Live Free Ride Free with Rupert Isaacson

✨ "The difference between destruction and creation kind of just disappears, and this is a beautiful thing to be able to do." – Arne Koets ✨ "Are you making a foundation for a skyscraper or are you making a foundation for a shed? Those are not the same foundations." – Arne Koets Arne Koets is a historical dressage teacher, jouster, and practitioner of Rossfechten — mounted sword fighting — who tr...

✨ "All social species seek connections. People and horses are no different. Safety and comfort are the core elements to build strong social bonds regardless of species. “ – Mary Ann Simonds ✨ "The best tool we have is be the best human you can be. You don't have to know everything. You just have to be clear on yourself and be pure and be silent, and then help your horse be the best horse it can...

✨ "The best teachers and coaches are the horses. It's important for us to learn to listen to them and see them." – Mario Contreras ✨ "There is a big word I always feel is missing from the training scale — and that's joy. Where's the joy? These are movements that horses do when they feel passion." – Rupert Isaacson Mario Contreras is the head trainer at Medieval Times Chicago, the man responsible...

✨ "Somebody asked me, 'Do you teach horses collection?' I said, 'I suppose, but really what I'm trying to do is teach them connection. I want them to know me, and I want to know them.'" – Dr. Glenn Cochran ✨ "The only thing about you that's bigger than that horse is your brain." – Dr. Glenn Cochran Dr. Glenn Cochran is a Texas cattleman, emergency room physician, classical rider, working equitat...

What does it take to get a horse to stay with you — freely, on an open beach with no fence and no force? David Lichman has spent more than 30 years answering that question. From watching Ray Hunt work cold colts at the California State Fair, to becoming a Parelli instructor, to learning positive reinforcement from a sea lion behaviorist, his entire career has been built around one insight: make be...

What if the stars in your birth chart could tell you why you're drawn to horses — and what stands between you and the deeper connection you're seeking? Denise Elizabeth Byron has spent decades working at the intersection of astrology, psychic intuition, and soul guidance. She didn't set out to become the horse community's astrologer. She set out, as a seven-year-old girl in California, simply to u...

✨ "Men don't need less empathy. They often need empathy delivered differently." – Eric Robertson ✨ "Success is a tricky thing. You can get to the point where you start to believe your own bullshit — and that has some negative impacts on your relationships." – Eric Robertson Eric Robertson spent 33 years inside some of the most painful moments families ever face — divorce. As one of Austin's most...

⭐ “Horses can only perform as well as they understand — and as well as they feel.” – Karen Rohlf ⭐ “You have to be either searching or enjoying — nothing in between.” – Karen Rohlf Karen Rohlf didn’t start out trying to reinvent dressage — she started as a horse‑crazy kid, fell into traditional training, and then slowly realized something wasn’t adding up. In this episode of Live Free Ride Free,...

“ If you lead with heart and joy, you end up with heart and joy.” – Laura Chesterfield “ It’s not about being an expert in everything — it’s about being interested in everything.” – Laura Chesterfield Laura Chesterfield grew up inside one of the most magical landscape restorations in the world: The Lost Gardens of Heligan in Cornwall. As the daughter of Heligan co‑founder Tim Smit, Laura watched t...

✨ “Once people release the trauma, we can start dreaming about possibility.” – Jeff Tomhave ✨ “It’s not rocket science. It’s telling a compelling story to a receptive audience.” – Jeff Tomhave Jeff Tomhave is a Native American attorney and tribal advocate who has spent more than two decades working at the intersection of federal policy, infrastructure development, healthcare access, and tribal s...

✨ “The horse lives in the present. If you want to be a good horse person, you need to become more like the horse.” – Richard Williams ✨ “Horsemanship is a physical meditation. The horse is a three-dimensional mirror.” – Richard Williams From preserving rare classical manuscripts to exploring the emotional and civilizing power of horsemanship, Richard Williams — publisher of Xenophon Press — join...

✨ “I’m upset because life should be so beautiful.” – Rejane D’Espirac  ✨ “Healing begins with attention.” – Rupert Isaacson In this expansive and deeply reflective episode of Live Free Ride Free, Rupert Isaacson is joined by French writer, journalist, filmmaker, and activist Rejane D’Espirac for a wide‑ranging conversation on healing, presence, storytelling, plants, and what it means to live a l...

✨ “Being different is not your weakness — it’s your superpower.” – John Kippen  ✨ “Story is the original healing technology.” – Rupert Isaacson In this deeply moving and wide‑ranging episode of Live Free Ride Free, Rupert Isaacson speaks with resilience coach, magician, and motivational speaker John Kippen about identity, illness, visibility, and what it truly takes to come out of hiding. John s...

In this deeply honest and wide‑ranging episode of Live Free Ride Free, Rupert Isaacson speaks with family therapist and author Amanda Atkins about what it truly means to parent a high‑needs child — and how parents survive, adapt, and rediscover joy along the way. Amanda shares the personal story behind her book How to Handle More Than You Can Handle, written from lived experience as the mother of...

In this deeply moving and long‑awaited reunion episode of Live Free Ride Free, Rupert Isaacson is joined by Tulga Otgonbaatar — the Mongolian guide, cultural bridge, and quiet catalyst behind the original Horse Boy journey. Nearly twenty years after Rupert, his autistic son Rowan, and Tulga traveled together across Mongolia to meet shamans, reindeer herders, and the vast living intelligence of the...

✨ "You’re not stuck. You just haven’t talked to the right mentor yet." – Jason Barrett ✨ "If you find a purpose—and the courage to follow it—you’ll surprise yourself every time." – Jason Barrett What happens when a 12‑year‑old kid walks into a summer camp for people with profound disabilities—and never really leaves? Performer, father, and nonprofit co‑founder Jason Barrett joins Rupert Isaacson...

✨ “Sometimes we just need to be —without the pressure of doing more.” – Dr. Kate Lund ✨ “Movement and nature help us return to ourselves when the world feels too loud.” – Dr. Kate Lund What does resilience really look like when life pulls the rug out from under you—again and again? Clinical psychologist, author, and resilience expert Dr. Kate Lund joins Rupert Isaacson for an intimate and powerf...

From cryptids to hickory trees, raccoons, and the hidden balance of the natural world, writer and poet Jarod Anderson invites us into his world of imagination, healing, and belonging. In this deep and reflective conversation, Rupert Isaacson explores Jarod’s journey through depression, his rediscovery of nature, and how storytelling can transform pain into wonder. Together they uncover how imagina...

In this deeply moving episode of Live Free Ride Free , Rupert Isaacson welcomes Henrich Berkhoff, farmer, father, politician, and founder of child-protection and education initiatives in Germany. From facing a devastating prenatal diagnosis to creating one of Germany’s first Green Care Farms , Henrich shares how his son’s birth with spina bifida transformed his family’s life—igniting a mission to...

In this episode of Live Free Ride Free , Rupert Isaacson sits down with scientist, journalist, and bestselling author Dr. Jo Marchant (PhD in Genetics and Medical Microbiology) to explore the intersections between science, spirituality, and the human experience. From the placebo effect to consciousness, awe, and the nature of time itself, Jo unpacks her groundbreaking books Cure , The Human Cosmos...

Once nonverbal, Lina Hjalmarsson-Lyons now communicates through a letter board and her own writing—sharing profound insights into love, autism, and the human spirit. In this extraordinary episode of Live Free Ride Free , Rupert Isaacson sits down with long-time friend Helena Hjalmarsson and her daughter Lina to explore the paradox of autism, poetry born from struggle, and what it means to align wi...

From hitchhiking to California with $35 in her pocket, to becoming a Stanford professor, medical doctor, and pioneer in equine-assisted programs, Dr. Beverley Kane’s story is one of resilience, curiosity, and transformation. In this episode of Live Free Ride Free, Rupert Isaacson sits down with Dr. Kane to trace her journey through medicine, sports science, corporate Silicon Valley, parapsychology...

 From the rugby fields of London to the Merchant Navy, Special Forces, skydiving, aviation, and entrepreneurship—Paul Illingworth’s life has been defined by risk, resilience, and relentless drive. In this episode of Live Free Ride Free , Rupert Isaacson sits down with Paul to trace a journey that spans fear, family, and the search for tribe. Paul shares how being bullied as a child forged his figh...

In this rare solo episode of Live Free Ride Free, host Rupert Isaacson shares his own extraordinary story—tracing a path from his multicultural childhood in London to horseback adventures, indigenous rights campaigns, and the creation of groundbreaking autism and equine therapy programs. Rupert weaves together vivid life experiences: from retraining an unruly ex-racehorse as a boy, to helping the...

What happens when a successful publisher hits rock bottom—and finds his way back through psychedelics, storytelling, and soul work? In this episode of Live Free Ride Free, Rupert Isaacson sits down with Ralf Daab, a Cologne-based publisher and spiritual entrepreneur, to explore how dreams, and intuition reshaped his life. From sex with his soul-self to conversations with ancient Persian sultans, R...