Madison Braynan is a sophomore at New Mexico State University studying criminal justice and dreams of becoming a FBI agent. When Madison isn’t studying, she is an active member of the NMSU equestrian team. Her parents introduced her to the sport 17 years ago. He dad grew up around the sport and he mother was a professional rider.
What’s your favorite color?
My favorite color is lavender. When I was growing up my grandma always had lavender plants in her yard and they’re my favorite plants. I just love the smell. Love the color.
Who’s been the most influential person in your life?
My mom; definitely my mom. She grew up in a low-income family and worked for everything she has today. She runs a very successful business, and has taught me everything I know. I would not be half the person I am without my mom.
What’s the most underrated aspect of this sport?
How easy people think it is. People think that we just get on these horses and the horses do all the work, and that’s not true at all. We have to get a certain number of strides in between each jump, collect them without making them trot. It’s a lot of work and people really underestimate us.
What’s been the most rewarding aspect of this sport?
I won IEA (International Equestrian Association) National Finals my senior year of high school…I got to be in Sports Illustrated, so that was pretty cool. That’s probably my greatest accomplishment.
What do you say to people who are considering this sport?
Definitely try to get into it if you can, for sure. It’s not like any other sport. Until I came here, it’s an individual sport until you go to college. So it’s really all about you and your horse, but college makes it different because it’s not all about you. You have to cheer on your other teammates. Usually you’re looking down on other people, hopefully they’ll do worse than you so that you win. But here you want your team to win as many points as possible, so you have to be there for everybody.
What’s the most important aspect that your team has taught you?
To work together and be there for everyone. Last year I was a redshirt, so I wasn’t really part of the team. I never showed or competed and didn’t travel. Now that I’m actually part of the team they’ve really showed me that we all have to stick together.
If you could tell the whole world something you think the whole world should know, what would you tell them?
I actually quit riding for two years because I had a mental break down and decided I never wanted to do this again. I was sick of it, and then my senior year of high school coaches started emailing me. They said, “We’re really interested in you, we want to recruit you,” but I had nothing. I had two years off. I had no successes. I had to get back into it and that year I was IEA Finals and was the national champion.