Western performance horse trainer Bud Lyon is the go-to trainer for those looking to achieve the highest level of success in reining and ranch horse classes. Originally from Southern California, Bud is a former American Quarter Horse Association Youth Reserve World Champion and Amateur World Champion, learning under the tutelage of Dana Hokana, National Reined Cow Horse Association Two Million Dol
lar Rider Todd Crawford and NRCHA Hall of Fame member Don Murphy. He launched his career in Arizona, riding for seven years under Randy Paul, a legend in the reined cow horse industry and a National Reining Horse Association Million Dollar Rider. Bud is a NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity and Derby finalist, a National Reining Breeders Classic and NRHA Derby finalist in Level 4, an NRHA futurity finalist and the 2013 NRBC Level 2 Open Co-Champion. Moving to Texas and striking out on his own, Bud’s immediate success came from coaching clients to an AQHA Youth World champion title and a Palomino Horse Breeders Association Amateur Reining Reserve World Championship. Today, Bud’s excellence in training horses and coaching riders in ranch riding and ranch trail have amassed more than 30 World Champion titles across multiple associations and events including AQHA, American Paint Horse Association, Nationals Snaffle Bit Association, PHBA and at the Quarter Horse Congress. Bud can count the 2018 AQHA Senior Ranch Riding World Championship, 2020 AQHA Junior Ranch Riding World Championship, the 2021 AQHA Senior Ranch Riding World Champion, and the 2023 AQHA Junior and Senior Ranch Riding World Champion titles to his credit. He’s coached riders across the U.S., conducted clinics teaching riders in Japan, Norway and Spain. Giving back to the industry is important to Bud, and he does so in a variety of ways. In addition to his international coaching seminars, Bud was selected to be the official reining clinician for the 2014 American Quarter Horse Youth World Cup and was asked to return for the 2018 competition. He’s shared his training techniques and insights in internationally distributed publications including Quarter Horse News, NRHA Reiner, Horse & Rider and NRHA’s Pro Trainer. Bud is also a founding member and a featured trainer for Horse&Rider OnDemand, a video subscription service dedicated to online education for Western performance events. Bud Lyon Performance Horses is supported by loyal sponsors including CR Ranchwear, Kimes Ranch Jeans, Joey Jemison Custom Leather, Platinum Performance, Shorty’s Caboy Hattery, Superior Saddlery LLC, Western Hauler and Yucca Flats Saddle Blankets.
