By Laura Scaletti
Portraits by Melissa Fuller
It has been said, “When someone says you can’t do it, do it twice and take pictures,” and Devin Ryan has put together quite the photo album since he first sat in a saddle. Growing up on a former dairy farm that his non-horsey parents converted into a horse boarding facility to generate additional income, Devin had a non-traditional introduction to horses.
With horses in his backyard, Devin had plenty of opportunities to hop on and go for a ride around the property. “There was always a boarder who would give me and my brother permission to trail ride their horses when they weren’t able to make it out to the barn. We didn’t have formal lessons, but that didn’t stifle our enthusiasm for our rides,” Devin said.
Libra was a large pony Devin and his brother had permission to ride. She was a gift from a husband to a wife, and Libra’s owners only came out twice a year to ride her. “The owners’ lives got busy, and they would forget to send board for months. Finally, my mom told them, ‘My kids really love your pony; why don’t we just call it a wash and trade the board you owe for the pony?’” Devin said. “The owners thought that was a perfect solution and agreed.”
With Libra as his own, Devin was ready for more gallops around the farm. It was one such gallop that would cause his mom to sign him up for a lesson with former mounted policeman John Longo—not because she thought it would help Devin become a professional one day; rather, she wanted to make sure he made it to adulthood.
After an incredibly snowy winter in New Jersey, without an indoor at the time, it had been months since Libra had a proper ride. However, as soon as the ground defrosted enough that a trail ride could happen, Devin was ready to saddle up.
“I’ll never forget it: I went across our river in the field. There was a big ol’ tree that came down, with a big branch lying down in the field from a winter storm. I pointed Libra at it and thought, Heck yeah, I’m going to jump that thing,” Devin said. “We jump it, she lands, bucks, I do a full out somersault, land on the snow and Libra runs back through the river to the barn. My mom sees Libra come back without me, then my brother made it back, then eventually I made it back after having to wade through the river.
“My mom literally was like, ‘We better get this kid a lesson before he kills himself,’” Devin said. Devin didn’t just survive; through his tenacity, he’s since turned pro, represented Team USA and runs a training business out of his family’s River Run Farm.
Small Fish
After that first lesson with John, Devin started riding with Delores Hunt and shortly thereafter discovered Pony Club. “Delores was my first formal instructor and she instilled in me the importance of flatwork, how to do shoulder in, haunches in, etc. After going through a few free lease and non-usable horses, Delores talked my parents into buying me a horse,” Devin said. “River Lord was the horse bought for me to event.”
Thanks to Delores’ focus on flatwork, Devin and River Lord would win dressage; however, once it came time for cross-country and stadium jumping, they’d get eliminated. Before Delores could help Devin figure out River Lord, she moved down to Wellington and Devin was trainer-less all over again.
After taking lessons with countless trainers, Devin was still left with an event horse who wouldn’t jump around. “Somebody in Pony Club suggested that if anyone can get that horse to jump around, it’s George Morris. So, my mom called Hunterdon and signed me up for a group lesson,” Devin said. “I impressed George with my flatwork, then when it came time to jump, my horse stopped at the first jump, turned around and stopped again. George got on, jumped him around and let me know the horse was behind my leg.”
At 16, Devin had no idea what that meant and immediately felt like a small fish in a big pond. That didn’t deter him from attending his first horse show after just two lessons with George. “My introduction to jumpers and A-rated horse shows was going to Lake Placid. My parents dropped me off with my horse and a pup tent and asked the fire department where the best place was for me to pitch my tent for the show,” Devin chuckled.
Although Devin still had a horse that wouldn’t jump around for him, he was immediately hooked on the jumpers once he experienced Lake Placid. Devin became a working student at Hunterdon, and after two years he got on the payroll for the next two. It was during this time that Devin knew he wanted to be a professional rider.
“Being at the horse shows and seeing all these younger kids that were doing so well, with multiple horses to ride, who had been immersed in riding their whole lives, I wondered, Am I ever going to get to their level? That’s where the mentality of ‘you have to work for whatever you want in life’ that my parents instilled in me played an important role,” Devin said. “I took every opportunity that was offered to try to improve.”
Making Moves
After being a working student at Hunterdon for four years, Devin realized that if he wanted the opportunity for more saddle time, he was going to have to go abroad. “I knew that a working student of my ability back then wasn’t going to get a lot of rides. So when the opportunity presented itself to go to Alan Waldman’s Stal Waldman in Holland, I quickly got on a plane and went over there,” Devin said.
Devin did get to ride a lot more horses than he did in the States, but Alan was a bit surprised when he was watching Devin ride. “He was really shocked at my riding ability, and not in a good way. I think he probably thought, This kid sucks, how has he been riding with George for four years? He doesn’t even post properly,” Devin said.
Much like that first lesson with George, Alan gave Devin a task—canter a line of cavaletti, set at a normal five strides, in six strides, and subsequently had to show Devin how it was done. “It took a few times for me to get the six done, then he asked me to do seven and I thought, There is just no way. He got frustrated, got on the horse and added in an eight,” Devin said. “That was an eye opener; I thought he made this green horse look like a broke schoolmaster. I knew at that moment I really had to do a lot of work to figure out how to improve my riding.”
Thankfully, Devin had the self-confidence necessary to not crumble in that moment. Instead, he got as much as possible out of his time in Holland by watching other riders and seeing how they worked with the green horses they had been assigned.
After a year in Holland, Devin realized once again he wasn’t getting as much saddle time as he had hoped. “I had seen I wasn’t as good as their other riders, so I decided if I really wanted to make a go of it, I’d have to go back to the States and start fresh there,” he said.
When Devin got back to New Jersey, he got a job refinishing hardwood floors and houses to pay his bills. In his free time, he started freelancing with horses. “I put up ads in every little tack shop and local deli where I knew that all the horse people in the area went. I got involved with the Pony Club, teaching, and started riding whatever anyone asked me to,” Devin said.
A year after Devin got back to New Jersey, he had built up enough business that he was able to devote all his time to horses. “I gave the guy I was working for three months’ notice and then I was finally able to focus on my passion of working with horses full time. At the same time, the guy who was renting my parents’ barn had stopped paying rent and my parents approached me about running the barn,” he said. “At 22, I didn’t want to be nailed down; I had thought about going to California to work for somebody, but I made a deal with my parents and said, ‘I will work out of the barn on one condition—I’m a tenant and you can’t walk in and tell me what to do.’”
Eddie Blue
For the past 20 years, that arrangement has allowed Devin to once again not just survive in the industry but to thrive at River Run Farm. Devin has customers who train with him, personal sales horses and horses in training.
When Devin’s customer Lori Larrabee was looking for a horse she could enjoy watching compete in the big classes, Devin had the perfect horse in mind: Eddie Blue. “I actually already owned him and had decided to leave him in Europe to get started under saddle and start developing in the show ring. I had a lot of other horses at home, was quite busy riding and didn’t need another young one just sitting around,” he said. “Before I went back to visit him in 2013, Lori said, ‘If you see anything interesting in Europe, let me know.’ I didn’t see anything else I liked more than 4-year-old Eddie.”
Devin told Lori he liked Eddie so much, he’d already booked his flight. “I told her if this is a horse you’re looking to resell to make a profit, I don’t want to sell this one to you. There’s something really special about this horse and we need to hold on to him,” he said.
Thankfully, Lori agreed. As soon as Eddie Blue got stateside, he was ready to win. He won the 5-year-old finals in the Hamptons, won the 6-year-old finals and kept getting better and better. It didn’t take long for Eddie Blue and Ryan to collect top placings on the Grand Prix circuit. Devin and Eddie Blue, at 9 years old, helped the U.S. Jumping Team clinch team gold at the FEI World Equestrian Games Tryon 2018.
“He’s always been a great horse. He’s 15 years old now, but he still has it in him. He might not be a track runner, like he was when he was younger, but he sure has been jumping brilliantly these past several shows,” Devin said. “He’s still hanging in there with the best of them.”
Future Stars
For the majority of Devin’s career, he hasn’t had the means to purchase horses that were ready to step into the big classes. In order to make it to the Grand Prix ring, he’s had to develop young horses from the ground up. “One horse I broke, No Worries, was trained and shown by me throughout his career. As a 12-year-old, he was double clear and finished third at the Devon Grand Prix,” Devin said. “He had been known as a top horse in the national Grand Prix, so when we moved up a level and were competitive, it was a huge accomplishment for me.
“It turns out I really enjoy working with young horses. It’s like mowing the grass: instant gratification,” he continued. “When they pick up something so quickly from day to day, it’s very rewarding.”
When it comes to working with young horses, Devin believes you have to have a different mindset. “I don’t set high expectations for them right away. They’re going to make mistakes, and that’s how we’re going to learn and improve together. They are allowed to make mistakes,” Devin said. “It’s not the same type of pressure that comes from jumping in Grand Prix classes for points or accolades. I always want to do well, but when it comes to the young horses, it’s all about setting them up for a bright future.”
As proven by mounts Eddie Blue and No Worries, Devin’s philosophy of working with young horses has resulted in success. “I think the feeling and trust I’m able to cultivate during their younger years truly helps when we move up the levels together,” he said.
“I’m humbled and grateful that I’ve had a horse like Eddie Blue come into my life and give me the opportunity to ride and be at that level. If another one of them doesn’t come into my life, I’m not going to be upset; I’m going to be grateful for what I’ve done,” Devin said.
Of course, Devin hopes he can find another diamond in the rough. “I’m going to continue to chase my dreams and search for the next Eddie Blue,” he said. “I’m looking for him every day and I’m hoping the next Eddie Blue is already in my barn.”
Follow Devin on Instagram @devinryan_showjumping
Photos by Melissa Fuller, melissafullerphotography33.mypixieset.com
