Avery Glynn: From Early Success to Auburn Star

By Helen Townes

Portraits by Lindsey Long

One Sunday morning in Petaluma, California, Ned and Hope Glynn were enjoying a rare day off at Sonoma Valley Stables, their hunter-jumper training business and home. From their kitchen window, they happened to spy their 9-year-old daughter Avery riding her white Welsh pony, Wally, around the stable’s outdoor ring.

 

Growing up on a horse farm and being the child of professional equestrians does not guarantee an affinity for four-legged creatures. Avery’s parents hoped their only child would like animals, especially horses, but Hope explained that they never pushed. “I did know it would be great if she loved horses and animals as much as her dad and I did, but I didn’t care if she was a competitive rider,” Hope said. “Luckily she loved all kinds of animals from the beginning.”

 

That Sunday morning, Avery displayed her burgeoning work ethic, as well. “We weren’t teaching any lessons that day, but Avery had tacked Wally up by herself and gone out to the ring. Ten minutes later we saw her riding without her irons!” Ned remembered. “We knew Avery loved horses, but that morning we realized she also had the drive and commitment.”

 

“Yeah, I was one of those kids you could ask any fact about any animal, and I would know it,” Avery laughed. “Like marine animals, anything—I read so many books and knew everything about them. I always knew I wanted to be around animals.”

 

This included ponies and horses, as her parents had hoped, as well as instigating that “commitment and drive” that her father referred to. Avery started doing leadline and walk-trot classes on Wally when she was 3. “My mom says that she knew I was going to be competitive because at my first walk-trot class at Thermal, I got third place and I asked, ‘Why didn’t I get a blue ribbon?’ and my mother had to explain to me that not everyone came in first!’”

 

If one logs into the USEF website and searches “Avery Glynn,” who is now 20 years old, they should be prepared for a dizzying roster of entries. Avery has competed in countless shows all over the country and has a substantial number of wins. Today, she is entering her junior year riding on the equestrian team at Auburn University and is one of the top jumping seat riders in the Southeastern Conference (SEC).

 

Since those early days packing around on Wally, Avery has ridden hundreds of horses, never turning down chances to catch-ride for other owners and trainers. She has benefited from early training from her parents but also their connections with innumerable other coaches and clinicians—and talented horses—over the years. She is known for her exquisite form in the saddle and her prowess in hunters and equitation. On top of all that, she’s an excellent student who is on the academic honor roll of the equestrian division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), majoring in marketing with a 3.95 GPA.

 

Of course, growing up as the child of two professional equestrians influenced Avery’s interest in the sport, but it runs deeper than that. Emma Kurtz, assistant equestrian coach at Auburn University, emphasized Avery’s deep love for her equine partners. “In the two years that I’ve been coaching Avery at Auburn, I don’t think I’ve ever heard her say she doesn’t like a horse,” Emma said. “She seems to really enjoy riding horses she feels she can have a positive influence on and improve through her riding.”

 

Early Promise Manifests Big Wins

In those early childhood days, Avery remembers riding a few “tricky ponies” but also “kind-hearted horses and ponies,” each ride helping to build her confidence and expand her riding abilities. “Every horse that I’ve ever ridden has added something to my riding, even if I haven’t had big wins or noteworthy accomplishments on many of them,” Avery shared. “I’ve gotten the opportunity to ride with so many incredibly accomplished trainers in my life, but riding and working with all types of horses has probably benefited my riding the most. Letting horses teach me how to ride has been the most influential part of my career so far.”

 

When Avery was 10, she began riding and jumping Esteban La Paz, a highly talented equitation horse. “He moved me up right away from 2’6” fences to 3’, then 3’3”. He was such an amazing horse. I remember if I didn’t know where I was at a jump, I would just close my eyes,” she laughed. “He knew I was his kid, and he was going to take care of me. I think he would have jumped through fire. Horses like him instilled confidence in me, which in turn has helped me adapt to riding less-experienced horses.”

 

Before Avery hit her teenage years, she had already discovered her ability to deal with pressure. “I realized that if I could make it to the final round at a competition, even if I wasn’t sitting on top, I had a chance to win. If it was a high-pressure situation, I was going to do better,” she explained. “My mom was big on this. She told me when I was really young, ‘Avery, when you get nervous, that’s the time to focus and ride better.’ Now I get excited when I’m a little anxious going into the ring. It helps me thrive in the big competitions.”

 

Another horse, King Of Hearts, also helped put Avery on the map for hunters. “I had never connected with a horse like that. I was champion in the 3’3” Juniors at almost every show in California. To win against all the big riders in Southern California, many of them older than I was—that was a big thing for me,” she shared.

 

A Rapid Ascent Through the Junior Ranks

For Avery, no matter the horse, whether one of her own or a catch-ride, the accolades and wins just kept coming. In 2018, she was named the winner of the THIS National Children’s Medal Finals at the Capital Challenge Horse Show in Upper Marlboro, Maryland. She was champion of the 2019 California Professional Horse Association (CPHA) Junior Medal Finals, winning with her mare Cocon 4, an Oldenburg by Cero who had been purchased to be one of her father, Ned’s, Grand Prix jumpers but whom she had been riding since 2016. The scholarship Avery won, the Shelby Drazan Memorial Award, made it possible for her to go to her first big finals on the East Coast.

 

“My parents and I had earlier decided that I was not going to the Dover Medal Finals or the Maclay Finals—it was just too expensive,” Avery remembered. “But then I won that scholarship and my parents said, ‘You’re going!’ and they made it happen!” Avery ended up winning the Taylor Harris Finals with Cocon that year. The following year, the pair placed ninth in the Dover Saddlery/USEF Hunter Seat Medal Final at the 2019 Pennsylvania National Horse Show and in 2021, she and Cocon were 10th at the Maclay Finals at the National Horse Show.

 

“I remember being in complete awe that I was at the same competitions as so many riders that I had been looking up to for years. I would watch videos of past medal finals and championships, and to finally have the opportunity to compete against these other Juniors was a surreal feeling,” Avery said.

 

Fortuitously, the timing was right for her partnership with Cocon, aka Calle, when Avery was old enough to do the bigger equitation competitions. “That horse ended up being the best horse I ever had. She did everything for my career that she possibly could have,” Avery said. “I have so many great memories with Calle, and some of my favorite memories with my dad were working with her at the start of her equitation career.”

 

In 2020, Avery started training with Missy Clark and John Brennan at North Run, based in Warren, Vermont, and Wellington, Florida, and for the rest of her Junior career she traveled back and forth to compete on both the West and East coasts. “Competing on both sides of the country was a unique opportunity—being able to ride two groups of horses and train with separate groups of people is something that I’m so grateful for, because most young riders will never experience something like that. It really was because of the support of all the wonderful trainers and my family that we were able to make that happen.”

 

Coach Jim Hagman and Elvenstar Farm, in Moorpark, California, also played a key role in Avery’s career, especially during her early equitation career. “Jim helped put me on the map in the equitation and trained me throughout my years with Cocon 4, alongside my parents,” she said. “He also helped create the connection with North Run for me. My time with both of those teams was and is truly invaluable, and they will always be a second family to me.”

 

During Avery’s last Junior year, she came into the indoors and equitation finals unsure of what horse she would be riding. “My plans throughout the year were unexpectedly changed at the last minute, and I was given about two days to get to know the horses that I competed on,” Avery said. “At the USEF Finals, I met Favorite Edition Z, who had recently been imported into the North Run program and had done two competitions in the U.S. in jumper medals. He had never competed over flowers before the day I rode him in the Medal Finals. Despite all that, he brought me to a fourth-place finish at WIHS Finals and eighth at the Maclay Finals.”

 

A dizzying flurry of additional victories rounded out Avery’s Junior career: In 2022 she won the Hermes Equitation Championship at the Hampton Classic, riding a horse named Itteville and again showcasing her ability to catch-ride. “I rode him for the first time that week, and he ended up being such a special horse. I just felt like he was one of those horses that was made for me,” Avery remembered. She won the R.W. Mutch Equitation Trophy in both 2022 and 2023 at the Devon Horse Show in Devon, Pennsylvania, riding two standout mounts, Gerardus and Acer K.

 

It was at the 2023 West Coast USHJA Gladstone Equitation Classic, riding a horse named Dalmore, that Avery showed the depths of her ability to perform under pressure. Starting in ninth place after round one, Avery and Dalmore finished with a half-point lead in the handy hunter-style round. Avery went on to win, riding a horse named Understudy for the first time, when the finalists had to trade mounts in the final work-off. Avery also collected six championships and five reserve championships, all on different horses, throughout her time at the Junior Hunters Finals from 2019 to 2023, including one grand championship and three reserve grand championships on both the East and West coasts.

 

“Winning USET Finals felt like a final chapter closed on an incredible Junior equitation career,” Avery shared. “I rode a horse named Change Up PS, whom I also had met just the week of the Finals. It was the horse’s first equitation class and he was incredible. It was definitely one of my most stand-out accomplishments to date.”

 

Junior Riding to the College Arena

Although Avery’s parents are now divorced, they have remained committed partners to Avery’s success in the show ring and in school. “Ned and I both graduated from college, and we believe having an education helps you succeed in business and connect with other people. So we always said to Avery, ‘If this is something you want to do, we support you, but you also need to go to school,’” Hope said.

 

Ned added that Avery’s work ethic for academics always matched her commitment to horses and riding. Until the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Avery attended high school at Sonoma Academy full time, simultaneously juggling schoolwork and a rigorous show schedule as a Junior rider in all the premier West Coast shows and traveling east for many others. She also participated in high school sports, including gymnastics, swimming, soccer and volleyball, until she decided to commit full time to horses and riding. “I think her mom and I did a really good job of allowing her to get the regular school experience and try other sports,” Ned said. “She learned how to get organized, stay on top of her schoolwork and talk with her teachers ahead of time if she was missing class for a show.”

 

When it came time to apply to college, however, Avery had some doubts. “I was not fully excited about going to college, and instead wanted to go pro; but I knew it was important to my family that I get a college education,” she said. “Now, I’m so happy that I went to college, not only for the education but also to meet people that I connected with; it gave me something to lean on and take my mind off the stress of my final year as a Junior rider.”

 

Auburn University in Alabama, with its top 10 equestrian team, held a longtime allure for Avery, even during her period of doubt about her future plans. “I had known from a really young age that I wanted to go to Auburn and ride on their team,” she said. “I remember being in the sixth grade and telling my friends that I was going there.” And all along, Auburn had also been looking at Avery.

 

“Before we recruited her as a high schooler, we had been watching her for a long, long time. We were so excited that she chose Auburn,” said Jessica Braswell, Auburn’s head equestrian coach. “From a riding perspective, she’s been everything we thought she’d be.”

 

During her most recent year at Auburn, Avery delivered an exceptional season both in the saddle and in the classroom. She was named the NCEA Fences Rider of the Year and earned First Team All-American honors in fences, along with an Honorable Mention All-American recognition on the flat. Within the Southeastern Conference, she was honored as the SEC Fences Rider of the Year and selected to the All-SEC Team for Fences. Her academic performance matched her athletic excellence, as she was named to the NCEA First Team All-Academic, the NCEA Academic Honor Roll and the SEC Academic Honor Roll.

 

“She ended this past season undefeated over fences, which is a true testament to her work, her riding and her ability to ride a lot of different horses well,” Jessica said. “Her riding is outstanding, and she’s also just a great kid and a great leader for her teammates. She’s also a rockstar in the classroom. She’s one I never have to worry about.”

 

Assistant coach Emma added, “I think what makes Avery stand out in competition is her softness when she’s riding. In my experience, judges tend to appreciate and reward a soft rider who makes everything look effortless.”

 

Avery is always working to expand her equestrian repertoire, and most recently she’s been enjoying competing more in the jumpers. “I had the opportunity to compete with a special horse named Aladin Des Brimbelles, my last Junior year, who brought me through my first bigger jumper classes. I won my first 1.45m classic on him in training with Lisa Carlson and Dayton Gorsline. Transitioning into college and as an amateur, I’ve been enjoying riding more jumpers and owning and competing with my jumpers as well as horses like Parachute Z.”

 

Once-in-a-Lifetime African Trip

Avery’s love for animals and her abilities as a rider recently provided a special opportunity. Through a social media giveaway hosted by Horsebytes, Offbeat Safaris and Zara’s Planet, Avery and Hope won a week-long riding safari in Kenya with Offbeat Safaris. Their adventure began with three unforgettable days in Nairobi, visiting the city’s national park and the iconic Giraffe Manor. From there, they embarked on a week-long riding safari covering more than 250 kilometers on horseback and often riding for four hours or more each day.

 

The experience delivered one jaw-dropping moment after another. While riding across a river, the group witnessed a mother hippo charge a massive crocodile to protect her family, an encounter so rare and dramatic they described it as something out of National Geographic. Another highlight was watching a cheetah hunt at close range. “I love hippos and rhinos, and we saw a ton of them,” Avery recalled. Beyond the wildlife, what left a lasting impression on Avery was the beauty of Kenya and the warmth of its people. “Kenyans were so welcoming and kind,” she said. “I loved meeting people from this part of the world and learning about their culture.”

 

Hope shared a photo in one of her Instagram stories of Avery jumping a downed tree during the mother-daughter riding safari. Even while riding long days across the challenging Kenyan terrain, on yet another “catch horse,” Avery somehow managed to find some natural landscape feature to keep up with her jumping.

 

For all her success, Avery still seems to maintain a modest outlook while also recognizing the importance of family support. “I feel I’ve been lucky to ride so many different horses and train with so many different people. I really believe that’s part of what has gotten me this far in the sport,” she said. “My mom has always been my biggest cheerleader since day one. She has always pushed for me to get more opportunities in the saddle and always put me out there to other trainers. I’m very lucky to be surrounded by so many trainers in my family: my mom, dad, and stepmom, Rebecca Bruce Glynn, and for all of the connections they’ve helped make for me in the industry.”

 

Follow Avery on Instagram @averyglynn and follow Auburn University equestrian team at agriculture.auburn.edu/research/hort/equestrian-center

 

Photos by Lindsey Long, lindseylong.com, unless noted otherwise