Meet Lindy Lonsberry the Stunt Double Behind Amy Fleming

Amber Marshall is a skilled horsewoman — nobody’s arguing that. After 19 seasons on Heartland, she has earned her credibility in the saddle many times over. But the scenes that make you hold your breath — the gallops through thick brush in Season 12, the jumps that look like they could go wrong — those were done by someone most fans have never heard of.

For nearly two decades, Lindy Lonsberry hasn’t just been Amber Marshall’s stunt double; she is the second half of Amy Fleming.

The two women have built a shorthand that barely needs words. When a horse gets unpredictable on set or a jump starts to look risky, Marshall catches Lonsberry’s eye. A small nod, and they switch. No announcement to the crew, no fuss. The production keeps moving, and nobody watching ever notices the difference.

What Lonsberry says about Phoenix — the horse fans know and love as Spartan — is one of the more interesting details from behind the scenes of Heartland. According to Lonsberry, the horse behaves differently when she takes the reins. His ears come forward. His muscles tighten. She calls it “stunt mode” — a shift in energy the horse seems to pick up on before the action even starts, as if he senses the change in rider and adjusts himself accordingly.

The braid isn’t a coincidence. Amy Fleming’s signature plait during action scenes is a deliberate technical choice. At speed, Lonsberry’s braid moves exactly like Marshall’s, giving editors the visual consistency to cut between riders without breaking the illusion. A profile shot at a gallop would expose the swap in a frame. The braid closes that gap.

None of it is accidental. Lonsberry does not simply ride fast. She studies how Marshall sits, how she holds the reins, the exact weight and angle of her posture in the saddle. The performance is precise enough that most viewers watching at full attention rarely catch it.

As Season 19 continues on UP Faith & Family and fans wait for Season 20 news, it is worth watching those episodes a little closer. The braid swinging at a gallop. The shift in a horse’s energy before a tough sequence begins. Lindy Lonsberry has taken falls and risks that never made it into any credits, and the fearlessness Amy Fleming shows on screen? A big part of that is hers.