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Swinging for the Fences
By Lillian Kent Photos by Primo MoralesSWINGING FOR THE FENCES Debbie Crafton advanced all four of her horses to the Non Pro Finals, eventually clinching the Champion and Reserve Champion titles.
Debbie Crafton’s FoundLoveAtHooters (Smooth As A Cat x Rey Lena Rey x Dual Rey) rose to the top with a consistent set of scores in all three events.
NON PRO DERBY TOP 10
March 24-April 2, 2022; Las Vegas, NV Horse/Rider/Pedigree/Owner/Score/Money 1. FoundLoveAtHooters; Debbie Crafton; 17G (Smooth As A Cat x Rey Lena Rey x Dual Rey); Debbie Crafton; 653.5 (H:214.5/R:219.5/C:219.5); $10,000 2. Hesa Wee Bet; Debbie Crafton; 17G (Bet Hesa Cat x Quejana Gal x Quejanaisalena); Debbie Crafton; 651.5 (H:216/R:218.5/217); $7,000 3. VooDoo Whiskey; Tylor Todd; 17G (Shiners Voodoo Dr x Whiskey On Wheels x Paddys Irish Whiskey); Tylor Todd; 648.5 (H:213/R:218.5/C:217); $6,000 4. Rok N Roll; Pam Myers; 18G (Sannman x Peek Of Faith x Peeka Pep); Pam Myers; 645 (H:215.5/R:215/C:214.5); $4,595.18 5. CP Metallic Dual; Kathy Wilson; 18G (Metallic Cat x KD Sweet Corn x Dual Pep); Kathy Wilson; 642.5 (H:215.5/ R:212.5/C:214.5); $3,446.38 6 (TIE). SCR King Of The Road; Cutter McLaughlin; 17S (Sannman x SCR Crackin Light x Boonlight Dancer); Jay and Wendy McLaughlin; 642 (H:212/R:215/C:215); $2,527.35 6. (TIE). Dual Smarty; Julia Winders; 17S (Dual Smart Rey x Cats Gabriella Acre x Cats Merada); Julia Winders; 642 (H:218.5/R:214/C:209.5); $2,527.35 8 (TIE). Hughes This Chick; Debbie Crafton; 17M (Thomas E Hughes x Smart Playing Chic x Smart Chic Olena); Debbie Crafton; 641.5 (H:216/R:218/C:210.5); $1,723.19 8 (TIE). SJR SumKindaRockStar; Debbie Crafton; 18S (Smooth As A Cat x SumKinda PinkCadilac x Peptoboonsmal); Debbie Crafton; 641.5 (H:216/ R:218/C:210.5); $1,723.19 10. Tuckin One Time; Elizabeth Kania; 17M (One Time Pepto x Tuckin Smart x WR This Cats Smart); Renee Dubois; 639 (H:209/R:211/C:219); $1,608.31
Debbie Crafton had the 2022 Teton Ridge Stallion Stakes Non Pro Derby of her dreams, advancing all four of her horses to the 16-horse Finals Saturday night, April 2. When the dust settled after the fence work, Crafton and brown gelding FoundLoveAtHooters stood victorious.
“I am blessed. How lucky am I?” Crafton asked. “When all four made it, it was a goal achieved.”
Her roster included FoundLoveAtHooters, known as “Zaro,” Derby Reserve Champion Hesa Wee Bet (Bet Hesa Cat x Wee Quejana Gal x Quejanaisalena) along with Hughes This Chic (Thomas E Hughes x Smart Playin Chic x Smart Chic Olena) and SJR SumKindaRockStar (Smooth As A Cat x Sumkinda PinkCadilac x Peptoboonsmal). Between the Stallion Stakes Non Pro Derby preliminaries and Finals, Crafton and her team of horses amassed $22,354 in earnings.
“There isn’t necessarily a horse that I think is better than the other,” Crafton said. “They’re all really strong and it was a ‘Let’s go see what happens.’ I think the more you can ride, the more and more you can develop as a horseman. If you can ride that many and can be put under that kind of pressure, it makes a better person out of you.”
According to Crafton, she didn’t have enough show bridles to go between her horses, meaning that most of the horses were warmed up before the reining Finals in halters and lead ropes. If that wasn’t enough, two of Crafton’s helpers were preteens Deborah Jean “DJ” Crafton and Isabella “Isy” Scheffel.
“I had the best pit crew ever and they were able to have horses right there for me,” Crafton said. “These horses were packing kids around and I get on and say, ‘Let’s go lay a run down.’ And [the horses] said ‘Gotcha.’ ”
Crafton and 5-year-old Zaro had been
—Debbie Crafton
teammates for less than six months when she and the gelding set foot in the South Point Equestrian Center & Arena.
“We really meshed right off the bat,” Crafton said. “One thing about Zaro is he’s so physical and quick-footed. He can run. The little bugger is so smart on a cow and a quick as he is, you’re not going to get outran going down the fence.”
Zaro’s nimble footwork and cow smarts earned he and Crafton a 214.5 in the herd, a 219.5 in the reining and another 219.5 in the cow work for a composite of 653.5 and the $10,000 Champion paycheck. According to Crafton, she had been keeping a casual eye out for derbyaged horses in 2021 to replace her 2019 NRCHA Non Pro Snaffle Bit Futurity® Champion Dualin Alittle Time (One Time Pepto x ARC Dualena x Dual Pep).
“I’d watched [Zaro] when Shawn Hays showed him and was drawn to him. He’s got a cool look and a lot of physical ability,” Crafton said. “I happened to talk to Shawn there at Fort Worth during the Snaffle Bit Futurity and he told me [he was available].”
Crafton brought him home after the Snaffle Bit Futurity only to haul to the Idaho Reined Cow Horse Association Futurity days later, where they finished fourth in the Derby. When they arrived at the Stallion Stakes, Zaro and Crafton had achieved the team mindset Crafton seeks in all her mounts.
“When you hang it out there, they’re trusting you and you’re trusting them,” Crafton said.
The night of the Finals, despite having four horses in two sets of competitors, Crafton focused on each horses’ ability without dwelling on future possibilities or past mistakes. Zaro was Crafton’s last horse in the fence work, and she was leading the field on Hesa Wee Bet.
“The cattle were tricky, you just needed to be smart and leave with a lot of cow,” Crafton said.. “You didn’t want to get in their bubble, and if you boxed them too long it was going to get ugly. They would fall off of you [down the fence]. I knew I had to give this cow his bubble and trust my horse, and that’s what I did.”
Working a tan steer, Crafton practiced the patience NRCHA Million Rider Chris Dawson discussed with her, waiting for the perfect time to swallow her cow as it came off the wall in her second fence turn.
“Sometimes when things are going fast you have to slow down and be patient,” Crafton said.
The Reserve Championship went to sorrel gelding Hesa Wee Bet, bred by Molly Mae Mirassou, who marked a 651.5 composite (H:216/R:218.5/C:217) . The blazed face son of NRCHA Million Dollar Sire Bet Hesa Cat won the $1,100 American Paint Horse Association Chrome Cash Incentive, bringing his Derby total to $8,185.
“I love him. He has the coolest and sweetest personality. He is very good in the rein work and very good down the fence,” Crafton said. “And who doesn’t love a sorrel with a blaze face?”
Crafton thanked Lori Frampton, Cayley Wilson, Tyler Merrill, Chris Dawson and Matt Koch for their help and advice throughout the show and training process. The next major NRCHA event on the calendar for Crafton is the June DT Horses Western Derby in Scottsdale, Arizona.
NON PRO RESERVE CHAMPION
Rounding out the top two spots was Hesa Wee Bet and Debbie Crafton, who scored a 651.5 composite (H:216/R:218.5/C:217) for $7,000 in earnings. Hesa Wee Bet (Bet Hesa Cat x Wee Quejana Gal x Quejanaisalena) was bred by Molly Mae Mirassou and is owned by Debbie Crafton.
INTERMEDIATE NON PRO CHAMPION
The Intermediate Non Pro Championship went to Kathy Wilson and CP Metallic Dual (Metallic Cat x KD Sweet Corn x Dual Pep) who put together a composite of 642.5 (H:215.5/R:212.5/C:214.5) for a $4,065 payday. The 2018 gelding was bred by the Cal Poly Corporation and is owned by Wilson.
INTERMEDIATE NON PRO RESERVE CHAMPION
Boon Doxx (Sannman x Docs Stylish Liz x Docs Stylish Oak) and owner Stefani Wagley got it done with a composite of 641.5 (H:216/R:217/C:208) in the Intermediate Non Pro Derby. Bred by Jeff Schieber, Boon Doxx earned $3,181 for the Reserve Championship.
LIMITED NON PRO CHAMPION
Tricia Gilson put her reining talents to good use with a 639.5 composite (H:211.5/ R:213.5/C:214.5) astride 2018 gelding Rebellious Soul (Metallic Rebel x Farra Rey x Dual Rey). Rebellious Soul was bred by Tiffany Manion and earned $1,979 for the feat.
