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SIDELINESMAGAZINE | June 2026
t just 4 years old, Ryan Baldwin and his
family moved to America from his native
Puerto Rico. They settled in the Bronx,
the northernmost borough of Manhattan, where
he traded the tropical Caribbean climate for a
proverbial concrete jungle. Luckily, Ryan’s family
made sure he never lost touch with his beloved
culture, which eased the shock of acclimating to
his new life as a city kid.
Ryan’s mother, Martha, volunteered for
Pegasus Therapeutic Riding Stables in
Brewster, New York, just north of the city in
Westchester County. “She insisted I would love
horseback riding,” he said. “I took her word, but
I was admittedly petrified.”
To Martha’s credit, Ryan instantly fell in love
with the barn and enjoyed just being around
horses. “For whatever reason, I got a pit in
my stomach when it came time to canter,” he
said. “My mom has always been my biggest
cheerleader. She helped me work through my
nerves until something finally flipped.”
One day, Ryan cantered—and, to his delight,
the nerves became pure joy and excitement.
“I was hooked,” he said. His newfound love of
adrenaline translated to other extreme sports
such as skateboarding, snowboarding and
surfing, many of which he still enjoys today.
THE FIRST BELLA
Seven years later, Ryan’s family relocated
to Putnam County, New York, for work and
school. Ryan began riding at Zephyr Farm in
Mahopec, New York, with professional Carla
Sacco. “My mom taught lessons at Zephyr and
wanted me to get a nice pony to do the hunters
on, but I only had interest in the misfits,” Ryan
said. “I had zero interest in riding anything
fancy; I wanted the ‘fire-sale pony’—the one
deemed unfit for kids.”
HUNTER-JUMPER
RYAN
BALDWIN
The Gift of a Young Horse
By Jessica Grutkowski • Portraits by Kacy Brown
Ryan with his horse Bella Nosa Z,
aka Bella, in Ocala, Florida.