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Adventure Sports Podcast

Ep. 1097: Jesse McNeal - Riding a Horse Across America Revisited

Adventure Sports Podcast

Curt Linville

Science, Health & Fitness, Sports, Nature, Fitness, Wilderness

4.6 β€’ 579 Ratings

πŸ—“οΈ 1 August 2025

⏱️ 52 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Horseback riding across America: Jesse McNeil's 3,800-mile journey from Oregon to New Hampshire with his horse Pepper – grit, challenges, patience, companionship, life-changing lessons, and the true story behind his memoir On the Hoof.

In this inspiring episode, we sit down with Jesse McNeil, adventurer and author of On the Hoof, to dive into his incredible 3,800-mile journey across the United States on horseback. Jesse shares the highs and lows of traveling with his horse, Pepper, and the life-changing lessons he learned along the way. From rugged trails to heartwarming encounters, this episode explores the grit, heart, and soul behind his memoir, the true tale of a voyage that broke a man down and built him back up, with the help of one special horse. At 36 Jesse McNeil β€” at times carpenter, commercial fisherman, dabbler in real estate β€” decided to buy an untrained horse, make himself into a horseman, and ride all the way across the United States, from the Pacific to the Atlantic Ocean. A fiercely independent traveler, Jesse had navigated previous coast-to-coast trips β€” solo journeys by moped, bicycle, and small airplane. This time, however, he had a partner: a five-year-old Tennessee Walking Horse named Pepper. An inexperienced horseman with an equally inexperienced mount, Jesse would quickly discover the immense challenges of his new undertaking. Over the course of eight months and fourteen states β€” beginning in Oregon and ending on a beach in New Hampshire β€” he would be tested many times over as he learned not only what it took to keep Pepper safe and healthy, but the true value of qualities that he had once easily dismissed: patience and companionship.

The book on Amazon: https://a.co/d/0VW08vB



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Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

We hadn't learned to get along yet. We hadn't got a scheduled tidal-in yet. We hadn't

0:12.1

got strong enough yet. And so we left from the Pacific Ocean and immediately went right into

0:19.5

the mountains. You're listening to the Adventure Sports podcast.

0:22.9

We talk with adventurers from around the globe to bring you the inspiration and motivation

0:26.8

you need to get started in the outdoors or to keep you moving if you're already there.

0:31.1

Now here's your host, Kurt Linville.

0:33.9

Hi, friends. Thanks for listening today.

0:36.7

Today's episode is from 2021 when Mason interviewed

0:41.3

Jesse McNeil about riding a horse across America and I love stories that involve the bond, the

0:48.5

relationship, the interdependence between humans and animals, and I think about amazing events like horseback

0:56.8

riding through the wilderness or the iditarod. Many years ago, my family visited Alaska and

1:05.5

we signed up for one of these dog sled tours in the summertime where they pull you on a cart and

1:13.4

the dogs were so excited they were so happy to be able to run and pull this cart and this

1:20.0

cart had to weigh about a ton I don't know it was crazy but the dogs were so happy and we did

1:25.9

this just quick lap around a track with the dogs pulling us.

1:30.3

And they were having the time of their lives.

1:33.3

There was something about that experience, realizing that humans and animals can form special bonds and do amazing things together

1:42.3

that are so joyful for the animals and the humans.

1:46.6

I don't know. I was kind of hooked.

1:48.9

Today's episode is not about dogs. It's about horses, but still the bond between humans and

1:56.1

animals, and depending on each other to accomplish amazing things and have amazing life experiences.

2:03.0

And it's important to realize it's not about a human having an experience with animals involved.

...

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