The Young Riders was an American Western television series created by Ed Spielman that presents a fictionalized account of a group of young Pony Express riders based at the Sweetwater Station in the Nebraska Territory during the years leading up to the American Civil War. The series premiered on ABC on September 20, 1989 and ran for three seasons until the final episode aired on July 23, 1992.

Once a rising star of the rodeo circuit, and a gifted horse trainer, young cowboy Brady is warned that his riding days are over after a horse crushed his skull at a rodeo. In an attempt to regain control of his own fate, Brady undertakes a search for a new identity and what it means to be a man in the heartland of the United States.

While traveling with his father, young Alec becomes fascinated by a mysterious Arabian stallion that is brought on board and stabled in the ship he is sailing on. When it tragically sinks both he and the horse survive only to be stranded on a deserted island. He befriends it, so when finally rescued both return to his home where they soon meet Henry Dailey, a once successful trainer. Together they begin training the horse to race against the fastest ones in the world.

After being shipwrecked on a remote desert island, courageous, young Alec Ramsay and a wild Arabian stallion named the "Black," form an irrevocable bond that continues after their rescue. Now teammates in the horse-racing circuit, they are poised to take the racing world by storm. No one else can ride the stunning fire and silk stallion but Alec; and though the Black's spirit is untamed, his speed is unmatched and he is swiftly becoming the fastest racehorse in the world.