COREY CUSHING INTERVIEW

Q - After a test-run last June, the NRCHA has returned with a 3-year contract to hold the DT Horses Western Derby at WestWorld of Scottsdale. Why?

A - Let’s get started by saying that last year as tough as this was with the pandemic and us being the first major show going into the 2020 season. We had heard rumors about small shows here and there. This was not only our first, but all of the equine industries, first premier event to finally let go and be out into the public since we had all been in lockdown. It was a last-minute decision and as much as we loved Paso Robles, California, they were not going to let us have a horse show. When I spoke to Brian Dygert, he had the dates available. The biggest concern was the heat, but the best thing about Westworld was that if you did get hot you could go ride in the air-conditioned areas that they offer. We were super excited to go there, me especially, but after more people got there and as the week went on, it was nothing but compliments and people saying, this is where the Derby needs to be.

Q - What can spectators expect to see at the event?

Corey, Capri, Lincoln, Kristen and Caleb Cushing

A - I tell you what, there are so many great horses and so many great riders out there. Whether it be in the Non-Pro, the Limited, the Intermediate and especially in the Open. These guys are going to come in Full Send mode. This is not just a friendly get together anymore. You are going to see the best Cowboys & Cowgirls compete not only for money, but for prizes. You know, this event is such, that it takes a lot of practice. It takes a lot of training and there is nothing more rewarding in my opinion. When it all comes together and you can put those perfect three runs together at the same time and walk away from it as a Champion, it is so rewarding and so humbling. There are so many ups and downs. What you can expect to see are the greatest horses competing at the highest level and the athletes showing great things as far as what they have to offer. Not only for the horse, but what these riders can do who are on them, and them both working together as a team.

Q - There is interest, in the future, to make the Saturday Night Finals into a “Showcase Event” in Scottsdale suitable for broadcast and paid admission. What do you think about that concept?

A - It is something that definitely excites me. If we ever get a point that we need to start charging because there are not enough seats available, I will not only give myself, but the whole board and Association a round of applause. It’s what we want this to be. We want this to be a spectator fun event where not only seeing the great horses, the cowboys & cowgirls, but also the great camaraderie, the people involved, how the Association is run and the pure excitement and enjoyment of being there. It’s a hot ticket!

Q - You are very active with NRCHA politically and were unanimously re-elected as President of the organization. Why do it?

A - Because this is my life, this is something that I want to do. Even though I grew up in the Reining, as the years went along and turning more into the Reined Cow Horse events this is truly my passion. I eat, live, sleep and drink COW HORSE, every single day! The ups and downs, good times, bad times, this is what I want

to do. For whatever reason the Board felt I was the best to be there in the Presidential spot. I feel like I am doing a good job. The best I possibly can. I have been credited and patted on the back for doing such a great job, but it can only be done when you are surrounded with great people. The committees, the boards, the office staff. So many more than can be mentioned here.

Q -– Winning the World’s Greatest Horseman Title twice is an incredible accomplishment. How did you handle the pressure?

A - One event at a time. Honestly…..I mean that. It is so important to get shown so true and good in all four events. But a person has got to remember in going there, that there might be time for touch ups here and there, or to say, let your horse know what is coming next. When the horses get to that point, they usually have a good idea, but maybe a small reminder, maybe warming him up different, maybe just the prep of - hey I have to saddle you and warm you up and we rope a steer, or we are just going down the fence. I might just trot you around? A horse has got to be mentally stable and mentally ready to handle that. Because, with so much time between each event, you won’t have a horse in the end. And we all know the old saying, it all comes down to the fence work……

Q - The World’s Greatest Horseman competition involves four events: herd work, reined work, steer stopping and cow work. What do you look for in a horse able to compete in all of the disciplines?

A - As far as competing in all four events, you look for a horse that is mentally comfortable with doing all four. The runs may not be 100% perfect, but if it’s not far from a couple of little adjustments to make them look really good. You must remember too, that going into that, if you don’t get shown as well as you would have liked to, there is still a couple more events to possibly still make a comeback, but it’s gotta work out right. Just having the complete confidence in your horse and the horses that I look for as it comes time to enter. Something that I expressed earlier, something I can get on and it’s, hey we are going to cut, or we are going down the fence, or we are going to rein, or rope. Whatever the case may be, they just understand it and they are confident in it, and even if they are not 100% perfect, that confidence is going to sell that more than what the freak movement would be.

Q -Who were some of the early influencers in your career?

A - Definitely Benny Guitron. Noel Skinner, that’s who I grew up riding with. He did not do a lot of cow horse back when I lived in Utah. As the years have gone on Don Murphy, Bob Avila and honestly bits and pieces from everyone. There is an endless list of people that I have gotten help from in one discipline to the next. Just good quality camaraderie, good quality people. It may work good on this horse, or this is something you can use later on. The influence in my life are who I listed, plus anyone I have asked advice from. Many of them still help me break it down and continue to help me to this day!

Q -Many people can train horses, but only a few can really show them. You excel at both. What tips can you share on showing horses?

A - The bottom line, and I have expressed this to all of my Non- Pros, my assistants and I even tell myself this is, when it comes time to show, when we are getting ready to show is, “Just make it a good picture.” Make sure that you can go from loping off at the gate to start your Reining pattern, to when it’s time to do your back up at the end, even if it’s may not be perfect, make it sellable as a picture. Knowing what your horse has available to offer you, it’s your job on how to bring it out. When there are numerous horses involved, I think you have to break it down with that same thing in mind. But you must keep in mind, that it’s one horse at a time. Think about just that horse, how am I going to show him, how I am going to sell the picture, as I talked about earlier. Mentally ready, mentally prepared. Mental preparation is a big key component. Does this horse need just a good 20 minutes of just walking around? Sometimes that can do more than 3 hours of long trotting just to get him tired. Because I think on some horses, I think it only makes them more amped up. I am willing to just spend quiet time and put them into a mind frame so that whatever you are going to ask of them, you can go about it with a quiet mindset. Because, in all of these disciplines and in all that we do, there are so many quiet moments and some very explosive. That is not unlike other disciplines in separate categories. Just like in Cutting and Reining. It needs to look so on fire and then so calm and cool. As long as you can sell that and your horse can sell that, it’s only going to help you on your goal.

Q -What time do you get started in the morning?

A - Ha, ha. Well, this past week we started at 5am every single morning. Because I love first thing in the morning when the sun is coming up. It’s when I have my best work. Normal operating hours are about half days, just 12 hours. Ha ha. But usually it’s 6:30 in the morning, and to 3 to 4:30 in the afternoons. In the afternoons, it may be riding a couple that just need some extra attention, In the morning it’s a focus on the Futurity horses, Derby horse, whatever is coming up. It is what’s the priority. What is happening, what’s building, what we need to get ready for. Closer to Summer, the mornings will be as early as 3 or 4am till 10 or 11am because it will get so hot. Of course, the covered arena and fans definitely helps a lot. It all just depends on the day that time of the year and what the horse can handle. If I am tired, I not only have to watch out for my horses, but I also must watch out for myself too. I have to make sure I can last all through the Summer. Somedays, with the guys here, we just get on and play around working on tiny things, not even getting them hot while doing our training and just play mind

games. You have to remember that these horses can come out and act fresh. But is it a fresh because they just want something to do because they are created to be such a working horse? Or is it because they are feeling good in the middle of a hot day? I don’t think so.

Q - Do you have a routine?

A - Honestly, it just depends on the day. What I need to work on first, what is the priority. We think it through day to day. My team, they give me all the freedom in the world to get done what I need to get done. I also feel it is very important to have family time. Whether it be the weekend, or if something is going on and I need to leave early and go and get the kids from school, or if we have football practice, hockey practice or just having a play date with the kids. It’s important to spend time with them on that. They all like being out here. The guys that work for me, my wife, it’s all extremely important to me. Something as little as, we get to a show and I say, “hey guys, I am going to stay at a friend’s place and I am going to work a couple of horse, so you guys go in and set up the stalls.” It’s just not going and throwing down a few bags of shavings and flopping a couple of saddles on the racks.They all know how I like the things set up. We make a gameplan the day before, as far as what’s going to happen the next day, what’s coming up. So, everyone is aware, that way no one is caught off guard or caught by surprise and we are 100% ready for what that next day brings. Even if it is a couple days ahead of the horse showing, or if it is the day that horse is showing we are ready for whatever is thrown out at us. When I go to leave, I usually take two to three guys. I always have someone at the ranch to take care of all the horses that we leave back at home. When I am gone, if there isn’t a rider here, we get them out to walk or get turned out every day. It’s a good way for the horses to get some down time. It gives some time to focus on the ones at the show, we know it’s handled at home. And they have to understand too, how I want things done, how I want it to be, what I expect when I get home. It’s a lot. The team, I would have to say, is just as important as me being here and riding every single day. Without them, and as busy as I am, you need to know that everything is handled if I am home or not.

day when I eat dinner, I am ready to go to bed. There are countless hours where Kristen stays up late at night on the computer. I have woken up in the middle of the night and see the light on in the office and she’s in there doing entries or getting this ready, or that ready or getting things ready for the kids and it may be for school, or an after-school project. There is a lot more to it than say being the trainer’s wife so to speak. Just taking care of entries, knowing the horses that is a lot. She is an outstanding mother. She is constantly making sure that the kids are taken care of in their best interest, as well as making sure that I am ready for the show, especially on the paperwork side. I have a pretty good idea, but it’s pretty funny when I walk into the office, whomever it is will say “Kristen filled out your entries this time didn’t she.” It’s pretty neat that my wife is the best. Maybe it’s after dinner or watching tv and something is bothering you, it’s so nice to have someone that understands what we do and just being able to go over the work, if something is bothering me from that day or whatever. She points out the obvious, even if I don’t want to hear it at the time, I make her tell me and it’s tough for her to tell me because it may make me upset but it’s only in a way that she wants to help me. To feel more achievement, get better results and it always comes from a great place in her heart. It’s tough to take and I can always tell if something is on her mind and I make her tell me because she is right even if I don’t want to hear it. Not only is Kristen an owner of this business, she sees it every day. She sits up there and watches, not just me, she watches a lot of people. Good runs, bad runs, whatever. She can sit there and say, “Hey this or that, what you are doing with your hands, or your approach here, or this is the picture you are presenting, and this is the way it looks.” Whatever the case may be, she gets it 110%!

Q - How do you keep your horses shod and sound?

A - Great farriers and great vets! On the veterinarian side Dr. Bryan Buchanan and Dr. Joe Carter. On the farrier side Jason Johnson and Eric Boulding. Just the overall look, the overall health, the feeding program I have got. We all have soundness issues. It seems like the better places you keep horses are safer, but they can hurt themselves anywhere. Whether they get hurt or not I always want my horses to look and feel great! It is a constant mindset as far as how is that horse working, what’s he going to do that day, how is his overall condition? And older bridle horse, or a futurity horse, if I have been gone a couple of weeks I am not going to jump on and jump right back into it like I have been here every day. For one, I feel like it causes stress. This horse has been on a break and now all of a sudden, it’s 100% full blown. They may not be in the best shape mentally or physically. You can almost create more damage than good when you get into something like that. Honestly, it’s just common sense. Say I am gone a few weeks to the Snaffle Bit Futurity, it’s basically 3 weeks from start to finish. When I get back home it’s 3 or 4 days of just legging the horses back up. Knock the fresh off of them, piddle around with some stuff to get them mentally thinking about what’s to come. Other horses, depending on how long I have been gone, if the shoer has missed them or whatever, that can cause them a lot of stress. Suspensories, tendons, ligaments, etc. Making sure they stay on a routine and a solid 6-week program to get ready for a show. I prefer to have the horses shod about a week before or more. That

way they all can be adjusted to the new shoes, that they have good form and are able to last the entire show for the optimal time. They have these new shoes and are they ready? They are going into the most important time of their career. The key is to have them peak at the right time. My sponsors are part of my program because I believe in them. It is 100% that they have the best products, or they would not be on my team! Everything from Nutrena, the feed balances my horses. Some get fed more than others, and the supplements. For instance, protection of the horse. Polo wraps, splint boots, they all help especially with what we ask these horses to do. Whether it is a light day or full-on intense days. In the show pen or training at home these horses are athletes, and overall protection is very important. It would be like asking a football player to go play his best game with no shoulder pads on. It’s going to be a wreck. These horses not only need to be physically fit, but they need to be dressed appropriately for what they are going to do. They need to be taken care of, with us making sure they are 100% sound. If it’s in the practice pen or at the show. They need to feel their best so that they can perform their best! My sponsors products are a key part of my program, I can’t say it enough. They would not be sponsors if I did not fully believe that they are the best, and I used these products before they were my sponsors. I take this very seriously. My sponsors are: Nutrena Feed, Cinch Jeans, Santa Cruz Animal Health Supplements and Horse Care Products, Bex Sunglasses, Classic Equine Boots and Equipment, Handmade Exotics Belts, Jeff Smith Custom Saddles, Traditional Rawhide Braiders, Bloomer Trailers, Rios of Mercedes Boots, Western Legacy Custom Hats, EZ All Grooming Products, & South Point Casino and Hotel. I am very proud and honored that they are part of my program. They all play and big part and it’s really something special. It only helps me in what I do, and I try and help them succeed and I work hard to best represent them, and I cannot Thank them enough.

Q - Family is a large part of your life. How do you balance being in the horse business with family life?

A - Honestly, if Kristen called me and said, “I need the boys picked up today” or they want to come and ride. I do it. Family is so important. My family understand that even though I love this I can stop and help my wife, spend time with my kids. I honestly do not call this a job, but they understand it’s me going to work and riding horses because I truly love it. They know how important it is from the day they were born, and it has been a huge part of their life. It’s easier for them to understand opposed to some people that look at us like we are crazy. We try and take one or two family trips a year. Something as simple as going to the movies. Over the last weekend Kristen and Capri went and saw the new baby Monroe that Kristen’s sister just had. I got to spend the weekend with the boys. They came over with me on Saturday and they got to hang out at the ranch. It was just good quality time. Caleb wants to be a big part of it and wants to be out here all of the time. Lincoln, he’s into it if it’s the thing to do. While they are here, they are good friends with all of the guys. They help everyone out doing random things with all the guys. Now Capri, she has me wrapped around her little finger! It’s something I would never trade, I just try and manage it the best I can. Try and get done what is the most important thing that day and have the time for them. I am in a little bit better position than some folks in that I can just take off and leave whenever I need to or feel the need to. But also knowing, and Kristen knows this too, this is our livelihood. These horses do not get better unless I am here. Yes, I do have a great team that can fill in, but it’s just quality time spent on their back. There is not a “every three days I am going to leave an extra hour early to go home and spend time with my family”. It’s simple, when I can, when I get tired or when I feel that it is important. Like if something is bothering them, or they need some good family time with dad, we try and separate that stuff. The kids all look forward to that.