Horse Trainer Highlight
Trainer Highlight - Ava Scovel
Ava Scovel, Certified Lyons Legacy Trainer class of 2024, is a remarkable young woman! Josh first met Ava at her home facility, Hickory Hollow Stables, during a three day clinic. Her talent was obvious and led Josh to encourage her to come to Colorado as a student in our program. The grit, determination, mindfulness, and enthusiasm she brought to the group was amazing. We are so proud to have been part of her ongoing success! Just take a look at these accomplishments:
- Reserve High Point Holland West Extreme Mountain Trail Youth Division (18 & under) 2020 & 2021 / Season-end Awards
- Sportsmanship Award 2020 & 2023 / 4-H Season-end Award
- Top Sponsor Earner 2022, 2023, 2024 / 4-H
- Top 10 Rider 2023 / MIHA Middle School Equestrian Team Season-end Award
- Highpoint Champion Holland Western Saddle Club Ranch Show 2024 (13 & under)
- Reserve Grand Champion Western Horsemanship Overall, 4-H Fair 2024
- 5th Top Rider Overall, 4-H Fair 2024
- Reserve Champion Versatility, 4-H Fair 2024 (14 & under)
Aside from training horses, Ava is also an avid hunter. Her harvest includes 6 bucks and 5 does with an 8 point whitetail this year as her biggest buck to date! In addition to deer, she also enjoys hunting small game, upland, and waterfowl. Future goals include elk and mule deer hunting – definitely a bucket list item!
Passion & Inspiration
“I was very fortunate to grow up with horses my whole life, so my passion for them came very quickly. Before I could walk, I would ride in front of my parents and right behind the pommel. At three I got my first pony, Rainy, a kind hearted miniature pony mare. I rode her until I was seven and got too tall for her. I transitioned to Chloe, a sweet but challenging buckskin Quarter Horse mare, who really made me appreciate riding, and horses in general. She really made me love the bond between horses and human and I hadn’t felt that with any other horse but her. really neat! My parents have been big inspirations, such as my dad’s horsemanship as a farrier and my mom’s teaching skills during her lessons. I have spent a lot of time watching my mom give lessons and helping demonstrating exercises she was teaching. She has even handed down one of her students to me, who has come a long way, and is very patient with me while I learn, and get my teaching skills down!”
Why Lyons Legacy?
“I was not really looking for a career path until I got the opportunity to go through Josh’s Certification Program. My parents had josh out to our farm for a 3 day clinic because they respected the Lyons method, and grew up with John’s books, DVDs and expos. At my first Josh Lyons clinic, I rode Chloe. I could not believe that my horse could actually feel that soft at the end – I didn’t really know it was even possible for her! It was an amazing feeling and right then I knew that every single horse I trained would have that same feeling, and better. So when I got the opportunity to go to Josh’s certification, of course I was going! I was so excited, and when I broke out my first horse there, I felt that same softness and willingness. The amount of light bulb moments I had there was insane! Josh does such a great job explaining why we do things that way, and it all makes so much sense. I came back 100 times better than I went! He really changed me as rider, making me so much more confident, solid, and knowledgeable as a trainer. He challenged me to be the best rider I could be, and it really helped. After Certification, my hard work paid off and I graduated at twelve years old, making me the youngest Lyons Legacy Certified Trainer.”
The Horses that have Impacted my Career
“Lots and lots and lots!! Out of the many horses that have impacted me, my favorite horse, Chloe, takes the cake. I have done everything from huntseat, to ranch, to western pleasure, extreme mountain trail, to showmanship, and lots more! I have done it all with her. She was an amazing horse and sadly passed away recently. I had done countless clinics on her, and had ridden in almost all my shows on her! She was so cool because she would teach right along with my mom, and when Chloe thought I was ready, she would pick a new thing to work on, (such as learning how to hone in on neck reining) almost always conveniently a week before a show. She was so fun because I could really work on my horsemanship and feel safe and comfortable on her. She was so patient and looking back I laugh at how naughty she could have been with me, but she really stepped up and took care of me. I got to learn more about collection, speed control, neck reining and all about showing with her, especially all the disciplines we tried!
My current training horse is an eight year old cremello Quarter Horse mare named Sushi, who shines in ranch and huntseat. I took her through Certification as my green broke horse, and she definitely came out broke! She is a super sweet, easy going and patient mare. She has great speed control, stops, a great start to a spin, and a killer extended lope and trot, along with a cute jog and lope, thanks to Certification! I was able to take her to her first ranch show, which really boosted my confidence in her and myself as a trainer/rider. As sad as I am, Sushi will be for sale soon, because I am ready to get my own unbroke, and follow my ranch/reining dreams!”
Our Farm & Future
“Our farm is Hickory Hollow Stables located in Hickory Corners, MI. We have a few boarders and quite a few horses of our own. My mom runs lessons, Equestrian for a Day camps, and kids pony birthday parties. I would like to try to go the more ranch horse and reining route. I really like how the horses move, look, and feel. I am excited to hopefully get deeper into the ranch/reining industry, break out and sell my project horses, and level up to new horses. In the near future, I would like my career to be in breaking, training, showing, and selling ranch and or reining horses. When I am older, if I decide to take over the farm I hope to be honing in on performance reining/ranch horses, and maybe giving lessons as well. I really enjoy teaching with aspirations to teach clinics at home and on the road. I have a passion for teaching both horse and rider, and I hope to put it together in my future business.”
Alyssa said she grew up in Maryland where English and Hunter Jumpers dominate and she continues to train in those areas. She stresses the foundations of all disciplines are the same – even western and ranch riding. They just branch off into different technical areas.
