American Performance Horseman News

AMERICAN PERFORMANCE HORSEMAN HITS THE STAGE

This March, five reined cow horse competitors join cutting and reining riders to show off the best of the Western performance horse industry on a national stage.

By Kate Bradley Byars

There is something special about turning a typical sports facility that normally hosts two-legged athletes into an arena to showcase equine competitors. Typically, the big event that creates this conversion is rodeo. For example, the Thomas & Mack Arena converts from a basketball court into the world famous Wrangler National Finals Rodeo; Madison Square Garden has hosted Professional Bull Riders events; AT&T Stadium transformed from the home of the Dallas Cowboys to the site of The American Rodeo. March 8 through 11, Globe Life Field won’t host baseball players but rather the best of the Western performance world’s horsemen and -women in the American Western Weekend.

Presented by Teton Ridge, the top five riders, based on earnings, from the National Reined Cow Horse Association will ride in front of a crowd primed and ready to watch a dirt-flying, hair-raising equestrian event on Friday, March 10. In this challenge, the top five riders from cow horse, the National Cutting Horse Association and the National Reining Horse Association will be grouped into teams and pitted against their fellow riders.

If bringing the best of the best together under one roof on one night isn’t spectacular enough, the $1 million purse for the team of winners is sure to hit that mark. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. and by the time the live concert performance by kicks off at 8:30 p.m., one of the NRCHA’s top five Open riders will be a lot richer.

“The NRCHA is excited to be a part of the American Performance Horseman,” said NRCHA Operations Manager Emily Konkel. “We’re lucky to be able to showcase the best of cow horse in such a game changing event for the equine industry and look forward to having our athletes— both horses and riders—on the big stage representing cow horse while bringing exposure to our sport.”

Here are your cow horse competitors to cheer for at the American Performance Horseman.

1SARAH DAWSON

P R I MO MORALES LIFETIME EARNINGS: $1,374,048.97 HOMETOWN: Perrin, Texas 2022 EARNINGS: $376,819.24 3 YEAR EARNINGS: $851,435.49 ACHIEVEMENTS: NRCHA Million Dollar Rider, Snaffle Bit Futurity® Champion

“For me, the most exciting thing about being able to compete here is the new audience we are going to be able to show the cow horse to, not just the people who already know how cool the cow horse is. I am super excited to show ‘Juliet’ [Shine Smarter] and be able to share our event with a new audience that hasn’t seen the event before.”

2LEE DEACON

P R I MO MORALES

LIFETIME EARNINGS: $417,263.96 HOMETOWN: Marietta, Oklahoma 2022 EARNINGS: $311,577.08 3 YEAR EARNINGS: $360,401.82 ACHIEVEMENTS: Snaffle Bit Futurity® Champion

“I’m just grateful for it all: the life I get to live, the friends turned to family I get to share it with and the opportunity Teton Ridge has provided our industry. It’s an honor and a privilege to compete amongst the greats of our sport. No matter the outcome, this experience is a blessing beyond my wildest dreams.”

3JUSTIN WRIGHT

P R I MO MORALES

“If everything goes as planned, I’d sure like to show Scooter Kat there. I think it will be a really, really fun experience and put on a different stage. I’m anxious to see it all unfold, at the same time it is easy for me to get overexcited, so I’m trying to think of it as another horse show. The way it is set up for us to ride in the arena, I think it is going to be really cool.”

LIFETIME EARNINGS: $2,112,273.23 HOMETOWN: Santa Maria, California 2022 EARNINGS: $293,156.71 3 YEAR EARNINGS: $929,448.85 ACHIEVEMENTS: NRCHA Two Million Dollar Rider, Snaffle Bit Futurity® Champion

5COREY CUSHING

“The money is exciting and the stage we are put on in front of a crowd that is a little bit different and a little bigger than we are normally in front of. We are going to be set up to be treated like a football game, a Super Bowl, that people want to watch and are going to want to see if they have any equine [interest] in them. The show is going to be incredible and the coverage will want more people to want to be involved in our industry.”

P R I MO MORALES

LIFETIME EARNINGS: $3,052,711.27 HOMETOWN: Weatherford, TX 2022 EARNINGS: $289,606.11 3 YEAR EARNINGS: $688,293.16 ACHIEVEMENTS: NRCHA Three Million Dollar Rider, Snaffle Bit Futurity® Champion, World’s Greatest Horseman Champion

4CHRIS DAWSON

P R I MO MORALES

LIFETIME EARNINGS: $1,715,866.69 HOMETOWN: Perrin, Texas 2022 EARNINGS: $291,357.01 3 YEAR EARNINGS: $542,032.89 ACHIEVEMENTS: NRCHA Million Dollar Rider

“My plan is to ride CSR Lay Down Sally and have fun there. Having gone and watched the NFR in that arena, I am pumped to see the set up and watch it all. This is the best year I’ve had to date, I think, and when they announced this event halfway through our year, ‘I thought, man that will be fun for those guys.’ Usually, I’m not in the top five for a single year so I was pretty pumped to have everything come together in fortuitous timing. To ride and also watch us all go down the fence in front of the crowd they’re going to put together is going to be pretty awesome.”