By Kenzie Riddell
There was a time when I thought I might never ride seriously again.
In high school, I suffered a significant back injury that left me questioning whether riding would continue to have a place in my life. Horses have always been central to who I am. But, after breaking my back, the physical and emotional uncertainty that followed made stepping away feel like a real possibility.
College eventually brought me back to the sport through a very special horse named Oodles and trainer Holly Bergay.
Oodles gave me back something I was not sure I would ever fully regain: confidence, ambition, and the joy of working toward difficult goals in the saddle. Together, we progressed all the way to Prix St. Georges. She is an incredible horse and one of the most important partners I have ever had. I also knew that Prix St. Georges was likely where her competitive journey through the levels would end.
For a long time, I was content with that.
Then, I traveled with my younger sister, Kali Riddell, to the FEI North American Youth Championships and watched the Grand Prix class. Sitting there, watching those combinations enter the arena, I felt something shift. Grand Prix had always seemed like a distant goal—something I admired but was not sure I would ever personally experience. That weekend, though, the dream began to feel just close enough to reach.
When I returned home, I contacted a longtime friend from Arizona, Susan Skripac. Susan owned Wallace, an experienced Grand Prix horse, and I asked if she might allow me the opportunity to try the Grand Prix on him.
To say our first few rides were humbling would be an understatement.
I could not reliably ask for a clean flying change. I struggled to understand the contact he wanted. Wallace knew far more than I did, and in those early rides, I often felt as though we were speaking completely different languages. There were moments when I genuinely wondered whether this partnership was going to work at all.
I began riding Wallace in January 2026, and that was when Taylor McAnally became an essential part of the story.
Taylor’s skill as both a rider and a coach gave me the tools to begin understanding the somewhat nontraditional ride that is Wallace G. She helped me learn how to ride the horse underneath me rather than simply ask for movements I knew he could perform. With her guidance, the pieces slowly began to come together. Our changes became more consistent, contact began to make sense, and what had initially felt overwhelming gradually became possible.
At the same time, I was balancing this journey with life as a full-time law student at the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University. My days were spent moving between classes, legal research, assignments, and the barn. I was trying to give each responsibility the attention it deserved. It was not always easy, but riding Wallace became one of the most meaningful parts of that season of my life.
In March 2026, just a few months after first sitting on him, I competed at Intermediate II for the first time.
Then, in May, we traveled to Flintridge, where I rode my first-ever Grand Prix test.
Even writing that still feels surreal.
By early June, Wallace and I had earned the final scores needed for my USDF Gold Medal.
The moment itself carried an unexpected sense of symmetry. The final Grand Prix test that gave me the score I needed was judged by the same judge who had judged my very first leadline class years earlier. It happened to be at the very same show facility as well.
There was something almost impossible to put into words about realizing how much had happened between those two rides.
From a little girl being led around an arena, to a high school student wondering whether a broken back might end her time in the saddle, to a college rider rediscovering the sport through Oodles, and finally to riding down centerline at Grand Prix. It felt like the kind of full-circle moment you cannot plan.
More than anything, though, this accomplishment belongs to the people and horses who made it possible.
I will always be grateful to Oodles for bringing me back to riding and carrying me farther than I once thought I would go. And I am eternally grateful to Susan and Taylor for giving me an opportunity that changed my life.
Susan’s generosity in trusting me with Wallace is something I will never take for granted. Grand Prix horses are extraordinary teachers, but access to a horse like Wallace is never something to which anyone is entitled. Susan gave me the chance to learn from him, make mistakes, grow, and experience a level of the sport I had dreamed about for years.
Taylor, meanwhile, gave me the knowledge and confidence to make that opportunity meaningful. Her patience, talent, and ability to communicate what Wallace needed helped transform a partnership that initially felt uncertain into one that allowed me to achieve one of my greatest riding goals.
Neither of them had to give me what they did. They made a choice.
That generosity and kindness are what I will remember most. Their generosity also taught me something larger about the sport of dressage. I was not able to reach Grand Prix because I suddenly had all the answers, but because two people were willing to open a door for me. Susan trusted me with an extraordinary horse, and Taylor invested her time, knowledge, and patience into teaching me how to ride him well. That kind of generosity creates opportunities that can completely change a rider’s path.
Dressage is a sport that takes years to learn, and progressing through the upper levels requires access not only to talented horses, but also to experienced trainers and mentors who are willing to share what they know. I was incredibly fortunate to have both. My experience with Wallace showed me how powerful it can be when accomplished horsewomen help create a pathway for another rider to learn, make mistakes, grow, and ultimately rise through the levels.
I hope our sport continues to encourage more of that. There are talented, hardworking riders who may never have the opportunity to experience the upper levels simply because they have not yet had access to the right horse, instruction, or mentorship. When owners, trainers, and experienced riders are willing and able to share opportunities, they do more than help someone earn a score or a medal—they help develop the next generation of dressage riders.
I will always be grateful that Susan and Taylor did that for me. Their generosity gave me the opportunity to accomplish a dream I once thought might remain forever out of reach, and it showed me firsthand just how meaningful it can be when someone in this sport reaches back and helps another rider succeed.
Earning my Gold Medal was an incredible milestone, but the medal itself is only one part of the story. What matters more is everything it represents: returning to a sport I once thought I might lose, trusting the process when things felt difficult, finding people willing to believe in me, and being reminded that sometimes the opportunities that change our lives begin simply by being brave enough to ask.
Wallace gave me the chance to ride Grand Prix.
Susan and Taylor gave me the chance to believe I belonged there.
And for that, I will be grateful for the rest of my life.
