By Jessica Grutkowski
Portraits by Melissa Fuller
Equestrians are admittedly a resilient group, rarely letting illness or injury get in the way of their saddle time. But when professional show jumper Sandra Dalman was diagnosed with lupus—an autoimmune disease that affects 5 million people worldwide—she feared the physical toll might rob her of her passion.
But it isn’t the first time Sandra’s health has threatened her riding. After contracting mononucleosis in high school, she never fully recovered, exhibiting a myriad of symptoms—everything from chronic fatigue to joint pain and never-ending illness—for years. She credits her love of horses with helping her to stay positive and motivating her to keep going—just like that passion continues to do for her every day.
Hello Horse World
Sandra grew up in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and her mother, Kathy, introduced her to horses at an early age, taking Sandra to her first riding lesson at 3 years old. While some children have lemonade stands for fun, Sandra preferred pony wrangling, and her parents obliged. “My father, Jim, purchased four ponies for $12,000,” Sandra said. “He got a large and a medium pony, and two weanlings as a bonus. They were fancy but very green!”
Sandra credits these young ponies for her earliest lessons in training and developing horses. “I fell off the first 100 times I rode May, the 3-year-old large pony. She would take off bucking the moment I swung my leg over the saddle,” Sandra said. “My mom’s close friend Nora Macdonald, who owned a barn around the corner, set a grid once to back her off, but nothing slowed her down. That pony could really jump!”
Sandra quickly learned the importance of patience and perseverance. “I guess you could say I started training horses at 12 years old,” she said. “Whatever my ponies could do was the level I could compete at, so I spent hours teaching them lead changes before I could go to the horse show. My parents couldn’t keep me out of the barn. After school, I cleaned stalls, turned out the ponies and made grain. They were long days, and I learned to have a strong work ethic, but I loved it.”
Sandra rode ponies until she was 16, when her dad purchased an off-the-track Thoroughbred to be her Junior Hunter horse. “I thought he was 5 or 6, but he was only 3 years old,” Sandra said. “When I realized how young he was, I turned him out for a year.”
While he ultimately did not make it to the Junior Hunter division after Sandra got him back under saddle, he became a successful junior jumper, competing with Sandra on the field at Traders Point Hunt Charity Show and Sweet Charity Farm. She competed throughout high school, and in the winter of her junior year, she flew down to Gulfport, Mississippi, on weekends for the Gulf Coast Winter Classic. “My body was run down, and I was diagnosed with mononucleosis,” she said. “I missed three months of school. I never got back to 100%.”
During her senior year of high school, Sandra often fell asleep at her desk—and that’s if she made it to school at all. “School came easy for me; I have a photographic memory,” she said. “I had several AP credits and a 4.0 GPA; my principal proposed I graduate a semester early.”
Sandra agreed, but on one condition: She could still plan her senior prom. “I was vice president of the student council and had waited four years for the privilege. I wasn’t going to miss out,” she said.
The winter after graduation, Sandra stayed with her Grandma Ruth in Naples, Florida. “My grandfather had just passed. Ruth was a phenomenal influence, a true matriarch,” Sandra said. “I felt better in the warm weather, but I hadn’t made the connection—yet.”
A New Reality
Back in Indiana, Sandra finally had a diagnosis: systemic lupus. “I learned that cold weather and direct sunlight are triggers for lupus flares, which affect my joints and skin, causing a rash and sores,” she said. “I take medication to prevent my body from attacking its own organs. Not long ago, lupus was a death sentence; but I’m determined to fight this and live my life to the fullest.”
When it came time to apply to college, Sandra’s family had concerns about her living alone and preferred she attend a school close to home. Sandra, though, had other ideas. “I secretly applied to Indiana University (IU) and was accepted,” she said. “When my parents found out about my intentions, they insisted I register as a disabled student, which got me a handicapped parking pass so I could drive to class. It did make my life a lot easier; I saved a lot of walking, especially in the winter, and my teachers were understanding if I missed class.”
Admittedly, Sandra struggled with the transition. “I was on a lot of medication, including chemotherapy meds. It affected my ability to focus and remember. Suddenly, studying became difficult—something that usually came easily to me,” she said.
Initially, her parents did not allow her to bring her horses with her to school. But within two weeks, Sandra went home, swapped out her Grand Jeep Cherokee for her dually pick-up truck and loaded up her horses, boarding them five minutes from IU.
Having her horses nearby was the perfect outlet, providing her with a piece of home and a sense of normalcy. “I joined IU’s IHSA Equestrian Team and was captain by my sophomore year,” she said. “We grew the team from 10 to 80 riders.” Sandra also joined a sorority and moved in with her Alpha Xi Delta sisters. She held leadership roles there throughout her time at IU, ultimately being named president in her senior year. “I never felt excluded because of my illness,” she said. “They took care of me. It was so different from high school.”
As Sandra began to wean off of some of her heavier medications, she began to feel better, and she thrived off her leadership roles. During the second semester of her senior year, she got opportunities to ride. “I felt so much better and was happy to be doing horses,” she said. It was in Ocala that Sandra met Aaron Vale and Andrea King, and the following year, she spent her summer with them. Sandra also learned lessons in business from Dennis Mitchell and, later, Donald Cheska.
Love at First Sight
After graduating from IU with a degree in nonprofit management, Sandra came home and serendipitously met her future husband, Javan Dalman. “I was helping our family friend with her horse,” she said. “Her brother asked me to dinner and the rest is history; we were engaged two months later!”
By the end of the year they were married, and they began working for Mutton Power Equipment, Sandra’s family business. “I took the entire business online,” she said. “Javan was their number one salesperson. He owned a landscaping company and had bought his equipment from my dad, so he was very familiar with it.”
Despite their success, Sandra longed for the horse world. In 2008, a nearby farm was closing down. “I saw an opportunity to start my own business out of Southview Farm,” she said. “Nine horses came, and I instantly had boarders and customers.”
To Sandra’s surprise, one of her new clients asked to go horse shopping in Wellington, Florida. “I will never forget that day—I was so excited! They drove me to the airport, we tried horses, picked one out and they brought me home,” she said. “They were fabulous customers for 15 years, and we’re still friends to this day. Javan actually married them!”
Sandra continued to work for Mutton part-time while ramping up her equestrian business. “I was burning the candle at both ends,” she said. “Recognizing that I felt better in warm climates, Javan suggested I go back to Florida, so we started small, and every year we went back with more horses.”
By 2012, they had a waiting list. “We spent the winter in Wellington, and settled in Lexington, Kentucky, for the summer,” Sandra said. “It streamlined our travel and gave us better access to vets and farriers.”
Meanwhile, Javan unveiled a passion project of his own. “When we were first married, I got him an older mare to start riding, and he had natural talent,” she said. “He supported my business and wanted to work in the industry. He started building cavaletti and fixing people’s jumps.”
One day Javan decided to build a prototype for aluminum jump standards, which at the time could only be imported. “I told him, ‘If you think you can make money, go for it!’ The orders came in, and soon people were ordering full courses,” Sandra said. “We love working together. He does the sales, and I help design jumps from a rider’s point of view. Javan can design anything you can imagine.”
Refocus, Renew, Rebuild
Dalman Show Jumping has become a household name in the industry, and Sandra is known for producing high-quality show jumpers and having an eye for talent. But a concussion in April 2025 forced her to take a break. “I was walking a horse after a jump school, when he slipped and fell. Javan thought I was dying. My eyes were open, but I was completely unresponsive,” she said. “It was an impact seizure—nothing like a major life trauma to reset your perspective. I’m reminded to enjoy each day.”
After two months of intense rehabilitation, Sandra is back in the saddle. “My lupus makes it difficult to recover from any injury, especially a concussion,” she said. “I have dreamed of riding at the highest levels since I was a child, and I still have those big dreams. I’m determined to keep pursuing them and continue developing my young prospects.”
Sandra takes other measures to protect herself from common triggers, such as the sun. “I’m always covered head-to-toe in sun-protective fabric when I’m outside,” she said. “I wear a hat, a protective mask on my neck and up around my face, and sunglasses. It looks like I’m avoiding the paparazzi, but everyone knows it’s me under there!”
At this point in her life, Sandra is happy to focus on her horses and being her best self. “I take everything one day at a time,” she said. “Lupus is inherited, so we decided not to have children. I may not live a very long life, but I promised myself to enjoy every day doing what I love.”
Follow Sandra on Instagram @sldalman, @dalmanshowjumping and @dalmanjumpco
Photos by Melissa Fuller, melissafullerphotography33.mypixieset.com
