The Bet of a Lifetime

By Dani Moritz-Long

Former investment banker Leah Lang-Glusic made the bet of a lifetime when she put banking behind her to take on a full-time career with horses.

Knowing in her heart the equestrian industry was where she was meant to be, she was eager to begin her professional riding and training career.

To start, she needed to establish a string of horses. So, while on her way to get a trailer in Tennessee, she made a pit stop at a small racetrack in Illinois — six hours from her Illinois home and only 10 minutes out of the way.

As she pulled up to the small track, she had no expectations for the big bay she’d seen advertised by Canter Illinois. But when she saw AP Prime, she stopped in her tracks. “I walked in and he was standing in his stall with his head hanging out and I was hoping it was him,” she said.

As it turns out, it was — and Leah found herself united with her horse of a lifetime, for the remarkable price of $750.

Although in the beginning AP took some time to heal from a recent abscess, once he was sound enough to ride, his relationship with Leah took off quickly.

“It took about 10 minutes to get him over his first pole on the ground and, ever since, he’s been obsessed with jumping,” Leah said. “I remember that not long into when I started jumping him, he actually pulled me to the mounting block that was in the middle of the ring and he jumped it.”

When he’s not finding roadblocks to jump at home, AP’s love for jumping really shines through on the cross-country course, where the rescue horse gets the chance to show off his technique.

Within two months of completing his fist Beginner Novice event, AP moved to Training Level. Today, he’s still going strong — now at the Advanced Level. AP and his partner in crime, Leah, will be taking on Rolex this year.

Beyond loving his strong performances, Leah says her favorite thing about AP is his quirky personality. “He’s a funny horse,” she said. “He’s so serious and not really a goofy horse. When he is goofy, he’s very charming.”

She continued, “At Fair Hill, I was eating Sour Patch Kids and I gave him one and it happened to be a blue one. Then, that was all he wanted. Any other flavor he’d spit out.”

Leah looks forward to continuing to compete with AP and getting better and better along the way. She’s come a long way from her business school roots and behind-a-desk career, but she’s happy to have found her home on the back of AP Prime.

For more information about Leah or to support Team AP Prime, visit www.llgeventing.com.