Starberry Sport Morgans: Building A Legacy 

The Marvelous Morgan! We are celebrating these horses as our April Breed of the Month on YourDressage!

Did you know that dressage riders who choose a member of this versatile breed as their mount are eligible for special awards through the Adequan®/USDF All-Breeds Awards program, as the American Morgan Horse Association (AMHA) is a participating organization?

Here, an adult amateur breeder shares her journey that began as a kid to promote the Morgan breed and prove these pint-sized partners belong in dressage!

By Lindsey Berry 

Growing up outside Boston, I was just another hunter-jumper lesson kid with a big dream, one that made little sense to those around me. I wanted to ride Morgan horses in sport disciplines. At the time, my exposure to Morgans was limited, but something about them felt right. While others focused on warmbloods and Thoroughbreds, I was convinced that this versatile American breed had untapped potential. 

My early training reinforced adaptability. My instructor believed in riding everything: off-the-track Thoroughbreds (OTTBs), mixed-breed ponies, backyard rescues. My parents encouraged curiosity, so I asked questions, sought knowledge, and engaged with professionals. That foundation shaped me into a young adult who knew her own mind and, more importantly, knew horses. 

As life took me to different cities, horses, and disciplines, my belief in Morgans never wavered. In Kansas, I rode Mustangs and Appaloosas, learning western and reining. In England, I rode jumpers and dressage on cobs and sporthorses. In New York, I learned to rope calves on Quarter Horses. In Philadelphia, I rode jumpers with warmbloods. And then, I found a small Morgan breeding program. 

I trained their young stock, assisted in foaling, and – for the first time – saw my instincts validated: Morgans had the athleticism, intelligence, and temperament for sport. 

A Stallion, A Dream, and A Reality Check 

While I gradually acquired a few mares, the cornerstone of my breeding program came in the form of a stallion: Primal Thunder. 

A striking example of Morgan conformation, he had spent his first nine years with minimal handling. Even with his limited human interactions, when I started working with him, he was kind, willing, and eager to learn, offering answers to questions I wasn’t even sure I had asked.

As an amateur still developing my eye for sport potential, I needed a way to further confirm my hunch. In 2018, I entered Primal Thunder in Dressage at Devon, one of the most prestigious breed shows in the country. Dressage is the basis for fine sport horse athletes around the world, and with top judges present at Devon, I could expect a fair assessment of my horse. Against top competition, he placed third in the stallion championship and second in the Morgan Individual Breed Class (IBC). More importantly, the experience reinforced my belief in his ability – and in my vision. 

Celeste: The Filly Who Changed Everything

In the spring of 2019, the first foal from my breeding program arrived. Spirit’s Celeste, out of Triplesweet Trinity, was everything I had hoped for, and more. 

Celeste and I share the kind of bond for which equestrians dream. While we all romanticize our relationships with horses, Celeste and I actually have the relationship we all read about in novels. I decided I wanted to work towards Dressage at Devon for 2019 with her, as I had a remarkably positive experience with her sire at the show and had been encouraged to return. I knew it would be a tough call as she would be barely five months old at the show. I was ready to pull the plug if need be, but every step along the way – halter breaking, learning to lead and trot in hand, trailering, farrier and vet care, bathing, braiding – she proved eager and willing for the challenge. 

Despite her youth, Celeste embraced the experience, charming everyone she met. She won the Morgan IBC, placed first in the Pony Filly class, and took home Champion Pony Foal, Champion Young Pony, and Reserve Grand Champion Pony. She even posed for photos with Outback Trading Company’s stuffed kangaroo in a hat, completely unfazed by the spectacle. 

Her success wasn’t a fluke. We returned in 2022, where Celeste placed sixth in the Open Three-Year-Old Filly class. My husband handled her, as I was recovering from a serious leg injury. My petite Morgan seemed out of place with the much taller warmbloods, where a handler with a 17-hand filly even asked if they were in the right class! Watching my husband and Celeste in the ring together brought me to tears, especially when her score placed her above several fine horses. 

Building a Breeding Program

By 2024, Celeste had her first foal, and together, we took on her first under-saddle competition: the Five-Year-Old Mares Materiale class at Dressage at Devon. It was her 50th ride ever. While her competitors had years of professional training, Celeste had only me. Her heart and determination shone through, earning a 69.4%. She then won the Four-Years-Old & Older Yeld Pony Mare class, while her son won the Morgan IBC, Pony Colt of 2024, and qualified for the ProElite/USDF Breeders Championship Series (BCS) East Coast Final. Celeste is tiny, likely to remain under 14.2 hands high, but she is the queen of my herd and has proven her worth. 

The sporthorse world often prefers larger horses, but Celeste’s ideal conformation and movement have proven the value of her pony-sized lines for dressage and sport. To better support the desires of the sport horse market, I have spent years carefully selecting breeding stock to maintain the ideal Morgan type and incredible mind, but to add height and build on the natural movement. I am committed to the Morgan horse traits of versatility, intelligence, soundness, and elegance, and I aim to produce sport partners that are undeniably Morgan, while also adding the size necessary to compete with today’s professionals.

The Morgan Mind: Equine Sport’s Best-Kept Secret 

The Morgan mind is what sets the breed apart. 

My herd of young colts is the perfect introduction to the breed. They gallop up to visitors, maintain respectful space, and line up for attention. They are engaged, eager, and, when it’s time to work, completely focused. They never forget their lessons, whether a month or a year later. 

This intelligence and curiosity extends to their under saddle work. A well-trained Morgan isn’t just an athlete; they are a partner. They celebrate our successes, support us on hard days, and bring joy to every ride. 

The only reason Morgans aren’t more prominent in upper-level sport is simple: people haven’t experienced them. If they had, they’d know that these horses can do it all. They are puppies on the ground, kangaroos over jumps, and hip-hop stars in the sandbox.

Starberry Sport Morgans: Looking to the Future 

Founded in 2021 in upstate New York, Starberry Sport Morgans is a young but growing breeding program focused on producing Morgans for dressage and sport disciplines. Each season, I produce around six foals, with horses now placed in fourteen states. 

Dressage at Devon’s breed show remains a highlight each year. Celeste’s paternal brother, Starberry TimelessClassic, won Pony Colt of 2021. Her maternal brother, Starberry Solstice (“Sully”), won Morgan IBC, Pony Colt of 2023, Champion Pony Foal, and Reserve Champion Young Pony, later qualifying for the ProElite/USDF BCS East Coast Final. Sully returned in 2024, winning First Place Yearling Pony Colt and qualifying once again for the BCS Final. Other Starberry graduates are also making their mark at this competition: Starberry Season’s Diamond, Starberry Millennial Mage, Starberry Coraline, Starberry Reveiller, and Starberry Spiced Bourbon, among others. 

I hope the first generation of Starberry-bred Morgans will soon prove under saddle what they have already proven in hand: Morgans belong in sport. 

Because, in the end, that’s the heart of my dream. The one I had as a kid in a suburban hunter-jumper barn. The one that, against the odds, is coming true. 

Morgans are sport horses. 

And the world is starting to see it.