Reined Cow Horse News, March/April 2023, Volume 28, No. 2

Tylie Norcutt made her debut at the World’s Greatest Youth Horseman and won the championship title with her experienced gelding, Soulas Hickory Star.

Phillip Ralls finally took home the coveted World’s Greatest Horseman title aboard Call Me Mitch.

SHOW MANAGERS

NRCHA has a wealth of information for affiliates, including show secretary and manager forms. Find it all online at nrcha.com/ show-managementmaterial/.

NRCHA.COM

WHAT TO LOOK FOR ONLINE

NRCHA partnered with Horse & Rider OnDemand to offer a platform to rewatch the entire World’s Greatest Horseman Finals. Find out more at https://ondemand.horseandrider.com Find that and more through the Media Library at NRCHA.com! The News tab provides visitors with video and past Reined Cow Horse News options to get caught up with all things cow horse.

2023 RULE BOOK

Be sure to view, download and review the 2023 Rule Book before your show season kicks off! Find it at www.nrcha.com/ rule-book/

NRCHA OFFICERS & DIRECTORS

President: Boyd Rice | Vice President: Paul Bailey | Secretary: Todd Crawford | Treasurer: Trey Neal

NRCHA STAFF

Operations Manager: Emily Konkel | Accounting Manager: Kasydi Valentine | Media & Communications Manager: Callie McCarthy-Boevers

Membership & Affiliate Shows Manager: Tina McCleary | Programs Manager: Jennifer Bishop

Sponsorship Assistant: Bailey Carter | Data Entry and Results Assistant: Taylor Meek | Director of Judges: Bill Enk

Official NRCHA Photographer: Primo Morales | Official NRCHA Videographer: Equine Promotion

REINED COW HORSE NEWS

Vice President: John Lunn | Editor: Kate Bradley Byars | Managing Editor: Jennifer Denison

Production Manager: Sherry Brown | Art Director: Susan Sampson

Advertising Sales: Shawn McCoy, 817-929-8597, shawn.mccoy@morris.com

Sales Customer Service Manager: Diana Buettner, 817-569-7114, diana.buettner@morris.com Advertising, Fax 817-737-9633

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THE NRCHA

FEATURES

70

Nix the Nerves

When the pressure’s on in competition, it can be hard to overcome your nerves. Use these tips to help stay cool and collected in the show pen.

By Kristin Pitzer

78 Stars Aligned

Sarah Dawson led the winning team to be crowned champions at the inaugural e American Performance Horseman event.

By Abigail Boatwright

86

Corey Cushing: The $3 Million Dollar Man

By doing his best for each horse he trained, Corey Cushing reached goals he never imagined.

By Larri Jo Starkey

96

Long Haul Victors

Meet the 2022 NRCHA National Champions!

By Kristin Pitzer

On

Inside Cover:

Photo by Primo Morales

Tylee Norcutt captured the 2023

Greatest Youth Horseman title; coverage begins on page 140.

Photo by Primo Morales

FROM THE PRESIDENT

WHAT A TIME to step into the role of president of our National Reined Cow Horse Association—right after a phenomenal Kalpowar Quarter Horses Celebration of Champions where we saw the best of cow horse on display! I am proud to represent our association’s membership in this role.

In 1998, I first competed in the World’s Greatest Horseman aboard Montanas Musical Socks in Guthrie, Oklahoma. Dick Pieper told me about the event and that is how I ended up there. This year was my 18th time to ride in the event, and it was unbelievable to be part of the largest group of competitors we’ve ever seen aim at this title. Congratulations to all the contestants who competed in the Western Bloodstock / High Brow Cat / Hashtags World’s Greatest Horseman, the World Show classes and the Tres Osos Cow Horse Derby.

Reined cow horse has been part of my training program since 2002. I’ve seen a lot of changes for the NRCHA. Now, I see us stepping on a national stage at the American Performance Horseman, but we sure saw a lot of exposure at our own World’s Greatest Horseman!

We’ll continue to demonstrate quality Western performance horses at our events this year, like the Hackamore Classic that will be in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in July. Let me tell you, finding facilities to house our growing premier events has been a challenge. We are working to ensure that the facility can hold our events while also looking at making schedules more exhibitor friendly. With the Hackamore Classic as a stand-alone event, it will now have a Finals for those top hackamore horses and moving it off the Snaffle Bit Futurity® will provide more room for that show, which continues to grow in entries and allow time for exhibitors to focus on their 3-year-old horses.

While we put a lot of emphasis on our premier events, we have a huge group of members that put their attention and passion into our affiliate clubs across the country and into Canada. Our members also serve on committees, and the input our committees gather from membership is invaluable. The committees are vital to how NRCHA implements changes in the association, and I look forward to working with our membership to continue to improve cow horse but maintain our family friendly competitive environment.

What a great year we have ahead!

—Boyd Rice

Boyd Rice, NRCHA President

CAROLYN SIMANCIK

FROM THE JUDGE’S CHAIR

The goal of the traditional Vaquero training method was to end up with a finished bridle horse. It wasn’t long ago that the World’s Greatest Horseman event had 20 to 30 entries. Now with the added money, and the popularity of the Derbys, we are up to 70-plus horses. This year’s Finals was deep and strong. That says a lot about the training methods that allowed these horses to get to the “finished bridle” stage of training. Congratulations to all involved!

A couple of things stood out in this event. The consistency and the competitiveness of Call Me Mitch and Phillip Ralls over the last few years is to be admired and appreciated. He showed up in every phase of the four events and didn’t show any signs of wear and tear from competing at the highest level of his entire career. Congratulations go to Phillip and Call Me Mitch—you earned it!

The second thing that stood out was using the electronic eye barrier in the steer stopping. The string barrier used to be more traditional, but it takes more work to get a horse used to it and at times can be a touch dangerous. The electronic eye let the judges reward the horses that exhibited the most form and competitiveness in the steer stopping event without the threat of the string barrier complicating things. The contest is about the horse that can do all four events well without over-weighing one part. These World’s Greatest Horseman mounts are cow horses that you can steer stop on, not steer stopping horses that you can cow horse on. The electronic barrier was a real plus.

The judges had to make a couple of hard calls relating to legal hand positions on romal reins. On page 30 of the National Reined Cow Horse Association

Rule Book it shows acceptable and unacceptable hand positions when exhibiting with romal reins. Playing on a level field is the bottom line to these romal reins rules. Judges are not hunting for violations like these, but anything that gives an advantage to one rider over another should be looked at and called if warranted. A slight, brief, opening of the hand around the reins that doesn’t reflect an advantage isn’t the issue here, it’s the consistent spreading of the reins and maybe a finger between them that we’re talking about. Be careful and do your best to play by the rules is the answer.

Habits die hard. One habit that rears its head on occasion after a new cow (two toots), horn or whistle, is the two hands on the reins when stopping your horse to accept the new cow. Usually, it’s a habit from home that comes when schooling your horse. The NRCHA Rule Book states you are judged from the time you enter the ring until the whistle or horn blows to end the work. If you double grab any time before the end of the work, it is considered two hands on the reins and a score of 0 will be assessed. Judges are required to call what they see without prejudice, whether the exhibitor meant to commit a penalty or not.

Really, the goal when judging is to be as fair and consistent as possible. Hopefully, the horse that performs the best that day wins, and they don’t have to make any of the uncomfortable calls that the last two paragraphs talked about. Making good decisions is what judging is all about.

Until Next Time, Bill

Enk NRCHA Director of Judges

“THE NRCHA RULE BOOK STATES YOU ARE JUDGED FROM THE TIME YOU ENTER THE RING UNTIL THE WHISTLE OR HORN BLOWS TO END THE WORK.”

FROM THE

The Kaplowar Quarter Horses Celebration of Champions held at the Will Rogers Memorial Center in Fort Worth, Texas, was a stellar success to start the new year. The National Reined Cow Horse Youth Association would like to congratulate Phillip Ralls and Call Me Mitch for winning the title of the 2023 World’s Greatest Horseman and Tylie Norcutt and Soulas Hickory Star, who captured the Champion title of the 2023 World’s Greatest Youth Horseman, presented by MARS Equestrian™.

One of the many special things about the NRCHA is the family-centered atmosphere. For example, there were six sets of fathers and sons or daughters between the event’s Open and Youth for the World’s Greatest, as well as two sets of siblings in the World’s Greatest Youth, and one set of siblings in the World’s Greatest Horseman. There were multiple couples competing in the Open class of the World’s Greatest, too.

The NRCHyA had a constructive meeting, with over 75 members in attendance. During the meeting, the association voted on the 2023 board members. The Youth members really came together and pulled through to narrow down to the perfect candidates. In addition, the Youth gathered 150 coats in a fundraiser drive, which were donated to the Safe Haven of Tarrant County.

NRCHyA Secretary Bryce Barkemeyer invited Terry Stuart Forst of Waurika, Oklahoma, to share her life’s story about the 7S Stuart Ranch, which is the oldest family ranch in Oklahoma. This horse and cattle operation succeeds through seven generations of care and is the first

ranch to be inducted into the Oklahoma Quarter Horse Hall of Fame. Terry, an inductee into the National Cowgirl Hall of Fame, spoke about how working with generations of family was not always easy, and they didn’t always see eye to eye, but it’s what saw them through anything. Terry also emphasized the huge responsibility of keeping the 7S Stuart Ranch running successfully. She mentioned that even though she had some out-of-the-box ideas for the ranch, she still had confidence that her plans would work. Even though others may have disagreed with her ideas, she still stuck to what she felt was best to do in her heart, for the best interest of the ranch. She had great faith in God during the good and trying times, and still walks with that same strong faith today.

Hearing her story, you can tell how much grit and love she has for the cattle and horse industry. This guest speaker’s testimony surely inspired the future of the horse and cattle industry, the NRCHyA.

Lilly Gilson, reporter

2023 NRCHYA OFFICERS

President Landri Lisac

Vice-President Hailey Saffert

Secretary Bryce Barkemeyer

Reporter Lilly Gilson

Treasurer Taylee Hawk

Northeast Isy Scheffel

Southeast Kade Vinyard

North Central Reese Gillespie

Northwest Taylor Jones

Southwest Tristyn Housler

South Central Boyd Wilson

Canadian Ella Davis

High School Rodeo Audrey Moody

JUNIOR OFFICERS

Tanner Jones

Cutter Housler

Caleb Cushing

Lane Jones

Kixi Meador

Trystin Crow

CIRCLE UP

NATIONAL REINED COW HORSE ASSOCIATION

TWICE AS SWEET

Kelsey Love Thomas claims her second World’s Greatest Horsewoman title at Art of the Cowgirl.

BY JENNIFER DENISON | PHOTOS BY KATE BRADLEY BYARS

It was a “dream week” for the dream team of Kelsey Love Thomas of Rising Star, Texas, and her great mare Kit Kat Jerrie (Kit Kat Sugar x Jerries Dual Legacy x Smart Little Jerry) at the fifth annual Art of the Cowgirl held January 18-22 at Horseshoe Park & Equestrian Centre in Queen Creek, Arizona. The pair dominated the arena, winning their second championship in the Kimes Ranch World’s Greatest Horsewoman competition, presented by Western Horseman

Thomas also was on the champion team in the All Women’s Ranch Rodeo, presented by Cowgirl Magazine, with Codie Brown, Becca Gagan and Whitney Hall. She received the top hand award for the rodeo.

More than 50 women from all over the United States and Canada entered this year’s World’s Greatest Horsewoman competition. They competed in the preliminaries in four events: reining, herd work, steer stopping and fence work. The top 10 riders returned

Kelsey Love Thomas was pleased with her steer stopping run during the Art of the Cowgirl World’s Greatest Horsewoman Finals.

for the Finals where they vied for cash, prizes and an entry in the Western Bloodstock/High Brow Cat/ Hashtags World’s Greatest Horseman competition held during the 2023 Kalpowar Quarter Horses Celebration of Champions in Fort Worth, Texas.

Thomas led the field of riders coming into the Finals. Then she and “Elvira” scored a 148 in the herd work, 145 in the reining, 142.5 in the steer stopping and an explosive 153 in the fence work to take the championship. Morgan Holmes of Stephenville, Texas, and her home-raised horse Monster Truk secured reserve.

“The competition at Art of the Cowgirl has gotten tougher,” said Thomas. “Getting to do all four events in the Finals and having the chance to mark a better composite in the Finals than the long round is encouraging, because I feel like [Elvira] gets better as we go.

“I tried not to over- or underthink anything and work the cow for what it was,” continued Thomas. “The cow was fast and kind of pushy, but I just tried to be patient and put [Elvira] in the right position, and she turned it herself. She read that cow so well and was so smart.”

Thomas also noted that she threw on of her best head loops in the steer stopping.

Since winning the first World’s Greatest Horsewoman title in 2020, Thomas says that she and Elvira have spent the past four years getting more experience in cow horse competition.

“I feel like we’re more mature now,” she said. “The first Art of the Cowgirl was one of our first shows together, and I’d only been to one National Reined Cow Horse Association show at that point.”

That show was the inaugural Cowboy Class Invitational at the National Reined Cow Horse Assocaition Snaffle Bit Futurity® in 2019, and the dynamic duo won it. The win came months after Thomas and her husband, Buddy, bought the 4-yearold broodmare from Parke Greeson, who had raised the horse on his family’s Sarco Creek Ranch in Goliad, Texas, and shown her in cutting.

Since their first World’s Greatest Horsewoman championship, Thomas and Elvira have won the NRCHALimited Open Bridle class at the 2022 Celebration of Champions and the Cowboy Class held during the 2022 NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity®.

After a disappointing performance at the 2022 World’s Greatest Horsewoman competition, where she overspun in the reining, Thomas was determined to do better this year.

“The second win is just as sweet, maybe even more, than the first,” she said. “It’s a bigger event now and

there are some really handy girls here. Last year, I felt like I had let Elvira down and I wanted to come back and show how good she is. When you have a big win like this, there’s a lot of momentum that comes with it. I’m just trying to enjoy the moment and everything that comes with it, because it doesn’t happen every day.”

Preparing for the World’s Greatest Horseman can be daunting, but Thomas takes it in stride.

“I’m going into it with the same mindset I had at Art of the Cowgirl,” she said. “I’m riding for the moment, working the cow we draw and showing to the best of our ability. We’re going to push ourselves, but not overshow, and have fun.”

At the 2023 World’s Greatest Horseman, Thomas did not make the Finals; however, in the Kalpowar Quarter Horse Celebration of Champions, the pair earned the Intermediate Open Bridle World Champion title.

The second win is just as sweet, maybe even more, than the first. It’s a bigger event now and there are some really handy girls here.”

—Kelsey Love Thomas

Elvira and Thomas handled a fast cow and rode to the top cow work score in the event Finals.

HACKAMORE CLASSIC MOVES TO TULSA, OKLAHOMA, IN 2023

The National Reined Cow Horse Association Hackamore Classic is moving to Tulsa, Oklahoma, and will now be held July 24-30 at the Tulsa Expo Square. This event was previously held in conjunction with the Snaffle Bit Futurity® in Fort Worth, Texas. The move is largely due to the growth that the NRCHA is seeing across the board with entries and the desire to keep premier event schedules optimal for competitors and the equine athletes alike.

“The Hackamore Classic is a historical event for the NRCHA. We are pleased with the growth we have seen over the past few years while hosting the Hackamore Classic at the NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity® and we are ready for this event to stand on its own,” says Emily Konkel, operations manager. “Tulsa Expo Square is a top-notch facility that will be a great home to one of our premier events. We look forward to the partnership with Tulsa and are excited for the 2023 show!”

The Hackamore Classic is designed to showcase second stage of the traditional cow horse evolution. The event provides hackamore horses, which are 4- and 5-year-olds, the opportunity to compete in the three-event Derby which includes the herd, rein and cow work.

The July event will also host the third and final cow horse qualifier for The Run For A Million, the inaugural World’s Greatest Non Pro along with a full slate of horse show classes. In 2022, two Open qualifiers were held for the event; this one shines the spotlight on versatile Non Pros. The top five will receive an invite to The Run For A Million Cow Horse Challenge, joining the 10 riders that qualified from the Teton Ridge Stallion Stakes and the Western Derby.

More information regarding the event including schedule, host hotels and entry deadlines will be forthcoming. For more information on upcoming events and the latest news visit NRCHA.com.

Presented by

2022

SNAFFLE BIT FUTURITY® OWNERS INCENTIVE FUND

Thank you to these supporters contributing to the added money purse for the 2022 National Reined Cow Horse Association Snaffle Bit Futurity ®!

Larry & Kathy Barker

Best Kept Secret Ranch

Bet He Sparks

Bet Hesa Cat Syndicate

BMW Quarter Horses

Brazos Valley Stallion Station

Call Me Mitch

D Lazy K Ranch

Double F Ranch / Roy & Sherri Fischer

Dual Smart Rey / Strawn Valley Ranch

DuraPro Health

Fults Ranch / Stevie Rey Von

Gardiner Quarter Horses

Hartwood Farms

Hat 6 Ranch

Honeysuckle Rose Boutique

Hooray / Eric & Wendy Dunn

Ann Matthews

Matthews Cutting Horses

Milum Performance Horses

Kit & Charlie Moncrief / Moncrief Quarter Horses

Ophir Creek Ranch

Red Arrow Ranch LLC

Rocking Nine Four Ranch

Carol Rose

Steve and Lori Roseberry

Spahn Law Firm PLLC

Stuart Ranch

War Ponies, Elite Paint Cowhorses

Woodglen Investments

THE RUN FOR A MILLION EXPANDS COW HORSE EVENTS IN 2023

The National Reined Cow Horse Association is excited to partner with The Run For A Million again in 2023 with an expanded slate of cow horse competitions. The Run For A Million returns to the South Point Casino and Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada, August 16-19.

“NRCHA is excited to partner with The Run For A Million for the third year in a row. This event has truly brought light to the horse industry as a whole, and we are so grateful that they include the cow horse family in their vision,” said Emily Konkel, NRCHA operations manager. “The collaboration between The Run For A Million and NRCHA has brought on some exciting new classes for this monumental event. We look forward to being a part of the 2023 event.”

New for 2023, the NRCHA will host three qualifiers, each of which will take five qualified riders to the event in August. The first qualifier will be held at the Teton Ridge Stallion Stakes in Las Vegas, Nevada, March 23-April 1, followed by the Western Derby in Scottsdale, Arizona, May 31-June 10. The third qualifier will be held at the Hackamore Classic in Tulsa, Oklahoma, July 24-30. The Run For A Million event will also host the first Youth Cow Horse Challenge. This youth event will feature the nine finalists from the 2023 World’s Greatest Youth Horseman, presented by MARS Equestrian™.

“The goal of this event is to showcase the Western lifestyle and its traditions,” said Amanda Brumley, vice president and producer of The Run For A Million.

“The reined cow horse addition in 2021 brought us closer to achieving this goal. This year we are very excited to expand our partnership with NRCHA to include the Youth Cow Horse Championship. Youth riders are the future of our sport; we are so grateful to be able to showcase them at this event.”

Returning this year is the Cowboy Class Invitational, presented by XIT Ranch, featuring 10 working cowboys from 10 historic ranches competing in the rein work, cow work and roping. Complete event information regarding The Run For A Million, including room reservations and ticket sales, is available online at trfam.com. Information about each of the upcoming NRCHA qualifiers can be found online at nrcha.com.

KEN WOLD CRACKS THE NRCHA MILLION DOLLAR RIDER MARK

BY KATE BRADLEY BYARS

When Ken Wold rode Brother Jackson into the John Justin Arena on February 20 for the Open Bridle Finals at the Kalpowar Quarter Horses Celebration of Champions, he knew he would ride out the newest National Reined Cow Horse Association Million Dollar Rider. But Wold didn’t take it easy. He and the 2009 stallion earned third place, and not only hopped Wold across the earnings mark, but jumped him into the Million Dollar Rider Club.

“Brother Jackson, since we’ve had him, has been one of those once in a lifetime horses,” said Wold. “I’ve rode lots of good horses and they’ve won a lot of money to help get me here, but to be on Brother Jackson when I went over the top was great.”

The Wilton, California, trainer has molded cow horses into show horses since his first show in 1971. Before the NRCHA grew to national status, Wold cut his teeth on the California Reined Cow Horse Association, earning titles at the famed San Francisco Cow Palace and competing against other legends of the sport. He served two terms as NRCHA president and was inducted into the NRCHA Hall of Fame in 2008.

“To me, the highest level of training at that time in the Western division was always in the cow horse, no matter what year or time. It was never an easy win or

a pushover! As the training techniques improved, the horses improved, and the scores got higher, and people got better. But it’s always been tough,” Wold said. “There was never a cow horse show I can recall that didn’t have Greg Ward, Les Vogt, an Ingersoll, Stan Fonsen or Smoky Prichett. They were winners and you were always competing against the top. We have a whole different group of trainers that are tough, but it has always been that way.”

While the purses weren’t as large then as now, Wold earned a solid number of titles and checks that put him at the top of his game. However, when the NRCHA office burned down in the 1980s, many of the older records were lost. It was sort of like starting the journey to a million dollars over again, but Wold was not deterred.

“I think there are a lot of riders from that time when the purses weren’t nearly so big and I competed against them, they would be million-dollar riders today. I feel like I kind of brought those guys with me and glad I stuck with it,” he said. “During this I thought, by God I don’t care how many times I gotta do it, I’m going over a million! I’m tickled to death.”

Throughout his career, Wold earned several titles, including the 2017 CD Survivor Memorial Open Bridle Spectacular on Brother Jackson, third in the NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity® Finals on Playgirls Miss Grace in 2008, the Reno Snaffle Bit Futurity Intermediate Open title in 2018

on Jule Of A Time, to name a few. Wold says, truth be told he doesn’t remember all the horses he trained, but each helped him to this milestone.

But the person that most helped Wold to this honor is his wife, Ramona, a former basketball coach who put those skills to use for her husband’s benefit.

“When we got married, I told her I wanted her to coach me, and she did,” Wold says. “Throughout our marriage and really through the last third of the million, she’s pushed me, watched my runs and critiqued me. She wants me to do my best. Without her, I could not have achieved what I have. She’s a good coach, even though she’s shown and done well, she’s always come backed to helping me. Without her coaching and standing by me, I don’t think I’d have achieved this marker.”

Wold will be honored as a Million Dollar Rider during the 2023 NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity, presented by Metallic Cat, in October in Fort Worth, Texas. For a complete list of Million Dollar Club members, visit nrcha.com.

Aboard Brother Jackson (Peptoboonsmal x Shes Icing On The Cat x High Brow Cat), Ken Wold topped the million dollar mark in earnings.

C ul i s!

SJR SUMKINDAROCKSTAR by Smooth As A Cat

2023 NRCHA Celebration of Champions Derby Non-Pro CHAMPION

2022 NRCHA Futurity Hackamore Non-Pro RESERVE CHAMPION

2022 NRCHA Hackamore Classic Non-Pro CHAMPION

2022 NSHA RCH Derby Non-Pro Finalist (3rd)

2022 NRCHA Western Derby Non-Pro Finalist

2021 NRCHA Futurity Non-Pro Finalist (split 4th)

2021 Southwest RCHA Pre-Futurity Non-Pro CHAMPION

SJR SUMKINDAROCKSTAR

Owned and shown by Debbie Crafton • Bred by San Juan Ranch

SJR SMOOTH LIL OAK by Smooth As A Cat

Rider Kyle Noyce • Owner Janie Dvorak-Compton • Bred by San Juan Ranch

2022 The Run For A Million RCH Challenge Open Finalist

The youngest horse to qualify

2022 NRCHA Stallion Stakes Run For A Million Quali er Open CO-RESERVE CHAMPION and CO-RESERVE CHAMPION Open Bridle

2021 NRCHA World Hackamore Open Finalist (5th)

2021 NRCHA Stallion Stakes Interm Open Finalist

Congratulations to SJR SMOOTH LIL OAK for receiving his NRCHA SUPREME COW HORSE MERIT AWARD!

2021 NRCHA Celebration of Champions Interm Open Finalist (3rd)

2020 NRCHA Hackamore Open CHAMPION

LTE $500,037.51 • NCHA Horse of the Year

$34.9 Million Sire • 2023 Stud Fee: $2,500

Family owned. Operated by Kyle Manion. For breeding information, contact:

Weatherford Equine Breeding Center 817-594-9181

www.weatherfordequine.com

e-mail: tmanionranch@aol.com P.O. Box 94

Aubrey, Texas 76227

PHOTO BY ROSS HECOX

MEMBER ROUNDUP

Meet our NRCHA Members

NATIONAL REINED COW HORSE ASSOCIATION

KNOW THE PRO

Indiana native Ben Bowman has paved an unlikely path to reined cow horse success.

BY JESSICA LASH

Sandborn, Indiana, isn’t exactly Western horse country. Nestled between the borders of northern Kentucky and eastern Illinois, it is home to a modest 400 residents—many of whom work the fertile White River bottom farmland or commute to jobs in neighboring towns. But in this corner of northeastern Knox County, reined cow horse trainer Ben Bowman first became enamored with horses, training colts and working cattle alongside his coal-miner father on the family farm.

“My dad started lots of colts,” Bowman shared. “He wasn’t really into cow horses—those weren’t big in our area—but he trained a lot of horses for everyday use. He did it for as long as I can remember, so it just felt like home to me.”

Bowman grew up showing horses in a variety of disciplines at his local county 4-H fair before dabbling in cutting, reining, team roping and, eventually, cow horses. As life accelerated toward adulthood, Bowman looked toward a career with horses as a tangible option.

“I worked a few little jobs here and there, but it was just enough to know I didn’t want to do that kind of work,” Bowman admitted. “Training horses in some capacity has pretty much been my whole life’s pursuit. It’s what came naturally to me.”

Bowman began training horses full time at age 20. In the early 2000s, he took the unlikely leap to reined cow horses, where

his focus has remained steadfast for more than two decades. But training and competing on reined cow horses in the agricultural Midwest has not been without its difficulties, and Bowman admits he has had to work overtime to carve out a place for his program amongst sparse opportunities.

“The cow horses in my area—well, there pretty much are none,” Bowman said, with a laugh. “Indiana definitely isn’t the place you think of when you think of cow horse events. It hasn’t always been easy, but we make it work.”

Despite the challenges, Bowman has stayed the course, cultivating his plot of land into a thriving cow horse facility. He maintains a barn with 20 to 25 training horses, which is the maximum capacity his facility can accommodate, and has adeptly led both Non Pro and Youth clients to numerous world titles in the past several years. And while Bowman admits there may have been easier paths to the reined cow horse arena, a lifetime of training horses has taught him an unwavering truth: anything is possible if you are willing to put in the work.

Ben Bowman, shown here with his family, has trained reined cow horses in Indiana since the early 2000s.

COURTESY OF BEN BOWMAN

Reined Cow Horse News: How did you get your start in cow horses?

Ben Bowman: We ran about 100 head of cattle on our farm when I was growing up, so I always had that background with cows. I dabbled in reining, but there just were no cow horses in my area. In the late ’90s and early 2000s, the cutting horse industry was going pretty strong in my area, so I went to work for cutting horse trainer Ben Ingram for a couple of years. When I left there, I felt like I had enough knowledge to put it all together and start training reined cow horses.

RCHN: What did you learn from Ingram that helped you find success in the National Reined Cow Horse Association?

BB: Ben taught me so much about cattle— how to get a horse to work a cow, which cow to pick and how to read it in the show pen. A lot of our young horses there started tracking cows around to give them a job to do and teach them how to guide. I look back and know I learned a lot during my time with Ben, but reading cattle was probably the biggest thing.

RCHN: What has been the most challenging part of your career training cow horses?

BB: That’s easy: location. Indiana wasn’t big into reined cow horses when I started 20 years ago, and it still isn’t now. Our closest show is six hours away. Fort Worth, Texas, is a 15-hour drive. Nothing about doing this in Indiana is practical. In recent years, I’ve had clients who have been willing to keep good horses and travel the long distances to the shows, but there’s no way around it; we definitely have to fight the logistics of traveling so far all the time.

RCHN: What motivates you to keep working in this discipline despite its challenges?

BB: I love taking a horse, getting it really broke and teaching it to do its job well. It’s fun to watch a horse develop and know I’ve had a part in its journey. Watching my Non Pro and Youth riders find success makes me as happy as anything else. I’ve had clients in recent years who have won world titles in NRCHA events as well as in the American Quarter Horse

Association Versatility Ranch Horse. Watching the horses I’ve trained go on to have success with their owners is really satisfying. When it all comes together, it makes me think maybe I’m doing the right job.

RCHN: What do you love most about reined cow horse events?

BB: The people who compete in reined cow horse events live this every day. We breathe it and sleep with it. We have to because the horses need to be so broke to do the job well. I think a lot of people watching from the outside don’t really understand what it takes to make it all happen, but the people on the inside know it’s hard, hard work. It’s a whole different mentality in the reined cow horse community.

with NRCHA Pro Ben Bowman

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NOTABLE NON PRO

The miles between California and Oklahoma couldn’t stop Monica Duflock from pursuing her reined cow horse dreams.

BY JESSICA LASH

Thirty-six miles north of Paso Robles, California, rests the quaint community of San Ardo. The quiet, sparsely populated town is easily overlooked by passersby on their way to more thrilling California destinations. But for reined cow horse competitor Monica Duflock, San Ardo has a special meaning.

“It has always been home,” Duflock said. “And no matter where I go, it’s always going to be home.”

Duflock’s roots run deep in San Ardo. Her family has owned the historic San Bernardo Rancho for five generations—six, now, counting Duflock’s three teenaged sons. A vast expanse of rolling California ranchland, San Bernardo Rancho was part of the land ceded to the United States following the Mexican-American War. The original document, penned on parchment paper and dated September 1871, is framed in Duflock’s mother’s dining room.

Growing up on San Bernardo Rancho instilled a sense of self-sufficiency, responsibility and adventure in Duflock, who was often responsible for caring for sick or orphaned calves alongside her two older sisters. Missing school to help gather cattle horseback was always a childhood treat.

“Life on the ranch makes you independent,” Duflock shared. “It also gives you the space to be creative, to make your own adventures and to carve out your own fun. It’s a predictable thing to say, but the ranch teaches you things no place else can.”

Duflock lived on the ranch until she was 13 years old and then left for boarding school at Santa Catalina School in Monterey, California.

After graduating from high school, she attended college in Cleveland, Ohio, before returning to California. Although she now lives in the San Francisco Bay Area, Duflock still calls the pastures of San Bernardo Rancho home. And the lessons she’s learned from it all followed her everywhere she went, including to the reined cow horse arena in Blanchard, Oklahoma.

BACK TO THE BEGINNING

Getting a divorce opened a new window of time in Duflock’s life, even though she had three children, ages 5, 3 and 1 at the time.

“Sometimes, you’re so busy just getting from morning to night that you don’t have the headspace, bandwidth or time to do anything but get through your day,” Duflock shared. “It had been that way for me for a long time. I went 11

The San Bernardo Rancho’s brand is the oldest continuously used brand in California.

years without getting on a horse and suddenly a space opened where I had time to fill it.”

For Duflock, who grew up using horses on her family’s ranch and showing Quarter Horses in horsemanship and trail classes, deciding what to fill the newfound space with was easy—horses.

“I had a friend I’d shown Quarter Horses with who was competing in reined cow horse events, so I went to watch her at a show in Santa Barbara [California] one weekend,” Duflock explained. “She was showing in the boxing, and I remember thinking, ‘This is so cool!’ I drove home that night and told my mom, ‘This is what I’m going to do.’ ”

Duflock bought a horse and began taking boxing lessons, and just like that, she was off and running with cow horses. She has never looked back.

“About a year after I started taking lessons, I bought my mare, Oh Cay Meriah, from Todd Crawford’s program in Oklahoma. That was it; after that I was all in,” Duflock said, with a laugh.

Oh Cay Meriah is sired by Light N Lena and out of the Freckles Merada daughter Meradas Oh Cay. Duflock shipped “Meriah” to California, where she spent six months before returning to Oklahoma to train with Crawford, an NRCHA Two Million Dollar Rider and Hall of Fame member, for the upcoming American Quarter Horse Association World Championship Show.

“I’ll never forget, when I asked Todd if he would help me get Meriah ready and show her in the Senior Working Cow Horse. He said, ‘You won’t ever have to ask me twice; we adore this mare,’ ” Duflock said. “She is very easy to love. When I got to Oklahoma to practice, all the bells went off in my head. I just knew that was where Meriah was meant to be.”

For the past six years, Duflock has prioritized Meriah’s well-being, allowing her to remain in Oklahoma under Crawford’s guidance, where the mare has continued to thrive. She commutes between California and Oklahoma to ride and compete as time permits.

“I don’t get back there as much as I’d like,” Duflock admitted. “I’m still raising three boys and helping with the ranch, so it ebbs and flows a little bit. I’m there as much as I can be, and someday I know I’ll be able to do more. But for now, I’m happy being able to carve out the time I do have for this other side of my life that doesn’t exist in the Bay Area.”

In addition to the enjoyment Duflock finds competing in National Reined Cow Horse Association events, the California native said she also finds fulfillment in the relationships she’s forged through her cow horse connections.

“We have a great group of people in Todd’s barn,” Duflock said. “I also have a great group of friends outside the barn who are a part of reined cow horse. Being part of all of it on a larger scale has been so much fun. I often wonder what I would be doing with myself if I hadn’t done this. I would be so boring.”

Left: Duflock enjoys competing on her reined cow horse mare, Oh Cay Meriah.

Below: Oh Cay Meriah poses with Duflock and two of the mare’s offspring.

Above: Monica Duflock stands with her three sons outside her mother’s home at San Bernardo Rancho.

COURTESY MONICA DUFLOCK

PRIMO MORALES

COURTESY MONICA DUFLOCK

FROM FOUNDATION TO FUTURE

While Duflock enjoys the excitement of competing in reined cow horse events, she cherishes the relationship she shares with Meriah more than anything else.

“She has the most wonderful disposition,” Duflock said. “She’s kind and easygoing. She is so talented on a cow—she had a lot of success with Todd in her futurity and derby years. Her talent exceeded my knowledge when I started riding her and, to be honest, it’s probably always going to. She never holds that against me.”

Enamored with the mare’s cow sense and kindness, Duflock began breeding Meriah in 2019. Before Duflock purchased her, the mare had one colt, 2015 stallion Oh Cay MC, sired by Metallic Cat, that was a finalist at the Snaffle Bit Futurity®.

“We have two 3-year-olds on the ground right now, and I’m really excited to see if she continues to pass on her easygoing nature and her talent on a cow to her babies,” Duflock shared.

Duflock sold one of the 3-year-olds, Oh Cay Smarty Pants (by WR This Cats Smart), to

Dustin Mills in 2021. With any luck, she hopes to see Crawford pilot the colt she still owns, Oh Cay Maverick (sired by Metallic Rebel), at this year’s NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity®. Beyond continuing to show Meriah and watching the mare’s offspring find success in NRCHA events, Duflock said she does have one goal she’d still like to check off her list: going down the fence.

“I love competing in the boxing,” Duflock shared. “When NRCHA introduced the Box Drive class, I couldn’t say enough good things about it. It’s a great transitional class because it gives you the tools to pull everything together before you’re thrown into a fence class. Right now, the responsibilities in my life outside of horses don’t allow me to ride as much as I want to, but that’s always there in the back of my mind. Ultimately, I want to go down the fence.”

Whatever the future holds, Duflock said her life has been made whole by the special mare.

“As nerdy as it sounds, I look at my life in two parts—life before Meriah, and life after her,” Duflock said. “I’m so grateful for all the ways in which she has enriched my life.”

I often wonder what I would be doing with myself if I hadn’t done this. I would be so boring.”

—Monica Duflock

ADMIRABLE ASSISTANTS: JASON SEYMOUR

Showing horses in all-around and ranch horse competition created his desire to train cow horses.

BY JENNIFER DENISON

Life doesn’t always plow a straight path—there are turns, backtracks, detours and even dead ends that eventually lead a person to find his or her calling. That was how Jason Seymour landed his job as assistant trainer to Kelby Phillips in Weatherford, Texas, less than a year ago. Coming from a ranching background, he was confident that no matter where he went, he could always train horses.

Seymour and his wife, Kelsi, moved from the Western Slope of Colorado to Weatherford in 2020. Since he was a youth, he had an interest in training cow horses, so he called cow horse trainers in the area to see if anyone was hiring but couldn’t find any job openings. One of his friends mentioned that cutting horse trainer Geoffrey “Spud” Sheehan was looking for help, so Seymour contacted Sheehan and started working for the trainer in January of 2021, riding cutting horses at Silverado on the Brazos.

Though he didn’t have experience riding cutting horses, he enjoyed it and learned from the experience. However, in the June of 2022 Sheehan moved his training operation and Seymour transferred to Kelby Phillips’ program, which is based out of the same barn.

“When Spud left, Jason wanted to stick around the area and approached me about a job,” explained Phillips. “He’s one of those employees that’s awesome. It’s hard

KATE BRADLEY BYARS

Working on ranches and showing horses prepared 27-year-old Jason Seymour for his job assisting cow horse trainer Kelby Phillips.

to find people like him you can trust. I feel like I could leave for a month and not talk to him, and everything will be taken care of.”

SHOWING POTENTIAL

Seymour and his three siblings grew up on their family’s ranch in Montrose, Colorado. They spent their childhood riding horses and bicycles down dirt roads until they were old enough for their father to put them to work on the cattle operation after school and on weekends.

“I’m the fifth generation on my family’s ranch in Colorado,” he said. “We have a feed yard, cropland and a mother cow herd. We always had six to eight ranch horses around all the time, and we had a few show horses. We didn’t ride every day, but we pulled them out when we needed them.”

In high school Seymour played football and basketball, and showed steers, hogs and horses in 4-H. He also exhibited horses at weekend shows and a few American Quarter Horse Association events.

“I showed a double-bred Two Eyed Jack horse in all-around events, and he was pretty tough to get shown,” recalled Seymour. “In 4-H there was a ranch horse class, and that was my first taste of working cow horse. The only reason the horse knew there was a cow in the arena was because I was pulling him that way; he didn’t know a whole lot. In 2012, I told my mom I didn’t want to show him anymore and we found me a 5-year-old gray mare, Smart Whiskey Pistol, who had been trained and shown by Darren Miller.”

Seymour sought assistance from horseman Aaron Ralston in Parachute, Colorado, and within a couple of months he qualified the mare for the boxing at the American Quarter Horse Youth Association World Championship Show.

“Aaron helped me get started and showed me all the cool things we can do with horses,” he said. ”He was the first trainer I’d ever worked with. Before him, I tried to figure it out on my own.”

After graduating from high school in 2014, Seymour attended West Texas A&M

University in Canyon, Texas. Under the coaching of Zeb Corbin and then Obbie Schlom, he showed his mare on the ranch horse team and in Stock Horse of Texas events. This fostered his goal of someday training cow horses. While in college, he met his future wife, Kelsi, a Texas native who was attending Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas.

When he graduated from West Texas A&M University in May of 2018, he worked on ranches such as the Poison Spider Cattle Company in Casper, Wyoming, and then for his father. In 2019, he and Kelsi married, and a year later the newlyweds moved to the Lone Star State to start building their lives together and to be near Kelsi’s family in Glen Rose, Texas. The couple now has a 2-year-old daughter, Saige, who is just as crazy about horses as her father.

“She has a pony and spring rocking horse she rides,” he said. “She throws her hat in the air and hoops and hollers. She always wants to ride horses with me.”

Shown here exercising Duals Lucky Charm, Seymour started out last summer riding the 2-year-old horses in Phillips’ barn. He continues to do that, as well as advance some of the 3-year-olds.

Aaron helped me get started and showed me all the cool things we can do with horses. He was the first trainer I’d ever worked with. Before him, I tried to figure it out on my own.”

—Jason Seymour

KATE BRADLEY BYARS

RELY ON FOR PEAK HEALTH & PERFORMANCE

HAY

CONTENT WITH COW HORSES

When Seymour started working for Phillips, he started most of the 2-yearolds in training. He continues to do that, as well as ride some of the 3-year-olds and exercise non-pro clients’ horses. The past nine months, he has settled into his role as Phillips’ assistant. He takes care of all the horses, making sure they have feed and water, and monitoring their overall health. He also tends the cattle, waters the arena and makes sure Phillips has horses ready to ride. He also has helped Phillips at a few major shows. Working for the trainer has come easily for Seymour, and the job is just what he expected.

“As with any job in agriculture, you must show up every day and be willing to do anything,” Seymour said. “When an employer sees your dedication, no matter what job you’re in, it opens up opportunities to show them what you can do.”

Both quiet men, Phillips and Seymour don’t have to say much to know what each other is thinking.

“Even if I don’t ask him to do something he’s paying attention,” said Phillips. “He’s thinking on his own.”

When it comes to training horses, Seymour says he learns best through observing and listening more than talking anyway.

“I’ve been able to figure things out while watching Kelby work horses and then go try them on my horses. He understands horses well and can get them to understand what he wants in a short amount of time,” said Seymour. “When I lope his older horses, their feel is exactly what I want my horses to feel like. They’re so soft and do whatever you ask.”

Phillips admits that he’s “not a great teacher because I don’t talk a lot,” but he says that Seymour works hard and pays attention and figures it out.

“He’s so good on the 2-year-old,” said Phillips, adding that he admires Seymour’s work ethic and trustworthiness. “I couldn’t be happier with him.”

Though he hasn’t shown in cow horse competition since working for Phillips, Seymour says part of being an assistant is being patient and waiting for opportuni-

ties. He has the same advice for someone wanting to get a job as an assistant.

“You can’t rush into it—you’ve got to wait it out and an opportunity will come,” he advised. “I also think it’s better to stay in one place for a while. When you start switching programs, you get confused and so do the horses. One day you’ll have your own style, but to be successful as an assistant I think it’s best to stay with one trainer and work hard.”

Seymour is taking his own advice and has no plans of working for anyone but Phillips as long as the trainer has work for him.

“Training cow horses is where I want to be,” he said. “They are the coolest horses to ride. They have to be so broke and mentally prepared for whatever you ask of them to do. They are truly all-around horses.”

In his spare time, Seymour enjoys spending time with his wife, Kelsi, and their daughter, Saige.

the Nix Nerves

When the pressure’s on in competition, it can be hard to overcome your nerves. Use these tips to help stay cool and collected in the show pen.

The show pen: competitors dream about it, spend hours practicing and preparing for it, and experience some of their greatest triumphs while in it. Why, then, for some people does the very idea of competing cause their hearts to start racing, palms to get sweaty and breathing to quicken?

Athletes can psych themselves out once the pressure is on, and riders are no different. The jitters and nerves that come with competition can cause things that normally might come easy, such as running to a stop or taking a cow down the fence, to suddenly feel impossible. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Properly preparing yourself and your horse, going maneuver by maneuver and learning from your mistakes, will enable you to calm your nerves and avoid freezing up in the show pen.

PREPARE FOR THE SHOW

It sounds like a simple solution, but preshow practice and preparation will create confidence while showing. The more you ride and practice with your horse, the more competent you’ll feel during each maneuver.

Many National Reined Cow Horse Association professionals advise running your horse at “show speed” before a show, whether that’s executing a full reining pattern without schooling in the middle or working a cow down the fence as you would in a show situation. This will give you an idea of any holes you can correct in advance, rather than fixating on what might go wrong once you’re at the show.

“If a certain Non Pro has an area they’re not as confident in or as comfortable in, we tend to work on that part more, so when they go to the show, they have a lot more confidence in the parts that they tend to struggle with,” said Brendon Clark, 2022 DT Horses Western Derby

When it is time to shine in the show pen, the last thing a rider wants to feel is nervous.

KATE BRADLEY BYARS

BY KRISTIN PITZER

Open Champion. “If they’re feeling good about that certain part, that’s not overweighing the pressure of them making a mistake. Otherwise, if they’re worrying too much about it, then all the things they can do, they tend to not perform as well.”

Don’t dwell too much on the weak spots, though, Clark added. Otherwise, you’ll start to overthink it when it comes to the maneuver and try to force it, which often leads to mistakes. Instead, says 2021 World’s Greatest Horseman Champion Shane Steffen, learn how to trust your horse and his training, which will also build your horse’s confidence in you.

“When you feel like you’re confident in being able to put that show run together or have figured out what it takes to get your horse to listen to you to that degree, then when you have those nerves, it’s just a matter of having a mental talk and saying, ‘I know what my horse is capable of as far as to be able to go put this together, so I’m just going to walk in there and put the best run together that I can and let the judges judge it from there,’ ” Steffen said.

Whether you have several months or a couple of days to prepare for a show, keep your focus on the task at hand, added NRCHA professional Erin Taormino. Think about what your goal is for the present day, rather than the score you’re hoping to mark at the next event.

“I try to just keep things simple and not worry about the end result,” Taormino said. “I focus on what I need to do that day, not what I want it to look like when I horse show three days from now. I try to focus on what each horse needs that specific moment. Sometimes that’s a lot easier said than done because we’re always thinking about showing. Just make sure it’s there.”

TAKE THINGS STEP BY STEP

Even with all the preparation in the world, there’s still pressure that comes from showing that can’t be replicated in

the practice pen. Show pen jitters aren’t limited to youth and non professionals, either—pros also must learn how to combat their nerves each time they go into the show pen.

To help himself focus, 2022 Snaffle Bit Futurity® Open Champion Lee Deacon has a mental routine he goes through every time before he shows. He also tries to remind himself that showing horses is part of the entertainment industry and meant to be exciting and enjoyable for spectators.

“I pray a lot. I also have some notes I wrote down to get in a consistent mindset: ‘Hang it out there, be entertaining and don’t vocalize anything negative about you or your horse,’ ” Deacon said. “I think of David approaching Goliath on the battlefield. He didn’t walk up to the giant timidly, shaking in his boots. He ran to him boldly and struck him down, despite the odds. Trusting that God has a plan for my life has helped me mentally more than anything. I just have to show up.”

The time before you walk into the pen is better spent centering yourself, he said,

instead of anxiously over-schooling your horse. The training part is over, at least temporarily. Use that time to think about your breathing, focus on the job in front of you and psych yourself up, if necessary. For many riders, breaking down the task at hand, whether it’s a reining pattern or the cow work, is an effective way to prepare. Rather than thinking about the entire reining pattern you will have to run, for instance, memorize the direction you will run your circles first and which way you will spin first. The odds are if your first set of spins are to the left, your next ones will be to the right. Then, then take the pattern piece by piece.

“I don’t get ahead of myself,” Clark said. “In the reining, for instance, I make sure I know the pattern, and then I just do each maneuver as they come along. If I try to think too much ahead of what I’ve got to do, then I can forget something or do little things that make my score go down or stay the same, versus gaining points. So, I don’t try to think about the last thing I’m doing first; I just think about it as it goes on.”

Taking each part of a run step by step will also help in the event of a bobble. Rather than focusing on how a mistake affected the entire run and giving up, you can put it out of your mind and focus on nailing the next maneuver instead. Plus, there’s always a good chance that something that felt bad to you will look entirely different to the judges.

Erin Taormino pilots a lot of horses in the reined cow horse pen, which means she is constantly adjusting her timing to fit a specific horse.

“I talk to my wife about what it looked like versus what it felt like,” Steffen said. “It kind of helps being able to balance what you felt in that show pen versus what it actually looked like and how you scored, so you can adjust your mentality of, maybe this didn’t feel exactly like I wanted it to, but it actually looked good

Lee Deacon showed he and Tornado Jonezs’ talent to the best of his ability, capturing the 2022 Open Champion spot at the Snaffle Bit Futurity®.

“TRUSTING THAT GOD HAS A PLAN FOR MY LIFE HAS HELPED ME MENTALLY MORE THAN ANYTHING. I JUST HAVE TO SHOW UP.”

—Lee Deacon

“I TRY TO JUST KEEP THINGS SIMPLE AND NOT WORRY ABOUT THE END RESULT.”

—Erin Taormino

PRIMO MORALES

PRIMO MORALES

Sire of multiple Champions and Money Earners

or was what I needed to go mark better in that situation. That’s what I try and take away from those runs.”

DEVELOP SHORT-TERM MEMORY

Preparation and grit may be the keys to success, but unfortunately, no matter how much you practice or how carefully you work through your run, mistakes can still happen, especially when animals are involved. How do you keep bobbles from psyching you out and ruining your next trip through the show pen?

“It’s really easy to remember the bad runs over the good runs. It’s not an easy task, and I have by no means mastered it, but I try to not put too much weight in the bad runs,” Taormino explained. “Remember it, watch video on it, understand what happened and then move on from it. It’s horse showing, it’s probably going to happen again. It might happen sooner than later. But you just can’t put too much weight in the highs or too much weight in the lows.”

Treating each trip to the show pen like it’s your first or your last can help you focus on the excitement of showing, rather than what might be at stake. By learning from, but not fixating on, your worst moments and your greatest triumphs, you can prepare your horse the way it needs in the moment, rather than worrying about repeating mistakes or how you’re going to better the last performance.

“The biggest thing is just trusting your own ability,” Deacon said. “It’s hard when your legs are shaking, your hands are clammy, and your body doesn’t feel how it does at home. It’s hard to trust that you will react or respond in the show pen.

“My new favorite saying is, ‘Don’t think, just do,’ ” he continued. “Learn to trust yourself, and then the same with your horses—if you put the work into those horses, even if they don’t prepare well, most of the time under pressure a horse will revert to what he knows best. You’ve just got to go show the best you can.”

Clark took his own advice and didn’t dwell on potentially weak spots but instead rode the horse he knew could win, capturing the 2022 DT Horses Western Derby on CR Hes A Tuff One.

Shane Steffen’s faith and trust in his horse help, along with keeping his outlook positive, helped him capture the 2021 World’s Greatest Horseman title on Gunna Be A Smartie.

“I TALK TO MY WIFE ABOUT WHAT IT LOOKED LIKE VERSUS WHAT IT FELT LIKE.”

—Shane Steffen

“I DON’T GET AHEAD OF MYSELF.”

—Brendon Clark

PRIMO MORALES PRIMO MORALES

NRCHA CELEBRATION OF CHAMPIONS

WR ICEMAN

(Lean Irish Playgirl, by Paddys Irish Whiskey)

Open Derby - 8th

Bred by Mary Scott Brown

Owned by Eric & Wendy Dunn • Shown by Corey Cushing

RAB SMARTKITTYCAT

CAT WALKS INTO A BAR

(Sue C Shiner, by Shining Spark)

Non Pro Bridle & Youth World Champion, Limited Non Pro Bridle Reserve Champion, and Intermediate Non Pro Bridle - 9th

Bred by Garth & Amanda Gardiner

Owned and Shown by Landri Lisac

CATS LOOK SINFUL

(A Little Sinful, by Docs Stylish Oak)

Box/Drive Non Pro World Champion and Boxing Non Pro - 5th

Bred by Wagonhound Land & Livestock LLC

Owned and Shown by Erin M. Keys

(Spark Smart, by Genuine Masterpiece)

Non Pro Derby Reserve Co-Champion

Bred and Owned by R.A. Brown Ranch

Shown by Lanham Brown

THE KOOL KAT

(Shiney Nu Annie, by Shining Spark)

Intermediate Open Derby - 4th

Bred by Wagonhound Land & Livestock

Owned by Loren Booth Living Trust • Bred by Tracer Gilson

• SMART DUAL CAT

SMART NICHOLAS* • WR HOTSHOT

WORLD’S GREATEST

HORSEMAN TOP 15 FINALIST

PRF PEPTOS SMART CAT

WORLD’S GREATEST

HORSEMAN YOUTH TOP 10

RAISE A SMART CAT*

* Bred by Wagonhound Land & Livestock

STARS

ALIGNED

Sarah Dawson led the winning team to be crowned champions at the inaugural The American Performance Horseman event.

Story by Abigail Boatwright

Competing

underneath the huge canopy of Arlington, Texas’ Globe Life Field stadium, 15 horsemen and -women showed the 18,000-strong crowd—and countless fans online—what the best Western performance horses in the United States can do on a big stage.

The top five money-earning riders from the National Reined Cow Horse Association, National Reining Horse Association and National Cutting Hose Association were placed on five three-person teams, each comprised of a cow horse rider, reiner and cutter. With $1 million purse up for grabs, the winning rider in each discipline took home $100,000, and the winning team took home $75,000 total, or $25,000 per contestant.

On March 10, Sarah Dawson was not only the high-scoring reined cow horse competitor, but she was also part of the winning team with cutter Adan Banuelos and reiner Fernando Salgado. Dawson took home $125,000 in one day.

The rein work portion of the reined cow horse event was held in the morning, while the cow work was held during the evening’s schedule. The American Performance Horseman event kicked off with an exciting round of cutting, and Banuelos

Left: Shine Smarter helped launch cow horse trainer Sarah Dawson’s career, and the horsewoman rode the mare’s offspring, Selvarey, to the NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity® Open Championship in 2020.

Upper right: Dawson was all smiles and praised her horse for a job well done.

TEAM BLUE

Team Score: 905.5

Cutting Rider: Adan Banuelos

Horse: All Spice, 17M (Once In A Blu Boon x Show Biz Kitty x High

Brow Cat)

Owner: Teton Ridge

Score: 229

Reining

Rider: Fernando Salgado

Horse: Pale Dun Star

APHA 16S (Pale Face Dunnit x Get Ya Some

Stats x RR Star)

Owner: Ian & Kristen

Cantacuzene

Score: 224

Cow Horse

Rider: Sarah Dawson

Horse: Shine Smarter, 12M (WR This Cats Smart x Shiney Tari x Shining

Spark)

Owner: Linda Mars

Score: (R:226/C:226.5)

452.5

TEAM RED

Team Score: 894

Cutting

Rider: Lloyd Cox

Horse: Blackish, 14M (Hottish x SS Blacks

Lil Kitty x Blue Bayou

Boon)

Owner: Julie Jarma

Score: 224

Reining

Rider: Shawn Flarida

Horse: Alpha Jac Sparrow, 18S (Spooks

Gotta Whiz x Chexanicki x Bueno Chexinic)

Owner: Fritz Leeman

Score: 220.5

Cow Horse

Rider: Justin Wright

Horse: Scooter Kat, 15S (Kit Kat Sugar x

Scooters Daisy Dukes x Dual Smart Rey)

Owner: Eric Freitas

Score: (R:224.5/C:225)

449.5

TEAM GREEN

Team Score: 891.5

Cutting

Rider: Lindy Thorn

Horse: Lil Maddy Rey, 12M (Dual Smart Rey x Miss Madelines Cat x High Brow Cat)

Owner: Misty Greeson

Score: 217

Reining

Rider: Casey Deary

Horse: Down Right

Amazing, 17S (Colonels

Smoking Gun x Shesouttayourleague x Walla Walla Whiz)

Owner: DAG Ventures

LLC

Score: 231.5

Cow Horse

Rider: Chris Dawson

Horse: CSR Lay Down

Sally, 11M (Dual Spark x Look At Her Glo x CD O Cody)

Owner: Meredith

Garber

Score: (R:224/C:218.5)

443

TEAM PURPLE

Team Score: 878.0

Cutting

Rider: Wesley Galyean

Horse: Third Edge, 18S (Metallic Rebel x Lil Rattler x Dual Rey)

Owner: Teton Ridge

Score: 221

Reining

Rider: Andrea Fappani

Horse: Trash

Talkin Spook, 17S, (Gunnatrashya x I Spook x Smart Spook)

Owner: Marilyn

Overgaard

Score: 230.5

Cow Horse

Rider: Corey Cushing

Horse: Good Time, 11G (One Time Pepto x Dual Nurse x Dual Pep)

Owner: Kristen & Corey

Cushing

Score: (R:218/C: 208.5)

426.5

TEAM ORANGE

Team Score: 847.5

Cutting

Rider: Austin Shepard

Horse: Kittenish, 16M (Kit Kat Sugar x Sweet Lil Gal x Sweet Lil Pepto)

Owner: Billy Wolf

Score: 220

Reining

Rider: Matt Mills

Horse: Guns And Dynamite, 16S (Gunners Special Nite x Chic Olena Starbuck x Smart Starbuc)

Owner: Tim & Mary Beth Ruckman

Score: 221

Cow Horse

Rider: Lee Deacon

Horse: SJR Smooth Lil Oak, 16G (Smooth As A Cat x Shiners Little Oak x Shining Spark)

Owner: Janie DvorakCompton

Score: (R:188/C: 218.5)

406.5

Sarah Dawson and Shine Smarter

Justin Wright and Scooter Kat

Chris Dawson and CSR Lay Down Sally

Corey Cushing and Good Time

Lee Deacon and SJR Smooth Lil Oak

“FOR HOW SHE SHOWS AND THE TYPE OF MARE SHE IS, I THOUGHT THAT THE SMALLER ARENA WOULD FIT HER PRETTY WELL. IN THE REIN WORK, SHE WAS FAN TASTIC.”

—Sarah Dawson

topped the group with a score of 229 aboard All Spice (Once In A Blu Boon x Show Biz Kitty x High Brow Cat). Then, while the arena was dismantled and being set up for reining, singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow entertained the audience. Next, the reiners competed, and after the dust settled from the sliding stops, Casey Deary’s smoking run aboard Down Right Amazing (Colonels Smoking Gun x Shesouttayourleague x Walla Walla Whiz) was perfection, scoring a 231.5.

The event culminated with reined cow horse cow work and cheers as each horse went down the fence. Dawson had the final run on Linda Mars’ good mare Shine Smarter (WR This Cats Smart x Shiney Tari x Shining Spark). The pair topped the cow horse, scoring 226 in rein work and 226.5 in cow work for a composite score of 452.5

Before the awards, rock ‘n’ blues group Ghost Hounds played a set. When the interviews were done with the winners, champagne popped and winners sipped out of the trophy cup, and then three-time Grammy winner Darius Rucker closed out the show with his own concert.

Shine Smarter has been with Dawson since she became a trainer. The sorrel mare has amassed more than $214,000 in earnings according to NRCHA prior to this event. Shine Smarter’s daughter, Selvarey (by Dual Rey), carried the horsewoman to win the NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity® Open Championship in 2020.

Bringing Shine Smarter to the event was an obvious choice for Dawson. The mare is well-suited to the dimensions of the pen built in Globe Life Field.

“She was the best horse I had in the barn for this particular situation,” Dawson said. “For how she shows and the type of mare she is, I thought that the smaller arena would fit her pretty well. In the rein work, she was fantastic. She just circled and was right with me the whole time and stopped huge. That’s her trick—that mare can run and drag her booty.”

Dawson’s husband, Chris Dawson, competed on Team Green, and the couple encouraged each other, as they often do, even though they were rivals.

“We talked about it before we walked down there to go down the fence; we talked about really just working the cow they turn out,” she said. “That’s all we can do. Both of us were just so excited about going and doing it and showing in front of that many people. So, it was just like we were going to go and have fun.”

With the cow work being the climax of the event, Dawson said the stage was set for the mare to excel.

“Walking down the tunnel and then into the atmosphere [of the stadium] just felt right,” she said. “She just felt so calm underneath me. You don’t really often get a good feeling like that, that the stars are aligning, before you actually go show. You’re just kind of hoping. It was a strange feeling. It felt like it was going to fit that night.”

The format of teaming up three riders from three different disciplines is unprecedented. Salgado said being part of a team was an extra element to being a good competitor.

“Once we got the draw, I mean, I’m a big fan of both of them [Adan and Sarah], when I watch them both showing, you don’t see the rider at all, you only pay attention to the horse,” he said. “To me, that’s our job as showmen, show our horses. So, I was really proud to be part of the team. That added a lot of pressure on me to not drop the ball. I was very happy I was able to do that.”

The competitors had high praise to produce the event, from the footing, that was quickly prepared to the needed specs for each event, to the opportunity to compete on such a big stage.

“We in our horse industry talk amongst ourselves, know that our sports are so cool, but the biggest problem we’ve had is they haven’t been big spectator sports,” Dawson said. “I think Teton Ridge has come in and proved we can turn this into a spectator sport. I’m excited to see what it’s going to turn into from here, because I think they’ve just opened a door that we didn’t know we could open.”

Team Blue members Adan Banuelos, Sarah Dawson and Fernando Salgado take sips of champaign from the championship cup during the awards ceremony.

COREY CUSHING: The$3MILLION Man

By doing his best for each horse he trained, Corey Cushing reached goals he never imagined.

By Larri Jo Starkey

Corey Cushing started his training career like most young trainers, loping horses.He had a few dreams and he set his sights on achieving them. It read like a checklist he ticked off fairly easily:

• Apprentice with a well-known horseman as an assistant— check. Cushing spent his first few years working with Todd Bergen, Ted Robinson, Noel Skinner and John Slack.

• Win a major cow horse event—check. Cushing won his first major event in 2007 at the National Reined Cow Horse Association Stallion Stakes on CC Spin Cycle.

• Win $1 million—check. Cushing hit that goal in 2012.

• Win $3 million… He never thought of it once.

“My goal was to be successful in the show pen someday,” Cushing said. “Having a chance to show at awesome events on the kind of horse that can do the kinds of things those horses can do.”

Just doing his best for each horse paid off, as Cushing became the first NRCHA $3 Million Rider during the 2022 Snaffle Bit Futurity®.

Corey Cushing achieved $3 Million Dollar Rider status during the Open Bridle at the Snaffle Bit Futurity®, and that helped him earn a spot to compete in the American Performance Horseman, which he did on Good Time.

DOING IT HIMSELF

On a brisk winter day, Cushing is out riding, getting to know yet another young horse and beginning to understand that horse’s potential and mindset.

He lopes his horse steadily, then answers a phone call. His calls aren’t forwarded to an answering service, and he doesn’t have an assistant riding the horse—Cushing does it himself.

“Horses are all their own individuals,” he said. “There’s not one of them alike. There are similar traits and characteristics, but there isn’t one that thinks the same or goes about the same.”

Understanding each horse, he said, is crucial to getting the most out of that horse.

“You need to know how they work, how they respond to what you need to do with them, the way that they’re thinking, the type of equipment that you use on them and even how much you warm them up,” he said. “How much do you prep for an event or what’s the everyday home practice?”

Knowing the horse intimately means Cushing knows exactly how much he can ask when big money is on the line.

“I’m not afraid to saddle my horse or clean the stalls,” he said. “I don’t know anything else to do but just be myself. I can appreciate the help along the way, but at the same time, I know that’s what got me here. We’ll hopefully keep it going.”

Cushing hung out his own shingle when he was 23 years old, with the backing of his wife, Kristen. The Cushings have three children, and they all work together at Corey Cushing Performance Horses, based in Weatherford, Texas.

“She’s just as important in this as all my success,” Cushing said. “She’s been right there with me the whole time. And my outstanding customers are giving me the opportunities and these horses.”

SETTING NEW GOALS

Since his days as an assistant, Cushing has focused on learning constantly.

“Never, never stop learning,” he said. “Thank goodness I’ve got a lot of great friends, and there are so many good people in the horse industry who are willing

to voice their opinions through a troublesome spot or show experience.”

Whether he needs advice on a reining problem, a cutting situation or anything else, he has friends who are willing to assist him.

“I know I can’t be as good as some of the cutters out there right now or some of the reiners,” he said. “But I can pick their brain, and they can give me advice.

The biggest thing is that as time goes on you’ve got to be able to adapt to the changes and understand that times are changing. If you’re not keeping up with them, you’re going to get left behind.”

Training horses has prepared Cushing to help Amateurs and Non Pros prepare their horses. The process is similar, he said, and he frequently leads clinics in addition to teaching his private clients.

Left: Lincoln, Caleb and Capri Cushing all love to ride, like their parents Corey and Kristin.

Below: Cushing has come a long way from riding miniature donkeys as a kid.

“THE BIG  GEST THING IS THAT AS TIME GOES ON YOU’VE GOT TO BE ABLE TO ADAPT TO THE CHANGES AND UNDER STAND THAT TIMES ARE CHANGING. IF YOU’RE NOT KEEPING UP WITH THEM, YOU’RE GOING TO GET LEFT BEHIND.”

—Corey Cushing

“I do my best to break it down to where anyone can understand it,” he said. “I try to keep my program real. I try to keep it simple—hard as it is.”

He focuses on meeting riders where they are, just like he approaches horses. He wants to know where they are in their riding career and what kind of horses they have.

“I try to make sure they can follow through and know what they’re capable

of doing,” he said. “I want to make sure they know what they’re doing, how to make a rundown and draw a horse into the ground. Just keep things real simple.”

Cushing never came close to quitting, even in the days when he was beginning his career.

“Anyone who is in the horse business, whether it be pleasure horses, reiners, cutters—just horses in general—it’s a lot of long, hard hours and you build your

CUSHING’S BIG WINS

1999 National Reining Horse Association Intermediate Open Futurity on Twice As Shiney (Shining Spark x Shine A Mite)

2007 National Reined Cow Horse Association Stakes Championship on CC Spin Cycle (Ray Gay Quixote x Lenas Peppy Cutter)

2009 NRCHA Derby Open Championship on Smart Boons (Peptoboonsmal x Smart Little Easter)

2011-

2012 American Quarter Horse Association World Champion Senior Working Cow Horse on Rising Starlight (LitBay Starlight x Peppys Hot Star)

2012 Magnificent 7 All Around Stock Horse Champion on Smart Boons (Peptoboonsmal x Smart Little Easter)

2012 NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity® Open Champion on CD Diamond (CD Olena x Shiners Diamond Girl)

2014 NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity® Open Champion on Good Time (One Time Pepto x Dual Nurse)

2015 World’s Greatest Horseman on PRF Spoonful Of Gold (Hes A Peptospoonful x Sons Miss Sprat)

2017 National Stock Horse Association Futurity Open Champion on SJR Smooth Rio (Smooth As A Cat x Shiners Diamond Girl)

2018 NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity® Open Champion on SJR Diamond Mist (CD Diamond x Cat Mist)

2019 NRCHA World’s Greatest Horseman on Sonita Lena Ray (Dual Rey x Sonita Lena Chick)

2022 NRCHA World’s Greatest Horseman on Hott Rod (Hottish x Sugars Smart Kitty)

Right: Early in his career, Cushing learned from Todd Bergen, who excelled in the reining and then the reined cow horse arenas.

WALTENBERRY

Top: In 2009, Cushing rode Smart Boons to one of his first major NRCHA victories, the Derby.

PRIMO MORALES

way through it,” he said. “There were days when I thought it was getting too tough, but I never said, ‘I can’t do it.’ ”

He challenged himself to meet the difficulties head on, one day at a time.

“It was never so much that I couldn’t do it on a particular day, but it’s the struggle of being consistent and following through,” he said. “It comes to a point of paying attention to where you’re at and sometimes it means slowing down a little bit to move forward.”

When Cushing was starting out, he watched NRCHA Two Million Dollar Rider Bergen with Chic Please and NRCHA Hall of Fame member Robinson with Katie Starlight, a NRCHA Hall of Fame inducted horse. It was at the beginning of the big-money events, and Cushing was starstruck at the amazing horses.

“Looking up at all my heroes and mentors and trying to keep up with them someday was on my bucket list,” Cushing

said. “It has been one heck of a ride, that’s for sure.”

But the ride isn’t over. He still has at least one goal to achieve.

“I’ve never won the Hackamore Classic,” he said. “That is the one premier event that I have not won. I got to spend a lot of time with one of my heroes, and that’s Benny Guitron. At that event, you can only achieve success by working in a hackamore. There’s a true art to it, for those who understand it. It’s not just a decorative piece [of gear] that hangs on a horse’s head.”

Guitron, another NRCHA Hall of Fame member and Snaffle Bit Futurity Champion, let Cushing ride a couple of

well-trained hackamore horses, and it was a revelation.

“I would at least like to feel that I put that on a horse,” Cushing said. “It was just so amazing, that something’s so light and that just sits around a horse’s nose can mean so much. I hope to truly achieve that someday.”

Guitron also set the goal that Cushing lives by—his next goal.

“Benny Guitron said he wanted to be remembered that when people hear his spurs walk down the alleyway that guys can look up as he walks by and say, ‘That’s one hell of a cowboy right there.’ ”

“ANYONE WHO IS IN THE HORSE BUSINESS, WHETHER IT BE PLEASURE HORSES, REINERS, CUTTERSJUST HORSES IN GENERALIT’S A LOT OF LONG, HARD HOURS AND YOU BUILD YOUR WAY THROUGH IT.”—Corey Cushing

Breeder Sponsors

BY KRISTIN PITZER PHOTOS BY PRIMO MORALES

ONG HAUL VICTORS L

It’s difficult to climb to the top of the NRCHA division’s year-end leaderboard, but these competitors emerged victorious.

Anyone can have a shot at winning a title at an event, but securing a National Championship requires consistency, commitment and grit. The following National Reined Cow Horse Association competitors were up for the challenge and worked hard throughout the 2022 show season for their spot in the limelight.

OPEN BRIDLE

Reyzinette & Chris Dawson for Holy Cow Performance Horses TX LLC

Reined Cow Horse News: What was your most memorable NRCHA show moment in 2022?

Chris Dawson: [Taking Reserve at the 2023 World’s Greatest Horseman] was probably the highlight of his[Reyzinette's] show career for the year, and then I actually qualified on the horse for The Run For A Million and tied for eighth place at the 2022 NRCHA DT Horses Western Derby. I’ve never been so excited to be tied for eighth place, and then we had the runoff and he really rose to the occasion there.

RCHN: What was the biggest challenge you faced during the show season?

When Chris Dawson found out he and Reyzinette (Dual Rey x Sheza Shinette x Shining Spark) were sitting at the top of the leaderboard for the Open Bridle National title, he initially planned to haul the horse to a few more shows in the hope of securing the Championship. Then, he changed gears and decided to use Reyzinette for the High Brow Cat / Western Bloodstock / Hashtags World’s Greatest Horseman instead. Dawson figured he was giving up their shot at the year-end title, but he was pleasantly surprised when they ended up winning by a half-point.

“It’s a huge deal for those horses whose careers have lasted long enough to be a bridle horse,” Dawson said. “It speaks volumes for them.”

Reyzinette, a 2014 stallion, was originally trained by Phillip Ralls, and Dawson got him as a derby horse. Since then, the pair has accomplished a lot together as they moved up into the bridle. Dawson credited owner and breeder Nancy Crawford of Holy Cow Performance Horses TX LLC for giving them the support they needed through the years to become successful.

“It’s such a treat to ride horses for Nancy,” Dawson said. “She puts forth the effort and the finances and has the patience with a lot of these horses to see them through.”

CD: Once I figured out I was probably going to use him for the World’s Greatest Horseman, I figured I’m probably not going to hold on [to the National title], because someone will probably get me at the World Show, so I kind of gave up on it. It was a tough call, but we opted for the World’s Greatest and it worked out.

RCHN: What is your horse’s most special physical talent?

CD: He’s so darn consistent. He doesn’t take much schooling. You can pretty much cruise him through runs and mark two, two-and-a-half on him in the reining without really having to ask him for very much. That’s kind of how we end up doing it. Those are kind of my schooling runs. He doesn’t really make me go off pattern. I think that lends itself to these lovely, little pleasant surprises because you kind of just ease around and keep him good, let him pull checks, and next thing you know, lots of little checks have added up to some big checks.

LIMITED OPEN BRIDLE

Blu Boon Shining & Jed Lawrence for Jerry & Erica Kenney

Reined Cow Horse News: What was your most memorable NRCHA show moment in 2022?

Jed Lawrence: When I won the Limited Open Bridle at the NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity® on him this year, that was the highlight. That was really cool. We did quite a bit of winning this year. This was his first bridle year, and he came out just awesome in the bridle.

RCHN: What was the biggest challenge you faced during the show season?

JL: The biggest challenge was just, as much as we were hauling, making sure he stayed happy, that we didn’t sour him out and overshow him. We just tried to keep him happy and make sure he didn’t get to where he didn’t like to do that because he likes to go show.

RCHN: What is your horse’s most special physical talent?

Blu Boon Shining (Once In A Blu Boon x Azucar De Munyeca x Cats Merada), a 2016 gelding, has been with trainer Jed Lawrence since he was 2 years old. That made their Limited Open Bridle National title even more special for the horseman, who lost his stepdad in June of 2022.

“It’s special to win it, just a little something for him,” Lawrence said. “We barely skimmed by. I think we were 51 points down coming into the World show. We ended up getting like 54 points for taking fifth. I thought we were going to be too far out, but apparently it was just enough. Everything just fell into place.”

Lawrence thanked his family, including his wife, Sarah, daughter, Zoey, and his mom, Erica Kenney, who owns Blu Boon Shining, for supporting him as he hauled for the title. He thinks he’ll slow down this year, rather than trying for another year-end title, but he still has big goals with the horse.

“I would like to go try that qualifier for The Run For A Million,” Lawrence said. “I don’t know if he’s good enough or not, but I would like to try that, and then the World’s Greatest [Horseman] is a goal next year.”

JL: He’s a great fence horse and a big turning horse, always has been. He’s really smart-footed and doesn’t make any mistakes every step that he takes. He just knows where his feet are.

NON PRO BRIDLE

Amy Bailey & Electra Tuff

RCHN: What was your most memorable NRCHA show moment in 2022?

Amy Bailey: My favorite moment last year was during the NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity® on my fence run. I had a fast calf, and not only was it fast going down the fence, but it was also fast coming back. That was just one of those [runs] that I enjoyed. When I got done, I was like, “Man, let’s do that again!”

RCHN: What was the biggest challenge you faced during the show season?

AB: In November, he fell with me going down the fence. An ambulance had to come take me to the hospital, and I ended up with a concussion and bone bruising. I didn’t think showing would bother me, but that first day before I went in, it just hit me. But that was the only second thought I had about anything. I tell everybody, “I’m not going to be the one that, when I’m 80 years old sitting at home on the couch, [who] says I wish I had done this or that.” I’m going to do it because we’re going to die sooner or later, and it might as well be doing something we like!

For Amy Bailey, winning a year-end title on Electra Tuff (Woody Be Tuff x Electras Boots x Doc O Boots) was extra meaningful, as it was her last year competing on the 2012 gelding. As of February, the horse was pending sale, and though it was bittersweet to see him go, she was grateful for the memories she made with him.

“Last year was the first year I’ve ever been Intermediate,” Bailey said. “I had previously won the Non Pro year-end high point on Electra Tuff, but I never won the Intermediate. To win them both was special because I’m selling him. I want him to go on to somebody else that can win with him for a little while.”

Bailey said she had started roping on Electra Tuff this year, adding to the gelding’s talents. She thinks he’ll make a great contender for the Non Pro World’s Greatest Horseman one day.

“He is the soundest horse I have ever owned,” said Bailey, who also won the Intermediate Non Pro World title with the gelding. “I will miss him because he has been a good horse for me. My ultimate goal is to eventually show in the Snaffle Bit Futurity, because I have never shown a futurity horse.”

RCHN: What is your horse’s most special physical talent?

AB: Number one, he’s got speed and it’s hard to outrun him. Number two, he comes out of the turns quick. He’s so physical that he’s violent. He is just so willing to do whatever I ask him to do, and he never refuses. He is the best three-event horse I have ever had.

The front is smooth and inviting. And it’s got a bold middle flavor that I love but can’t really describe. The finish is warm honey-almond with a smokey tinge on the very back end. It’s damn good.

— Kory Pounds, Professional Cowboy, Cutting Horse Champion, Whiskey Advocate

INTERMEDIATE NON PRO BRIDLE

Tracy Adams & Perfect Light Time

RCHN: What was your most memorable NRCHA show moment in 2022?

Tracy Adams: Mine is at the Celebration of Champions last week. I ended up fourth in the Intermediate Non Pro Bridle. I don’t think I rode my horse quite as well as I should have, but I still ended up really good in such a hard class, so that was really awesome. Also, seeing Trent [Pederson] ride him in the Open Bridle. I have so much faith in both the horse and Trent, but I also know that’s an amazingly tough class, so to end up Reserve Champion, I was crying some crocodile tears.

RCHN: What was the biggest challenge you faced during the show season?

TA: The biggest challenge, which has been going on for a couple years, is that “Scooby” has decided he has claustrophobia a little bit in the trailer, so Trent has to give him a little extra room and does that so graciously. Otherwise, I have so very few challenges with him. My biggest challenge is just me remembering to do all I have to do on the cow. I need to really concentrate and do the things I’m supposed to do so I don’t get left in the dust.

Tracy Adams didn’t start 2022 planning to run for a National title with Perfect Light Time (CD Lights x BBR Perfect Timin x A Chic In Time), but after a successful run at the 2022 Teton Ridge Stallion Stakes, where the duo tied for Reserve in the Non Pro Bridle and Intermediate Non Pro Bridle, Adams started going to more shows. Still, she never expected to win a year-end award.

“I certainly never thought in my wildest dreams I’d end up National Champion,” Adams said. “I didn’t start really doing cow horse at all, including the boxing or reining or anything like that, until I was in my late 50s. To come into a sport so late in life and then luck out and get a horse that I wouldn’t trade for anything, I feel really blessed.”

Adams was grateful to her trainer, Trent Pedersen, and her equine partner, Perfect Light Time, a 2011 gelding she’s owned since 2019.

“Over the years, he was just waiting for me to get better and catch up,” Adams said of “Scooby.” “He was already there, but he was kind of looking around at me like, ‘When are we going to get this program together, lady?’ For me to have finally caught up, it’s a really once-in-a-lifetime thing.”

RCHN: What is your horse’s most special physical talent?

TA: He’s exceptionally good on the cow. He’s really strong, an amazing, hard stopper. He loves to work cows, and he’s really strong turning. His turns are so strong, I kind of look like a ragdoll once in a while. He’s got a lot of courage, and he’s an honest horse.

LIMITED NON PRO BRIDLE, YOUTH COW HORSE

Landri Lisac & Cat Walks Into A Bar

RCHN: What was your most memorable NRCHA show moment in 2022?

Landri Lisac: The DT Horses Western Derby—we had a lot of success there. We ended up winning the Youth Cow Horse Spectacular and the Non Pro Bridle Spectacular, so it was a really good show.

RCHN: What was the biggest challenge you faced during the show season?

LL: Probably just me learning how to go down the fence and not being very familiar with it, not making the best decisions and him having to deal with it.

RCHN: What is your horse’s most special physical talent?

LL: His best physical trait is definitely going down the fence. He’s a big horse and he’s so athletic. He is also really patient. We just kind of clicked. He was way different from my previous horse, and I really liked that. He is always there for me, and he never gives up.

Landri Lisac originally purchased Cat Walks Into A Bar (WR This Cats Smart x Sue C Shiner x Shining Spark) with the intention of going down the fence. The 2014 gelding had been shown in the cow work with his previous owner, so he seemed like he could be a good teacher. Cat Walks Into A Bar took his mission seriously, carrying Lisac to two year-end titles in 2022.

“We’ve been trying to still get to know each other a little bit, especially because I’m still kind of new going down the fence. We’ve just been trying to get everything lined out, and it finally happened,” Lisac said. “I’ve never really won anything big in the NRCHA, so it really does mean a lot—just dreams coming true.”

Lisac, 15, is setting the bar even higher next year. In addition to hopefully adding more National titles to their record together, she hopes to compete with the gelding in the World’s Greatest Youth Horseman, presented by MARS Equestrian™.

“I just want to thank my parents, siblings and all my family, along with Todd Crawford Performance Horses for everything they do for us,” she said.

OPEN HACKAMORE

Tee Boone & Jay McLaughlin for JT “Trey” & Sandra Neal

It took a year for Jay McLaughlin to put Tee Boone (Once In A Blu Boon x Skeets My Bro x Docs Curious Cat) in the hackamore from the 2020 NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity®, presented by Metallic Cat, to the 2021 NRCHA Hackamore Classic, presented by Oswood Stallion Station. However, during the 2022 show season the duo showed in nothing else. The pair landed the 2022 NRCHA Hackamore Classic Open Championship, and their Open Hackamore National title was the icing on the cake.

“He was in the hackamore at every horse show,” McLaughlin said. “I didn’t school him in the snaffle in one class and put him in a bridle somewhere else; we’ve been in the hackamore the whole time. That means quite a bit to me because the hackamore is an art, and I have not mastered it yet. I learn something new every day.”

Owned by Trey and Sandra Neal, Tee Boone will continue juggling his breeding career with showing as he moves up into the two rein and bridle. His first foal crop is due this year.

“This horse, honestly, should have already won twice, three times as much as he already has, but it took us a little bit to figure out that he wasn’t feeling the best,” McLaughlin said. “Once we figured it out, he was great and good to go.”

RCHN: What was your most memorable NRCHA show moment in 2022?

Jay McLaughlin: The Hackamore Classic was pretty special to us, but pretty much everywhere he went this year he shined in the hackamore.

RCHN: What was the biggest challenge you faced during the show season?

JM: Juggling the breeding and showing was a little difficult at some points, but he handled it really well. I think I didn’t handle it as good as he did. It seemed like all during the spring breeding season last year, every day we showed was a breeding day, so we’d have to juggle all that and try to get it figured out. It’s a job, but it’s worth it to get those babies on the ground.

RCHN: What is your horse’s most special physical talent?

JM: He’s known for his stop—he’s a big stopper—but he does every event really above [average]. He can cut, rein and go down the fence, and we’ve roped on him a little bit here and there.

LIMITED OPEN HACKAMORE

Home Creek Twilight Cat & Craig Cowley

Last year, Craig Cowley ended up Reserve in the Limited Open Hackamore National standings on his mare, Hickorys Lucky Time. He wanted to do one better this year, and Home Creek Twilight Cat (Metallic Cat x Homecreek Dusk x Brooksipep), a horse registered through the Australian Quarter Horse Association, rose to the occasion. The homebred 2017 stallion began to outperform Cowley’s mare throughout 2022, and by the time the World Show rolled around, they had about a 48-point lead.

“Even though it was a big class, I still thought that I had to make the Finals to seal the deal,” Cowley said. “I didn’t finish that great in the Finals, but it still got me an extra few points to make sure I stayed in the lead.”

As the stallion mature, Cowley hopes to eventually make him a bridle horse. Since he was born during Australia’s breeding season, which is during the fall in the U.S., he’s underaged compared to horses born in the U.S. the same year.

“When I brought him over, I didn’t really know where we were going to go with him,” Cowley said. “He’s always kind of been behind everything else, but now he’s starting to mature a little bit and catch up mentally.

RCHN: What was your most memorable NRCHA show moment in 2022?

Craig Cowley: I won the Limited Open Hackamore at the [Snaffle Bit] Futurity, that was probably the best moment for him. He’s been pretty consistent. I think he really kind of stepped up. He just started getting better toward the latter end of that hackamore year.

RCHN: What was the biggest challenge you faced during the show season?

CC: Managing the business and then getting to the shows where we could actually do well. We own those horses, so footing the bill for showing ourselves has probably been the biggest challenge, and making sure everything was still going along at home. My wife basically had to take care of a lot of stuff at home while I went and showed.

RCHN: What is your horse’s most special physical talent?

CC: Probably his lead changes, and his speed and speed control. He can be out of position on a cow and just somehow get back to a cow. He’s an incredibly fast horse; he can lengthen his stride and in two strides be back in control of the cow when he’s circling.

NON PRO HACKAMORE

Even though Cutter McLaughlin only showed SCR King Of The Road (Sannman x SCR Crackin Light x Boonlight Dancer) a handful of times this year, the pair managed to land the Non Pro Hackamore year-end title thanks to their performances at those shows. McLaughlin and the 2017 gelding made the Finals at every major event in 2022, finishing the year ahead by 14 points.

“He’s really good in the hackamore,” said 19-yearold McLaughlin. “We had to work on it pretty hard his 4-year-old year, just to let him be comfortable in it and get the feel of it for him and I. After he figured it out, he was pretty simple in it.”

McLaughlin and the gelding will be moving into the two rein and the bridle this year, and McLaughlin said he’s excited for the next stage with the horse. Like last year, he won’t specifically try to run for a year-end title, but he will be happy if it works out again.

“We just kind of pick and choose where we show them, especially as they get older,” McLaughlin said. “That’s why it was so special to win the Hackamore this year. I showed him quite a few times in the hackamore, but not at every single horse show.”

RCHN: What was your most memorable NRCHA show moment in 2022?

Cutter McLaughlin: There were a lot of them, especially on him. I won the prelims rein work on him at the Teton Ridge Stallion Stakes, and I won it on him at the DT Horses Western Derby the last two years. It was pretty cool to be able to be pretty consistent with that on him.

RCHN: What was the biggest challenge you faced during the show season?

CM: Just trying to get him more broke our way, let him figure out how he wanted to do stuff his style versus making him a certain style.

RCHN: What is your horse’s most special physical talent?

CM: He stops really, really huge, and he loves to go down the fence. He’s a very good fence horse.

Cutter McLaughlin & SCR King Of The Road, owned by Jay & Wendy McLaughlin

OPEN TWO REIN

SJR Smooth Lil Oak & Kyle Noyce for Janie Dvorak-Compton

After winning several Open Hackamore World and National titles, SJR Smooth Lil Oak (Smooth As A Cat x Shiners Little Oak x Shining Spark) and Kyle Noyce moved up into the two rein and kept right on going. The pair landed the 2022 Open Two Rein National Championship and made Finals appearances at prestigious events like The Run For A Million Cow Horse Challenge.

“He’s just been one of those that keeps winning,” Noyce said. “He’s definitely at the top of the string, there’s no doubt. Pretty much, as long as something bad doesn’t happen on a cow, give or take he’s either going to be a [2]21 or a [2]22 in the reining and down the fence on an average day, and he can definitely do better than that.”

SJR Smooth Lil Oak had some exciting opportunities before him as of February of 2022. Lee Deacon had chosen the 2016 gelding to be his mount for the American Performance Horseman, and Noyce also planned to go back to The Run For A Million qualifier. He said his long-term goal was to compete in the World’s Greatest Horseman with the gelding.

“A big thank you to the owner,” he said. “We appreciate what she’s done for us. Her support and belief in that horse has allowed him to go win.”

RCHN: What was your most memorable NRCHA show moment in 2022?

Kyle Noyce: The No. 1, best moment was when we cracked out of the gate and made the first stop during the Cow Horse Challenge at The Run For A Million.

RCHN: What was the biggest challenge you faced during the show season?

KN: He’s so easy—the biggest challenge is making sure I keep myself in check and not get greedy and want to go show him too much, to take care of him because he does show up every time. Just preserve him, keep him sound and not overdo it. We’ve been really good about it—we work hard at only going to certain shows and being selective and making sure we take him places that fit him best.

RCHN: What is your horse’s most special physical talent?

KN: His best physical ability would probably be neck and neck between if he can turn around better than he can stop or stop better than he can turnaround. He’s definitely one of the biggest stopping and turning around horses in the NRCHA right now, I would say.

$1,500

$500

Considerations for approved mares

LTE: $80,000+ (Still Showing) METALLIC

x SPOTS HOT SHOT ( Spots Hot)

TO: NCHA Super Stakes, NRCHA Stakes, & Breeders Invitational

Red Hot Metal has two money earners in his first (2019) foal crop with $10,000 in earnings so far! See his profile in AQHA QStallions for current updates.

NON PRO TWO REIN

Randi McCook & Son Of A Sweet Shine

RCHN: What was your most memorable NRCHA show moment in 2022?

Randi McCook: It would be the World Show prelims. He really felt like he was there the whole time, which was the first time in his whole life that he felt like he was there every step of the way. He did everything he was supposed to do. When we had to show the next day in the Finals, at that point I didn’t care. I had already won. He was really good in the Finals as well, and it was the first time in our whole year that he put two backto-back runs together without a major bobble or having a wreck. That totally capped off our 2022 season.

RCHN: What was the biggest challenge you faced during the show season?

Randi McCook never thought she and Son Of A Sweet Shine (KR Sweet Shine x Shining Echo Of TC x Shiney Men Can Jump) would be in the running for a year-end title, much less win one together. The 2015 gelding had some quirks that made him difficult to show, and he was slated to compete with Clint Swales in the Open Two Rein. But when McCook’s other horse developed an abscess the week before the first show of the season, Swales told her to take “Shiner” instead.

McCook kept showing the gelding through the rest of the year, working through his challenges along the way. It was a long road, but when the end of the year rolled around, all the hard work was worth it.

“We were not even bringing him to the World Show this year,” McCook said of Shiner. “We said it was too far and too much cost to bring him for as inconsistent as he had been. But when our season was over, I had moved into first, and Clint said ‘Well, I guess we'll take him to Texas because you may never get that chance to try again.’

“It's crazy,” she added. “We never planned on it. We never even thought it would be remotely possible, yet here he is.”

RM: He is very sensitive, and you can’t tell him to do anything. He’s extremely quirky. It took a long time to talk him into doing it. He’d run up the wall, or he’d have a meltdown in the show pen. Clint always told me, ‘Don’t ever give him trouble, just send him back to the cow, no matter what.’ That was hard, especially for a Non Pro. It took a lot mentally for me to let that go.

RCHN: What is your horse’s most special physical talent?

RM: He is extremely athletic. None of it is hard for him, so that makes it all very easy. He can run fast and run slow, and now that he’s slowing his mind down, he’s quite cowy. He’s just cowy enough that you can help him where he needs help. But I think it’s his athleticism that makes him really good in the cow horse.

NON PRO BOXING

Lucinda David & Rubys Reypeat

If Rubys Reypeat (Reys Dual Badger x Ruby Tuesday DNA x Peppy San Badger) is any indication, 13-yearold Lucinda David is on her way to doing great things in the cow horse. He is the first horse she has brought from the ground up, she said, from buying him right before he turned 5, derbying him through that year and then putting him in the bridle when he was 6 years old.

All her hard work paid off in 2022 when David navigated the 2016 gelding to the Non Pro Boxing National title.

“It was a bunch of firsts with him,” she said. “This year was really the first time I had competitively shown in the boxing, and the Non Pro especially. It was really special to do it with him since I had come so far with him.”

Lucinda plans to add more firsts to her and Rubys Reypeat’s record together by learning to go down the fence on him.

“I know he’s going to take care of me, no matter what,” she said. “We’re going to learn together and maybe by the end of the year, we could be going down the fence some. It’s all going to kind of be up in the air, but that is the thing I look forward to.”

RCHN: What was your most memorable NRCHA show moment in 2022?

Lucinda David: The Non Pro Boxing at the Western Derby was the highest scoring run I’ve ever had on him. It was really special because it just showed me that we were able to score up there, we were able to be competitive in that big field of really nice horses and riders. It was just like, I have something here. I have a horse that can win. It just set that fire off, like let’s go do this, let’s go win.

RCHN: What was the biggest challenge you faced during the show season?

LD: It was mainly just not letting the bad runs crush my confidence. Just learning to show through it, learning you can always grow from your mistakes and to just keep going and keep trying, keep getting better.

RCHN: What is your horse’s most special physical talent?

LD: I love his personality—he is just such a goofball. He is so easygoing, and he’s so easy to be with. He’s honest, he’s pure in the show pen, and he always tries his best for me and takes care of me.

INTERMEDIATE NON PRO BOXING, YOUTH BOXING

Talen Barry & Smart Rem N Be, owned by Jared Barry

Talen Barry started off the year with the goal of winning the Intermediate Non Pro Boxing and Youth Boxing National titles with Smart Rem N Be (Very Smart Remedy x Be Bob To Reno x Bob Acre Doc). She figured if she and the 17-yearold gelding could add a couple more big accomplishments to their accolades, she’d go ahead and retire him. Smart Rem N Be did his part and more, and the duo managed to successfully secure both year-end titles.

“It means a lot because my horse has gotten so old,” Barry said. “He’s taught me everything I know about cow horse, and it’s just so cool to win all those things on him this year.”

Though the idea of retiring him was bittersweet after their achievements, 15-yearold Barry has some younger horses coming up, along with a bridle horse she hopes can live up to the standards Smart Rem N Be has set with her. She also plans to start going down the fence soon.

Barry thanked her dad, Jared, who has been instrumental in getting horses for her to ride. She also mentioned Don Murphy, who helps her with her horses.

RCHN: What was your most memorable NRCHA show moment in 2022?

Talen Barry: I actually won the Intermediate Non Pro Boxing at the NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity®. That was my first Snaffle Bit with him. I went the year before and just took him around and practiced, but I never showed him.

RCHN: What was the biggest challenge you faced during the show season?

TB: Just having confidence in him and myself and letting him do his job.

RCHN: What is your horse’s most special physical talent?

TB: He loves the cow work. He’s not very strong in the reining, but when it comes to the cow, he’ll get the job done.

LIMITED NON PRO BOXING

Treylyn Hancock & Slyd My Way

RCHN: What was your most memorable NRCHA show moment in 2022?

Treylyn Hancock: I think it probably was winning the Limited Non Pro Boxing at the Snaffle Bit Futurity®. It was my first major event that I entered and did well in. That was really neat because it showed my horse off on a bigger scale, and it really showed that he can go out there and compete with some of the top level people.

RCHN: What was the biggest challenge you faced during the show season?

Last year was the first year Treylyn Hancock started entering Limited Non Pro Boxing classes, but she took the division by storm. She and Slyd My Way (Zezes Pepto Cat x Pastels Play Girl x Pastels Smart Lena), a 2016 gelding, only entered a handful of shows, but they nabbed the Limited Non Pro Boxing National and World titles for their efforts.

“It feels really awesome,” Hancock said. “I didn’t think I’d be able to accomplish that this quickly, with it being my first year in the Non Pro events.”

After getting a taste of it at the Fort Worth Stock Show in Fort Worth, Texas, Hancock hopes to start going down the fence this year. She said she likely won’t focus on running for a National title in 2023, but she does want to try to win a golden globe in the working cow horse at the American Quarter Horse Association World Championship Show and qualify for the Kalpowar Quarter Horses Celebration of Champions in the Youth Cow Horse.

“I feel like those would both be really neat to do this year, having just moved up to starting to go down the fence,” she said, thanking her horse for being there for her. “He’s really gotten me to go to more competitive levels of it.”

TH: The biggest challenge was just making sure I stayed out of his way so he could do his job. Also, school—just making sure I kept up with all my grades while also being able to go out and show. I had to make sure I had time to work on my horses, but also had time to work on my school and be able to stay in the top 10 percent of my class.

RCHN: What is your horse’s most special physical talent?

TH: A really neat thing with him is his ability to work the cow. He’s a pretty big horse, and like my friend said, it’s so neat to watch him because he looks like he’s not going fast. But in an instant, he’ll be over there and be with the cow stopping it because he’s got such a long stride. He can get over there so quickly. When I get him focused just right, he can really make some cool moves on a cow. That and I like his stops, too. I’d be a little concerned if his name was “Slyd My Way” and he couldn’t stop.

BOX DRIVE

Delinda Jokela & Ice Wynnd Fire

Shortly after Delinda Jokela purchased Ice Wynnd Fire (Peptoboonsmal x Fancy Frostina x Smart Little Lena) in 2018, the 2010 gelding suffered a severe injury causing him to take 18 months off from riding. Jokela didn’t know if he’d ever return to showing again. But, after some rehab, the gelding was back to 100 percent, and she said it was an incredible feeling riding him to win the Box Drive National title—especially considering she didn’t buy him to do cow horse in the first place.

“When I bought him, I had never been on a flag or done a sliding stop,” Jokela said. “After we bought him, one of my girlfriends said, ‘Let’s go play with this new toy,’ basically. I got addicted the first time and was just all in after that.

“I knew nothing about his bloodlines; I didn’t even look at his papers when I bought him, so it was just a surprise to me that he could actually do herd work,” she added.

Jokela credited her trainer, Dean McCann, for pushing her to go for the National title.

“He saw the potential in us, even though I had no idea that we could do it,” she said. “Dean definitely was motivating me to keep showing and to try to get this title.”

RCHN: What was your most memorable NRCHA show moment in 2022?

Delinda Jokela: I went to my first premier show and to [the Teton Ridge Stallion Stakes in] Las Vegas, Nevada. I had no idea how exciting those could be. We got second place in the Box Drive class. I was leading the class all the way until like the second-to-last person, and then she beat me out, but it was such a thrill. I experienced what a good go could be in a really hard competition and in such a beautiful and fun environment. I was even more hooked after that.

RCHN: What was the biggest challenge you faced during the show season?

DJ: I would say my biggest challenge was my show pen anxiety. I would go into the pen and get so nervous about how we were going to do, and so I probably battled that the most.

RCHN: What is your horse’s most special physical talent?

DJ: My horse is so consistent. He doesn’t have any bad habits or show pen tricks. He just gets in there and puts his head down and does the best he can.

IS

HTIME

Phillip Ralls has won four reserve buckles, but at the 2023 World’s Greatest Horseman, he finally took home the coveted Champion title aboard Call Me Mitch.

BY KATE BRADLEY BYARS

There are years when the World’s Greatest Horseman event is electric, some years when it is shocking, but on February 18, the event had a heartbeat and it synced up with Phillip Ralls and the roan stallion Call Me Mitch. The pieces came together for Ralls—solid herd work, rein work and steer stopping runs that put him in striking distance of claiming the title that has eluded him four times, when he left the pen with the reserve buckle. However, his fence work draw of 14, of 16 riders, allowed Ralls the chance to make an unbeatable run.

“He told me this morning that ‘nobody is going to take this from me,’ and they didn’t,” said Ralls’ wife, Teresa. “This is a dream for our family!”

In 2002, Ralls hand-selected a 2011 roan Metallic Cat colt out of Miss Hickory Hill (by Docs Hickory) for client Estelle Roitblat to have as a National Reined Cow Horse Association Snaffle Bit Futurity® prospect. The Paso Robles, California, horseman guided “Mitch,” bred by James Eakin, through a career that saw the pair claim top titles like the National Stock Horse Association World’s Richest Horse, the NRCHA Derby Two-Rein Spectacular Champion, the Magnificent 7 Champion, several Open Bridle championships, third at The Run For A Million Cow Horse Challenge and two Reserve Champion finishes in the World’s Greatest Horseman. It’s quite a résumé, but it was not complete.

A 224.5 down the fence helped Phillip Ralls and Call Me Mitch soar to the World’s Greatest Horseman Champion title.

PRIMO MORALES

TOP 10 WORLD’S GREATEST HORSEMAN

(Rider/ Horse/Pedigree/Owner/Composite Score/Money)

1. Phillip Ralls; Call Me Mitch; 11S (Metallic Cat x Miss Hickory Hill x Docs Hickory); Estelle Roitblat Living Trust; 902; $150,000.

2. Chris Dawson; Reyzinette; 14S (Dual Rey x Sheza Shinette x Shining Spark); Holy Cow Performance Horses TX LLC; 893.5; $75,000.

3(TIE). Tyler Merrill; Bet Hesa Boon; 14S (Bet Hesa Cat x Flo N Blu Boon x Pretty Boy Boon); Beverly Servi; 889; $35,000.

3(Tie). Todd Bergen; Smartly Starstruck; 12S (Very Smart Remedy x Katie Starlight x Grays Starlight); McSpyder Ranch; 889; $35,000.

5. Boyd Rice; Quahadi; 13S (Bet Hesa Cat x Ginnin Attraction x Tanquery Gin); Burnett Ranches LLC; 880.5; $16,000.

6. Brady Weaver; SJR Reygun; 12M (Dual Rey x Playguns King Badger x Playgun); Gary Ewell; 876.5; $14,000.

7. Nick Dowers; Time For The Diamond; 10S (One Time Pepto x Diamonds With Style x Playin Stylish); Rod Dowers; 875.5; $12,000.

8. Clayton Edsall; Bet He Sparks; 14S (Bet Hesa Cat x Sparking Train x Shining Spark); K&L Phillips, LLC; 873; $10,000.

9. Corey Cushing; Hesa Dual Bet; 16S (Bet Hesa Cat x RJJ Miss Viagra Pep x Dual Pep); Teton Ridge; 872.5; $8,500.

10. Jake Telford; Northern Metallic; 15S (Metallic Cat x Little Cow Hound x Peppy Uh Huh); Marti Katerberg; 872; $8,000.

He is a dream horse, according to Ralls, and the 2023 Western Bloodstock / High Brow Cat / Hashtags World’s Greatest Horseman, held at the Kalpowar Quarter Horses Celebration of Champions saw the late Roitblat’s dream come true.

“It started with Estelle Roitblat wanting to buy him and this has been a dream of Estelle and Harry, and it’s been hard to get here, but this is a dream come true, for sure,” Ralls said. “More than anything for me, I felt like if I could put him in a good place and all the pieces came together. He is a horse that deserves this title. But there are a lot of great horses here; everybody here is amazing. I love this event and being able to come here, but [winning] this is pretty magical.”

Two months prior to the event, Mitch was in Scottsdale, Arizona, at the breeding farm to ship to clients in Australia. With only two months to prepare the stallion, Ralls said that he was surprised that Mitch felt “stronger, faster and more explosive” than before.

“From the time we started [preparing] this year, it just felt right,” Ralls said. “My whole crew supporting us is amazing and helped us so much; it was absolutely a team effort. I told Teresa, no matter what happens we live by the sword and die by the sword, and this horse owes me nothing. Competition is fierce. I know that nobody is going to let me have [the win], so you have to come guns a-blazing every time and show to the best of your ability.”

In the preliminaries, the pair tied for third place in the herd work with a 222.5, bringing them into the Finals where the herd work kicked off on Saturday in the John Justin Arena. This time, Ralls marked a 224 to earn the high score, followed by Chris Dawson on Holy Cow Performance Horses’ Reyzinette (Dual Rey x Sheza Shinette x Shining Spark) with a 221. The pair followed that high to the steer stopping to mark a 226, and then a 224.5 in the rein work.

MEET THE SPONSORS

Thunderous applause met Doug Williamson when the legendary horseman made a special appearance during the opening ceremonies.

Western Bloodstock LTD. is a horse auction company based in Weatherford, Texas, that is run by Jeremy Barwick. 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® held every fall 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 based in Weather-ford, 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.

BDB Breeders added their support to the World’s Greatest Horseman purse following the 2022 event. Darren Blanton and Beechfork Ranch partnered to own High Brow Cat and NRR Cat King Cole, and together form BDB Breeders.

High Brow Cat, a 1998 stallion by High Brow Hickory, continues to be a top sire in the cutting and reined cow horse industries, with offspring earning more than $90 million in the NCHA. NRR Cat King Cole, a 2007 stallion by High Brow Cat, is an NCHA World Champion and Hall of Fame stallion that has sired offspring earning more than $700,000. Both stallions stand at Weatherford Equine.

PRIMO MORALES

Heading into fence work, Ralls needed to mark a 219 to clinch the win. Instead of playing it safe, he and Mitch left it in the Will Rogers Coliseum’s dirt, marking a 227.5 amid a crowd that was on its feet, cheering—and shedding tears—when the realization that the longtime bridesmaid’s time to take the win had come.

“I was just trying to stay calm, not come with too much adrenaline even though it is the moment I had dreamt about my whole life,” he said. “This is, in my mind, the biggest event there is and I was trying to stay focused. I knew what I needed to do but I also know there is no way to plan a score in the fence work. You have to make sure you’re in the moment, present and putting your horse in the best situation as possible.

“When I got that first turn, I felt good about it. That second turn, the cow popped off at an angle I wanted, and I knew I had to keep horse showing but I knew I had a chance. When I circled that first way and the cow set up and I could switch where I wanted to, I knew we had it. I’ve dreamt about that my whole life.”

Ralls added a World’s Greatest title to the family’s growing pile. His father, Ron Ralls, is a two-time World’s Greatest Horseman Champion and Ron’s wife, Patty Ralls, captured the Art of the Cowgirl World’s Greatest Horsewoman title in 2020. This win was exciting for Ron to watch his son capture.

“I am so proud of him, he’s earned this. There is no question they won, no one gave him this title. They won it,” Ron said.

HERD WORK:

Boyd Rice & Quahadi – 225

The 2013 stallion Quahadi (Bet Hesa Cat x Ginnin Attraction x Tanquery Gin), bred and owned by Burnett Ranches LLC, earned $5,000 and a Gist belt buckle for the high score with Boyd Rice aboard. This was Rice's 18th World Greatest Horseman entry.

REIN WORK & STEER

STOPPING:

Tyler Merrill & Bet Hesa Boon

Aboard Beverly Servi’s 2014 stallion (Bet Hesa Cat x Flo N Blu Boon x Pretty Boy Boon), bred by Garth and Amanda Gardiner, Tyler Merrill took the $5,000 check and custom Gist belt buckle with a 225.5 the rein work. A 231.5 in the steer stopping prelims put Merrill and the blue roan on top to earn another $5,000 and a custom Gist belt buckle for Servi.

COW WORK:

Shawn Hays & Moonshineandtwoadvil – 227.5

Riding Angela Massey’s 2014 gelding (Metallic Cat x Little Short Stuff x Shorty Lena), Shawn Hays topped the field to earn $5,000 and a custom Gist belt buckle.

HIGH-SCORE COWGIRL:

Abbie Phillips & Peptos Stylin

Time

For the second year, Abbie Phillips took the Ladies Champion award for being the highest placing female rider in the preliminaries. She and 2015 stallion Peptos Stylin

Time (One Time Pepto x Stylin

Jewel x Docs Stylish Oak), bred by Hanging H Ranch LLC and owned by Abbie and Kelby Phillips, finished the preliminaries with an 875.5 composite, placing ninth and making the Finals.

Chris Dawson knew his fence run on Reyzinette as draw 4 of 16 would have to be big to put him on top, and the pair's 223 almost did it.

KATE BRADLEY BYARS

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Keep him protected

Along with the bragging rights and the weight lifted from his shoulders when he took that win, Ralls and owners Estelle Roitblat Living Trust took home the $150,000 check with a final composite of 902 (H:224/S:226/R:224.5/C:227), the highest composite score in the event's history. He also took a custom saddle made by Martin Saddlery, a CR Morrison bronze trophy, a Gist custom belt buckle, a pair of Rios of Mercedes boots, and much more home to Paso Robles.

Reserve Champion Chris Dawson rode to an 893.5 (H:221/ S:224.5/R:225/C:223), earning $75,000 aboard Reyzinette, a 2014 stallion owned and bred by Holy Cow Performance Horses. A competitor but also a fan of the sport, Dawson was cheering just as loudly for Ralls as those in the stands.

Reyzinette, started by Jake Telford, was in Ralls’ program before Dawson took the reins.

“I’ve never cheered that loud for anybody to beat me before! Phillip is so awesome and that is such a great horse,” Dawson said. “I marked a 223 [down the fence] and I told my wife that we were going to make him [work to win] it. If Phillip stubbed his toe, I would take the victory, but I couldn’t be any happier for Phillip.”

In addition to the final check, Dawson also rode to the high score in the rein work with a 225. Todd Bergen, aboard McSpyder Ranch’s stallion Smartly Starstruck, rode to the high score in the steer stopping finals with a 227. The score helped the pair finish tied for third place with Beverly Servi’s stallion Bet Hesa Boon shown by Tyler Merrill. Each earned $35,000. The total purse for the event was a massive $393,500.

THREE FOR THE SHOW

Having a horse in the World’s Greatest Horseman Final is exciting for the owner, breeder, trainer and rider. But to have three horses from one breeder in the 15, or 16 in 2023, horse field, is quite an accomplishment, and that is what it felt like for Garth and Amanda Gardiner.

“We counted up in the World Show and there were 16 horses [we bred] showing. We’ve gone through the Snaffle Bit Futurity with [many horses we’ve bred] shown, but to make it through the snaffle bit, the hackamore, the two-rein and into the bridle, then to have that horse come here in the World’s Greatest and be shown is humbling,” said Amanda Gardiner.

Three horses the couple bred topped the 78-horse field to be in contention for one of the most coveted prizes: Bet He Sparks owned by K&L Phillips and shown by Clayton Edsall, Bet Hesa Boon owned by Beverly Servi and shown by Tyler Merrill, and Time For The Diamond owned by Rod Dowers and shown by Nick Dowers.

Of those three, 2010 stallion Time For The Diamond (One Time Pepto x Diamonds With Style x Playin Stylish) was the oldest in the field. The sorrel stallion won the 2013 Snaffle Bit Futurity®, was shown in the Derby-aged events and in the two-rein, but until Dowers took him into the pen in the preliminary rounds, had not earned NRCHA money in the bridle. In fact, the horse had not been in a show pen for five years. Now, he has more than $12,000 to his career earnings.

“It’s exciting and humbling to know those owners and those trainers believed in these horses to get to this point, then to have three of them in the Finals,” Gardiner said. “It’s an incredible accomplishment and so exciting.”

Emotions ran high following Ralls’ fence run, where he “made their dream come true,” said wife, Teresa Ralls.

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STAR

HE'S A S

Tylie Norcutt made her debut at the World’s Greatest Youth Horseman and won the championship title with her experienced gelding, Soulas Hickory Star.

BY ABIGAIL BOATWRIGHT | PHOTOS BY PRIMO MORALES

Under bright lights and in front of an electric crowd, Tylie Norcutt and Soulas Hickory Star completed a near-textbook run and took home top honors at the 2023 World’s Greatest Youth Horseman, presented by MARS Equestrian™, at the Kalpowar Quarter Horses Celebration of Champions. Completing the competition with a 729 composite score, the 17-year-old from Fallon, Nevada, and her 2013 bay gelding, “Kenny” (Soula Jule Star x Turn Liz Loose x Doc’s Hickory), took home $5,060 in cash and prizes.

Tylie started riding Kenny last year. Bred by Ken and Ramona Wold, he was previously ridden by Tylie’s sister, Ali Norcutt, before she went to college. Although this was Tylie’s first time to compete at the World’s Greatest Youth Horseman, Ali and Kenny had competed in the fence-only Finals portion of the Youth event twice before, so the gelding was familiar with his job.

Tylie’s dad, cow horse trainer Darrel Norcutt, owns Kenny, and helped the pair prepare for the competition. Her goal was to move through the events as smoothly as possible.

“I was really just trying to make a good, solid, run and I wasn’t trying to be fancy or anything,” Tylie said. “I was just doing what I knew I could. I love going fast down the fence—it’s really exciting.”

Going into the steer stopping—the first phase of the four-event competition—Tylie was apprehensive, even though she’s an accomplished roper.

Tylie Norcutt is an experienced roper, but she had a case of nerves prior to the steer stopping. Aboard Soulas Hickory Star, she nevertheless tied for first place in the event with a 148 on the road to winning the World’s Greatest Youth Horseman Finals.

TOP 9 WORLD’S GREATEST YOUTH HORSEMAN, PRESENTED BY MARS EQUESTRIAN™

(Rider/ Horse/Pedigree/Owner/Composite Score/Money)

1. Tylie Norcutt; Soulas Hickory Star; 13G (Soula Jule Star x Turn Liz Loose x Doc’s Hickory); Darrel Northcutt; 729; $5,060.

2. Tatum Olson; Sweet Like That; 13G (Sweet Lil Pepto x Olenas Jazzy Tachita x CD Olena); Jamie or Mica Olson; 717.5; $3,960.

3. William Jones; Chex Out Tuff; 15G (Woody Be Tuff x Chex Out My Hiney x High Brow Cat); Lane Jones; 712.5; $3,300.

4. Quincy Probst; TRR Lucky Playgun; 09G (Pepcid x TRR MS Lucky Gun x Playgun); Redgie Probst; 709.5; $2,420.

5. Henry Birdwell; Billies Blaze; 15G (High Brow Cat x Billies Smart Lena x Smart Little Lena Pitchfork Cattle Operations LLC; 694.5; $1,950.

6. Collin Kaplan; Moonstruck One Time; 13G (One Time Pepto x Moonstruck Cat x High Brow Cat Allan Kaplan; 688.5; $1,760.

7. Tyree Swales; Stylish Image; 16M (Stylish Rey Gay x PGS Image x Rated PG); John Swales; 687.5; $1,540.

8. Broc Schwartskopf; Raise A Smart Cat; 12G (WR This Cats Smart x Raise The Best x MR Sun O Lena); Wagonhound Land & Livestock LLC; 579.5; $1,100.

9. Sierra Telford; Survivors Kiss; 10G (CD Survivor x Kiss My Shiny Lips x Shining Spark); Jake A Telford; 568.5; $880.

“I was really nervous for the steer stopping, which is weird because it’s probably one of my better events, and roping is the event I’ve been doing for the longest,” Tylie said. “After that, I calmed down a lot. I was just going to show my horse.”

Kenny and Tylie’s 148 in the steer stopping tied for first place with Henry Birdwell and Billies Blaze. Next, the pair scored a 143 in the rein work, followed by a 145.5 down the fence. The Youth competitors wrapped up the preliminary competition with the herd work, where the pair scored a 144.5 and placed sixth.

“The rein work was pretty good—not as good as I was hoping,” Tylie said. “We had a couple of mistakes, but he still got through it really well. Cow work was really good. I was really happy with it.”

Out of 35 riders, only nine advanced to the fence-only Finals, including Tylie, who was leading with a composite score of 581. The fence Final was held on Saturday, February 18, during the sold-

out

Western Bloodstock

/ High Brow

Cat / Hashtags World’s Greatest Horseman in the Will Rogers Coliseum. It was a big stage for the Youth competitors.

In the final cow work, Tylie and Kenny had a stellar performance, scoring a 148 to win the event and clinch the title with a composite score of 729. When the whistle blew at the end of her cow work, Tylie was all smiles.

“I am just really excited—I was not expecting this!” Tylie said.

The bay gelding has incredible work ethic, Darrel Norcutt said. He gives his all every time she rides him, and never tries to cheat.

“He just really tries really hard,” Tylie said. “Everything he does is just to help you, and he can be a little sensitive sometimes, just because he’s trying to help you so much and wants to do whatever you’re trying to tell him to do.”

RESERVE CHAMPION

Tatum Olson and Sweet Like That secured the reserve title in the World’s Greatest Youth Horseman event, presented by MARS Equestrian™, with a composite score of 717.5, winning $3,960.

"EVERYTHING HE DOES IS JUST TO HELP YOU, AND HE CAN BE A LITTLE SENSITIVE SOMETIMES, JUST BECAUSE HE’S TRYING TO HELP YOU SO MUCH AND WANTS TO DO WHATEVER YOU’RE TRYING TO TELL HIM TO DO.”

— Tylie Norcutt

MEET MARS EQUESTRIAN

MARS Equestrian™ is dedicated to equine sports and building a legacy of horsemen. That’s why MARS, sponsored by Mars, Incorporated, is the presenting sponsor of the World’s Greatest Youth Horseman. Nine competitors advanced to the cow work finals after competing in events throughout the week.

MARS Equestrian has sponsored worldclass competitions across all equestrian disciplines, as well as shown dedication to sustainability, with the goal of improving the lives of horses, pets and the people who love them. Learn more about the event’s sponsor at marsequestrian.com, on Instagram @marsequestrian, and on Facebook, search “MARS.”

ROBBIE SCHROEDER MEMORIAL SADDLE RECIPIENT

Tylie Norcutt, riding Soulas Hickory Star, and Henry Birdwell, aboard Billies Blaze (High Brow Cat x Billies Smart Lena x Smart Little Lena), tied for the high score in the World’s Greatest Youth Horseman steer stopping event with a 148. They both were awarded the Robbie Schroeder Memorial Saddle, honoring the late horseman Robbie Schroeder, who passed away in December of 2020. The Memorial generously donated an additional custom Jeff Smith saddle so that both winners could receive the saddle in Schroeder’s memory.

ROY EDSALL AWARD RECIPIENT

The Roy Edsall Award is bestowed on a World’s Greatest Youth Horseman, presented by MARS Equestrian™, competitor who demonstrates admirable sportsmanship, horsemanship and respect for his or her equine partner. In 2023, Dee Weaver, riding TJ Dual Mate (TR Dual Rey x Animate x Smart Mate), was given the $5,000 scholarship, a bridle and splint boots from Classic Equine, a custom bit from Randy Paul, a pair of romal reins made by Jan Boogaerts, and more.

ORLD CHAMPION WCOMPETITORS

Competitors battled it out in Fort Worth to go home with the World title during the 2023 Kalpowar Quarter Horses Celebration of Champions.

When riders arrived at the 2023 Kalpowar Quarter Horses Celebration of Champions, they then had to compete in some of the largest preliminary classes ever held in their respective events. First, they had to qualify for the National Reined Cow Horse Association World Championship Show, then each World Champion rode not once but twice to top other competitors and take home the title. Congratulations to each champion!

OPEN BRIDLE

CHAMPION

Rocking BS Ranch’s Annies Smart Cat (WR This Cats Smart x Shiney Nu Annie x Shining Spark), a 2016 stallion bred by Wagonhound Land & Livestock LLC, and Lance Johnston captured the championship with a 440 (R:215.5/C:224.5), earning $8,740.

RESERVE CHAMPION

Perfect Light Time (CD Lights x BBR Perfect Timin x A Chic In Time), bred by Piras Cows & Horses USA, and Trent Pederson rode to multiple titles. For the Open Bridle, the pair earned owner Tracy Leanne Adams $6,992.

COMPILED BY KATE BRADLEY BYARS | PHOTOS BY PRIMO MORALES

INTERMEDIATE OPEN BRIDLE

1ST PLACE

Trent Pederson piloted Renee Berrey’s 2016 gelding CR Dees Be Tuff (Woody Be Tuff x CR Dees Boon Meow x Peptoboonsmal), bred by Center Ranch, to the win with a 293 (R:145/C:148), earning $2,000.

2ND PLACE

Aboard Perfect Light Time (CD Lights x BBR

Perfect Timin x A Chic In Time), bred by Piras Cows & Horses USA, Trent Pederson rode to another title, earning owner Tracy Leanne Adams an additional $1,600.

LIMITED OPEN BRIDLE

CHAMPION

For the second year, Buddy Thomas’ 2015 mare, Kit Kat Jerrie (Kit Kat Sugar x Jerries

Dual Legacy x Smart Little Jerrie), bred by Milton and Bridey Greeson, marked a 440.5 (R:219/C:221.5) with his wife, Kelsey Thomas, to secure the Limited Open Bridle title, earning $4,076.

RESERVE CHAMPION

Barry Spinweber Jr. rode 2016 gelding Time To Honkeytonk (One Time Pepto x Honkeytonk Diva x Haidas Little Pep), bred by Round Mountain Ranch LLC and owned by Rein Maker Ranch, to reserve and $3,260.80.

NON PRO BRIDLE, YOUTH COW HORSE

CHAMPION

Capturing another title, Landri Lisac rode Cat Walks Into A Bar (WR This Cats Smart x Sue C Shiner x Shining Spark), bred by Garth and Amanda Gardiner, to the win with a 438.5, earning $4,719.60 for the Non Pro Bridle.

In the Youth Cow Horse, Landri and Lookslikelucktome rode to a 217 in the rein work and a 221 down the fence, pocketing $1,1,40 and the title.

NO PRO BRIDLE RESERVE CHAMPION

This time, Lannie-Jo Lisac, riding Lookslikelucktome (Smart Boons x Dual Lookin Pep x Dual Pep), secured the Reserve title in the Non Pro Bridle, earning owners Timothy and Katherine Miller $3,693.

YOUTH COW HORSE

RESERVE CHAMPION

Cutter Mclaughlin and 2017 gelding SCR King Of The Road (Sannman x SCR Crackin Light x Boonlight Dancer), owned by Jay or Wendy McLaughlin and bred by Singleton Ranches, rode to another reserve title and an additional $3,513.60.

INTERMEDIATE NON PRO BRIDLE

CHAMPION

Riding her 2012 gelding Electra Tuff (Woody Be Tuff x Electras Boots x Doc O Boots), Amy Bailey earned a 440 composite (R:219.5/C:220.5) to top the class and earn $3,518.75. She co-owns the WT Waggoner Estate-bred horse with her husband, Paul Bailey.

RESERVE CHAMPION

Katy Thomison rode her 2014 gelding Betcha Like That (Bet Hesa Cat x Girl Like That x Playgun) to reserve and earned $2,815.

LIMITED NON PRO BRIDLE

CHAMPION

Landri Lisac rode to the World and Reserve World titles in the Limited Non Pro Bridle. Aboard 2013 mare LooksLikeLuckToMe (Smart Boons x Dual Lookin Pep x Dual Pep), bred by Kevin and Sydney Knight and owned by her grandparents, Timothy and Katherine Miller, she earned the win with a 436.5 (R:214.5/C:222) and $3,720.

LIMITED NON PRO BRIDLE RESERVE CHAMPION

Riding her 2013 gelding Cat Walks Into A Bar (WR This Cats Smart x Sue C Shiner x Shining Spark), bred by Garth and Amanda Gardiner, Landri Lisac claimed reserve and earned $2,976.

OPEN HACKAMORE

CHAMPION

The 2017 stallion Lil Starlight Cat (High Brow Cat x Lil Foxie Starlight x Grays Starlight), shown by Lance Johnston for Kenneth and Karen Haugland, earned $12,660 and the win with a 439 (R:219/C:220).

RESERVE CHAMPION

Tying for reserve with a 437 composite were Shawn Hays aboard Dirtyy Little Secret (Woody Be Tuff x Catmas x That Sly Cat), bred by Robert Thompson and owned by Walter Greeman and Tammy Hays, and Kyle Trahern riding his 2017 gelding A Starlights Magnum (Magnum With A Dream x Shiney Starlight x Grays Starlight), bred by Terry Van Martin. Both earned $8,703.75.

INTERMEDIATE OPEN HACKAMORE

1ST PLACE

Kyle Trahern piloted his 2017 gelding A Starlights Magnum (Magnum With A Dream x Shiney Starlight x Grays Starlight), bred by Terry Van Martin, to a 297 (R:148.5/C:148.5) to earn the win and $2,080.

2ND PLACE

Ryan Gallentine rode Steven Mattson’s 2017 stallion One Ata Time (One Time Pepto x Hip Hip Sue Rey x Dual Rey), bred by Flag Ranch LLC, to reserve and earned $1,664.

LIMITED OPEN HACKAMORE

CHAMPION

TR Guns And Roses (One Time Pepto x Miss Silver Gun x Colonels Smoking Gun), a 2017 mare bred by Tamarack Ranch LLC and owned by Karla Steckel, and trainer Garrett Cooper took the title with a 430, earning $4,204.40.

RESERVE CHAMPION

Hes Pretty Tuff (Woody Be Tuff x CR Shes Uh Secret x Peptoboonsmal), a 2018 stallion bred by Center Ranch, and trainer John Snyder rode to reserve, earning owner Ben Choate $3,290.40.

NON PRO HACKAMORE

CHAMPION

Debbie Crafton piloted her 2017 gelding Foundloveathooters (Smooth As A Cat x Rey Lena Rey x Dual Rey), bred by Connie DownCicoria, to the win with a 438.5 (R:219/C:219.5) and earned $4,489.60.

RESERVE CHAMPION

Cutter McLaughlin and 2017 gelding SCR King Of The Road (Sannman x SCR Crackin Light x Boonlight Dancer), owned by Jay or Wendy McLaughlin and bred by Singleton Ranches, rode to reserve and earned $3,513.60.

OPEN TWO REIN

CHAMPION

Linda Mars’ 2016 stallion Hazardouz Material (Metallic Cat x Scooters Daisy Dukes x Dual Smart Rey), bred by Taylor Carbo, took the win with a 442 (R:221/C:221) and earned $7,405 with trainer Erin Taormino in the saddle.

RESERVE CHAMPION

Aboard Ron Cochran’s 2016 stallion

Hickoryhollyisallena (Hickory Holly Time x Isabellena x Quejanaisalena), bred by Garth and Amanda Gardiner, Trent Pederson marked a 437.5 and earned $5,924.

NON PRO TWO REIN

CHAMPION

William Akin and 2016 gelding SJR Starlit Rey (Dual Rey x A Starlit Diamond x CD Lights), bred San Juan Ranch, rode to the win with a 435 composite to earn $3,887.

RESERVE CHAMPION

Randi McCook rode her 2015 gelding Son Of A Sweet Shine (KR Sweet Shine x Shining Echo Of TC x Shiney Men Can Jump), bred by Robin-Rae Russo, to reserve and earned $3,042.

NON PRO BOXING

CHAMPION

Lindsay Foreman rode Randy Paul’s 2015 gelding Peppys On Time (One Time Pepto x Quixote Lena Peppy x ), bred by Equis Equine LLC, to the win with a 436 (R:217.5/C:218.5) and earned $5,725.

RESERVE CHAMPION

Taking home another title, Jenna Stolting and Kit Kat Royal (Kit Kat Sugar x Little Royal Blue x Smart Little Lena), bred by Ronald Knutson, rode to reserve and $4,293.75.

INTERMEDIATE NON PRO BOXING

CHAMPION

Krystal Meade and her 2006 gelding Ferns Whiz (Whizmatic x Fernolena x Shawn O Lena), bred by David or Lorene Zimmerman, rode to the win with a 436 (R:215.5/C:220.5)and earned $4,010 with the title.

RESERVE CHAMPION

Karla Steckle rode her 2017 mare TR Guns and Roses (One Time Pepto x Miss Silver Gun x Colonels Smoking Gun), bred by Tamarack Ranch LLC, to reserve and $3,007.50.

LIMITED NON PRO BOXING

CHAMPION

With a 444.5 (R:220/C:224.5), Treylyn Hancock and her 2016 gelding Slyd My Way (Zezes Pepto Cat x Pastels Play Girl x Pastels Smart Lena), bred by Tom or Lorna Neel, rode to the win and $3,021.

RESERVE CHAMPION

Jenna Stolting and her 2016 mare Kit Kat Royal (Kit Kat Sugar x Little Royal Blue x Smart Little Lena), bred by Ronald Knutson, earned reserve and $2,226.

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YOUTH BOXING

CHAMPION

Pinkerton Bridges rode her 2016 gelding Shiney Little Rey (Dual Red x Shiney Little Queen x Smart And Shiney), bred by G2 Performance Horses, to the win and earned $1,634.

RESERVE CHAMPION

Riding Loaded With Light (Hes A Loaded Gun x Janes Starlight x ), a 2014 gelding owned by Lance Scheffel and bred by Mary Jansma, Isabelle Scheffel took home $1,290 and the reserve title.

BOX-DRIVE

CHAMPION

Erin Keys rode her 2015 gelding Cats Look Sinful (WR This Cats Smart x A Little Sinful x Docs Stylish Oak), bred by Wagonhound Land & Livestock LLC, to the win with a 436.5 (R:215.5/C:221) and earned $1,530.

RESERVE CHAMPION

Aboard her 2016 mare Metallic Slide (Metallic Cat x Sliden Wright By x Smart Little Lena), bred by Beechfork Ranch, Kendra Suhling took reserve and earned $1,224.

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AWIN TO LOVE

The day after Valentine’s Day, Metallic Casanova charmed Fort Worth, Texas, carrying Clay Volmer to the Tres Osos Cow Horse Derby Open Championship.

BY KRISTIN PITZER | PHOTOS BY PRIMO MORALES

2023 OPEN TOP 10

Fort Worth, Texas – February 10-20, 2023 (Horse/Rider/Pedigree/Owner/Score/Money)

1. Metallic Casanova; Clay Volmer; 18S (Metallic Cat x Dark And Sultry x Spots Hot); Pitzer Ranch/ Dack Cattle LLC; 663 (H:219.5/R:220/C:223.5); $35,000.

2. Stylin Metal; Justin Wright; 18S (Metallic Cat x Stylin Playgirl x Docs Stylish Oak); Jim & Linda Schrack; 662.5 (H:221/R:221.5/C:220); $26,000.

From the moment Clay Volmer got Metallic Casanova into his program, he knew the roan stallion was special. Even as a 2-year-old, the horse displayed a lot of try and athleticism, leading Volmer to believe he could be one of his biggest contenders in the future.

The pair went on to make the Finals at the 2021 National Reined Cow Horse Association Snaffle Bit Futurity®, where they finished sixth, along with other aged event Finals. However, a first place finish eluded them throughout 2022. Finally, during the 2023 Tres Osos Cow Horse Derby Open fence work at the NRCHA Kalpowar Quarter Horses Celebration of Champions, the duo secured their first big win when they scored a composite 663 and won the Open title, along with $35,000.

“I’ve always loved this horse,” Volmer said. “I feel like he’s always been the bridesmaid a little bit, and this is the first time he got to be the bride, so that was pretty exciting.”

Volmer and Metallic Casanova (Metallic Cat x Dark And Sultry x Spots Hot) kicked off the competition by marking a 219.5 in the herd work, despite a late draw. That score put them in a good position going into the rein work, where they marked a 220. The duo’s fence work, where they scored a 223.5, elevated them to the top of the leaderboard.

3. Itchin Ta Shine; Sarah Dawson; 19S (Call Me Mitch x Sheza Shinette x Shining Spark); Holy Cow Performance Horses TX LLC; 662 (H:217/ R:217.5/C:227.5); $21,500.

4. Dollar Signs; Brandon Buttars; 19M (Hickory Holly Time x Wright About Now x Lenas Wright On); Sophia Flinders Buttars; 661 (H:221/ R:221/C:219); $18,500.

5 (TIE). Cash Reyzen Boon; Corey Cushing; 18G (Reyzin The Cash x Bela Sera x One Time Pepto); Teton Ridge; 658.5 (H:217/R:218/C:223.5); $12,500.

5 (TIE). Von Cali; Clayton Edsall;18G (Stevie Rey Von x Hotel Cali x Smart Aristocrat); K & L Phillips LLC; 658.5 (H:221/R:219/C:218.5); $12,500.

7. LookAtLittleSister; Erin Taormino; 18M (Stevie Rey Von x Smart Playing Chic x Smart Chic Olena); Tres Osos Performance Horses; 656.5 (H:214.5/ R:221/C:221); $10,000.

8 (TIE). Reysin Sum Hash; Corey Cushing; 19G (Hashtags x Reynanza x Dual Rey); Eric & Wendy Dunn; 656 (H:216/R:219/C:221); $6,333.33.

8 (TIE). Gimmee Three Steps; Shawn Hays; 18G (Metallic Cat x Ara Mae Rey x Dual Rey); Walter or Jocelyn Greeman; 656 (H:219/R:217/C:220); $6,333.33.

8 (TIE). WR Iceman; Corey Cushing; 18S (WR This Cats Smart x Lean Irish Playgirl x Paddys Irish Whiskey); Eric & Wendy Dunn; 656 (H:219/ R:217/C:220); $6,333.33.

Metallic Casanova gained his first major win at the Tres Osos Cow Horse Derby, where he carried Clay Volmer to the Open win.

“He loves the fence work. He just craves it so much,” Volmer said. “He’s probably one of the most intense fence horses I’ve ever ridden, and I’ve ridden a lot of good ones. He lives for it.”

The stunning 5-year-old red roan stallion, bred by Kelly Mahler, is owned by Pitzer Ranch/ Dack Cattle LLC. He first caught the eye of Jim Brinkman, manager of the Pitzer Ranch in Ericson, Nebraska, and a member of the American Quarter Horse Association executive committee, at the 2020 National Cutting Horse Association Futurity Sales.

“We really liked this horse because he is a very good representative of the American Quarter Horse breed standard as it was written in the book,” Brinkman said of Metallic Casanova, who was registered under a different name at the time. “I was wanting to buy him [at the sale] but didn’t really feel like I had the money, and there’s so much risk from that 2-year-old year to where we’re at here.”

Brinkman continued to follow the stallion as he grew up, hoping to buy him one day. Then in 2022, Volmer told him the owners were ready to sell. Brinkman drove down immediately and bought the horse.

Both Brinkman and Volmer are looking forward to continuing the stallion’s show career this year, then Brinkman will possibly start breeding him in 2024. One of the many qualities he expects to see him pass on to his get is his quality movement.

“The best thing that horse does is he just moves efficiently,” Brinkman said. “He makes it look very easy. When he does stuff, it doesn’t look like he stresses; he just moves really fluid, and that goes a long way.”

Justin Wright rode to the Reserve Champion title aboard Clint and Debby Matthews-bred Stylin Metal (Metallic Cat x Stylin Playgirl x Docs Stylish Oak), a 2018 stallion, with a 662.5 (H:221/R:221.5/C:220). The pair collected $26,000 for owners Jim and Linda Schrack.

IS HE JUST MOVES EFFICIENTLY. HE MAKES IT LOOK VERY EASY. WHEN HE DOES

IT DOESN’T LOOK LIKE HE STRESSES; HE JUST MOVES REALLY FLUID, AND THAT GOES A LONG WAY.”

OPEN RESERVE CHAMPION

Clint and Debby Matthews-bred Stylin Metal (Metallic Cat x Stylin Playgirl x Docs Stylish Oak), a 2018 stallion, carried Justin Wright to a 662.5 (H:221/R:221.5/C:220) for the Open Reserve title. The pair collected $26,000 for owners Jim and Linda Schrack.

INTERMEDIATE OPEN CHAMPION

With a composite 656 (H:219/R:217/C:220), Gimmee Three Steps (Metallic Cat x Ara Mae Rey x Dual Rey) and Shawn Hays clinched the Intermediate Open Championship. The 2018 gelding, bred by Crown Ranch LP, collected $11,000 for owners Walter or Jocelyn Greeman.

“THE BEST THING THAT HORSE DOES

STUFF,

—Jim Brinkman

INTERMEDIATE OPEN RESERVE CHAMPION

The 2018 gelding Sweet Lil Rebel (Cats Merada x Sweet Lil Shilo x Sweet Lil Pepto) and Dale Clearwater secured the Intermediate Open Reserve Championship with a 655.5 (H:219.5/R:216/C:220), banking $8,000 for owner/breeder Karen Radda.

LIMITED OPEN CHAMPION

With a composite 648 (H:213.5/R:214/C:220.5), Bet Shesa Lena (Bet Hesa Cat x Shiners Miss Lena x Shining Spark) and Richard Winters took home the Limited Open title and $3,500. Linda Mars bred and owns the 2018 mare.

LIMITED OPEN RESERVE CHAMPION

DropThatKittyDownLow (Metallic Cat x Shiney Sparklette x Shining Spark), a 2018 mare bred by Linda Mars, and Clinton Anderson picked up the Limited Open Reserve title with a composite 647.5 (H:214.5/R:220/C:213), garnering $3,000 for owners Thomas or Melissa Sims.

LEVEL 1 OPEN CHAMPION

The Level 1 Open Championship went to Dirty Look (Woody Be Tuff x Sucha Smartlookn Cat x High Brow Cat) and Garrett Cooper with a composite 642 (H:213.5/R:214.5/C:214). For the win, Cooper and the 2019 Center Ranch-bred stallion collected $4,500 for owner Ty Smith.

LEVEL 1 OPEN RESERVE CHAMPION

Homebred 2018 stallion Hat Six Okie Jonez (Travelin Jonez x Hat Six Okie Chick x Short Oak) and Ricky Nolan picked up $3,600 for owners Walter or Jocelyn Greeman after scoring a composite 639.5 (H:213.5/R:212.5/C:213.5) for the Level 1 Open Reserve title.

OPEN NOVICE HORSE CHAMPION

Michelle Cannon’s homebred 2018 mare Gold Plated Cat (Metallic Cat x Lil Shiny Long Legs x Shining Spark) brought home $5,500 after carrying Cayley Wilson to the Open Novice Horse Championship with a composite score of 662.5 (H:221/ R:217.5/C:224).

OPEN NOVICE HORSE RESERVE CHAMPION

LookAtLittleSister (Stevie Rey Von x Smart Playing Chic x Smart Chic Olena) and Erin Taormino finished second in the Open Novice Horse with their composite 656.5 (H:214.5/R:221/C:221). The 2018 mare, bred by Liz Armenta, brought home a check worth $4,000 for her owner, Tres Osos Performance Horses.

OPEN CHROME CASH CHAMPION

With a 661 (H:221/R:221/C:219), Dollar Signs (Hickory Holly Time x Wright About Now x Lenas Wright On) and Brandon Buttars collected the Open Chrome Cash award and $1,375 for owner Sophia Flinders Buttars. The 2019 mare was bred by Garth and Amanda Gardiner.

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ROCKIN' IT

Debbie Crafton’s big winning streak continued at the Tres Osos Cow Horse Derby, where she and SJR SumKindaRockstar added the Non Pro Championship to her long list of accomplishments.

BY KRISTIN PITZER | PHOTOS BY PRIMO MORALES

The past year of Debbie Crafton’s cow horse career couldn’t be classified as anything short of a dream come true. With a string of good horses in her trailer, Crafton racked up a plethora of National Reined Cow Horse Association titles throughout 2022, including the Snaffle Bit Futurity® Non Pro Championship.

Crafton’s luck continued at the 2023 Tres Osos Cow Horse Derby where, after Thursday night’s fence work, she and SJR SumKindaRockstar compiled the highest composite score, a 659, and added a new championship to Crafton’s résumé.

“This is a title I hadn’t won, so it means a lot, and it means a lot on this horse since I’ve had him since he was a 2-year-old,” Crafton said. “The last month or two before the 2022 Hackamore Classic, I just felt him mature and grow up. He came in and just smoked the Hackamore Classic, he was so good. To have him

carry over here and just be so solid in all three events, I am feeling really good about him.”

The pair landed toward the top of the leaderboard in each event, marking a 219 that won the herd work, a 218.5 in the rein work and a 221.5 in the cow work. For their win, Crafton and the 2018 stallion (Smooth As A Cat x Sumkinda Pinkcadilac x Peptoboonsmal), who was bred by San Juan Ranch, collected $7,750.

“He felt really good in the herd work. The cows were a little tricky for me, I think; mentally I was not as solid as I'd like to be or as confident as I'd like to be, but he read them very well and was real spot on there,” Crafton said. “He's got a lot of look and a lot of style out of the herd, so he's a lot of fun to show.

“In the rein work, he's just always a big stopper. He always circles good and turns good, so I'm very confident walking in the reining pen on him,” she added. “I'm also very confident on him going down the fence. He's just built my

After winning the NRCHA Hackamore Classic Non Pro in 2022, Debbie Crafton and SJR SumKindaRockstar added the Tres Osos Cow Horse Derby Non Pro title to their résumé.

2023 NON PRO TOP 10

Fort Worth, Texas – February 10-20, 2023 (Horse/Rider/Pedigree/Owner/Score/Money)

1. SJR SumKindaRockstar; Debbie Crafton; 18S (Smooth As A Cat x Sumkinda Pinkcadilac x Peptoboonsmal); Debbie Crafton; 659 (H:219/ R:218.5/C:221.5); $7,750.

2 (TIE). RAB SmartKittyCat; Lanham Brown; 19M (WR This Cats Smart x Sparks Smart x Genuine Masterpiece); R A Brown Ranch; 652.5 (H:217/R:213.5/C:222); $5,625.

2 (TIE). Boon Doxx; Stefani Wagley; 18G (Sannman x Docs Stylish Liz x Docs Stylish Oak); Stefani Wagley; 652.5 (H:214.5/R:218.5/C:219.5); $5,625.

4. RAB Fly Lika Outlaw; Lanham Brown; 19G (Shiney Outlaw x RAB Go Peppy Fly x Gold Peppy Freckles); R A Brown Ranch; 651.5 (H:216/ R:216.5/C:219); $4,250.

5. Sliver Of Majesty; Carrie King; 18G (Metallic Rebel x Little Reyalight x Dual Rey); Carrie King; 648.5 (H:217.5/R:214.5/C:216.5); $3,500.

6 (TIE). Bet Hesa Honeybee; Ashley Lembke; 18G (Bet Hesa Cat x Honey Bees x Peptoboonsmal); Tyrel & Ashley Lembke; 648 (H:213.5/R:213/C221.5); $2,450.

6 (TIE). Peppy Reys; Cutter McLaughlin; 19G (Dual Smart Rey x Ms Peptostripmal x Peptoboonsmal); Jay & Wendy McLaughlin; 648 (H:216/R:211.5/C:220.5); $2,450.

8. Double Bama Gamma; Brent Ratliff; 18G (Bamacat x FMR Double The Pepto x Peptoboonsmal); Brent Ratliff; 647.5 (H:213.5/ R:216.5/C:217.5); $2,000.

9. Seven S Red Hot; Brent Ratliff; 19G (Stevie Rey Von x Seven S Wild Flower x Nic It In The Bud); Brent Ratliff; 646 (H:207/R:218/C:221); $1,500.

10. Boxo Opus Magnum; Jecca Ostrander; 18G (WR This Cats Smart x Opus Chic x Smart Chic Olena); Box O Quarter Horses; 645 (H:215.5/ R:216/C:213.5); $1,250.

—Debbie Crafton

confidence over the past four or five months that we can go do something down the fence.”

Crafton always knew SJR SumKindaRockstar was going to make a show horse, but as he’s grown and matured, the stallion has proven his worth at home on her Colorado ranch, too.

“I’ve used him outside to gather cows, drug calves to the fire on him and pasture roped on him, and he just handles all aspects of whatever I want to do,” Crafton said. “I think it helps them stay mentally sane. They learn how to handle pressure completely outside of the arena. It keeps him fresh mentally, so he doesn’t just get drilled on to be a show horse all the time. He knows what it’s like just to be a horse.”

Crafton thanked her herd help and all her peers she looks up to, including Matt Koch, Chris Dawson, Ashley and Lee Deacon, Tyler Merrill and Jay McLaughlin. She also credited God for making all her success possible over the last year.

NON PRO CO-RESERVE CHAMPION

Lanham Brown and RAB SmartKittyCat (WR This Cats Smart x Sparks Smart x Genuine Masterpiece) scored a 652.5 composite (H:217/R:213.5/C:222) and secured the Non Pro Co-Reserve title. The 2019 homebred mare, owned by the R. A. Brown Ranch, earned $5,652.

NON PRO CO-RESERVE CHAMPION, INTERMEDIATE NON PRO CHAMPION

A composite score of 652.5 (H:214.5/R:218.5/C:219.5) tied Stefani Wagley and Boon Doxx (Sannman x Docs Stylish Liz x Docs Stylish Oak) for the Non Pro Reserve Championship. They also won the Intermediate Non Pro outright. Boon Doxx, a 2018 gelding bred by Jeff Schieber, garnered $5,625 and $3,400, respectively.

INTERMEDIATE NON PRO RESERVE CHAMPION, LIMITED NON PRO CHAMPION

Carrie King rode Sliver Of Majesty (Metallic Rebel x Little Reyalight x Dual Rey) to a 648.5 (H:217.5/R:214.5/C:216.5), winning the Limited Non Pro title and taking Reserve in the Intermediate Non Pro. The 2018 gelding, bred by Clay and Carrie Volmer, collected $2,650 for the Intermediate and $1,800 for the Limited Non Pro.

“I’VE USED HIM OUTSIDE TO GATHER COWS, DRUG CALVES TO THE FIRE ON HIM AND PASTURE ROPED ON HIM, AND HE JUST HANDLES ALL ASPECTS OF WHATEVER I WANT TO DO.”

LIMITED NON PRO RESERVE CHAMPION

After scoring a composite 638.5 (H:214/R:207.5/C:217), Christopher Lewis, on Woodhebachic (Woody Be Tuff x Shiney Vintage Chic x Smart Chic Olena), went home with a $1,450 check for the Limited Non Pro Reserve Championship. The 2019 stallion is a homebred belonging to William Lewis.

LEVEL 1 NON PRO CHAMPION

Landon Brown piloted his 2018 gelding Loudacris (Cattalou x Tina Bars Queen x Tina Bars Peppy) to a composite 636 (H:211/R:210.5/C:214.5) for the Level 1 Non Pro title. He and "Loudacris," bred by Alexis Stephas, collected $1,675.

SELECT NON PRO CHAMPION

LEVEL 1 NON PRO RESERVE CHAMPION

Dustin Mitchell rode Reynmann (Sannman x Love The Reys x Dual Rey), who he owns with Cassity Mitchell, to Reserve with a 635 score (H:214/R:211.5/C:209.5). He collected $1,400 with the 2018 homebred gelding.

A composite score of 645 (H:215.5/R:216/C:213.5) gave Jecca Ostrander and Boxo Opus Magnum (WR This Cats Smart x Opus Chic x Smart Chic Olena) the Select Non Pro Championship. Ostrander and the 2018 homebred gelding collected $280.

NON PRO CHROME CASH CHAMPION

Hope Mills and Boots Wit Da Fur (Stevie Rey Von x Hiss N Boots x One Time Pepto)’s 644 (H:218/R:210.5/C:215.5) won the Non Pro Chrome Cash incentive, worth $1,100. The 2019 mare was bred by Jennifer and Jeffrey Foland.

NON PRO BOXING CHAMPION, LEVEL 1 NON PRO BOXING CHAMPION, NON PRO BOXING CHROME CASH CHAMPION

With a composite 651 (H:216/R:214.5/C:220.5), Jaylee Brown led the Boxing, Level 1 Non Pro Boxing and Chrome Cash incentive on Overthelegallimitrab (One Time Royalty x Billie Travis x Continental Fly), a 2018 gelding bred and owned by Rob Brown. The pair received checks worth $3,300, $600 and $765, respectively.

LEVEL 1 NON PRO BOXING RESERVE CHAMPION

Kaylee Dufresne and Hickory Voodoo Time (Hickory Holly Time x Voodoo Chic x Smart Chic Olena), who is owned by Top Fuel LLC, landed a $550 check with the title. Dufresne and the 2018 mare, who was bred by Rogers Heaven Sent Ranch, LLC, scored a 641 (H:213/ R:213.5/C:214.5).

NON PRO BOXING RESERVE CHAMPION

Jodie Scheffel and One Fancy Savannah (One Time Pepto x Savannah Hickory x Doc’s Hickory)’s 646.5 composite (H:210/ R:214/C:222.5) took Reserve. Scheffel and the WW Ranch LLCbred 2017 mare banked $2,650.

SELECT NON PRO BOXING CHAMPION

Becky Stockett and Katcinco (Hick Chicaroo x Kat Five x High Brow Cat) scored a 636.5 composite (H:213/R:210/C:213.5), which won the Select Non Pro Boxing Championship and a $200 paycheck. The 2017 mare was bred by Latigo Canyon Ranch.

2023 CELEBRATION OF CHAMPIONS

2023 Tres Osos

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2018 NRCHA OPEN FUTURITY CHAMPION

#1 NRCHA OPEN ALL AGES/ALL DIVISIONS HORSE OF THE YEAR 2018

LTE: $174,997

•••

SHOWN BY COREY CUSHING

BRED & OWNED BY SAN JUAN RANCH

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PRESENTED BY

Official Wellness Partner of the NRCHA

BY JOE CARTER, DVM

Horses are supposed to sweat while exercising—it’s part of their bodies’ wellness plan.

Sweating is a more complicated process than you might think. Sweat production is facilitated by the release of acetylcholine from nerve fibers, which stimulates sweat glands to release sweat.

Sweat evaporation from the skin’s surface plays a critical role in a horse’s thermoregulation. This is most apparent when a horse’s ability to sweat is compromised during periods of strenuous physical labor and/or exposure to hot environments. When a horse’s sweat production decreases or is absent, its body’s core temperature rises sharply with exercise/heat stress, which can lead to heat exhaustion or heatstroke if other ways of cooling are not provided. That means paying attention to a horse’s sweat flow rate is an important factor in determining if it may develop a life-threatening condition.

Lack of sweating—called anhidrosis—can get a horse in trouble quickly. Horsemen often call horses that don’t sweat “non-sweaters.” Anhidrosis is a condition in which a horse’s sweat glands don’t function as they should to remove heat and cool its body. An overheated horse can be a dangerous—

even life-threatening—situation. This condition frequently limits a horse’s performance and may put it at risk for hyperthermia or heatstroke.

Horses have an internal thermostat called the hypothalamus. If their temperature goes above normal, the hypothalamus sends signals to sweat glands to get to work. Compared to humans, horses sweat twice as much per square inch of skin. During extensive exercise, a horse can lose anywhere from 2½ to 4 gallons of liquid. It is important to know that horses lose electrolytes when they sweat. Humans lose mostly water, resulting in an electrolyte imbalance that leaves us thirsty.

The cause of anhidrosis is not well defined, but it’s believed to involve overstimulation of a horse’s sweat glands by stress hormones, typically occurring in the heat of summer.

The simplest treatment is the supplementation of electrolytes. Moving a horse to a cooler climate is the only known successful approach. Treatments with minimal scientific evidence include supplementing dark beers, salts, vitamins/electrolytes or thyroid hormones.

L-tyrosine, an essential amino acid used to make the catecholamine neurotransmitters dopamine, norepinephrine and epinephrine, is frequently anecdotally

used as a supplement to prevent or treat anhidrosis. Tyrosine is a precursor to thyroid hormone. L-tyrosine’s role as a precursor to so many important chemicals and hormones in the body is the theory behind why it may work to treat or prevent anhidrosis.

If you suspect your horse is not sweating enough and/or developing anhidrosis contact your veterinarian.

Respectfully,

Joe Carter, DVM

Oklahoma Equine Hospital  Official NRCHA Veterinarian

Over$500,000 in CHROME CASH was paid out at events in 2022!

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2 0 2 3 NRCHA EVENTS

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APHA registration is the ONLY requirement to enter Chrome Cash, a class within a class.

Here are SOME of the APHA registered sires & dams with competing foals :

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Questions or ready to register?

Text or call Sunny Bates at 817-219-7985

Two ways to APHA Registration:

Lineage – If your AQHA horse has at least one APHA registered parent, your horse may be eligible for APHA registration REGARDLESS OF COLOR. Markings - If your AQHA horse has 2 inches of solid white hair in the qualifying area (above the hock/knee & behind the eye)

KREYZE HORSE 2015 APHA/AQHA stallion

FROM THE

Through Stories from the Shedrow, the NRCHA Foundation continues to preserve the heritage and traditions of reined cow horse.

PRESENTED BY KALPOWAR QUARTER HORSES

As National Reined Cow Horse Association members prepare their horses for the upcoming Teton Ridge Stallion Stakes, the association is preparing to induct another group of outstanding members into the NRCHA Hall of Fame.

The first members were inducted in 1996. Currently, 51 members have been honored with induction, with three new honorees in 2023. The NRCHA Hall of Fame welcomes Bill Enk, Kathy Ferguson and Randy Paul. In addition, Smart Chic Olena joins the 22 horses in the Hall of Fame, which first inducted a horse in 2003 (Fillinic).

The current director of judges, Bill Enk, of Paso Robles, California, has more than 50 years of experience judging performance horse events. Enk’s first foray into the cow horse culture was working for Ronnie Richards in college. He showed in the American Horse Shows Association events, then he obtained his judging card in the 1980s and began to judge and show in the American Quarter Horse Association. Today, Enk can check the box as a judge at every major Western performance horse event, from the NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity® to the cutting and reining futurities to Road to the Horse to Equitana in Europe. As the director of judges, Enk revolutionized how cow horse classes are judged.

Non Pro Kathy Wilson of Clarksburg, California, is a multiple NRCHA title

holder, and competed at many of the industry’s most prominent events, including the Grand National Cow Palace and the Reno Snaffle Bit Futurity. In the course of her career, she’s earned more than $323,000 in association earnings, which kicked off at her first horse show, in 1977, which was the NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity. Since NRCHA records have recorded earnings, Wilson has landed landed three Non Pro division Snaffle Bit Futurity Champion titles. Wilson trains with the newest NRCHA Million Dollar Rider, trainer Ken Wold of Wilton, California.

Randy Paul is no stranger to the competitive show arena. With NRCHA earnings topping $500,000 and National Reining Horse Association earnings topping $1 million, he’s been a staple in the Western performance industry. A slew of NRCHA titles accompany Paul’s résumé, including the 2010 World’s Greatest Horseman title aboard Smokeelan. Paul started in cow horse as a youth and worked for NRCHA Hall of Fame trainer Don Dodge and Gary Bellenfant before he began training on his own. Paul lives and trains in Sanger, California.

Smart Chic Olena may need no introduction to cow horse fans. Bred by Emily Woodall, the stallion was shown in cutting under trainers like Dell Bell, Randy Butler, Bill Freeman and Bill Glass then competed in the reining arena with Craig Johnson. The late stallion became an

NRCHA Million Dollar sire in 2004, and his offspring continue to impact NRCHA. Though he passed away in 2012, Smart Chic Olena’s legacy lives on.

The NRCHA Hall of Fame Banquet will be held during the 2023 Teton Ridge Stallion Stakes at the South Point Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. For more information, or to purchase tickets, visit nrcha.com. The Hall of Fame inductees, as well as Hall of Merit honorees, are online at nrcha.com/foundation/hall-offame/.

Bill Enk

Kathy Wilson

Smart Chic Olena

Randy Paul

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Alberta Reined Cow Horse Association

Krystal Meade

250, 200 Quarry Park Blvd SE

Calgary AB T2C 5E3 CANADA

Phone: 403-991-4617

Email: info@cowhorse.ca

Website: www.cowhorse.ca

Arizona Reined Cow Horse Association

Jeffry Heyer

Phone: 508-221-1358

Email: jrhyer@comcast.net

Website: www.azrcha.com

Atlantic Reined Cow Horse Association

Jennifer Black

1600 Mapledale Rd

Elizabethtown, PA 17022

Phone: 717-433-5357

Email: ARCHASecretary.2022@gmail.com

Website: www.atlanticRCHA.com

Australian Reined Cow Horse Association

Jay Gordon

359 Duri-Dungowan Rd

Tamworth, New South Wales, AUSTRALIA 2340

Phone: +61 490 915094

Email: archa@outlook.com.au

Website: www.cowhorseaustralia.com

California Reined Cow Horse Association

Stacy Duesterhaus

15169 Road 223

Porterville, CA 93257

Phone: 559-999-8146

Email: califcowhorse@gmail.com

Website: www.californiacowhorse.com

Central Montana Reined Cow Horse Association

Judy Blough

P.O. Box 413

Wilsall, MT 59086

Phone: 409-223-3690

Email: info@cmrcha@gmail.com

Website: www.cmrcha.com

Colorado Reined Cowhorse Association

MJ Anderson

PO Box 88

Trinidad, CO 81082

Phone: 719-963-4770

Email: coloradocowhorse@gmail.com

Website: www.coloradoreinedcowhorse.com

AFFILIATE LISTING

Current as of March 1, 2023

European Reined Cow Horse Association

Augusto De Fazio

via Natalia Ginzburg

1 - 11015 Ivrea (TO) ITALY

Phone: +(39) 338 8860657

Email: ercha@hotmail.it

Website: www.ercha.org

Gem State Stock Horse Association

Callee Miller

301 Market Rd

Caldwell ID 83607

Phone: 541-519-4748

Email: Cowhorse22@gmail.com

Website: www.gemstatestockhorse.com

Gulf Coast Cow Horse Association

Paul Kaskey

6329 Old Court St.

North Port, FL 34291

Phone: 941-256-4760

Email: paulkaskey@aol.com

Website: www.gulfcoastcowhorse.com

Idaho Reined Cow Horse Association

Laura Kiracofe

P.O. Box 1375

Caldwell, ID 83606

Phone: 208-409-5656

Email: laurakiracofe@yahoo.com

Website: www.idahoreinedcowhorse.com

Italian Reined Cow Horse Association

Laura Ruffino Vercellino

Via Grilloni 25

22100 Como ITALY

Phone: +39 347 26 22 783

Email: segreteria.ircha@gmail.com

Website: https://nrchaofitaly.com/

Magic Valley RCHA

Nikki Francis

3644 N 3300 E

Kimberly ID 83341

Phone: 208-539-5410

Email: vpnikki@gmail.com

Website: www.intermountaincircuit.org

Mid State Cow Horse Association

Sharon Michelucci

2500 Adobe Rd

Paso Robles CA 9344

Phone: 805-835-5014

Email: info@midstatecowhorseassociation.com

Website: www.midstatecowhorseassociation.com

Montana Reined Cow Horse Futurity, Inc

Margaret Ore

PO Box 1604

East Helena, MT 59635

Phone: 406-227-7019

Email: more@mt.net

Website: www.montanareinedcowhorse.com

Nevada Reined Cow Horse Association

Robyn Englert

Phone: 702-768-3224

Email: rocketdog2333@yahoo.com

Website: www.nvrcha.org

New York Reined Cow Horse Association

Jacob Partridge

996 Flickner Rd.

Arkport, N.Y. 14807

Phone: 585-738-1057

Email: jpartridge996@gmail.com

Website: www.newyorkrcha.com

North Central Reined Cow Horse Association

Jim Wilson

2409 25th Ave

Rice Lake, WI 54868

Phone: 641-420-0440

Email: wilson@myomnitel.com

Website: www.ncrcha.com

Northeastern Reined Cowhorse Alliance

Deb Carruth

Email: debcarruth@hotmail.com

Website: www.nercha.ca

Northern Alberta Reined Cow Horse Club

Shawna Husted

27245 TWP 350

Red Deer County, AB T4G 0M4

Phone: 403-875-1369

Email: nabreinedcowhorseclub@gmail.com

Northwest Reined Cow Horse Association

Debbie Pilgoret

P.O. Box 302

Newburg, OR 97132

Phone: 503-318-7339

Email: nwreinedcowhorse@gmail.com

Website: www.nwrcha.com

Panhandle Reined Cow Horse Association

Lane Arnold

PO Box 1053 Canyon, TX 79015

Phone: 806-341-0941

Email: panhandlecowhorse@gmail.com

Website: www.panhandlecowhorse.com

South Dakota Reined Cow Horse Association

Jill Swanhorst

P.O. Box 55

Alzada, MT 59311

Phone: 605-484-5788

Email: Jswanhorst5278@gmail.com

Website: www.sdrcha.com

South Texas Reined Cow Horse Association

Tina McCleary

1111 E Poe Prairie Rd

Millsap, TX 76066

Phone: 979-218-0633

Email: southtexasrcha@gmail.com

Website: www.strcha.org

AFFILIATE LISTING

Current as of March 1, 2023

Southern California Reined Cow Horse Association

Roy Rich

Phone: 951-529-6258

Email: socalrcha@aol.com

Website: ltht@airenetworks.com

Southern Reined Cow Horse Alliance

Debra Motichek

Phone: 985-373-8347

Email: srcowha@gmail.com

Website: www.srchala.com

Southwest Reined Cow Horse Association

Gay Lenz 11587 Hunt Lane

Guthrie, OK 73044

Phone: 405-818-7556

Email: glenz@glenzenterprises.com

Website: www.srcha.org

Swedish Reined Cow Horse Association

Silvio Wirth

Kyrkbyn Backagarden 1

SE-512 62 Mardaklev., Sweden

Phone: +46 70 676 7642

Email: styrelsen@srcha.eu

Website: www.srcha.eu

Utah Reined Cow Horse Association

Nikki Francis

3644 N. 3300 E.

Kimberly, ID 83341

Phone: 208-539-5410

Email: vpnikki@gmail.com

Website:www.urcha.org

Volunteer Ranch Horse Association

Rachael Snow

4807 Shadecrest Dr.

Nashville, TN 37211

Phone: 615-405-5219

Email: volunteerranchhorseassociation@gmail.com

Website: www.volrha.com

NRCHA SUSPENDED LIST

NRCHA membership privileges will be suspended for the second offense of bad checks, per rule 1.1.6.2 and for non payment of debt to NRCHA Show Management or NRCHA Approved Show Management. Additionally, all amounts for advertising in the NRCHA publication, Reined Cow Horse News, are due and payable within 30 days of receipt.

Agricultural Foundation, Fresno, CA

Desert Spring Ranch, Queen Creek, AZ

Keetch Ranch, Waddell, AZ

Del Rey Paint & Qtr Horses/Aneka

Schelbeck, Cotton Wood, CA

Bynum Farms/Blair Bynum, Palm City, FL

Donnie Boyd, Sarasota, FL

Robyn Bush, Visalia, CA

Marcy Campbell, Creston, CA

Pompeo Capezzone, Castrocielo 03030, ITALY

Riccardo Capezzone, Castrocielo 03030, ITALY

Cody Christensen, Heber City, UT

Tom Daughetee, Kemmerer, WY

Shad DeGiorgis, El Dorado Hills, CA

Laura Delfino, Martinez, CA

Pat Faitz, Lakeland, FL

Robert Frobose, Modesto, CA

Miguel Gonzalez, Miami, FL

Babcock Ranch/Jim Babcock, Sanger, TX

A finance charge of 1.5% per month (18% APR) will be added to all past due amounts. Membership privileges shall be suspended on accounts greater than 90 days past due and this information will be published in Reined Cow Horse News. There will be a membership reinstatement fee of $75.

Current as of March 1, 2023

Brandon Johnson, Nebraska City, NE

Bridgette Lanham, Eastover, SC

Thera Myers, Oxnard, CA

Steed Training/ Rick Steed, Okeechobee, FL

Jill Serena, Castaic, CA

Vernon Smith, Santa Maria, CA

Dream Cross/Susan Ray, TX

Lazy T Shamrock Ranch/ Terry Malarkey, Star, ID

Elizabeth Winkle, Sarasota, FL

Don Stockman, Dayton, TX

Kinsey Dodson, Cleburne, TX

Oasis Ranch/Pete & Marilyn Bowling Purcell, OK

Roy Hockensmith, Frankfort, KY

Brian & Cynthia Holthouse, San Juan Bautista, CA

Rita F. Ward, Canyon, TX

Darren Roberts, Kent, NY

Chris Anderson Marietta, OK

Kaleigh King, Overbrook, Oklahoma

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

President: Boyd Rice ■ Vice President: Paul Bailey ■ Secretary: Todd Crawford ■ Treasurer: Trey Neal

Executive Committee Members: Corey Cushing, Todd Bergen, Ben Baldus, Dr. Joe Carter

Board Members: Diane Edwards, Amanda Gardiner, Lance Johnston, Jay McLaughlin, Dan Roeser, Jon Roeser, Beverly Servi, Jake Telford, Cayley Wilson

COMMITTEE DIRECTORY

AFFILIATES

Chairperson: Jay McLaughlin jaymclaughlinperformancehorses@gmail.com 417-861-6963

ANIMAL WELFARE

Chairperson: Dr. Joe Carter, DVM jcarterdvm@aol.com | 405-288-6460

ETHICS

Chairperson: Trey Neal trey@treyneal.com

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Chairperson: Paul Bailey paulb@cb-trucking.com | 931-260-3909

HALL OF FAME

Chairperson: Dan Roeser roeserstables@gmail.com | 208-841-2052

HORSE SALES

Chairperson: Todd Crawford Toddcrawford333@gmail.com

JUDGES

Chairperson: Lance Johnston jphperformancehorses@gmail.com | 805-550-8387

Director of Judges: Bill Enk enk.bill@gmail.com

NRCHA FOUNDATION

Chairperson: Larry Bell lbell@kalpowar.com

NON PRO

Chairperson: Diane Edwards Diane2bph@outlook.com | 206-390-0715

STAFF

OWNERS

Chairperson: Abrian Bass harris.abrian@gmail.com | 817-517-3006

PROFESSIONALS

Chairperson: Cayley Wilson cayleyrwilson@gmail.com | 604-300-0401

RULES

Chairperson: Dan Roeser roeserstables@gmail.com | 208-841-2052

SHOWS

Co-Chairperson: Ben Baldus ben@baldushorsemanship.com | 940-923-7255

Co-Chairperson: Todd Bergen tbergenhorses@gmail.com | 541-778-0980

SPONSORSHIP

Chairperson: TBD

STALLION SERVICE AUCTION

Chairperson: Garth Gardiner gardinergarth@gmail.com | 620-635-5632

STRATEGIC PLANNING

Chairperson: TBD

YOUTH

Chairperson: Sarah Clymer Shubrick3@gmail.com | 719-330-1932

Operations Manager: Emily Konkel emily@nrcha.com

Accounting Manager: Kasydi Valentine kasydi@nrcha.com

Data Entry & Results Consultant: Taylor Meek taylor@nrcha.com

Media & Communications Manager: Callie McCarthy-Boevers callie@nrcha.com

Membership & Affiliate Show Manager: Tina McCleary tina@nrcha.com

Programs Manager: Jennifer Bishop jennifer@nrcha.com

Sponsorship Assistant: Bailey Carter bailey@nrcha.com

This bundle includes:

• The annual QHN Stallion Register and Spring Edition, plus 12 issues of Western Horseman magazine, shipped free of charge

• QHN Insider Stats, featuring veri ed EquiStat data in the QHN statistical charts you love, sent to your inbox every four weeks

• The latest performance horse alerts, news and information at quarterhorsenews.com to help you be successful in the performance horse industry.

LAE = Limited Aged Event, HS = Horse Show

SHOW SCHEDULE

as of March 1, 2023

Apr 14 - 16 NYRCHA Spring Derby & Horse Show HS, LAE, cat.1 Columbiana, OH New York RCHA

Apr 14 - 16 Spring Fling HS, cat.2 Cordova, TN Volunteer RHA

McCleary

490-1041 jenschueller21@gmail.com

749-1764 cindypfeifer59@gmail.com

218-0633 tina.showentries@gmail.com

Apr 19-23 CRCA Sagebrush HS, LAE, cat.1, cat.2 Pueblo, CO Colorado RCA Keri Croft 503-701-3305 dkcroft4@frontier.com

Apr 21 NvRCHA Show #3 HS, cat.2 Las Vegas, NV Nevada RCHA

Apr 29 - 30 ARCHA Kick Off The Dust Show HS, cat.2 Dillsburg, PA Atlantic RCHA

Norman 559-760-2769 laura.saddleup@gmail.com

Pfeifer (585) 749-1764 cindypfeifer59@gmail.com

May 4 - 7 NCRCHA May 2023 Show HS, LAE, cat.1, cat.2 Winona, MN North Central RCHA Jennifer Schueller (641) 590-1041 jenschueller21@gmail.com

May 6 MSCHA Show #4 HS, cat.2 Paso Robles, CA Mid State CHA Laura Norman (559) 760-2769 laura@midstatecowhorseassociation.com

May 6 - 7 GCCHA May Show HS, cat.2 Sarasota, FL Gulf Coast CHA Claudia Nichols (772) 321-9637 claudia.horseshow@gmail.com

May 6 - 7 NYRCHA Ranch Bonanza HS, cat.2 Schaghticoke, NY New York RCHA Cindy Pfeifer (585) 749-1764 cindypfeifer59@gmail.com

May 9 - 14 SRCHA Wild Rag Cattle Classic HS, LAE, cat.1, cat.2 Fort Worth, TX Southwest RCHA Gay Lentz (405) 818-7556 glentz@lentzenterprises.com

May 11 - 14 Jimmy Flores Sr Memorial/ Wine Country Classic HS, cat.1, cat.2 Temecula, CA Southern California RCHA Kelley Hartranft (714) 267-5912 klsgrn@yahoo.com

May 13 - 14 NWRCHA Cowgirl Classic HS, cat.2 Eugene, OR Northwest RCHA Keri Croft (503) 701-3305 dkcroft4@frontier.com

May 18-21 CRCHA Horse Shows #4 and #5 HS, cat.2 Tulare, CA California RCHA

Laura Norman 559-760-2769 crcha@saddleup-enterprises.com

May 18 - 21 Drought Buster HS, LAE, cat.1, cat.2 McCook, NE Colorado RCA Keri Croft (505) 701-3305 dkcroft4@frontier.com

May 19 NvRCHA Show #4 HS, cat.2 Las Vegas, NV Nevada RCHA Laura Norman 559-760-2769 laura.saddleup@gmail.com

May 19 - 21 Salute the Troops HS, cat.2 Cordova, TN Volunteer RHA Tina McCleary (979) 218-0633 tina.showentries@gmail.com

May 20-21 NARCHC Cow Horse Show HS, cat.2 Ponoka, AB Northern

May 20-21 PRCHA Windy City HS, cat.2

May 27 - 28 ARCHA Circle G Ranch Classic Show HS, cat.2

June 3 - 4 GCCHA June Show HS, cat.2

FL Gulf Coast CHA

Jun 9 - 11 Sinsheim Open HS, LAE, cat.1 Sinsheim, Germany

Jun 10 MSCHA Show #1 HS, cat.2 Paso Robles, CA Mid State CHA

749-1764 cindypfeifer59@gmail.com

Claudia Nichols (772) 321-9637 claudia.horseshow@gmail.com

Sylvia Bate 49-160-844-4813 sylvia.bate@web.de

Laura Norman (559) 760-2769 laura@midstatecowhorseassociation.com

June 16-18 NARCHC Wildrose Derby & Horse Show HS, LAE, cat.1 Ponoka, AB Northern Alberta RCHC Shawna Husted 403-875-1369 nabreinedcowhorseclub@gmail.com

Jun 22 - 25 NCRCHA June 2023 Show HS, LAE, cat.1, cat.2 Winona, MN North Central RCHA Jennifer Schueller (641) 590-1041 jenschueller21@gmail.com

June 24-25 CRCHA Tulare Summer Series Horse

Show #6 HS, cat.2 Tulare, CA California RCHA Laura Norman 559-760-2769 crcha@saddleup-enterprises.com

Jun 25 - 25 ARCHA Quaker Classic HS, cat.2 Dillsburg, PA Atlantic RCHA Cindy Pfeifer 585-749-1764 cindypfeifer59@gmail.com

Jul 7 - 9 Grant Berg Memorial HS, cat.2 Temecula, CA Southern California RCHA Kelley Hartranft (714) 267-5912 klsgrn@yahoo.com

July 7-9 PRCHA Red Dirt Rendezvous HS, LAE, cat.1 Lubbock, TX Panhandle RCHA Nelle Murphy 580-276-0761 panhandlecowhorse@gmail.com

July 8 - 9 NWRCHA Day In The Park HS, cat.2 Cle Elum, WA Northwest RCHA

July 15-16 CRCHA Tulare Summer Series Horse

Show #7 HS, cat.2 Tulare, CA California RCHA

Aug 5 MSCHA Show #5 HS, cat.2 Paso Robles, CA Mid State CHA

Croft

701-3305 dkcroft4@frontier.com

crcha@saddleup-enterprises.com

760-2769 laura@midstatecowhorseassociation.com

Aug 8 - 14 SRCHA Pre Futurity & Horse Show HS, LAE, cat.1, cat.2 Fort Worth, TX Southwest RCHA Gay Lentz

Aug 12-13 CRCHA Tulare Summer Series Horse

Show #8 HS, cat.2 Tulare, CA California RCHA

Sep 8 - 10 Cow Horse Classic HS, cat.2 Temecula, CA Southern California

818-7556 glentz@lentzenterprises.com

crcha@saddleup-enterprises.com