Beyond Blessed

TOP 15 WORLD’S GREATEST HORSEMAN

Rider/Horse/Pedigree/Owner/Score/Money

1. Corey Cushing; Hott Rod; 15S (Hottish x Sugars Smart Kitty x High Brow Cat); Lynne Wurzer; 893; $100,000 2. Phillip Ralls; Call Me Mitch; 11S (Metallic Cat x Miss Hickory Hill x Docs Hickory); Estelle Roitblat Living Trust; 889; $50,000 3. Zane Davis; Rubys Radar; 10S (One Time Pepto x Ruby Bagonia x Peppy San Badger); C Ranches Inc; 879; $35,000 4. Shane Steffen; Gunna Be A Smartie; 12M (Very Smart Remedy x Gunna Be Mine x Gunna Smoke); 876; KanDu Ranch; $25,000 5.Brady Weaver; SJR Reygun; 12M (Dual Rey x Playguns King Badger x Playgun); Gary Ewell; 874; $16,000 6. Justin Wright; Scooter Kat; 15S (Kit Kat Sugar x Scooters Daisy Dukes x Dual Smart Rey); Eric Freitas; 872.5; $14,000 7 (tie). Brad Barkemeyer; CR Tuff Taffy; 15G (Woody Be Tuff x PeptoCandy x Peptoboonsmal); Vaqueros Venture; 866; $11,000 7 (tie). Kelby Phillips; Bet Shesa Fancy Cat; 14M (Bet Hesa cat x Real Hickory Smoke x Lil Bit O Hickory); Bosque Ranch Performance Horses; 866; $11,000 9. Nick Dowers; Still Get Jealous; 14S (One Time Pepto x ARC Cat Her Please x Chic Please); Trigg Marquiss; 861.5; $9,000 10. Clayton Edsall; Metallic Train; 13M (Metallic Cat x Sparkling Train x Shining Spark); Beverly Servi; 861; $8,750 11. Luke Jones; Mr Comin In Hot; 15G (Mr Playinstylish x Lil Sally Cat x High Brow Cat); Kit and Charlie Moncrief; 853; $7,500 12. Jay McLaughlin; Shiney Outlaw; 12S (Shiners Nickle x Mereyda x Dual Rey); Michelle Cannon; 827; $7,500 13. Mark Sigler; Senor Shiney Cay; 12S (WR This Cats Smart x Shiney Senorita x Shining Spark); Dominic Conicelli Estate; 813; $7,500 14. Boyd Rice; Quahadi; 13S (Bet Hesa Cat x Ginnin Attraction x Tanqueray Gin); Burnett Ranches LLC; 649; $7,500 15. Chris Dawson; CSR Lay Down Sally; 11M (Dual Spark x Look At Her Glo x CD O Cody); Meredith Graber; 647.5; $7,500

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By Kate Bradley Byars Photos by Primo Morales EYOND BLESSED

When Hott Rod carried Corey Cushing to a third World’s Greatest Horseman title, the NRCHA Two Million Dollar Rider couldn’t find enough ways to credit the stallion for a great partnership.

One of the deepest fields of bridle horses ever entered in the event was on display during the 2022 Western Bloodstock and Hashtags World’s Greatest Horseman held during the Kalpowar Quarter Horses Celebration of Champions, and it wasn’t only noticeable in the event Finals. From the first horse to step into the herd work preliminary until the final horse in the cow work preliminary, it was score after score and ride after ride that exemplified the bridle horse, the ultimate goal of training a reined cow horse.

When Corey Cushing rode into the arena for his victory lap as the World’s Greatest Horseman Champion on Saturday, February 19, the Scottsdale, Arizona, trainer could only gush about his blessings. The first being Lynne Wurzer’s sorrel stallion that stood by his side.

“This event is more than just having a horse that can do four events, it has to be your partner all the way through,” Cushing said. “This horse has been my partner since day one and I truly love him. I had a partner the whole way through.”

Though Cushing and Hott Rod (Hottish x Sugars Smart Kitty x High Brow Cat) captured the preliminary steer stopping high score, the National Reined Cow Horse Association Two Million Dollar Rider didn’t take a deep breath before the 15 finalists were named. The field that began with 66 horses and whittled down to 15 finalists included champions of every NRCHA premier event, former World’s Greatest Horseman Champion and Reserve Champion horses and riders, multiple NRCHA Million Dollar Riders, and Two Million

Taking the herd work Finals high score, Boyd Rice took a victory lap aboard his herd help horse, “Porky.” The National High School Rodeo Association Queen led the Finals high score victory laps aboard Cushing’s family horse, “Chinchilla,” while carrying the World’s Greatest Horseman flag. Dollar Riders, and résumés to stack to the ceiling of the Will Rogers Coliseum.

“There was no rest and relaxation to say the least. Everyone knew going into this event that it all had to work—the cows you cut, where you’re going to stop in the reining—a lot of thought goes into this,” Cushing said. “You also have to be careful you have enough horse to go down the fence because that is the final event. If your horse is worn out and tired, you won’t get it done. But I knew going into this that he would never quit me. I can’t thank him enough.”

The Western Bloodstock and Hashtags event started with more pressure than normal. Last year during the World’s Greatest Horseman Finals, Jeremy Barwick of Western Bloodstock committed to matching the then-purse of $50,000. In 2022, the winner’s check

“I feel honored to be a part of this event. I have a great appreciation for that horse that can do four events in one bridle

in one day.”—Jeremy Barwick

was $100,000 and the entire event purse was $317,250.

That money plus the growing prestige of the most versatile event for horses and riders brought out a plethora of crossover entries such as National Cutting Horse Association stars Jesse Lennox, Adan Banuelos and Ascension Banuelos. National Finals Rodeo qualifier Lane Ivy was entered, too.

The prize money and the event’s prestige are why Barwick felt so strongly about supporting it.

“I feel honored to be a part of this event. I have a great appreciation for that horse that can do four events in one bridle in one day,” Barwick said. “As a horse person, that is impressive. I have a great respect for those horses and trainers; it’s incredible. I felt like a horse that could do that and a rider that can do that deserved to win more money. It’s a great event.”

Lennox took the first preliminary high score, earning a 227 in the herd work aboard Rocking P Ranch LLC’s Metallic Curveball (Metallic Cat x Cinca De Maya x Dual Rey) and earning $1,500. It followed with Cushing and Hott Rod’s 226 score to earn $1,500 and take the preliminary steer stopping high score. Then, past Reserve World’s Greatest Horseman pair Phillip Ralls and Call Me Mitch (Metallic Cat x Miss Hickory Hill x Docs Hickory), owned by Estelle Roitblat Living Trust, roared to a 223 reining score for that event preliminary high score.

///// HIGH MARKS IN THE PRELIMINARY

HERD WORK: JESSE LENNOX & METALLIC CURVEBALL – 227 With the high score of 227, Jesse Lennox and 2015 stallion Metallic Curveball (Metallic Cat x Cinca De Maya x Dual Rey), bred by David Hartman and owned by Rocking P Ranch LLC, set the bar high in the herd work and earned $1,500 and a Gist belt buckle. REIN WORK: PHILLIP RALLS & CALL ME MITCH — 223 Aboard 2011 stallion Call Me Mitch (Metallic Cat x Miss Hickory Hill x Docs Hickory), owned by the Estelle Roitblat Living Trust and bred by James Eakin, Phillip Ralls laid down a 223 for the high score, a Gist belt buckle and $1,500 check.

STEER STOPPING: COREY CUSHING & HOTT ROD — 226 A crowd rousing 226 put Corey Cushing and Hott Rod (Hottish x Sugars Smart Kitty x High Brow Cat), bred by Austin Adams and owned by Lynne Wurzer, on top to earn $1,500 and a Gist belt buckle.

COW WORK: SHANE STEFFEN & GUNNA BE A SMARTIE — 227 The 2021 World’s Greatest Horseman Champion Shane Steffen piloted 2012 mare Gunna Be A Smartie (Very Smart Remedy x Gunna Be Mine x Gunna Smoke), bred by J. Pearson Trust and owned by KanDu Ranch, to a powerful 227 for the lead, a Gist belt buckle and earned $1,500.

HIGH-SCORE COWGIRL Topping the female competitors in the event with a composite preliminary score of 848.5, Abbie Phillips and Bed Head Cat (Wild Haired Cat x Isabellena x Quejanaisalena), bred by Garth and Amanda Gardiner and owned by David Burtenshaw, was awarded a custom silver bracelet made by Baru Spiller and a Gist Silversmiths buckle.

Aboard his longtime trusted mount, Call Me Mitch, owned by the Estelle Roitblat Living Trust, Phillip Ralls captured the Reserve World’s Greatest Horseman check of $50,000.

///// MEET THE SPONSORS

Western Bloodstock LTD. is a horse auction company run by Jeremy Barwick and based in Weatherford, Texas. Western Bloodstock began working with the National Reined Cow Horse Association when the Snaffle Bit Futurity® moved to Fort Worth, Texas, and handles the Snaffle Bit Futurity Sales® every fall held during the NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity. The company elevated its support of NRCHA to a Corporate Partner level in 2021 and matched the then-purse of $50,000 for the World’s Greatest Horseman winner, making it $100,000. In addition to supporting the World’s Greatest Horseman event through Western Bloodstock LTD., Barwick’s Brazos Valley Stallion Station is an NRCHA Breeder Sponsor partner. For more information, visit westernbloodstock.net. Hashtags (Metallic Cat x Dual Rey Tag x Dual Rey) and trainer Tatum Rice became household names in the National Cutting Horse Association through the horse’s multiple wins and searing arena performances. In 2018, the stallion’s final year of competition, the pair earned the NCHA Open World Champions. The 2013 blue roan stallion also set a record for the Equi-Stat NCHA earnings with $473,635.

Owned by the Hashtag Ventures LP group of Weatherford, Texas, Hashtags became a named sponsor of the NRCHA in 2019, the same year his first foals hit the ground. For more information on Hashtags, visit brazosvalleystallionstation.com.

Cushing had taken third in the rein work high scores but was not alone near the top. Ralls and Call Me Mitch had tied for third in the preliminary herd work, and Quahadi (Bet Hesa Cat x Ginnin Attraction x Tanquery Gin), owned and bred by the Burnett Ranches LLC, with past World’s Greatest Horseman Champion Boyd Rice in the saddle had tied for third in the herd work and taken second in the steer stopping. It was coming into a heated cow work preliminary to decide the top 15 finalists headed to work under the lights of Will Rogers in front of a sold out crowd.

“Making the Finals is the reward. I’d be lying to say that I didn’t want to own this title or see my horse come out on top, but in this group, it’s pride for us to be a finalist,” said Cushing. “I had a couple years where I didn’t make the Finals so to be back in the group, it made me believe in myself again.”

While Cushing made the Finals, so did Rice and Quahadi, Ralls and Call Me Mitch, and defending World’s Greatest Horseman duo Shane Steffen and Gunna Be A Smartie (Very Smart Remedy x Gunna Be Mine x Gunna Smoke), owned by KanDu Ranch, who had taken second in the rein work preliminary and topped the cow work with a 227. Additionally, four riders made the Finals for the first time: Brad Barkemeyer, Nick Dowers, Mark Sigler and Brady Weaver.

What was certain was not a clear frontrunner for the Finals but that that event was going to be one of the best reined cow horse competitions seen lately.

Fire and smoke started the Finals off with a bang, then the crowd saw the fourth event of the versatile competition first, steer stopping. Cushing and Hott Rod marked only a 218 due to a missed initial dally. The herd work Finals had run earlier in the day and Cushing piloted to a 224, immediately behind the high scorer Quahadi and Rice.

The pair marked a 226 to tie Steffen for high score in the rein work and even though at the time it looked like Steffen and the 2012 black mare were going to best Cushing, the pair made a rip-roaring co-victory lap around the coliseum arena before settling down for a final fence run.

Cushing is no stranger to coming through with his horses in pressure situations. Yet, when the buzzer sounded after he and Hott Rod circled their cow, the Western Legacy hat atop his head took flight toward the ceiling. Without even knowing the score, Cushing celebrated a personal victory aboard the stallion he’d already ridden to more than $188,000 in reined cow horse earnings.

“Lynne has been incredible. She called me winter of 2012 and said she’d like to buy a horse. She bought Good Time, and I ended up winning the [Snaffle Bit Futurity®] on him. I can’t thank her enough for how she’s been there for me. She said she wanted to do it again and [Hott Rod] came into our lives,” said Cushing.

“It’s incredible and I am blessed every day, I honestly am. I have such great horses, customers and people behind me. I’m the luckiest person in the world right now because I get to do what I truly love every single day.”

And riding his “best friend,” Cushing became only the second man to earn three World’s Greatest Horseman titles, with Russell Dilday being the other with that honor. Along with the $100,000 winner’s check, Cushing won a custom saddle by Martin Saddlery, a Gist Silversmiths buckle and a CR Morrison trophy, all sponsored by Hashtags and Western Bloodstock, and other prizes on the awards list.

Ralls and the 2011 roan stallion Call Me Mitch earned Reserve Champion with a composite 889 that earned $50,000 as well as a Gist Silversmiths buckle, sponsored by Hashtags and Western Bloodstock, and other prizes on the awards list.

///// TAKE A BOW

After earning multiple NRCHA premier event titles, including the 2021 World’s Greatest Horseman champion, Gunna Be A Smartie will be retired to broodmare status for new owners KanDu Ranch. THE NIGHT OF THE FINALS, emotions were high among the riders and the crowd. It was known that two stars of the reined cow horse Open Bridle classes were making their final runs down the wall: Rubys Radar, piloted by Zane Davis, and Gunna Be A Smartie, piloted by Steffen.

Gunna Be Smartie retired with more than $136,000 in earnings and a Supreme Reined Cow Horse Award. The 2012 mare by Very Smart Remedy has multiple titles to her résumé, but for trainer and rider Shane Steffen, the “princess” retired as a queen.

“Words cannot express what this mare means to us,” Beth and Shane Steffen expressed. “She is truly one of a kind. There has never been a horse more honest and true. One that displays the willingness to serve her human with her heart laid out on the arena floor. God created this mare and blessed us to have her as part of our story and what a story we have written together. To see the intelligence, ability and willingness God has placed in this mare happen each time Shane rides her into that show pen has been absolutely amazing to witness.”

RUBYS RADAR WAS PURCHASED AS A 2-YEAROLD by Billie Filippini’s C Ranches Inc. and left with NRCHA Million Dollar Rider Zane Davis for training. Filippini was recently diagnosed with cancer and wasn’t expected to live, but for nearly a decade, Davis says she lived to see her horse. The final run the 2010 roan stallion made in the coliseum was his planned last, and he retired with a Supreme Reined Cow Horse Award and more than $253,000 in earnings.

“This [retirement] was always planned. He is retiring sound in mind and body,” Davis said. “Win or lose, ‘Radar’ has been an outstanding show horse. In nine years of showing, he only finished out of the money four times. I carefully picked his competitions over the years to ensure he stayed happy and competitive. Billie trusted me enough to allow me to make these decisions. I think the three of us were an outstanding team, and I appreciate what we shared.”

Following their final cow work, Zane Davis loosened Rubys Radar’s cinch in the arena and led him out for the last time among a cacophony of cheers for their efforts.