6 minute read
Futurity Recap: Amateur Champion
MarcosChocron-Arocha
Rios of Mercedes Amateur
PHOTOGRAPHY BY S. SYLVESTER PHOTOGRAPHY
In 2013, Marcos Chocron-Arocha got his first taste of cutting. Shortly thereafter, he had to take a short break from the sport, but the Venezuelan made a big return in 2020, nabbing the Limited Age Rookie of the Year title and making the McAlister Assets Unlimited Amateur and Rios of Mercedes Amateur finals at the NCHA Futurity. Only one year later, Chocron advanced from NCHA Futurity finalist to the winner’s circle, after riding RR Illegal Smile to the Amateur Championship.
Chocron first met RR Illegal Smile in early 2020, around the time COVID-19 struck the United States. The stallion was behind, but with the blessing of his trainer, Hayden Upton, Chocron decided to purchase the horse some months later.
“Hayden said, ‘That horse is pretty good, but he’s behind; I know you can bring him up to date, so let’s just get him,’” Chocron said. “[Bar RR Ranches LLC] let me get him, and it’s been amazing. This little horse has a way to go from high gear to low gear that I have never felt before. You can go pretty hard on a cow and then just open your legs and sit down, and he will just go to zero. It’s pretty nice.”
Chocron’s runs with RR Illegal Smile (Kit Kat Sugar x Play A Bet x Bet On Me 498) built throughout the Futurity. In the first go, they marked a 215.5, then followed that up with a 216.5 in the semifinals. In the finals, a huge run resulted in a score of 222. For the win, the duo collected $21,315.
If titles were awarded based on good deeds, some might say Chocron’s was no surprise. When his business partner, Harvey Keene, found himself horseless earlier this year, Chocron, who was in the running for the Amateur Rider of the Year with Stonecold Bessie, told Keene he could buy the mare, even though it meant sacrificing his shot at the title.
Chocron still finished second in the race, adding to the many accomplishments he’s achieved in only two years of riding cutting horses. He thanked his wife, Veronica Hernandez, for her support of his dream, along with his help: Upton, Michael Cooper, Cullen Chartier, and Clay Johnson.
“I love horses, I love horsemanship, and this is the pinnacle of the industry,” Chocron said. “I tell everybody to just try it once, because when you are in front of a 600-pound cow, and you’re on a 1,000-pound horse, the energy between them… You just have the best seat in the whole Coliseum.” — By Kristin Pitzer
Gavin Callahan rode Baroquenstylish (Bamacat x Flat Baroque x Peptoboonsmal), a mare bred by his parents, Jarrett and Shannon Callahan, to a 219 to take home the Amateur Reserve Championship and a check worth $16,513.
— Marcos Chocron-Arocha
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