By Jessica Grutkowski
Portraits By Kacy Brown
Normally one might be a little nervous about sending a newly minted 14-year-old into a 1.20m Stakes Class, but junior rider Ryan Haselden has been riding since before she could walk. Born into an equestrian family, Ryan has been competing alongside her mother, Lindsay Haselden, a professional equestrian, since she was 8 years old.
Ryan is currently coursing 1.35m tracks and has competed at prestigious venues around the world. At only 11 years old, Ryan jumped against the backdrop of the Eiffel Tower during the Paris arm of the Longines Global Champions Tour, and is heading back to Traverse City this summer for the FEI North American Young Riders Competition (NAYC).
It wasn’t Ryan’s lack of experience that made a 1.20m class terrifying just a few months ago. Ryan isn’t one to get scared—she thrives on adrenaline, whether in the ring or during flying lessons in pursuit of her pilot’s license. And it wasn’t Lindsay’s or any other spectator’s heart that stopped during a class this winter—it was Ryan’s.
A Global Experience
The Haseldens live in Alpharetta, Georgia, but spend much of the year traveling to train and compete across the U.S. and abroad. Lindsay has been competing her entire life and training clients as a professional since 2009, but things kicked into high gear when the Haseldens started spending their summers overseas for Ryan’s dad, Will Haselden, and his work schedule. “Ryan has gotten to jump in a lot of different countries and made lifelong friends all over the world,” Will said. “It’s been incredibly rewarding to see how things are done from one region to another—the ways in which they’re unique, and the ways in which they overlap. It’s given Ryan a global perspective on the industry.”
To allow for a flexible schedule, Ryan attends Rivers Academy, a private school with a condensed week from Tuesday through Thursday, each day ending before noon. “If I need to travel for several weeks at a time, the teachers give me work to complete on my own,” Ryan said. “It’s not easy, but I’m happy to be able to do what I love. Lots of other equestrians are enrolled at Rivers Academy, too.”
The Haseldens split their time between Ocala, Florida, where Ryan trains with Declan Egan of Birchgrove Sporthorses, and in Ireland where they train with Edward Doyle, the legendary international show jumper and award-winning breeder at Punchestown House. “I’d known Edward for a number of years, and then we started working together in 2014 after I brought one of my clients over to look at his horses,” Lindsay said. “In addition to Ed being my trainer and business partner in Europe, the Doyles are dear friends of our family and we love spending time with them. Ed’s expertise is unmatched, and we have loved having him as such a meaningful part of Ryan’s life as she has grown up.”
An Unlikely Start
Ryan began riding ponies, but unlike most of her peers, she bypassed the hunters and equitation and made a beeline straight for the jumpers. “My mom is a jumper, and so were most of the older girls I looked up to,” Ryan said. “By the time I began training with Mr. Edward on my jumper pony, I knew that was the ring I wanted to stay in,” she said.
Ryan’s first pony, Storytime, was a brown-and-white Paint, and they did everything from the Short Stirrup to cross-country together. After Storytime, Ryan and her next pony, Cafe Mocha, went to Las Vegas for the Marshall & Sterling Finals in the 0.80m Jumpers. “It was a really cool experience,” she said.
In spite of Ryan’s success in the pony jumpers, it was time to move up to horses. “There are so many wonderful programs to help riders climb the levels, such as the USHJA Zone Jumper Championships and the Royal Dublin Show Qualifiers in Ireland,” Will said. “Ryan is fiercely competitive and follows the top levels of the sport closely, but we’ve always tried to ground her, and keep horses fun.”
Ryan does her own grooming, braiding and care. “She genuinely loves just being with the horses,” Will said. “We mix in other activities such as foxhunting, trail riding and eventing, and we often ride together as a family!”
Clearly, Ryan’s hard work has paid off: At NAYC 2024, Ryan won team silver and finished fifth individually in the Children’s 1.25m division. She won team gold at USHJA Zone 4 Jumper Finals, and has enjoyed several victories in the local Welcomes and Prix.
Off Course
This past winter, while showing at Fox Lea Farm in Venice, Florida, the Haseldens experienced a life-changing event they could never have predicted. “It was my 14th birthday, and I woke up feeling excited,” Ryan said. “I wanted to go see my horses and get ready to warm up for my first class of the day.”
The plan was for Ryan to compete in the 1.10m, and then in the 1.20 later that morning on her second horse. Ryan was clear in the first class, so it was time to get ready for her next one. “My mom was going to show in that class as well, so when I went to the in-gate, she was still in the schooling ring,” Ryan said.
Will situated himself in the gazebo alongside the ring, prepared to watch his favorite ladies make short work of the course. Will remembers watching Ryan navigate the first three jumps before noticing that something was wrong. “It took me a bit to comprehend what was happening,” Will said. “They rode around jump four; she was upright in the saddle but not steering her horse. They headed toward the corner, and when the horse turned, she went limp and slumped off the side onto the ground.”
Lindsay was watching the events unfold from the adjacent ring, and quickly dismounted to assess the situation. Will dropped everything and ran from the pavilion to Ryan’s side. “She had no pulse, and her lips and face were turning blue,” he said. “She had blacked out after jump three and suffered a sudden cardiac arrest. Thankfully, I didn’t know the odds at the time; her chances of survival from that point on were less than 10%.”
The show EMT, Katy McPhee, was ringside and began attending to Ryan in mere seconds. Serendipitously, Dr. Karley Koch, an Adult Amateur equestrian and emergency room doctor from Oklahoma, was also spectating from the gazebo and jumped into action when she saw that Ryan wasn’t responsive.
Together, Katy and Karley began two-person CPR, and Eric Mayberry, the course designer, ran to get the automated external defibrillator (AED). “Fox Lea had a solid emergency plan in place—one that anyone could follow,” Will said. “The AED was easy to access—it was visible, not under lock and key. Non-medical show staff knew where to find it and recognized a situation where it was needed.”
Advocating for AEDs
Everyone’s swift action and clear thinking helped bring Ryan back to life, and when she was stable enough for transport, Ryan was life-flighted to Johns Hopkins Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg where she stayed for 10 days. “I’m grateful to be healthy and back in the saddle!” Ryan said. “I will always remember the people who jumped into action to save my life.”
The doctors determined that Ryan had Catecholaminergic Polymorphic Ventricular Tachycardia (CPVT), a rare response to adrenaline that causes arrhythmia—a tough diagnosis for an adrenaline-fueled child that counts show jumping and flying airplanes among her hobbies. The treatment plan includes medication and an ICD (implantable cardioverter-defibrillator) that will permanently remain in her shoulder.
The Haseldens will continue to work closely with Dr. Michael Ackerman, a pediatric cardiologist at The Mayo Clinic and an expert on Ryan’s condition. “Ten years ago, people with her diagnosis couldn’t even exercise, but now the risk of being sedentary outweighs the risk of being active,” Will said.
Unfortunately, AEDs like the one that saved Ryan’s life are only required at USEF Channel 1 hunter-jumper competitions. “We talked to anyone who would listen,” Will said. “Our goal was to learn about different horse shows’ emergency plans, and to help make AEDs more accessible. Many facilities actually have AEDs, but if they don’t work—or can’t be found—they’re useless.”
Horse shows with an ambulance on site will automatically have an AED by default; however, USEF does not require unrated shows to have an ambulance. In other disciplines—for example, eventing—ambulances aren’t required on site if the emergency response time is less than 10 minutes. “An EMT may not carry an AED in their ring bag, or the facility may not be equipped with one,” Will said. Since Ryan’s incident, one of the managers at their local horse show in Georgia has worked with the city to have five new AEDs installed in public areas across the park.
Will has also spoken with Eric Strauss and the USHJA Safety Committee and agreed to join the Equestrian Advisory Board with the Equestrian Health and Safety Foundation. He plans to work in partnership with other stakeholders and medical professionals to improve health and safety for all equestrians throughout the United States.
Four months have passed, and Ryan is healthy and training right where she left off—almost as if she never skipped a beat. Luckily, it appears she will be able pursue her goals—both in and out of the saddle. “I’m confirmed for NAYC again with Nour Alain on the Zone 4 Children’s Team, and I get to do the 1.20m Zone Finals with Hector. I also have a new horse, Goliath De E’ldorado, and hope to do my first bigger regional Grand Prix on him this fall,” Ryan said. “I’m excited to continue my flying lessons and hopefully get my pilot’s license one day.”
Follow Ryan on Instagram @ryan_haselden
Photos by Kacy Brown, kacybrownphotography.com
