true horsewoman. “If you’re tacking up and your horse is biting at you, is there a reason?” Madison questioned. “Is he swishing his tail, chomping the bit, pinning his ears? Those are stress responses. You’d be surprised how many people don’t listen to those signals.”
Finding the Right People
Ultimately, Madison believes the horse world has a way of finding the right people—especially those who are meant to be in it. “Not only will horses come into your life for a reason, but so will people,” she said. “If horses are what you want to pursue, my advice is to put yourself out there. You just gotta get your feet in a barn and the rest will fall into place.”
On the rare occasions when Madison’s feet aren’t planted in the barn, she can be found planning her upcoming nuptials to her fiancé, Maxwell Charles Gordon. Between riding, competing and teaching, wedding prep happens sparsely in the in-between moments, but she wouldn’t have it any other way. After all, TerraNova had a hand in her proposal.
In the early morning hours of May 9, 2025, a faux Sidelines interview was orchestrated by TerraNova’s marketing director, Ruby Tevis. After the detailed video interview, Madison suddenly saw her best friend and photographer Elyse Bullard from Wisconsin. She chalked up Elyse’s unexpected appearance to Ruby calling in backup for the photoshoot to go well, as she had been stressing about it all week, insisting that Madison couldn’t change the time despite the fact that she was competing at a horse show an hour later. As both of their families secretly watched from the judges’ box, Maxwell came around the corner, dropping down on one knee.
‘Wait…so there’s no Sidelines interview?!’” Madison asked, laughing through her tears. “Obviously I said yes! It was amazing! The only way it worked was by telling me Sidelines wanted to do an article on me because I’ve always been such a big fan of the magazine. To tell equestrians’ stories, their accomplishments, what it means to be a horse person—it’s an incredible honor.”
Follow Madison on Instagram @madisonbonamarte
Photos by Elyse Bullard, www.elysebullardphotography.com
