After 26 Years Away: Finding My Way Back to American Saddlebreds

In the very first episode of The Long Ride Home, Alex Husner shares the deeply personal story behind her return to the American Saddlebred world after 26 years away.

From her final memory of walking out of Freedom Hall at 15 years old to the moment she realized it was finally time to come back, this episode is about far more than horses. It is about identity, timing, courage, and what happens when something that shaped you never fully lets you go.

Alex opens up about growing up in the Saddlebred industry, stepping away from the sport, and building a full life and career before finding her way back to the barn. She also shares how that return began to take shape, from researching barns and building a budget to finding her trainer, Andrea Harry of Meraki Farm, and ultimately purchasing her new young horse, Son of a Kiss, barn name Chapstick.

This episode also introduces the heart behind the podcast itself. The Long Ride Home is not only about Alex’s return to the saddle. It is about the people, stories, and future of the American Saddlebred industry. Through honest conversations with riders, trainers, breeders, and returning amateurs, the show aims to honor where people come from while exploring what still calls them forward.

Whether you have been part of this world for years, are finding your way back to it, or are simply curious about the people and passion behind it, this is where the journey begins.

In this episode, Alex shares:

0:33 - Alex reflects on the moment she left Louisville and why it stayed with her for 26 years

4:20 - The mindset shift that finally gave her the courage to return

5:05 - The emotional and practical realities of coming back to the sport as an adult

8:05 - How she found her trainer, Andrea Harry, and Meraki Farm

10:03 - The story behind finding Chapstick, her young five-gaited prospect

11:45 - What it’s like to relearn riding in a completely different season of life

17:45 - Why the Saddlebred industry needs more visibility and fresh interest

20:00 - The deeper purpose behind The Long Ride Home

Follow along as the journey continues

Episode 2 will feature a conversation with trainer Andrea about her path in the industry, her program, and what it means to run an all-women training barn in today’s Saddlebred world.

Follow us on Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thesaddlebredpodcast/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thesaddlebredpodcast/ 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thesaddlebredpodcast

#americansaddlebredpodcast #saddlebredindustry #thelongridehomepodcast

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:03

Welcome to The Long Ride Home. I'm your host, Alex Huisner. This show is about honoring where we come from, pursuing what still calls us forward, and trusting the power of timing in both life and in sport. Through honest conversations with riders, trainers, and leaders in the American saddlebred world, we'll explore the stories behind the horses and the people shaping the future of this industry. Come on this journey with me. The last time I walked out of Freedom Hall in Louisville, I was 15 years old. It was the year 2000 of the World's Championship horse show. And we had just finished fourth in a very competitive three-gated pony championship. And I remember after that going back to the arena and standing at the top of the chute and looking down and knowing in my mind that that was likely the last time I would be there. It was the last time I would be in the show ring for a long time, if ever. And I didn't know when I would come back. But I remember saying to myself, I said, I know I'll be back. And now somehow that someday has finally come. For those of you who don't know me, my name is Alex Husner. I used to be Alex O'Neill when I lived in New Hampshire and when I was riding for many, many years. I grew up in horses. My mom, my grandmother, my aunt all rode and showed Morgans competitively in saddle seat. And when I was probably about six years old, I transitioned to saddlebreads and I started riding at Hawkwood Farm with Linda Weber in New Hampshire. And then probably when I was about 10 years old, I moved to Cricket Hill and rode with Mike and Lisa Richardson and also David and Kristen Cater, who were assistant trainers at that time. And over the course of many years, I had two different show horses. We just had just an absolute amazing time. And it was such an important foundational part of me growing into who I am today. I really believe that riding horses, and especially the way that we did, it's an identity-shaping hobby and sport. The community that you learn to be part of and the love of the sport and the work ethic it teaches you and the confidence that it gives you are just undeniable. But even when I had to leave, I never felt like I really left. I've been watching from the sidelines for many years. I've watched Louisville on live streams and I've followed results on Facebook and just this past year, early in 2025, when the thought of getting back into this became more prevalent in my mind, I resubscribed to the magazines that I used to get so excited about when they come in the mail. And quite honestly, that's I still have that same excitement every time that they come now. It was amazing to me as I started flipping through them, seeing so many familiar faces, both of the trainers that were around back 26 years ago and are still in it, but then also the riders that I used to compete against that when we were junior exhibitors, that they're my age now and they're amateurs, and they've stayed in it the entire time. And it really just started to hit me how many people I saw that fell into that bucket. And I thought, gosh, I've just I've missed out on something that was so important to me for so long. And really, I think it was beyond all the reasons that people can say about not getting into saddlebreds or not wanting to get back into saddlebreds. The the time constraints and the expenses, sure, those are big things. But I really think I was blocked not just by logistics, I was blocked by my own thinking. And later in 2025, something really shifted that it hit me in this year that this was the time to come back. And I don't know how to describe it except for the fact that it just all of a sudden the things that I thought could be logistically keeping me back, I figured out a way around them. Uh, it was Thanksgiving night, actually, and I was watching some videos, and I said, you know what, I'm gonna figure out like, is this possible logistically? And then I'll deal with the emotional side of it after. But let's figure out like, is there are there barns that I could ride at that are in a semi-reasonable amount of distance? Yes and no. There are no saddlebred farms in South Carolina that I've found. The nearest barns really are in North Carolina, and there are several there. But beyond that, I thought, okay, there's there are several that are about three hours away. That's really not that bad. But could I even afford this now? You know, like what I don't know how much this sport costs these days. And even back in the day when I was part of this, I was a child. And so my dad was paying for things. So now to figure out, okay, what does this look like as an adult that is coming back into this intentionally? How do I prepare for what these expenses are? And so I went to Chat GPT and I built a budget and built a plan. And it all of a sudden it just started becoming more of a reality in my mind of, okay, I need to start reaching out. I need to start talking to some barns and looking at horses and figuring out where do I fit here and what makes sense to come back. And I I really wanted to do this in a meaningful way. When you've left something for so long, you want to do it right and you want to have alignment in the decisions you're making and the people and the horses and the process of what it's going to look like. Once I got to that realization, the next part was I had to get my husband on board. So my husband, Michael, he it actually was quite easy. I was surprised that he was as open to it as he was, but he's known that I've missed this sport for so long. And he was all about it. And once we got the kind of the plan together, I think he felt confident in it too. And for him, you know, this has been a really interesting journey that he knows nothing about saddlebreds. He he knows a he's literally has had a crash course over the last three months. But to that point, he did not know anything about them. I mean, from the point of, and sometimes I have to keep reminding him, but like he gets very confused on the gates of what is trot versus canner and then slow gate and rack that's like, you know, it's very confusing. So I I it's been really fun and humbling and interesting seeing somebody that knows nothing about it come to understand more about the sport, but then also appreciate how complicated of a sport it is. I remember early on he would send me these reels of riders and other sports, and and the commentary said, as long as you have a nice horse, basically the rider just gets to sit there and look pretty. We all know that is absolutely not the truth. And I've certainly been reminded of that getting back into it, that the sport is actually is far more complicated than I remember as a young adult years ago. But it's been fascinating to me to come back into this as an adult now. And now the way that my mind thinks and how I want to know why everything is the way that it is, whether, and that's mostly related to me, like in my writing now. How do I, how do I fix what I'm doing? Why is my body doing certain things? You know, I'm constantly looking for solutions. And it's really been an interesting journey. And I I can't imagine I'm the first person that has felt that way. But that's been a really cool part of this. When we decided, okay, we're we're moving forward here, we're gonna do this. I had found a horse on Facebook, this video of this beautiful black horse that just looked like exactly what I had in mind for my return horse. And the horse was trained by Andrea Harry and Meraki Farm, who I did not have any knowledge of. But I, and I know this is unconventional for an amateur to be going directly to a trainer that doesn't even have a barn yet. And so when I reached out to her, I acknowledged that. I said, I'm interested in this horse, but I'm also interested in learning about you and your farm because I don't have anywhere to take it. I'm trying to get back into this sport, but I really think this horse could be the one. And so we set up a time to get on a call. And almost immediately from that first call, we just we really clicked. And I felt she was very professional. She answered my questions very thoughtfully and realistically, unfortunately, but not at the same time. Everything happens for a reason. I found out that that horse was way beyond the budget that we had allocated for this. So that was out of the picture. But I really truly believe what I've learned in my lifetime is that everything happens for a reason. And I saw that video of that horse so that I would meet Andrea and meet her farm and find the right home for where I was going to end up. So I ended up, we still went up and we saw the barn and met her and got to see a few other horses that she had for sale. There was one option there that could have been a good horse for me. But, you know, coming back into this, it's like, you know, there are there's so many decisions that I'm making right now. And I wanted to make sure this is the right horse. And I think he he could have been a good horse for me. But, you know, knowing the people that I've had in in my life that I respect very much, I've known for many, many years, and you know, showing them the horse and and them knowing the type of rider that I was back in the day, they suggested they said, you know, it's a nice horse, but you are a competitive rider and you're going to need more of a challenge. That that horse, even though you feel like you have a lot to learn at this point to come back, you are going to surpass that very quickly. And you need to have something with more of a challenge, which in my mind, honestly, I thought, I feel like all of this is challenging right now. So I don't know how much of a challenge I actually want. But, you know, lo and behold, again, everything happens for the right reason. And they were right. So we started looking. I had Andrea look at some other options, and we ended up finding a spectacular young cult, five-gated prospect at Northern Kiss Farms. And we went up and saw uh Bert and Miriam. And, you know, funny story back in the day, Miriam Herschon, she's from New England, where I'm from, and we used to ride in a couple different classes, you know, together. And it's just, it's amazing to see how full circle all of this comes. We found this horse whose name is Son of a Kiss, and he was great. He has a ton of potential and is just brilliant and charismatic and has a beautiful head and neck and natural motion and just a great attitude. And I think the icing on the cake really was he is a full brother to world's champion Johnny Boyd, who, if you are in the industry now, you might remember Andrea won at Louisville with him a few years ago in the junior five-gated class. And she really just had a love for that horse because she got him to the point that he was, and uh, they had great success together. And given that he's a full brother, you know, that gives a little bit of confidence. But also she immediately when we saw him, she said he's so similar to Chubbs, that was Johnny Boy's bar name. She really felt, you know, he this horse has that potential, and this this is going to be a smart buy for us. He's not fully finished, he still has work to do. But at the same time, you know what? I have a lot of work to do too. That's been the eye-opening thing that there are some things that have come back quickly. There are other things that, you know, your body and your memory remembers, but other things that you have to really kind of go back in the archives to do that muscle memory, mind memory type of a conclusion of how you want things to go in a ride. And that's what I've been spending my time on. I went back, I've got a I had a huge box of VHS tapes from Richfield Video from starting in 1995 through 2000. And I sent them all away to be digitized. And I've just been studying those videos of every show, and just it's been so helpful. And gosh, what a trip down memory lane to to get to see those rides and those times of my life that were so important. And, you know, now comparing it to the videos that we're able to take on iPhones, which didn't exist back then. But you know, I I know I still have a long ways to go, but I'm really happy with where we're at at this point. That was a a good, a good connection there. And you know, the funny thing was when I was in college, actually, I was trying to find a way back into horses. And I did a similar thing that I researched barns near where I went to school in Radford, Virginia. And I found Smith Lilly, who I'd always known Mercer Springs and competed against his riders for many years. And that was about an hour away from Radford. And I went and I started taking lessons. And I thought, you know, my dad's coming down for Parents' Weekend. Maybe if when he comes, I go to the barn and they put me on a show horse, maybe he'll get excited about it and want to participate and get me back into this. Well, that was that was not the case. So I was uh pretty hopeful that that would happen, but it did not. And that was, you know, shortly after I just stopped taking lessons because it was I had too much going on with school. So that was kind of the end of it. But come to find out, Andrea's background, she was assistant trainer for Smith. And she really has an incredible understanding of young horses. That that was something that he's known for as well. And that made me really comfortable when I started talking to her and saying, you know, I I know from our perspective, it's likely going to make sense to buy a younger horse that we can develop. And I I trust you as a trainer to help us pick the right horse and that you will be able to train him or her to be, you know, the best that they can be. And so now that's that's where we're at at this point. We are in the throes of it and son of a kiss, chapstick to his bar name, we are learning all the things together. I've never, well, I wouldn't say never, I've only ridden five-gated, a five-gated horse a handful of times, back again, 26 years ago. But there really weren't a lot of five-gated horses at Cricket Hill. So that wasn't something that I ever was, you know, really trained on. So not only am I relearning to ride, I'm relearning to ride in a totally different division than I'm used to on a young cult. So I I think we've got all the the challenges that could be possible coming into this, but honestly, I wouldn't have it any other way. There could have been options to go find a finished horse that already had a record, and I could just step right on and be confident and ride right into the ring starting in April this year, but that really wasn't what I was after here. I know I want to take time and come back thoughtfully. I want to be confident. I'm not, I'm definitely not an advocate that you have to wait to be perfect. I think you you have to take that leap of faith. At the same time, I know just coming back, you know, only not even three months now, I don't need to be in a rush on this. And taking the importance of timing here is is is important for my longevity and staying in this. Beyond that story, I just wanted to also share a little bit about who I am now as Alex Huesner versus Alex O'Neill and where this comes into play in relation to the podcast. So I've been, I live in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, with my husband Michael and our three Boston Terriers that are literally crazy. I've been in the vacation rental space here locally, but then also within a national company, and then now as my own consultancy and working with uh technology companies within the vacation rental hospitality space. So have been in that for quite a long time. And in 2021, I started a podcast with my podcast partner, Annie Holcomb, that is called Alex and Annie, the real women of vacation rentals. And we started that show because we felt that there's a lot of podcasts within the vacation rental short-term rental industry and real estate, a lot. But we felt that there was not one that was really telling the stories of the people behind these brands and these companies that have turned this into a multi-billion dollar industry. And as kind of a comparison of what's going on in that industry, and I do think it mirrors what's going on in saddlebreads, that what I've seen, is that once Airbnb really skyrocketed post-COVID, the vacation rental industry basically became synonymous with Airbnb, that it's you're renting an Airbnb. And they've been become the Kleenex of the industry. For the professionals that have been doing this for decades, because it's not a new thing, it became a very frustrating thing from a brand standpoint that the narrative was really being taken away from us. And so with the Alice Nanny podcast, we've brought on over 250 guests that span geographically all over the world, executives in the largest vacation rental companies to the up-and-coming vacation rental companies to the technology providers within the space. The goal has always been to bring them on to hear about what they've gone through in their journey of building these companies and these brands and not just sharing the highlight reel, but what have been the hard parts, what have been the learning parts, what have been the aha moments. That's a key part of our show is seeking to find the aha moment. And when I got back into the saddlebreds, my first thought was, I'm sure there's tons of saddlebred podcasts and YouTube videos and everything else out there. But I was completely surprised to find that that's not the case at all. There are no podcasts and there are no YouTube channels. And if I'm wrong, please send them to me. But I can't find hardly any content about saddlebreads on the internet besides Facebook. There was one podcast from UPHA during COVID that was absolutely excellent, but it was a handful of episodes, and then I haven't seen anything else. Very, very minimal content that you can find online besides being on Facebook and seeing videos or TikTok or Instagram. To me, I think it's an opportunity to really share more about the industry that we all know and love. And there are incredible people that have been doing this for many years. There are also incredible people that are coming in as new to the industry, new trainers, new riders, new families. Looking at the tradition and the heritage and legacy is so important. But it's also important to honor the newer people that are coming in and where the future is coming here. And so I felt that a similar sentiment to what we felt building the Alex Nanny podcast. And if nothing else, this is going to be a way for me to reflect on my journey and my learnings. But the goal is that I want to have really meaningful conversations and honest conversations with the people that have shaped and are shaping the future of the American saddlebreds. One thing that has been very clear to me that the industry is at a point where it's there is a threat to the future, that there's not new blood coming in. There are not a lot of new riders and families coming in, and we need more interest and visibility for this sport. And I certainly don't think that I can solve all of that. But I do know that with my experience, I can help tell the story. And I hope, if nothing else, that I can tell the story from my perspective. And anybody who is has been sitting on the sidelines like I did for so many years will hear this and feel inspired to reach out to a barn that's nearby, or if they have to drive to find one like I did, but that they remember how much this meant to them. And, you know, in the right timing and season of their lives, they can get back into it. On the same token, there are a lot of people that I are part of my ecosystem that know nothing about saddlebreads, but they love horses. And I hope that these people hear this show and they find interest in it. And they, if they have children, they seek out barns in their areas for their kids to take lessons. Because as I mentioned earlier, I really truly believe that it is such an identity-shaping sport and it's so much more than a hobby that is a wonderful thing for children to be part of. And I credit so much of my success in life from what I learned in riding and through the people and the trainers that I rode with. This podcast is not just about my return. It's about the industry and it's about the honest conversations that we can have and honoring where we come from and how we build forward. Episode two is going to be a conversation with my trainer, Andrea, about her journey, her program, and what it means to run an all women training barn in today's saddlebred world. Super impressive. But this platform isn't just about the people I already know. If you are rider, trainer, breeder, parent, or returning amateur, and you have a story worth sharing, I I want to hear from you. Love to have you come on the show because this sport shaped me and I know it shaped you too. When I stood in the shoot at Louisville at 15, I had no idea how or when I'd come back. I didn't know it would take 26 years. I didn't know it would take as much courage as it has. And I didn't know it would take building a life first. But here I am. And this is the long ride home. Until next time, thanks for joining me.