STAFF

QUINTUS VANDERSPUY

Owner,

Trainer

Quintus was born and raised in the Republic of South Africa, where he first began training American Saddlebred show horses. Following his love for the American Saddlebred, Quintus moved to the United States in 1995 to further his career. In pursuit of accomplishing his dream of opening his own training stable, he trained with some of the top Saddlebred trainers in the United States. Quintus enjoys training Open and Amateur horses as well as Hackney Ponies and babies.

Quintus believes that patience is the foundation for training and his "horse whisperer" ways have proven him to be a great rider, trainer and teacher. Quintus has won several World's Championship titles and has led amateurs and juveniles alike to numerous wins and top ribbons all over the country.

BROOKE VANDERSPUY

Owner,

Riding Instructor

Brooke (Bodenhorst) VanderSpuy grew up riding horses and has continued to pursue that passion throughout her entire life. Thanks to the expertise of Ceil Wheeler, Brooke won the title of Reserve World's Champion in Equitation at a very young age. Riding under two of North Carolina's top trainers, Lewis Eckard and Cash Lovell, Brooke spent her high school and college years showing top contenders across the East Coast.

After her graduation from Wake Forest University, Brooke and Quintus were married and began their life together, opening Lenux Stables & Riding Academy, Inc. Brooke's love for horses is paired with her gift for teaching. Her true passion is teaching riding lessons. Brooke really gets to know her students and their families and loves passing on her love for horses to each of them.

LAUREN RIGGINS

Riding Instructor, Assistant Trainer,

Youth Club Director

Brooke and Quintus have known Lauren for many years.  When Lauren first started riding horses at Cash Lovell Stables, Brooke was a student at Wake Forest and riding at the same barn. Both Quintus and Brooke were working at Cash Lovell Stables and got to know and love the Riggins family. Lauren and her mom, Melanie, helped start the Lenux Stables Birthday Parties. As a youth, Lauren was very active in ASAC (American Saddlebred Association of the Carolinas) She is a former ASAC Youth president, historian and recipient of the Margaret Stewart Youth Memorial Award. In 2009, She was awarded ASAC Juvenile of the Year.

Lauren loves teaching riding lessons and helping riders create a bond with the horses while learning to ride. She loves sharing what she describes as her, "one true passion," and teaching others what she loves. Lauren's excelled showing in the Roadster Horse Under Saddle Class on her favorite horse, the now retired Texas Pete. She is a graduate of UNC-Wilmington.

STEPHANIE BUSH

Riding Instructor,

Assistant Business Manager

Stephanie Bush has been riding since she was four years old and started showing in Academy at age 12, where she finished in the top three in more than 60 classes. She is a three-time National Academy Champion and a 3-time National Academy Reserve Champion and was a 4-time Top Three National Academy finalist.

Stephanie grew up in the Lenux Stables program and became a barn assistant and was an integral part of the youth program, holding the positions of historian, vice president and president (twice). She worked at Lenux Summer Camps throughout high school and is in the Lenux Legends Hall of Fame. During college, she worked part-time at Lenux, teaching lessons twice each week.  She graduated from UNC Charlotte, majoring in Business, with minors in Economics and Marketing, and Criminal Justice. After college, she worked for a marketing firm before trading her cubicle for the farm. Stephanie joined Lenux on a full-time basis in 2019, assuming the roles of office manager and riding instructor.

Stephanie has a passion for horses and growing the business. She specializes in equitation and introducing riders to showing. Stephanie assists Lenux clients in all aspects of arranging lessons, purchasing and selling saddles, and finding the right horse for each rider! When she isn't teaching lessons, you can usually find her in the office.

MADDIE MANZ

Riding Instructor,

Lesson Horse Manager

Maddie started riding at the age of eight, growing up in the Lenux Stables riding program. She was a barn assistant, active in the youth club, and worked at Lenux Summer Camps throughout high school and college. Maddie began showing at age 13 and after a successful academy career, moved into performance equitation and qualified for the Good Hands Finals. She is in the Lenux Legends Hall of Fame.

Maddie is a graduate of UNC-Wilmington, where she majored in biology. After college, she worked in secondary education, teaching math, science and Latin. A teacher at her core, Maddie realized she much preferred teaching riding lessons and missed being at the barn. Her transition to teaching lessons was natural for her and her students love the professionalism in her instruction and her soft, kind demeanor. She makes learning fun while getting the most out of her students.

Maddie assists in working show horses in the mornings before assuming her favorite role of riding instructor in the afternoons. She oversees the herd of wonderful lesson horses at Lenux and her watchful eye and love of animals keeps our horses in top health and happiness.

MIKE SETZER

Riding Instructor,

Office Manager

Mike has been a part of the American Saddlebred industry for more than 20 years, previously working as a sales representative and writer for The National Horseman magazine. During that time, he was fortunate to spend a considerable amount of time with some of the industry's top trainers and instructors, riding many horses and becoming an astute observer of what it takes to excel as a rider. He later became an instructor at Desert Palms Equestrian Center in Cave Creek, Arizona, where he also conducted riding camps and birthday parties.

Teaching and coaching have been a big part of life for Mike, who earned a B.S. degree in Secondary Education at Miami University, after which he worked as a newspaper reporter before joining Doyle Baseball Academy, teaching players and coaches of all ages and levels. In addition to riding, Mike enjoys playing hockey, golf and tennis and has also instructed and coached hockey and golf

Mike is passionate about teaching people of all ages to ride and enjoy horses and is excited to be a part of the Lenux Stables team. He also teaches at our sister stable, Lakeside Stables.