Gino’s World

“It’s his world—I’m just living in it.”

That’s how Geñay Vaughn describes her 14-year-old partner, Gino, a Dutch Warmblood gelding. While many top horses have separate grooms, riders, and managers, Gino has Geñay. She’s his groom, his chef, his travel companion, and his rider.

“My world revolves around him,” she says. And judging by the way he’s danced through the 2025 US Equestrian Open of Dressage season, he’s more than earned it. The undisputed powerhouse of the West Coast, Vaughn has four wins to her name and is the only rider in the series to remain undefeated. 

Prince of the Paddock 

Gino’s personality shines from performance to paddock.

“He knows he’s the man,” Geñay shared. “He has such a unique personality.”

Their partnership began when he was only six years old. Geñay’s mom, Michele Vaughn, spotted Gino during a horse-shopping trip in Europe. With his striking dark bay coat and three white socks, she knew right away that he could be something special. Michele originally bought the horse for herself, but once her daughter got in the saddle, it was clear who he really belonged to.

The connection was instant. Before long, it was obvious that Gino might very well be the horse to carry Geñay all the way.

Eight years later, he’s well on his way. This spring, Geñay qualified for her first World Cup Finals, finishing 14th overall with a score of 73.765%—a strong debut on a major international stage. With the 2028 LA Olympics just a few years away, the California-based pair are using the US Equestrian Open Series to fine-tune their partnership and push their freestyle even further.

A Soundtrack That Feels Like Home

Geñay and Gino’s freestyle is set to a blend of Barry White, Luther Vandross, and Earth, Wind & Fire. Their personalities shine through every transition and music cue, which makes sense since the soundtrack is a direct homage to Geñay’s identity.

“I tried to stay true to who I am,” she said.

“I picked songs that I grew up on—artists that were close to me, and music that I really liked and felt was part of my culture. I picked a lot of African-American artists.”

That soundtrack has helped power a season of personal bests, beginning with a 75.150% at the inaugural US Equestrian Open Qualifier and building to a 75.875% at the Ginny Rattner Memorial Dressage Show just three weeks ago. Every time Gino steps into the arena, he hits or exceeds his average score. That consistency is why they’re fifth on the overall series leaderboard, and why they’re such a threat in Finals this November.

Currently, the pair averages an 8.0 in Degree of Difficulty, but Geñay plans to use the summer to make adjustments to the floor plan. The original freestyle was designed to be safe and confidence-building for both horse and rider. Now, with a more seasoned partnership, she’s ready to showcase Gino’s flashier talents. Small tweaks that push their difficulty score closer to 9.0 could significantly boost their overall marks especially since Degree of Difficulty carries a x4 multiplier as part of the artistic marks. Every tenth of a point matters in a Finals field that includes the likes of Anna Marek, who regularly posts 9s on difficulty no matter which horse she’s aboard.  

A Family Affair

Geñay’s family is her team. While many riders rely on broader support teams, Geñay turns to the people who’ve been in her corner since the beginning. Her mom is her trainer, and her dad, a former Major League Baseball player, brings the high-performance mindset. 

“If you want to be above average, then you can't just do the average things,” she said, quoting her dad. “You’ve got to put in more work than everybody else.”

Geñay’s love of horses arrived in the form of a tiny, muddy pony with a big personality. Flooding ravaged Northern California in the 90s, displacing people, pets, and horses. With a trailer in tow, Geñay’s mother drove around the community evacuating horses to safety. On one of these trips, she found a pony in a backyard garden shed and rescued him from the flooding. When the community was back on their feet, she tried to return him to his owners, but instead, they asked if she’d like to keep him.

“I was four, and I named him Rescue,” Geñay laughed. 

Geñay joined Pony Club as her passion deepened and she began to imagine a career that followed in her mother’s footsteps. One of the pivotal horses in her development was the stallion Donnerweiss, with whom she was selected for the U25 European Tour. Competing at elite venues overseas, surrounded by the best young riders in the sport, opened her eyes to the scale of international dressage and lit a fire that’s fueled her ever since.

A West Coast Climb

Today, Geñay has won five of her last six freestyle appearances with Gino, and she’s done it outside of the Wellington “machine.” She sits fifth place on the leaderboard with 80 points and has the summer to perfect her freestyle before making the trip to Thermal this fall where the West Coast community will no doubt be watching and cheering her on. 

“Whenever we have a show in between the qualifiers, I have so many people coming up to me like, ‘We’ve watched your freestyle! We love it. We’re rooting for you,” Geñay said. “Everyone’s so excited about the final, and what a great opportunity and a great thing for the sport of dressage honestly.”

With the final qualifiers shifting entirely to the East Coast, Geñay has completed her qualifying run. She now has five months to refine her freestyle, raise her degree of difficulty, and chase every tenth of a percentage point that could give her an edge in the Finals.

With a standout season behind her and the Finals on the horizon, Geñay has proven she’s a serious contender. Add in the long shadow of LA 2028, and one thing is clear: it’s no longer just Geñay living in Gino’s world. The rest of us are, too.