LAPORTE, Ind. – If not for 4-H, an Indiana native might not be a driver for the famous Budweiser Clydesdales.

Alec Smith, 23, has never owned a horse but was introduced to the animals when he joined 4-H in the third grade and signed up for the Horseless Horse program. 

Smith is now preparing to lead the team of horses in the July 4 parade in his hometown of LaPorte about 15 miles south of Lake Michigan.

He said destiny must have been at work because the brewing industry giant long billed as the “King of Beers” chose him out of 400 applicants when a job opening developed.

He’s eager not only to hold the reins of the Clydesdales while they’re pulling a 1903 beer wagon in the downtown parade he used to attend as a child. Smith said he can’t wait for people back home to see what he does for a living. “I am beyond ecstatic, honestly,” he said.

Smith will spend quality time in LaPorte because the Clydesdales, which skyrocketed to fame in Budweiser TV commercials during the 70’s, will also be at the annual Red, Wine and Brew on July 2 and the LaPorte County Fair on July 10.

He played a critical role in getting the Clydesdales to LaPorte because of his ties at Bethany Lutheran Church and Garwood Orchards where he attended and worked as a youth.

Pastor Dennis Meyer and church member Carrie Garwood are lead organizers of the popular Red, Wine and Brew. They were looking to spice up the annual beer and wine tasting event featuring a concert this year by country music superstars Montgomery Gentry and John Michael Montgomery.

After they reached out to him, Smith began the process of having the Clydesdales dispatched to LaPorte. “They really are the superstars of horses,” Garwood said.

Ironically, perhaps, Smith has never owned a horse.

He always wanted one, though, and received the next best thing when he signed up for a program in 4-H that gives youth a chance to ride and take care of horses belonging to other people.

Youth in the 4-H program are also allowed to show the horses at the fair. Smith began taking care of another family’s horses. A few years later, Roger Grott, of Union Mills, allowed him to handle his Clydesdales for several years on his farm. 

“I took care of them like they were my own,” he said.

Smith has also worked at Garwood Orchards doing things like driving horses pulling the wagons in hayrides during the fall harvest.

He’s also worked with Clydesdales at the farm of Laura Bladecki outside New Carlisle and held the reins on Clydesdales pulling wagons taking people out to get Christmas trees at Pinecrest Tree Farm near Galien.

He was in college majoring in nursing and still working with horses when the earth began shaking on what appears to be his true calling in life. Smith said he started taking care of the horses of a neighbor, Shelby Zarobinski, after she was hired as a Budweiser Clydesdale driver in Colorado.

She helped him make some connections at Budweiser that might have been a factor when he applied for an opening as a Budweiser driver in New Hampshire. “That’s how I got the job,” he said.

Smith said he’s practically been to every state east of the Mississippi River and into Canada in his travels with the Budweiser crew to show the horses the past three years. His other duties include driving one of three semi-trucks used to transport the horses and other supplies to each location.

“We travel rain, shine, snow, hot.  It doesn’t matter. Wherever you want us, we’ll be there,” he said.

Smith said he can’t imagine doing anything else right now. He enjoys seeing the country and meeting all sorts of people including some wanting his autograph.

The joy he sees when the horses pull into a community for a visit is what he likes most about the job. “A lot of smiles we get to put on people’s faces is priceless.  We have 40-year old men who are jumping up and down and clapping their hands.   They’re so excited to see us,” he said.