Cutting Horse Chatter - Summer 2023

The New Breed

Meet the Dedicated Couple Behind Beechfork Ranch

Cutting Horses

EE RANCH E S says ‘Goodbye’

Born

There Is That One Horse that stands out in everyone’s horse career, and for EE Ranches that horse is Laker Docthe incredible athlete with an amazing show career

There Is That One Horse that stands out in everyone’s horse career, and for EE Ranches that horse is Laker Docthe incredible athlete with an amazing show career and a larger than life personality to go with it.

21 Open Limited

21 Open Limited Age Event Finals

As a 3 & 4 year old, Laker Doc never missed an open LAE finals. Under todays’ criteria, Laker Doc would have qualified as the1996

As a 3 & 4 year old, Laker Doc never missed an open LAE finals. Under todays’ criteria, Laker Doc would have qualified as the -

EE Ranches Stallion Station

Quote from Guy Woods

championship. LAKER had an aggressive style—he was powerful horse that let me ride him bareback and bridleless. He was great minded and the only fights we had were over the cow—he wanted to do it his way and I wanted him to do it my way. The end result

Ellard was his loper and together the three of us amassed a great

“I started Laker Doc as a two year old. I was his only trainer and showman—he carried me to 21 LAE open finals and a world championship. LAKER had an aggressive style—he was powerful and bold and could hold any cow in the pen. Yet, he was a kind horse that let me ride him bareback and bridleless. He was great minded and the only fights we had were over the cow—he wanted to do it his way and I wanted him to do it my way. The end result was a great show horse, always helping and covering for me. Jo Ellard was his loper and together the three of us amassed a great career record.

Q

EAs a sire Laker gave me great sons and daughters to train and ride. Two exceptional offspring were Raked In Satin and Scratchin. Scratchin, bred to Cat Ichi gave me Ichi Sangria, my all time favourite mare. Today my best show horse is EE Columbian Red, Sangria’s first foal by Stevie Rey Von.

As a sire Laker gave me great sons and daughters to train and ride. Two exceptional offspring were Raked In Satin and Scratchin. Scratchin, bred to Cat Ichi gave me Ichi Sangria, my all time favourite mare. Today my best show horse is EE Columbian Red, Sangria’s first foal by Stevie Rey Von.

Horses like Laker Doc don’t come along very often-Laker knew he was special. His personality made you love him, his ability made you admire him. I foaled him out and said ‘goodbye’ at the end.”

Horses like Laker Doc don’t come along very often-Laker knew he was special. His personality made you love him, his ability made you admire him. I foaled him out and said ‘goodbye’ at the end.”

“I have handled close to a hundred stallions in my 34 year career but none quite like Laker Doc. His athleticism and quickness is unrivaled. His antics in the breeding barn were just downright comical. He did love the ladies and he loved his trips to the collection room. He was a kind horse, an easy stallion to handle, a great breeding stallion and was still settling mares at 28. Laker had a personality that caused every vet, breeder, farrier, and staff member that he encountered to quickly develop a deep respect and love for him. His foals have a lot of those same traits and it has been a pleasure to work with Laker and ultimately his offspring. He is missed by everyone at EE.”

“I have handled close to a hundred stallions in my 34 year career but none quite like Laker Doc. His athleticism and quickness is unrivaled. His antics in the breeding barn were just downright comical. He did love the ladies and he loved his trips to the collection room. He was a kind horse, an easy stallion to handle, a great breeding stallion and was still settling mares at 28. Laker had a personality that caused every vet, breeder, farrier, and staff member that he encountered to quickly develop a deep respect and love for him. His foals have a lot of those same traits and it has been a pleasure to work with Laker and ultimately his offspring. He is missed by everyone at EE.”

“Although I never got to show Laker Doc, I got him ready for every trip to the herd. Laker had a big motor. He was work to get ready but you could always count on him to give 150% whether he was tired, fresh, sore or not.

“Although I never got to show Laker Doc, I got him ready for every trip to the herd. Laker had a big motor. He was work to get ready but you could always count on him to give 150% whether he was tired, fresh, sore or not.

Laker was my favorite LAE horse. He had the most unique style and he absolutely loved to cut a cow. The tougher the cow, the more he liked it. It was a game and he would work anything, a cow, a flag, a goat, a dog, a person; if it moved he would cut it.

Laker was my favorite LAE horse. He had the most unique style and he absolutely loved to cut a cow. The tougher the cow, the more he liked it. It was a game and he would work anything, a cow, a flag, a goat, a dog, a person; if it moved he would cut it.

His personality outside the arena was equally as big. Laker Lakers show career he would go on as a sire of great sons and daughters, many of which I rode in my quest to earn my NCHA

His personality outside the arena was equally as big. Laker liked people and he liked attention. In the years following Lakers show career he would go on as a sire of great sons and daughters, many of which I rode in my quest to earn my NCHA Non Pro Hall of Fame title.

Laker looked great right up to the end of his life. A couple of stallion barn and called out, ‘LAKER DOC’. From the farthest

Laker looked great right up to the end of his life. A couple of weeks before he died I went to visit him. I stepped into the stallion barn and called out, ‘LAKER DOC’. From the farthest stall I heard his familiar responding nicker. I’m gonna miss that.”

Sire of Raked In Satin $164,000

High Country Lake $130,000

Knicks N Lakers $98,400

Marmolaker $93,000

Scratchin $80,000

Lakers Scandal

$70,500 + 215 youth pts

Lakers Red Raider

Laced With Laker

Lakers Michelangelo

E Ranch

All the Good Stuff

Steve Adams

uote from Jo Ellard

Quote from Steve Adams

National Cu ing Horse Association

260 Bailey Avenue, Fort Worth, Texas 76107-1862

(817) 244-6188; FAX (817) 244-2015 • nchacu ing.com ©2023

NCHA STAFF

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Jay Winborn

MANAGER OF COMMITTEE RELATIONS

Cathy Ale

DIRECTOR OF JUDGES

Andy Adams

DIRECTOR OF MARKETING & SPONSORSHIP

Carley Myers

DIRECTOR OF MEMBERSHIP SERVICES

Julie Davis

DIRECTOR OF SHOWS

Shianne

Megel

DIRECTOR OF YOUTH

Rianna Storey

NCHA OFFICERS

PRESIDENT Toddy Pitard

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EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE ( TERM ENDS )

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REGION 1

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Volume 76, No. 2 • Summer 2023

Official Publication of National Cu ing Horse Association Publishing Partner: Texas Monthly Studio

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Copyright © 2023 National Cu ing Horse Association

Cu ing Horse Cha er (ISSN 1081-0951) is published 4 times a year by the National Cu ing Horse Association, 260 Bailey Avenue, Fort Worth, Texas 76107. Telephone (817) 244-6188. Periodicals postage paid at Fort Worth, Texas, and additional mailing offices. The subscription rate of $6.00 is included in the National Cu ing Horse Association’s annual membership dues. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to the Cu ing Horse Cha er, 260 Bailey Avenue, Fort Worth, Texas 76107-1862. Publications Agreement No. 40791503.

Sustaining Affiliate Member: American Humane Association

Member: American Horse Council, American Horse Publications, Livestock Publications Council

PHOTO BY JUSTIN CLEMONS

82 Barney and Madison Smith of Beechfork Ranch PHOTO BY JUSTIN CLEMONS

46 Jette Jürgensen PHOTO BY BONAGA COMMUNICATIONS

A Family Lifestyle

The NCHA is not your ordinary performance horse association. When kids are raised in the cutting industry, they are raised around hard work and determination. It’s not a parenting style, it is a way of life.

Nothing emphasizes cutting as a way of life quite like the summer months when kids are out of school. While many of their peers are glued to their screens, our children are completing chores, preparing for their next show and learning life lessons such as:

Family comes rst. e bond within a family is a strong one. Sometimes they are more than just family related by blood — they are friends, competitors and mentors. Working with family can be tough and aggravating at times, but in the end, we learn more from each other than we ever thought possible.

Perseverance pays o . One of the best things about growing up in this industry is that it teaches perseverance. Hard work in the practice pen goes a long way, and we get to see the reward once our goals are achieved in the arena.

Respect and manners. ey learn how to care for and respect their equine companions, and they learn to respect their elders.

Responsibility and a strong work ethic. ey learn to put their horses’ needs ahead of their own. ey realize that these animals are dependent upon us to keep them happy and healthy. Every single day there are chores that must be done. Unlike normal jobs, there are no days o or days when we can skip chores.

As you get ready to compete at the summer weekend shows, NCHA Summer Cutting Spectacular and Youth World Finals, I encourage you to remember that you aren’t just going to another horse show. You are making memories and teaching your children values that will last a lifetime. e sport of cutting is more than a hobby, it’s a lifestyle and a family.

Jay Winborn NCHA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

PHOTO BY JUSTIN CLEMONS

Youth Connection

Officers of the National Youth Cutting Horse Association (NYCHA) are excited about the upcoming Youth Week, being held during the NCHA Summer Spectacular, in July.

Hey NYCHA! Our year is nearing the end, and let me just tell you, I have had a blast this year, and we have accomplished so much!

I would like to start by acknowledging the NCHA’s Director of Youth Rianna Storey and Youth Coordinator Logan Lynch. ese two jumped in head rst and never missed a beat. ey both have made being a part of the o cer team a joy! Rianna and Logan listen to anything and everything we have to o er. Shoutout to Logan for keeping up with our social media platforms and showcasing what the NYCHA program has to o er. And let’s give a hand to Rianna for presenting intriguing new ideas to our association, getting them passed and set in action. I’m thrilled to work alongside them, and I know things are only going to get better from here!

We have had a very successful year in terms of fundraising. I would like to personally thank all of the people who have supported us and contributed to our fundraisers. On behalf of NYCHA, words cannot describe how grateful we all are for your continued support.

Some of the fundraisers we have had this year include: the Stallion Auction, Watt Arena Stadium wall signs/tables and the Area Basket Silent Auction. at’s right, you read that correctly. Our area directors have been working with the people in their areas to put together themed baskets that will be sold in a silent auction during Youth Week in Fort Worth, Texas. is is going to be a super fun auction, and there will be something for everyone, so tell your family, grandparents and friends to check out these baskets in July!

Something else to keep in mind now is that we have plenty of out-of-arena scholarship contests for any NYCHA members to participate in. I highly encourage everyone to submit to the essay contest, artwork contest and photography contest. You don’t have to be present at Youth Week to compete in these contests, so y’all take advantage of these opportunities. If you will be in Fort Worth, you will also be given a chance to participate in public speaking, so consider that as well. Remember that all of these contests are preparing you for your “bright future,” and they count towards your LEAP points, which are required for the NYCHA Hall of Fame.

I cannot wait for next year, as I will be the incoming NYCHA President. e most important thing to me is that everyone feels welcome in our association and has a voice in this program. If you see me around in person, wish to talk via technology or have any questions at all, please feel free to stop and talk to me. I’m excited to see everyone in Fort Worth. Get ready for Youth Week because together our “future (is) so bright!”

Brea Collier PRESIDENT ELECT

ABOVE : Brea Collier, President Elect

It’s summer! Who’s ready for the NCHA Great American Insurance Group Summer Spectacular and NYCHA Youth Week?

With Memorial Day weekend behind us, the 2022–2023 youth hauling year has come to an end. I want to give a big shout out and pat on the back to all our youth haulers. Job well done!

e future is certainly looking bright for our NYCHA youth members as Youth Week is fast approaching. is year, the Youth Week theme is, “Future So Bright.”

Youth Week is set to take place July 24–29, in Fort Worth, Texas. I hope everyone is making plans to attend. Youth Week is the perfect opportunity to connect with friends and cheer on our Youth World Finalist. Stay tuned in on Instagram and Facebook for updates and announcements about Youth Week.

Sadly, this will be my last article of the year as your Senior Reporter. I have enjoyed getting to have the opportunity to be a voice for our Senior Youth and I am looking forward to my next opportunity to represent the NYCHA. I hope to have your support in my future roles.

e future of our youth program depends on us to continue building on this great organization.

As we wrap up the 2023 youth hauling year, I would like to congratulate all of the world nalists and everyone who had major accomplishments throughout the year. NCHA

Great American Insurance Summer Cutting Spectacular is almost here, and we recently decided on a new fundraiser called the NYCHA Area Basket Auction. Each area chooses a theme and people can donate items that represent the theme. e baskets will be auctioned o on the night of the banquet. If you are interested in making a donation, please contact your area director. I wish everyone the best of luck, safe travels and a successful summer!

Mica Collins JUNIOR REPORTER

ABOVE : Mica Collins, Junior Reporter

ABOVE : Annie Kate White, Senior Reporter

“God can bring peace to your past, purpose to your present, and hope to your future.”

John 14:27

Annie Kate White SENIOR REPORTER

Official Builder of the NCHA

Rafter P Construction is the leading design build contractor in the Farm & Ranch industry. With a full-scale drafting and design department, and a team of construction experts, Rafter P Construction is ready to take your ideas and bring them to life. Quality is key for every project, and customer satisfaction is always kept at the forefront to ensure the best process. We work hand in hand with our customers throughout their entire process, from drafting to nal walk through. With the Farm & Ranch knowledge and expertise backing every design, Rafter P Construction has all the tools needed to help answer any questions regarding designing and building the facilities and infrastructure needed to set every customer up for success. With an in-house drafting and design team, a strict project management model, and a top-notch customer service plan, Rafter P will not disappoint with any project they take on. Our goal at Rafter P Construction is to be your builder for life.

“Teaming up with the NCHA has been a no-brainer for the Rafter P Construction fam-

ily. e lengths and strides taken by the entire NCHA team over the years has directly impacted the entire Farm & Ranch community. We have been so impressed from the sidelines with what we have seen with the NCHA scholarship program and youth programs, that we decided it was time for Rafter P Construction to step up to help impact the future of the Farm & Ranch industry that we know and love. I am looking forward to a great partnership as the O cial Builder of the NCHA, and all the exciting things in store for the upcoming year.”

Brad Pryor, Owner and Founder

FROM TOP TO BOTTOM : MVP Whitetails is a custom, turnkey, design-built deer breeding facility by Rafter P Construction in Kaufman, TX.

KCR Whitetails is a custom, turnkey, design-built deer breeding facility by Rafter P Construction in Baird, TX. NCHA Buckle

Dream On

Michelle Lisac grew up a “horse-crazy, smalltown Iowa girl,” who got her rst horse at 11 when her father bought a yearling colt with money she’d saved from mowing lawns. ey called him “Du y,” short for King Du y, which had been her mother’s suggestion. “My father supported my obsession for horses,” said Lisac. “ ankfully my mother tolerated it.”

Du y, she said, became her “best childhood friend,” and her obsession with horses continued to grow. Lisac and her husband Mike, who live near Pueblo, Colorado, have eight grandchildren, two of which are as horse-crazy as their grandmother. When their oldest granddaughter won the Youth class at a recent competition, Lisac remarked, jokingly, to her husband, “When I die, I hope I come back as a little girl so I can do this.” It had been her childhood dream to compete and win “one of those shiny buckles I had watched others win,” though that dream had been deferred over the years for one reason or another. Her husband and granddaughter are the ones who nally convinced her to follow her dream.

In 2016, Lisac and her husband bought a fouryear-old Quarter Horse gelding named Lil Mister Butters, known as “Butters” (Sweepin Lil Jasper x Kas For Alarm x Super De Kas) from Jack and Sylvia McComber, who were selling him for Brett and Smiley Shawcroft. ey encouraged her to take

ABOUT MICHELLE LISAC

MAGNIFICENT OBSESSION

As a young girl, she checked out every horse-related book she could nd at the bookmobile. When she’d read them all, the driver brought others from her own collection.

NEVER STOP DREAMING

She won her rst cutting championship at the age of 58.

PUPPY LOVE

Her dog, Buddy, found his way to her house in the country, and into her heart, after his owners dumped him by the side of the road when he was a puppy.

PHOTO BY ERIN JOHNSON , EM PHOTOGRAPHY

Michelle Lisac was on vacation in Montana with friends when she got a text from her husband — She’s ours! — that included a photo of Dolly, who had stolen his heart, too.

As told to Marianne Dougherty

the young horse to a local cutting club, where he would get some exposure in the cutting arena. She not only won her class that day but also a year-end championship silver buckle. “At the age of 58, my childhood dream of winning a beautiful, shiny buckle of my own had nally come true.”

In 2021, Lisac met a talented trainer named Josh Barratt. One day during practice, he mentioned that he had a cutting mare he thought she should try. “He brought this little mare into the practice pen,” she said, “and I fell in love with her.”

Mist Scoot (Smart Lil Scoot x Mists Prima Donna x Peptoboonsmal) is known as “Dolly” around the barn. At rst Lisac was content to show a few times at weekend club cuttings, but Barratt convinced her to join the National Cutting Horse Association Heartland Circuit, which encompasses ve states, Kansas, Nebraska, Eastern Colorado, Iowa and Missouri, and attend an NCHA-approved cutting show at the Beef Empire Cutting Horse Association (BECHA) in Garden City, Kansas. Next stop: a Cutting Horse Association of Nebraska (CHAN) show in Broken Bow, Kansas. She and Dolly were still getting to know each other, and they struggled that year until, nally, in October 2021, they caught a third-place win at BECHA in Lyons, Kansas, in their last class of the last day.

ey took a break that winter and started showing again in March 2022, which turned out to be a winning year for them: NCHA Heartland Circuit Weekend $2000 Limit Rider champion, CHAN $2000 Limit Rider Weekend circuit champion, 2022 CHAN Year-End reserve champion in the $15,000 Amateur, and 2022 SCCHA Year-End Non-Pro Champion.

“It was a character-building, emotional rollercoaster ride, a year beyond my wildest dreams,” said Lisac, who will never forget the wonderful people in the cutting horse community who she met along the way.

Lisac is 65 and retired now, which gives her more time in the saddle. “I was and always will be in awe of horses,” she said. “ e soul connection you make with a horse is hard to explain but beautiful to behold.”

FROM TOP : Michelle Lisac's dog, Buddy. Michelle on Mist Scoot aka Dolly.

PHOTO BY ERIN JOHNSON , EM PHOTOGRAPHY

“The soul connection you make with a horse is hard to explain but beautiful to behold.”

MICHELLE LISAC

INCLUDING THE CCHA FINALS & NCHA AURORA CIRCUIT FINALS

SEPTEMBER 26 - OCTOBER 2, 2023

NUTRIEN WESTERN EVENT CENTRE, STAMPEDE PARK UP TO

$150,000 IN PRIZE MONEY AND AWARDS

CLASSES:

Open Futurity

Non Pro Futurity

Open Derby

Non Pro Derby

$50,000 Amateur Derby

Open Classic / Challenge

Non Pro Classic / Challenge

$50,000 Amateur Classic / Challenge

CCHA Finals

NCHA Aurora Circuit Finals

Bill Collins Youth Scholarships

ENTRIES OPEN AUGUST 1 - SEPTEMBER 8, 2023

Buckle Up For Summer

NCHA members are awarded a beautiful achievement buckle when they earn $1,000 in NCHA-approved weekend classes.

By Kathy McFarland

Earning the NCHA Achievement Buckle, crafted by Gist Silversmiths of Placerville, California, is truly a “bucket list” accomplishment for many members. (For the full list, see page 28.) For others, it’s “really cool.”

at’s how Tyson Hooper, 15, of Danville, Alabama, described it. Hooper says the sport really plays into his competitive nature. “I love to compete in the Senior Youth classes,” said the rising high school sophomore, who also plays football and basketball. “Cutting is a one-of-a-kind feeling.”

Hooper shows on a seven-year-old sorrel gelding named Playin Metallic, who was bred by his grandfather, James Hooper. “It took awhile to gure him out but now we’re getting into sync,” Tyson said.

When the NCHA Achievement Buckle showed up on Anthony Rosalez’s kitchen table in Murrieta, California, he was pleasantly surprised. “My wife said, ‘Look what you won,’” recalled the 44-year-old, who hadn’t been tracking his earnings. “It is very cool to have a buckle that I’ve won.”

Rosalez grew up riding his mother’s horses, but he had been away from the saddle for a number of years. “I fell in love with cutting as a kid and now I’m nally back,” he said. With his oldest children now grown, he decided it was nally

“me time” even though his youngest is three. Rosalez bought a ve-year-old mare named Keep On Counting. He rides on the weekends and competes in aged events as often as he can. “I would love this to be a family sport for us,” he said. “ ere’s de nitely still hope for the little one!”

University of Tennessee student Isabelle Herzke, 19, is a rising sophomore who focuses on veterinary studies when she isn’t riding her cutting horse, Jessies Flashy Gun. However, she might never have begun the sport had it not been for her father, Kevin, who spurred her competitive spirit.

“He showed me videos of him cutting and I said, ‘I want to do this!’” said Isabelle, who calls Germantown, Tennessee, home. “He took me to the barn, I met the trainer and I started learning to ride in January 2021.”

Five months later, she was entering shows riding “Jessie Bob,” her 18-year-old gelding. Isabelle reports being nervous of the cows and wary of the fast pace of cutting at rst, but working with trainer Zeke Entz helped. “What got me over my lack of con dence was building trust with my horse,” she said.

e youngest of three girls, Isabelle now cuts alongside her sister, Emmie, 21.

e family shows in weekend events and at NCHA Cotton Circuit shows. “Sometimes all three of us are showing in the same class,” Isabelle said. “ e losers have to clean the winners’ boots!”

ABOVE : Emmie, Isabelle and Kevin Herzke with Jessies Flashy Gun. LEFT : Tyson Hoover aboard Playin Metallic.

PHOTO BY SETH PETIT

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John Mitchell Team

Colt Wolf has been cutting for less than a year. And while he didn’t win anything in his rst show, he and his mare Broken Haloes have been lucky enough to hit the ground running ever since. e duo pulled four checks, including winning the $50K Amateur at a weekend cutting event in Ada, Oklahoma, back in February of this year.

“Cutting is such an adrenaline rush — it’s an addiction,” said the 24-year-old, who lives on his family farm, Wolf Livestock, in Whitesboro, Texas. Owned by his father, Billy Wolf, the operation includes a hay business, of which Colt is the manager.

Colt caught the cutting bug last summer, spending time with trainer Bill Riddle at Riddle’s annual True Grit Cutting Clinic. He and “Halo” plan to attend again this summer. “I want to go cut more than anything, as much as I can,” he said.

Olavo Coutinho Nogueira, 34, knew his winnings from weekend shows had earned him enough to be eligible for the NCHA Achievement Buckle. “Every day, I would go to the mailbox,” said Nogueira. “When it came, I thought, ‘Good, now let’s win more of these.’ is is such a milestone for me!”

He learned to ride cutting horses on his father’s ranch in Brazil when he was eight. After moving to the city of Sao Paulo with his mother, Nogueira focused on his studies — but he often found himself thinking back to his early cutting experiences. In 2017, Nogueira came to Fort Worth, Texas, to watch the NCHA Futurity Open Finals and his passion for cutting was reignited.

While working on a graduate degree, Nogueira reached out to trainer Cara Brewer and asked for help getting started again. “I had to start from zero,” he said. “Cara has been a mentor for me from day one: She has also helped me nd good horses.”

Nogueira recently graduated with his MBA and now lives in Bentonville, Arkansas, with wife Luiza, their son, Tom, and newborn daughter, Marina. One of his dreams is to win a major NCHA championship at the Will Rogers Coliseum in Forth Worth, Texas.

“With Cara and Scott Brewer’s help, I will keep improving and working toward this,” said Nogueira. “Every day, I wake up and think about those goals.”

Always a horse lover, Mary Misgen, 31, of Eaton, Colorado, gained her rst cutting experience after graduating from Colorado State University, where she took her degree in Equine Science. “ e day after graduation, I moved to Ardmore, Oklahoma, where I got a job as breeding manager with Bill and Michelle Cowan,” she said. “ at’s where I really got into cutting.”

After years of managing brood mares and loping horses, Misgen moved back to Colorado where she met her current trainer Kenny Platt and became close with him and his wife. “ ey allow me to keep the horse bug going,” Misgen said.

Today she works as a processing and receiving manager for Five Rivers Cattle Feeding. Being around 60,000 head of cattle on a daily basis has actually proven useful to her cutting.“I think it has helped me in selecting cattle in the cutting pen,” she said, adding that there is still always an element of the unknown with cows “that keeps everyone on an even playing eld.”

Winning the NCHA Achievement Buckle has been a “bucket list” dream for Misgen. “It’s validation that your goals are achievable,” she said. “It really is so special, and it’s awesome that the NCHA does this!”

Anthony Rosalez’s youngest, Eliana, 3, plays with her father’s horse Keep On Counting. Olavo Coutinho Nogueira, with wife Luiza and son Tom, pose with their horse Champayne Supernova.

Achievement Buckle Earners

FROM NOVEMBER 14, 2022 TO MARCH 10, 2023

Allison Fisher

Anthony Rosalez

Bayleigh J Koren

Bobby P Kearney

Bonnie Clifton

Brad Jordan

Brook Hintze

Bryce Karl

Carson Mills Wright

Codie Lee Raffield

Cole Burns

Colt Lee Wolf

David Holte

Deven Warren

Elin Lassen

Eva Blanton

Fagen E Way

Glenn M Kaplan

Greg Walker

Heather Yarbro

Isabelle G Herzke

James Allen Tanner

John M Barnett

Johnny Lynn Ring

Josh Letsis

Kayla Jernigan

Ken Nelson

Kristoffer Jon Lumby

Lauren Lasseter

FROM TOP :

Mary Misgen aboard Metallic Jim.

Leighton Cox

Loni Weaver

Marisa Anderson

Mark Ignatius Gilles

Mark Weinzierl

Mary Misgen

Matthew S Robinson

Maya Blanche

Michelle Leanne Duckett

Misty Dawn Lumby

Nicole Rasmussen

Olavo Coutinho Nogueira

Rob Forman

Robin J Snell

Robyn K Killion

Ryder Flynn

Sandy Kaplan

Sarah Dawson

Savannah Foxworth

Shelby Erle Mehrten

Siegfried Guenther

Stephanie Lee

Sunny Courtwright

Tandi Marshall

Taryn Norris

Todd Cruthird

Toni Heilman

Tyler Shay Gates

Tyson Hooper

Colt Wolf and Broken Haloes in the show pen. The NCHA Achievement Award buckle created by Gist Silversmiths.

PHOTO BY SETH PETIT

PHOTO BY SUZANNE SYLVESTER

Will Rogers Equestrian Center • Fort Worth, Texas

$115,000

Stevies Blondie $115,000

$100,000

ABOVE : Gary Gist, age 12 , with his father, Byron Gist, in Oakdale, California, at the Ten Steer Roping in 1958. Gary set an arena record time that day, which held for almost 25 years, and won two go-rounds in team roping with his dad.

GIST S I LV E R S M ITHS

CRAFTING THESE COVETED SILVER BELT BUCKLES STILL COMES DOWN TO ONE PERSON MAKING ONE THING AT A TIME.

By Marianne Dougherty

The rodeo belt buckle has a storied history that goes back to the Civil War when soldiers wore elaborate buckles made of brass and engraved with heraldry elements, a military tradition that began in Europe where soldiers were encouraged to look their best going into battle. When competitive and organized rodeos began in Colorado, cowboys did not wear belt buckles unless they were Civil War veterans. Later, saddle makers began crafting buckles with heraldry elements that evoked Western culture, and by 1920, the rst buckle was awarded to a professional rodeo cowboy at the Cow Palace in San Francisco, California.

Gist Silversmiths, the “O cial Buckle of the NCHA,” has an equally storied history that goes back more than ve decades. A roper who’d already won 80 championship buckles by the time he was drafted into the Marines and sent to Vietnam in 1966, Gary Gist learned how to rope a calf from his father, Byron, a member of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). Gist became a member himself when he was 12 and started competing when he was 16 — he and his father competed in the Pro Rodeo World Championships and the National Finals Rodeo. When he got back from Vietnam in 1968, Gist started roping again right away. But he knew he had to make a living, and he hoped that he could do it in the industry he loved. Growing up in Lakeside, California, he’d spent a lot of time with his father, an ornamental ironsmith, who made everything from weathervanes to ornate fencing. So, Gist knew something about artistic design and manufacturing. Reasoning that he could build a business making trophy buckles, he’d won enough of his own by then, Gist ran a one-man operation out of a small shop where he made buckles by hand while perfecting his craft with the help of master engravers and silversmiths who were willing to mentor him.

e goal was always to make a better buckle. Now, 55 years later, the family-owned business, headquartered in Placerville, California, in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, makes the nest Western buckles and jewelry in the world, and their buckles are the gold standard for leading equine, livestock, and rodeo associations. eir partnership with the National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) began in the 1980s when they were commissioned to create buckles for the premier cutting events in the country. Today, new faces on the NCHA cutting scene receive the coveted Achievement Award buckle, presented when competitors earn their rst $1,000 at weekend cuttings.

“ e National Cutting Horse Association has been one of our longest partners in this venture,” said Jennifer Folsom, vice president of marketing and business development. “Because of the rich heritage of that sport, they place great value on the quality of their awards programs and have tried to retain an heirloom quality to their awards over the decades. We are proud to have been able to deliver pieces that re ect that heritage.”

e NCHA Triple Crown events have presented top-of-theline Gist championship buckles, as well as nalist buckles, for arena accomplishments for many decades. Today, Gist buckles are awarded across the NCHA’s 14-member Circuit Program, which spans across North American and Europe. Circuit champions in 13 classes receive specially designed Gist Championship buckles. Countless NCHA a liates and locally produced events also seek out the Gist brand to award buckles to their champions.

ABOVE :

(Left to right:) Gary Gist, Buster Welch and Jim Calhoun at an NCHA Sponsors trophy presentation.

5.

7.

1. NCHA Weekend Circuit Champion. 2. Prestigious gold buckle for Super Stakes Open Champion. 3. Champion buckle presented at The Bash, held at Bosque Ranch. 4. Coveted gold buckle award to NCHA Futurity Open Champion owner and rider 5. NCHA Circuit Finals event champion buckle. 6. Buckle presented to the champion of the 2022 NYCHA Bravehearts Shootout. 7. Custom brand buckle made exclusively for the 6666 Ranch, commissioned by Dr. Glenn Blodgett, DVM.

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In the early years, parts were hand-cut from at sheet metal, and every buckle was made by hand from silver with gold accents.

“Gary had three-dimensional sculptures made depicting certain images, say a cutting horse, that he used to make very detailed steel dies,” said Folsom. “ e gures were diestamped onto metal and placed on the buckle like ornamentation. All the lettering or the oral design or the gures were cut from a contrasting metal and hand-soldered onto the at face of the buckle.”

Gist is known for its authentic event motifs, which had originally been sculpted from clay, a laborious process. Now digital technology allows them to produce three-dimensional detailing a good deal faster than before without sacri cing quality.

While the company’s primary focus is belt buckles, both awards and personal, they also hand-craft jewelry. eir Traditions Collection is an a ordable line of sterling silver and gold jewelry that includes earrings, bracelets, pendants, and scarf slides inspired by traditional western and contemporary styling. Gist also works with many of its clients to include ranch brands and logos on personalized, heirloom-quality pieces, from custom jewelry to personalized belt buckles that can be handed down from one generation to the next. Using precious metals like gold and silver, each piece is crafted with careful attention to detail.

“ e personalized service provided by our sales sta assures that each client receives the buckle or jewelry of their heart’s desire,” said Folsom. e process, she added, can take from six to 10 weeks with allowances for design and customization.

Over the years the company has made custom belt buckles for a number of celebrities, including Garth Brooks, who has a couple dozen and counting. Some of the buckles recognize his achievements in the entertainment industry. One was pre-

ABOVE : Young Gary Gist sculpting a pleasure horse motif.

FROM TOP TO BOTTOM : NCHA Buckle Set commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the NCHA, sold out limited edition.

Soldering an NCHA World Champion buckle takes skill and attention to every detail.

sented to the singer by the National Football League (NFL) when he sang the National Anthem at Super Bowl XXVII. e singer is one of the only performers to have had seven albums achieve diamond status with two million sold. To commemorate the occasion, the state of Tennessee commissioned a special buckle called Seven Diamonds, featuring all seven albums with a diamond in the center of each one.

Gist Silversmiths was asked to design a buckle when American Pharoah won the Triple Crown of horse racing in 2015 and was elected to the National Museum of Racing’s Hall of Fame. Gist made one to commemorate Larry Bird’s career. Bird led the Boston Celtics to three National Basketball Association (NBA) championships and is considered one of the greatest pure shooters of all time. e intricate design features his number, 33, on gold shamrocks; a leprechaun spinning a basketball (the Celtics logo); his name, and the years he played: 1970 to 1992. e Denver Broncos also commissioned a special buckle when they won Super Bowl 50.

“We’ve done specialty buckles under $100,” said Folsom, “and some gold and silver buckles with precious gemstones that cost more than $20,000.”

With a sta of several dozen, including Gist’s two sons, Branden and Chad, Gist Silversmiths remains dedicated to the craft. A single buckle requires 28 steps, each one executed by people who are experts in the eld. eir master engraver, said Folsom, has been with the company for 40 years. As the industry continues to evolve, Gist intends to keep pace, proud of the fact that each and every one of their buckles is American-made.

FROM TOP TO BOTTOM : Gary Gist with his long-time master silversmith, Sergio. The Larry Bird championship buckle. Exclusive custom gold buckle presented in 2016 by the State of Tennessee to Garth Brooks in recognition of being the first recording artist to earn seven diamond album certifications.

2023 Breeder’s Invitational Champions and Reserve Champions

Thanks to all the competitors and show attendees. We really appreciate your support.

Classic Challenge Open Champion SWEET LIL KITKAT by KIT KAT SUGAR

Rider: John Mitchell

Owner: Renato Resende Barbosa

Classic Challenge Open Reserve Champion BE STILL by DUAL REY

Rider: Michael Cooper

Owner: Star C Land & Cattle LLC

Classic Challenge Open Limited Champion MISTER TEMPTATION by METALLIC CAT

Rider: Clay Carter

Owner: Carol Anderson Ward

Classic Challenge Open Limited Reserve Champion HOTANDBOTHERED by HOTTISH

Rider: Austin Johnson

Owner: C Heart Ranch LLC

Classic Challenge Non Pro Champion BOWFLEX by SMART ARISTOCRAT

Rider: Duff Sinclair

Owner: Billie Aylesworth

Classic Challenge Non Pro Reserve Champion FINGERS IN THE REINS by DONT STOPP BELIEVIN

Rider: Ryan Rapp

Owner: Phil & Mary Ann

Rapp

Classic Challenge Non Pro Limited Champion CAT IT OUT by DUAL REY

Rider: Katie Rice

Owner: Tarin & Katie Rice

Classic Challenge Non Pro Limited Reserve Champion LILY VON SHTUPP by STEVIE REY VON

Rider: Bryan Barton

Owner: Bryan and/or Janell Barton

Classic Challenge Amateur Champion NITREYIOUS by METALLIC CAT

Rider: Reyly Plendl

Owner: Regan & Reyly

Plendl

Classic Challenge Amateur Reserve Champion BOWFLEX by SMART ARISTOCRAT

Rider: Duff Sinclair

Owner: Billie Aylesworth

Classic Challenge

Intermediate Amateur Champion OVERTHEBOONFORYOU by ONCE IN A BLU BOON

Owner/Rider: Julie Beasley

Classic Challenge

Intermediate Amateur Reserve Champion PW SHOWMAKER by ONCE IN A BLU BOON

Rider: Bobby Woods

Owner: Pete Woods

Classic Challenge

Limited Amateur Champion SUEN TOO SPOOK by BOON TOO SUEN

Rider: Makenzy Barnes

Owner: Jeff Barnes

Classic Challenge Limited Amateur Reserve Champion IGNITED by SMOOTH AS A CAT

Rider: Kylar Terlip

Owner: Kaleb Terlip 661.327.7511 fax

PHOTOS BY SUZANNE SYLVESTER

ABOVE :

Touring the Fort Worth Stockyards last summer.

OPPOSITE PAGE : Jette Jürgensen aboard American Cat Beauty competing in Cremona, Italy.

PHOTO BY MONIKA FIDDRICH

GERMANY

FROM WITh GERMANY

LOVE

EUROPEAN CUTTING CHAMPION JETTE JÜRGENSEN FORGES CROSSCULTURAL BONDS.

KATE DANIEL

PHOTO BY BONAGA COMMUNICATIONS

ette Jürgensen’s a ability, enthusiasm and unfaltering positivity would be enough to make her an exceptional international cutting ambassador, but her talent, skill and work ethic make her extraordinary. e 18-year-old rider has established herself as one of the NYCHA’s brightest stars, claiming several titles while doing her part to take cutting across the world.

Jürgensen, who resides in Ehningen, a small village near Stuttgart, Germany, rst encountered Western-style riding at age six while on a family vacation in Tuscany, Italy. She was instantly enthralled and swiftly began searching for a place to ride Western in Germany. “It wasn’t easy, but we did it,” she said. A few years later, in 2015, she saw a cutting demonstration for the rst time at a horse fair.

“I said to my mom, ‘I want to do this, too. I want to try it,’” she recalled. “For Christmas that year, she gifted me a trial lesson, and since then, I’ve been hooked.”

By the summer of 2016, the family had their rst cutting horse, Inagaddavida, (CD Olena x Little Baby Sister x Dual Pep), a ectionately called “CD,” who was once trained by Paul Hansma before making his way to Europe. e family — who had previously had “nothing to do with horses” — began regularly attending shows in Germany and occasionally in Italy while Jürgensen and CD trained at Marienhof, Germany, with Ute Holm-Schäuble. After their rst competition in 2017, Jürgensen and CD quickly ascended the ranks, claiming titles including the 2018 European Reserve Champion Youth, 2019 European Champion Youth, multiple International German Reserve Champion Youth, and 2020 International German Champion Non-Pro. CD was additionally awarded NYCHA

“Equine Athlete of the Quarter” in 2021.

During the 2019 season, Jürgensen received a sponsorship to attend a clinic with NCHA Open Riders Hall of Fame trainer Chubby Turner and compete in the NCHA Foundation Scholarship Cutting in Fort Worth, Texas — her rst time in the U.S., where she instantly synced with the American NYCHA crew. “ ey immediately make you a part of the cutting family. Everyone is greet-

JETTE JÜRGENSEN

ing you with open arms and is super nice and supportive,” she said. “I made a lot of new friends...I just loved it.” e experience, she said, was a dream come true. Representing Germany in the grand entry was “surreal” and “a great honor.”

Jürgensen was invited to the Scholarship Cutting again in 2020 but could not attend due to the pandemic. Undeterred, she returned to Fort Worth to ride in July 2022. Josh Townsend of Main River Quarter Horses supported Jürgensen’s trip, including facilitating her riding of a horse named “Lourdes” from Solo Select Horses in the competition.

“He is one of the nicest people and trainers I’ve met,” she said of Townsend. “It was such a great time…It was a pleasure to work with him.”

Equally memorable was meeting one of her cutting heroes, trainer Paul Hansma — another dream ful lled. “ at was a great experience,” she said, recalling her delight at meeting the man who had trained “the most important horse in my life,” from whom she has “learned everything.”

In 2021, Jürgensen’s family purchased American Cat Beauty (Smart Rey Pepto x Savannah Cathouse x High-

“I have experienced how it is to ride on the other side of the ocean, I want to encourage other youth members to do this, too.”

TITLES

2018

EUROPEAN RESERVE CHAMPION YOUTH

2019

EUROPEAN CHAMPION YOUTH

2021

EUROPEAN CIRCUIT NON-PRO YEAR-END LEADER

NYCHA “EQUINE ATHLETE OF THE QUARTER”

EUROPEAN CIRCUIT $15,000

AMATEUR YEAR-END LEADER

INTERNATIONAL BAVARIAN CHAMPION YOUTH

INTERNATIONAL BAVARIAN NON-PRO CHAMPION

2022

EUROPEAN CIRCUIT NON-PRO YEAR-END LEADER

EUROPEAN CIRCUIT YOUTH YEAR-END LEADER

INTERNATIONAL BAVARIAN CHAMPION YOUTH

FROM TOP TO BOTTOM : Jürgensen riding Blu Duck (owned by Mary Dangelmayr) at the Grand Entry 2022. With her cutting hero, Paul Hansma.

PHOTO BY MONIKA FIDDRICH

brow Cat) from Rosy O’Grady’s cutting horses in Fanano, Italy. Jürgensen and “Big Jim” bonded quickly, taking on the 2021 show season with gusto.

e pair has earned several titles to date, including 2021 and 2022 European Circuit Non-Pro yearend leader; 2022 European Circuit Youth year-end leader; 2021 European Circuit $15,000 Amateur year-end leader; 2021 and 2022 International Bavarian Champion Youth; and 2021 International Bavarian Non-Pro Champion. ey’re now approaching the 2023 show season under the guidance of trainer Sven Oser of Oser Cutting Horses in Germany and Pietro Valeri and Martina Annovazzi from Rosy O’ Grady Cutting Horses in Fanano, Italy.

“I want to thank my parents and all the people who are part of my cutting life for their help and all those great opportunities,” she said.

As for her parents, they couldn’t be prouder.

“I’m very proud because I see how much time and passion she’s investing. And I really like her way of handling everything. She always has a positive attitude,” said Jürgensen’s mother, Monika Fiddrich, noting that her daughter sees every ride as a learning experience. When she isn’t collecting accolades, Jürgensen, who became Area 26 director of the NYCHA in 2022, supports others in their equestrian ambitions. In addition to lending CD to a edgling

rider at her local stable –– MB Quarter Horse in Gruol, Germany — she works hard to forge connections between youth riders around the world.

Jürgensen and her mother, president of the NCHA of Germany, said interest in cutting — and Western riding generally — is burgeoning in Europe, with a notable uptick in the past few years. Along with competing in the 2023 AQHA Youth World Cup and angling for a Final in her last youth year, one of Jürgensen’s many goals is to make European cutting youth visible and encourage other youth riders from the U.S. and Europe to pursue their dreams of international competition.

“I have experienced how it is to ride on the other side of the ocean,” she said. “I want to encourage other youth members to do this, too.”

After graduating from the youth division, Jürgensen plans to continue riding in Non-Pro, 50K Amateur and 15K Amateur classes. Ultimately, she aims to keep doing her best at what she loves while sharing that joy with others.

“When I go to a show, I want to be happy and do my job and try to get a good score and give it my best,” she said cheerily. “It always brings a smile to my face. I just want cutting to be my happy place.”

American Cat Beauty and Jette Jürgensen cutting in Cremona, Italy.

PHOTO BY BONAGA COMMUNICATIONS

Remarkable Achievements

The National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) recognizes the achievements of a select group of individuals by honoring them with an induction into the NCHA Hall of Fame. Each year, NCHA Members Hall of Fame inductees are nominated based on their contributions to the sport of cutting and are reviewed by a selection committee. is year, the 2023 NCHA Members Hall of Fame class of inductees were honored at the NCHA Hall of Fame Gala held in June at the NCHA Annual Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Double Futurity Winner Continues to Inspire Others

An NCHA Hall of Fame Rider with $4.3 million in lifetime earnings, Kathy Daughn is the only woman to have won the NCHA Futurity twice — in 1985, with e Gemnist, and in 2000, with Royal Fletch. A member of the National Cowgirl Hall of Fame, she now enters the NCHA Members Hall of Fame.

Daughn trains cutting horses and non-pro and amateur riders. She advocates education by teaching at clinics and producing training videos.

“I feel very privileged to have trained horses for some great people,” said Daughn. “Training is not a job, it’s been a way of life for me — a very good life for me — and I feel fortunate. Cutting has brought me friends, horses, business acumen — everything really.”

Larry Reeder introduced her to cutting in 1980. Harland and Jody Radomske owned e Gemnist and gave Daughn her rst solo training opportunity.

“Lindy Burch was also a great mentor and friend. Still is,” said Daughn. “I’ve ridden for Charlie and Kit Moncrief for 30 years. Kit’s a wonderful woman who does many great things.”

Getting her judge’s card led Daughn to become an NCHA director. She chaired the professional trainers committee and served on the limited aged event committee and the executive committee.

A positive role model, Daughn hopes she inspires young trainers to serve the NCHA in the governance structure.

KATHY DAUGHN

Ron Pietrafeso ELBERT, COLORADO

Kathy Daughn CUERO, TEXAS

Paula Gaughan LAS VEGAS, NEVADA

Teddy Johnson WHITESBORO, TEXAS

Rock Hedlund WILTON, CALIFORNIA

PHOTO BY FIT EQUINE

“It’s a very eye-opening experience,” she said. “I would encourage all trainers to participate in that aspect of this business and give back by serving [in NCHA].”

Daughn is humbled by her NCHA Members Hall of Fame nomination.

“It’s pretty magni cent to be recognized as somebody who has given back. When I got that call, it made me sit down and re ect on the years and what I’ve done. What a prestigious honor it is.”

She added: “Lindy lit the path, and I was fortunate to follow her. I hope that any young woman or man, but especially the girls, can look at us and say, ‘I can do that, too.’ You can accomplish anything you set your mind to.”

BY JENNIFER HORTON

PAULA GAUGHAN

South Point Hotel and Casino Show Producer Turned NCHA Hall of Fame Member

Paula Gaughan never expected to be inducted into the NCHA Members Hall of Fame, she was only determined to create the most user-friendly arena. “I was speechless, I couldn’t even speak, and the next thing I knew, I cried,” said Gaughan.

Her involvement in cutting began when Gaughan was looking for something exciting to do on the back of a horse. She found a local trainer who showed her a video of Kathy Daughn winning the NCHA Futurity, and she had to try it.

“Cutting just looked like so much fun, so I was put on a cutting horse in the round pen, and I didn’t fall o and that was it,” Gaughan said.

Gaughan went down the road showing horses with her daughter, Kate, and best friend, Gail, and that is when she decided to build what she calls the most user-friendly facility.

Producing shows started at their own arena, the Rocking K Arena, in Las Vegas, in 1989. Years later, Gaughan’s husband built the South Point Hotel and Casino and allowed her to design the arena. “It is like throwing a party and hoping everybody will come. When they do, it is just the greatest thing ever,” Gaughan said.

Today, Gaughan is always trying to nd ways to improve conditions for exhibitors and to make them feel more welcome. “ at is probably one of the biggest things for me is getting people in the door, getting people to come to my show and then getting them to come back,” she said.

In the future, Gaughan sees herself holding more shows, with bigger payouts and the best prizes for exhibitors. Gaughan thanks her husband for allowing her to design the South Point arena and produce shows since 1989 and for always supporting her. She also thanks her daughter, Kate, who has taken all Gaughan taught her and improved upon it, and her son-inlaw and trainer, Cookie, for his in nite patience. “And I thank God for all the wonderful horses.” BY

SARAH MCENTIRE

“Cutting has brought me friends, horses, business acumen — everything really.”

KATHY DAUGHN

LEFT : Paula Gaughan aboard Smart Whittle Wena, 1993.

OPPOSITE PAGE : Kathy Daughn and Desi (owned by Lee Tennison) strike a pose.

PHOTO BY MIDGE AMES

From 4-H Youth Classes to Serving the NCHA Members

Induction into the NCHA Members Hall of Fame is only a by-product of the years of dedication and positive impact Rock Hedlund is putting into the NCHA.

Hedlund’s cutting experience began as a youth competitor. He began his career showing in 4-H. It wasn’t until he saw his trainer, Wilson omas, working a cutting horse that he thought, “ at looks like a lot of fun.” He convinced his parents at the age of 15 to sell his 4-H horse to purchase his rst cutting horse.

When starting out his training career, his goals were to support the youth, teach non-pros and amateurs, and make cutting great.

Hedlund said, “When I think about it, being inducted is probably the highest achievement that a person in my position can get because it is voted on by your peers.”

Hedlund says being inducted into the NCHA Members Hall of Fame wasn’t something he set out to achieve — he was only hauling to shows, trying to make a living for his family and trying to be the best ambassador possible for the NCHA. As a youth kid, he never dreamed any of this would come true.

Hedlund has served on multiple committees over 18 years for the Paci c Coast Cutting Horse Association (PCCHA) and NCHA. Hedlund has also served as director, and on the trainers and executive committees. He is also an AAAA-accredited NCHA judge.

“It is amazing when I look back at what I’ve accomplished over the years and what I’ve done,” he said. “I’ve been very fortunate, and I need to thank God for that.”

He also thanks his wife, Landy, and his son, Cody, for their support throughout the years.

Hedlund doesn’t see his program changing and plans to continue teaching, giving lessons and training at the Echeta Ranch in Wilton, California. He only wants to give back to the cutting industry so it will continue for many years and give others the same opportunities he has had. BY

SARAH MCENTIRE

ABOVE , FROM LEFT : Rock Hedlund with stallion Meteles Cat. Rock piloting Diamond Lena Bars in the early 1980s.

OPPOSITE PAGE : The late Teddy Johnson.

ROCK HEDLUND

PHOTO BY MIDGE AMES

PHOTO BY ROSS HECOX

JOHNSON

His Million-Dollar Smile Lit Up the Show Pen for a Remarkable 34 Years

Teddy lived for the horses,” said Lynn Johnson, describing her husband of 17 years, Teddy Johnson. “For a person to be successful at it, you have to have that love in your heart for it.”

Teddy passed away at his home in Coushatta, Louisiana, on October 27, 2022. He is being inducted posthumously into the NCHA Members Hall of Fame.

“Teddy liked putting on shows,” added Lynn. “He was a people person. He would always ask people, ‘Have you ever ridden a cutting horse? Well come to my place, and I’ll put you on a horse!’ He was always promoting, always willing to help.”

Before he was a renowned competitor and clinician, Teddy was born the youngest of eight siblings in Duncan, Oklahoma, in 1948. He was horseback riding with his brothers from a young age, breaking colts and ponies for neighbors. Teddy also rode horses at the Sulphur, Oklahoma, sale barn for 50 cents per head. He once made $102 in one night!

His rst job as a cutting horse trainer came in 1982, at Clark’s Doc Bar Ranch.

An American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA) Professional Horseman, Teddy served as a clinician in seven di erent countries. His genuine wish was for everyone to experience the ride of a cutting horse, and he made it his life’s pursuit to help people learn to ride and show their cutting horses. He was the founder of the Longhorn Cutting Horse Association, helped to organize the American Cutting Horse Association (ACHA), and held a judge’s card for four di erent associations. In 2016, Teddy was inducted into the ACHA Rider Hall of Fame.

As a competitor, Teddy was crowned with AQHA world reserve championships, American Paint Horse Association (APHA) world championships, and two-time open champion in Italy and once in Austria, just to name a few accolades. He amassed a total of 1440.5 total AQHA points, many while riding the High Point Horse in 1996 and 2000.

Teddy is remembered not only for his achievements as a competitor, but as an open-arms ambassador for the sport of cutting.

BY SAVANNA ESCOBAR

“He would always ask people, ‘Have you ever ridden a cutting horse? Well come to my place, and I’ll put you on a horse!’”

LYNN JOHNSON, TEDDY JOHNSON’S WIFE

A Retired Police Officer and Active Cutting Horse Breeder, this Colorado Native has Loyally Served his Community and the Cutting Horse Industry

Ron Pietrafeso grew up with horses, but he didn’t see his rst cutting horse until years later at the National Western Stock Show & Rodeo in Denver, Colorado.

“I was so enthused when I saw that kind of animal and thought I’d someday like to have one,” Pietrafeso recalled.

In the early 1990s, Pietrafeso and his wife, Adrienne, bought their rst cutting horse, Missinagun, at the NCHA Futurity Cutting Horse Sale and hired Lloyd Cox to train and show the horse. Since then, they’ve developed a successful breeding program at their Missing Creek Ranch in Elbert, Colorado.

e couple showed several homebred horses in amateur classes for numerous years, but most of their time was spent hauling their three daughters — Jessica, Gianna and Nicole — to NYCHA events. e girls quali ed for several Youth World Finals and were each inducted into the NYCHA Hall of Fame.

“ is is a family deal,” he said. “What a way to spend time with your kids, traveling down the road to shows. I know what it did for our family and other families, and I wanted to get more youth involved.”

After serving 20 years in law enforcement, during which he helped establish the Denver Police Department’s rst mounted patrol, Pietrafeso retired from the police force and dedicated himself even more to the cutting horse industry. He served as the NCHA vice president, president-elect (under Phil Rapp), and then became president for the 2019-2020 term. Under his leadership, NCHA initiated an electronic voting system for members, created an annual award honoring event secretaries and started monthly conference calls for the president and past presidents.

Pietrafeso continues to serve on NCHA committees and raise ve to 10 colts a year, some of which are by their stallion, Rap Cat. He credits his family, Lloyd Cox, and Phil Rapp for contributing to his success.

“ ere are so many down-to-earth, good people in this organization; it’s such an honor to be around them,” he said. “I’m humbled to be considered [in the NCHA Members Hall of Fame]. I’m lucky to have served beside some of the great horsemen and leaders in this organization.”

BY JENNIFER DENISON

FROM TOP TO BOTTOM : Ron and Adrienne Pietrafeso with their three daughters in 2002. Ron aboard Dox Josey Lena.

PHOTO BY JUDY SPAULDING

PHOTO COURTESY OF TETON RIDGE

HORSE OF THE YEAR

Three horses were named “2022 Horse of the Year” by the National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA). They are: Third Edge, Open; Dont Stopp Twice, Non-Pro; and Prince Of Cat, Amateur.

THIRD EDGE

Natural talent, combined with a loving trainer and owners, helped give the 2022 NCHA Open Horse of the Year his edge.

If you didn’t know who ird Edge was at the beginning of 2022, that probably didn’t last for long. e red roan stallion made headlines when he snagged the Open Super Stakes Co-Championship at the National Cutting Horse Association Super Stakes in March, then won the same title outright at the NCHA Summer Spectacular a few months later. By the end of the year, ird Edge was unsurprisingly crowned the NCHA Open Horse of the Year (HOY).

Bred by Steven Feiner’s SMF Cutting Horses, who owned him until August 2022, ird Edge managed to nab $169,000 throughout 2022 under the guidance of trainer Wesley Galyean. Galyean has been involved with the stallion since the beginning and said he knew from the very rst cow he worked that ird Edge was special.

“For him to be the Horse of the Year, it was a dream come true not just for me, but so many people involved,” Galyean said. “It was a very special thing for me and my family, Steven and his family and Teton [Ridge]. It’s just one of those things that everybody who was involved will remember for a lifetime.”

Now owned by Teton Ridge, the stallion has a few more shows on his schedule, then will retire fully to a new career: producing the next generation. ird Edge stands at Brazos Valley Stallion Station, and his rst foal crop is due to hit the ground in 2024.

“With ird Edge being able to breed mares of all directions, he really stood out to us,” said Brazos Valley Stallion Station owner Jeremy Barwick of Teton Ridge’s interest in the horse. “He crosses very nicely with many of the horses in our band of broodmares already purchased by Teton Ridge. [ e HOY] accolade on his resume shows everyone else what we see in him — that he is the full package.”

OPPOSITE PAGE : Third Edge is a “natural talent.”

BY KRISTIN PITZER

NON-PRO HORSE OF THE YEAR

DONT STOPP TWICE

An injury early in Dont Stopp Twice’s two-year-old year didn’t slow him down in the run for the Non-Pro Horse of the Year title.

Dont Stopp Twice (Dont Stopp Believin x Dont Happen Twice x Woody Be Tu ) was bred for success.

e Rapp family purchased the gelding at the National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) Western Bloodstock Futurity sale as a yearling and Ryan Rapp was to take on the project of training and showing him.

After watching his dad, Phil Rapp, train and show the sire and dam, Ryan planned to train the gelding as an individual. Ryan said, “ ey can be bred as good as you can possibly get one bred, but they’re only as good as they are.”

A stall injury after getting cast early in his two-year-old year resulted in delayed training. Ryan wasn’t concerned because the gelding was right on track to be shown at the NCHA Futurity the following year.

ey made the NCHA Futurity Non-Pro nals. However, the gelding’s four-year-old year at the Cattlemen’s, Ryan recalls, is when he felt things came together for the horse. But then, after some discouraging shows, Ryan was ready to give up on the gelding. His dad

encouraged him to keep showing and predicted a Brazos Bash win. Ryan wasn’t convinced, but he showed anyway. e gelding would prove Phil correct after the pair won, marking a 224.

“ e Bash nals run was probably the best run I ever had on that horse because that was the best that he had shown,” said Ryan.

It all came down to the Southern Cutting Futurity for who would claim the Non-Pro Horse of the Year title. Since Ryan only needed to make the nals, he planned on a clean run and to cut the best cows he could. e pair squeaked into the nals on the bubble.

“He was really there for me in those two runs when I really needed him,” said Ryan.

Ryan piloted the gelding to win $120,906 in lifetime earnings. Dont Stopp Twice is now owned by Gale Force Quarter Horses and will continue to be shown in limited aged events.

BY SARAH MCENTIRE

ABOVE : Ryan Rapp aboard Dont Stopp Twice.

PHOTO BY LYNDSEY LAMELL

AMY BELL MEMORIAL AMATEUR HORSE OF THE YEAR

PRINCE OF CAT

Sometimes the horse we need is not necessarily the horse we’re searching for. at scenario played out in the best way possible when Rob Kuiper stumbled upon 2017 gelding Prince Of Cat, by Smooth As A Cat and out of a Dual Rey mare named Call Me Queen B. e little gelding’s big stops and tremendous e ort at such a young age made the purchase an easy decision for Kuiper.

“We were at Beau Galyean’s to try threeyear-olds,” he recalled. “ ey were working two-year-olds when we caught a look at him and said, ‘We need that horse.’ Beau told us that he was only that price today, and if we left the property and came back, he would be way more. Needless to say, I bought him that day.”

Kuiper barn named the gelding “Beau,” and under the guidance of Russ Elrod the pair began their journey in the pen during Beau’s

four-year-old year. Crowned co-reserve champion in the Limited Amateur Derby at their rst show, the 2021 Breeder’s Invitational, the gelding continued to prove time and again what an outstanding aged event and amateur mount he was. Kuiper and Beau made the nals at every major aged event in 2022, including being named champion in the 5/6 Amateur at Cattlemen’s and reserve in the same class at the Ike earlier. Approximately $70,000 of Beau’s $115,906 lifetime earnings was won last year alone.

“Beau was just so honest, tried so hard and hit his big stops,” Kuiper said. “He was really special that way. Always dead accurate — accuracy was his big thing. Even if I were to make a mistake and ask him to do the wrong thing at the wrong time, he wouldn’t go. Beau was the same every time. e same consistency, the same accuracy, the same e ort, every time. He’s straight business, in and out of the pen.”

At this time, Kuiper has tentative plans to let Beau make another rider’s dreams come true due to his excellence in the amateur pen. In nal re ection on a banner year, Kuiper thanked Russ and Julie Elrod “for believing in my dream for this horse,” and Ryan Elrod “for getting him ready for me.”

Kuiper added, “I’d also like to thank the people that helped Beau and I during every run: Lloyd Cox, Clay Johnson and Sean Flynn. eir encouragement, support and guidance mean more to me than they can ever imagine.”

BY JESSICA O’CONNOR

An unexpected find leads to a Horse of the Year title.

LEFT : Rob Kuiper piloting Prince of Cat.

PHOTO BY EMILEE COFFEEN

3. G EZY - Double G Cutting LLC - $2,163.89

LIMITED NON-PRO

1. MR KLEAN - Dottie St Clair Hill - $6,491.67

2. MLP CAPTAINFANTASTIC - Elizabeth Para - $4,327.78

3. LONG REY FROM HOME - Fults Ranch LTD - $2,163.89

AMATEUR

1. COWBOYS N HIPPIES - Paul K Smith - $6,491.67

2. VON A WHITE - Clarke Butte Ranch - $4,327.78

3. STAR OF VALOR - Cara Brewer - $2,163.89

INTERMEDIATE AMATEUR

1. RED REBEL NATION - Rebecca Drake - $6,491.67

2. SHAKE YER SUGAR - Lindy Ashlock - $4,327.78

3. METALLIC FIESTA - Zeb Corvin - $2,163.89

LIMITED AMATEUR

1. LOVE STUCK BABY - Joel Colgrove - $6,491.67

2-4. REYZ A FLITE - Ashley Hulbert - $2,163.89

2-4. SHES A REBEL CAT - Rusten Smith - $2,163.89

2-4. KIT KAT SMOKE - - $2,163.89 WR Diversified Holdings LP

OVER $116,000 WAS PAID OUT AT THE 2023 NCHA SUPER STAKES! Thank you to all our members who nominated their foals to the NCHA Stallion Foal Program! For more information, please visit bit.ly/stallion foal or contact us at stallion.foal@nchacutting.com!

A Cutting Connection

PHOTO BY CRISTINA MUTIS

Bailey Jo Jeffries enjoyed the cutting experience of a lifetime under saddle with mentor Cara Brewer through the Art of the Cowgirl , a program that pairs masters in Western sports and lifestyle with the next generation.

By Sterry Butcher

ABOVE :

An early morning ride in Buena Vista, New Mexico, heading out to gather cattle from the pasture. (Left to right:) Bailey Jo Jeffries, Paul Hansma and Ada Tucker.

One afternoon, on a New Mexico ranch last August, Bailey Jo Je ries eased a bay gelding forward, then waited for the steer to realize he was alone. What happened next was the culmination of a 10-day journey into a special cutting experience, a brief suspension of time when Bailey Jo and the horse worked as a seamless, unconscious unit. No second guessing. No fumbling or bad timing. “In that moment,” she said, “it felt like slow motion. I felt every move. I knew where to have my hand and body and where to sit. I knew my horse was not going to let him get back to the herd. It all came together and, man, it was so much fun.”

Whooping congratulations at the end of her run was veteran cutting champ Cara Brewer, who had mentored Bailey Jo as part of a fellowship facilitated by an organization called Art of the Cowgirl. “We really worked on herd work and body position and working the cow,” Brewer said. “We worked on everything. She made a huge amount of progress.”

A bit of history helped bring the two together. Bailey Jo’s father, Ken, was a regular on the same cutting circuit as Brewer when she was a child. Bailey Jo accompanied her father

everywhere. Brewer remembered how Bailey Jo would sit on a fence, watching the loping pen, the practice runs. “She just ate up everything with cutting,” Brewer recalled.

Ken Je ries passed away when his daughter was 13, and her acquaintanceship with Brewer faded. Bailey Jo went on to study animal science at Kansas State University, which led to a career managing an equine reproduction lab. She’s also competed a bit in reined cowhorse and cutting classes along the way. Now 26 years old, she’s looking to devote more time to the show pen. A friend who’d gone through the Art of the Cowgirl’s fellowship in the past urged Bailey Jo to look into the program. When Bailey Jo saw Brewer was the horsemanship master teacher, she applied, and was chosen. “All the candidates were great,” Brewer said, “but Bailey stuck out in my mind.”

Art of the Cowgirl is a multi-faceted extravaganza with a mission like no other. Held over ve very busy January days in Queen Creek, Arizona, the event is an exposition teeming with high-quality Western art, clothing, gear, jewelry and tack. It’s also a platform for a women’s ranch rodeo, a World’s Greatest Horsewoman competition, and contests for working cowdogs and breakaway roping. Add

FACING : Bailey Jo Jeffries walks the herd on Shes Metallic.

“Our fellowship program is to help cultivate women’s talents, and hopefully our recipients will one day be masters who can share with the next generation.”

TAMMY PATE ART OF THE COWGIRL FOUNDER

PHOTO BY CRISTINA MUTIS

on a live art auction, an elite horse and cowdog sale, clinics and demonstrations, a tradeshow, and loads of hands-on workshops in skills like beading and silver work, leather carving and rawhide braiding.

While plenty of men participate in the workshops and ll the stands, the competitors, artists, and the horse and dog consignors are all women, as are many of the master teachers, makers, vendors and workshop leaders.

“We’re honoring and showcasing women,” said founder Tammy Pate. “ is is a celebration of our culture. A lot of ranch women and artists don’t pat themselves on the back and are not self-promoting. Art of the Cowgirl can be that for them. We give them a voice.”

e gathering was an immediate hit. ough only in its fourth year, more than 5,000 people attended the 2023 celebration, and all are welcome regardless of their status as a city slicker or the punchiest of buckaroos. “ e common denominator is the horse,” Pate explained.

“People love horses — riding them, watching them. Our event is the art of horsemanship.”

A non-pro t out t, Art of the Cowgirl relies on big name sponsors along with grants and donations to fund its programming. Satellite summertime events in Montana further facilitate a series of fellowships o ered yearly. Applications open each winter for fellowships in elds like rawhide braiding, saddle making, photography and horsemanship. Fellowship recipients spend about two weeks in close study with their mentors. Art of the Cowgirl pays for the student’s expenses and materials; mentors are paid an honorarium. “We want the masters to pick someone they feel a heart connection with,” said Pate. “We hope they develop a relationship that’s ongoing and, in fact, that’s happened with all of them. Our fellowship program is to help cultivate women’s talents, and hopefully our recipients will one day be masters who can share with the next generation.”

ABOVE : Bailey Jo Jeffries and Cara Brewer at Art of the Cowgirl.

PHOTO BY TAYLOR BREEDING

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT : An artist working during the Quick Draw at the 2023 Art of the Cowgirl event. Fellowship recipient Shandon Camarillo-Whitson works on a sculpture. Handmade art and gear filled 80 booths at the Art of the Cowgirl Tradeshow.

PHOTO BY SLOAN MILSTEIN

PHOTO BY ANNE ALBERT

PHOTO BY LAUREN SUMMERS

Bailey Jo and Brewer reconnected by phone, talking about goals for their time together. “I wanted to learn how to best select cattle,” Bailey Jo said. “I was wanting to be smoother and cleaner in my cuts.” After a couple days riding at Brewer’s place in Jay, Oklahoma, the two set out for Buena Vista, New Mexico, at the invitation of champion cutting horse trainer Bill Riddle. “It was a huge ranch in the middle of nowhere,” Bailey Jo recalled. “All the cattle were turned out. We’d gather on thousands of acres and work in pens all day long.”

It wasn’t just Bailey Jo and Brewer on site. Present along with Riddle were fellow cutting horse legends Paul Hansma and Lindy Burch, along with Brewer’s husband, Scott, also an experienced competitor and trainer. “All ve of us were there to help her out and learn as much as she could,” said Brewer. “Every day she got the bene t from all ve of us. Someone would see something di erent every time.”

Of course, these familiar names represent the top tier of the cutting world. Riddle, Hansma and Burch are all NCHA Hall of Famers; Brewer was bestowed that same honor this spring. eir career earnings total in the millions. at all-star lineup was pretty intimidating, at least at rst.

“I was very, very nervous,” Bailey Jo acknowledged, though the supportive atmosphere quickly melted her jitters. “It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, not only learning from Cara but all these other top elite cutting trainers. ey were helping turn back and critiquing me all week. It was really amazing.”

Her favorite moment was that memorable, near perfect run on Nito Sass, a 14-year-old gelding owned by Jim Haworth and trained by Brewer. “He’s a phenomenal horse,” she said. “I’d struggled in the beginning of the week because I’d never been on that caliber of horse. He makes big strong moves. But I knew where I needed to be for him to be at his highest potential. Everyone started cheering and hollering and I just had a huge grin.”

Brewer was likewise really pleased with the outcome of the fellowship. “What that week showed me is that Bailey’s an extremely hard worker,” said Brewer. “She’s

FROM TOP TO BOTTOM :

Bailey Jo cutting a cow aboard Nitro Sass. “This was when I felt like everything was coming together!” Bailey Jo (left) and Ada Tucker riding three-year-olds in order to introduce them to new experiences.

PHOTO BY CRISTINA MUTIS

PHOTO BY AUBREE CLEVELAND

great to be around, picked up things really fast and she’s appreciative of all the help she got.”

Mentor and student reunited to give a twoday cutting clinic and a demonstration at the Art of the Cowgirl event in January. Brewer, who spends half the year on the road, accompanied by her husband and their 10-year-old son, works Art of the Cowgirl into her schedule every year. Although Brewer is a fellowship master, she gains validation from attending the event, where she’s surrounded by other keenly talented women, and where husbands mind the stroller or tote the diaper bags while their loved ones compete. “One of my proudest accomplishments is my family,” she said. “I’m learning how to balance family and my career.

It’s amazing to see the support the women get from their families.”

At home in Wichita, Kansas, Bailey Jo has opened her own reproductive services business whose name, Legacy Equine Management, is a nod to the love of horses that her father passed to her. She hears Brewer’s mantra when she rides: “All you have to do is stop, draw and turn with the cow.” at’ll be important in future shows. But what she takes from her fellowship goes beyond knowing when to give a little cowside leg or how to work a ag. “ is has been so much more than improving my cutting skills,” she said. “It’s truly like a family. I’ve made lasting memories and relationships with these women. I feel so empowered.”

ABOVE : Exploring the New Mexico countryside after a day of working the horses. (From left:) Shelby Mindrup, Ada Tucker, Clayton Carter and Brand Brewer.

PHOTO BY BAILEY JO JEFFRIES

ABOVE : On a misty morning, Barney Mac Smith and Madison Crum Smith survey their ranch in Weatherford, Texas.

The NEW BREED •

Love of the land, the lifestyle, the horses and each other are sustaining this husband-and-wife team as they build their Beechfork Ranch cutting horse breeding business.

BY TYLER HICKS

PHOTOGRAPHS BY JUSTIN CLEMONS

fter exiting I-20 driving west from Fort Worth, Texas, you’ll pass an array of feed stores, churches and small ranches. e road turns into a single, tree-lined lane with sun-dappled, wide-open spaces which belie the level of industriousness taking place in this tranquil place. Nestled in one spacious, picturesque corner of this slice of Weatherford, Texas, is an equine empire called Beechfork Ranch.

Owned by Kelly Crum and operated by his daughter, Madison Crum Smith, and her husband, Barney Mac Smith, the ranch is a sprawling, 500-acre operation brimming with cattle and high-quality quarter horse broodmares and foals. Oh, and some kittens, an Australian Shepherd named Cheech and, to top it all o , a goat.

“He just showed up one day, and he never left,” Madison, 29, said of the goat. “Now he just hangs around, so it’s his home now, too.”

Madison and her husband have a deep, unbridled a ection for animals, and they’ve been raising cattle and cutting horses together for roughly three years. ey married in January 2020, and for a wedding present, Madison bought One Red Mist: a mare who is Barney’s “favorite horse of all time.” Since then, the mare (One Time Pepto x Cat Mist x High Brow Cat) has become a great producer of winning foals for the ranch. On the same day one of her o spring — gelding Red Rebel Nation — won the 2023 NCHA Super Stakes Rios of Mercedes 4-Year-Old Intermediate Amateur class, One Red Mist had another foal born.

at’s just one example of the couple’s ability to turn their passion into pro t.

Both studied animal science in college (she at Texas A&M, he at Texas Tech) and they’ve both been immersed in that world almost their entire lives.

“ is has been my passion for as long as I can remember,” said Madison, who got a Shetland pony — a mare named Buttermilk — for her sixth birthday. e pony and her

BELOW :

What beats the excitement and promise of a new baby? Madison and Barney check on mare Hellava Boon and her filly, born about two weeks earlier.

“ THIS HAS BEEN MY PASSION FOR AS LONG AS I CAN REMEMBER.”

M ADISON C RUM S MI T H

copies of Quarter Horse News were her most prized possessions.

She doesn’t recall exactly where she met her husband, only that he was “always there.” It makes sense: Barney, 32, has been an accomplished cutting horse rider and mainstay at NCHA competitions for the last decade. e pair most likely met when Barney was living and riding nearby at Phil and Mary Ann Rapp’s place. Barney counts both among his mentors in cutting, breeding cutting horses and, indeed, life lessons. (Phil was even an o ciant at the couple’s wedding.)

Together, Madison and Barney embody the future of the burgeoning sport: young, science-savvy entrepreneurs who are leaning into tried-and-true breeding practices while adding their own twist when appropriate. Horses who call Beechfork home have won major cutting events like the Paci c Coast Futurity Open Classic Challenge, the Breeder’s Invitational Classic Amateur, the Cotton Stakes, the West Texas Futurity Open and Amateur classes, and many others. Plus, back in 2017, the Beechfork-owned palomino stallion

BFR Igniting Sparks (Shining Spark x Sliden Wright By x Smart Little Lena) earned the title of AQHA Superhorse. More recently, its champion stallion NRR Cat King Cole is helping Barney and Madison as they strive for a whole new stratum of achievement in the cutting industry.

NRR Cat King Cole is a retired world champion cutting horse who was the title sponsor for the National Cutting Horse Association’s Super Stakes event this past spring. Madison and Barney are actively breeding the NCHA Hall of Famer, freezing, selling and shipping his semen around the world. It’s a natural role for the retired champ: His sire is the legendary High Brow Cat, whose ospring have won more than $90 million in cutting, reined cow horse, roping and other equine sports competitions as of this writing.

Madison and Barney hope his son follows in those hallowed hoof-steps.

“Having a Futurity champion is the ultimate goal, but everything has to line up and be perfect for that to happen,” Madison said. “More immediately, getting NRR Cat King Cole promoted and having a lot of babies out there showing, that’s the vision.” And that’s a plan they’re well on their way to

Inquisitive young horses stop by to see what's going on, as Barney and Madison perform daily checks on everyone in the field.

“ H AVING A F U T URI T Y CHAMPION IS T HE ULT IMAT E GOAL, BU T EVERY T HING HAS T O LINE UP AND BE PERFEC T FOR T HAT T O HAPPEN.”

M ADISON C RUM S MI T H

While sticking close by his recip, this curious colt may have what it takes to be a great cutting horse. “Good horses have more heart and more try,” said Barney.

accomplishing. Before 2023, the stud Madison calls “Cole” never sired more than 24 foals in a single year. is year, Cole is on track to sire some 200 o spring. Recently, his o spring surpassed $1 million in earnings.

at’s why, on a bright spring day at Beechfork Ranch, Madison and Barney are feeling pretty hopeful about the operation they’ve built and their chances at a coveted cutting championship. eir horse Baylenciaga recently placed third at the 2023 NCHA Super Stakes in the Open. Last year, the horse reached fth at the 2022 NCHA World Championship Futurity. e goal, of course, is to be champion in the Open of these major events.

“ e stars will have to align,” Madison said, ashing a patient smile.

Barney, an accomplished cutting horse competitor, is from the tiny town of Maryneal, Texas (population: 72). His parents owned a 6,000-acre cattle ranch, and Barney, the youngest of six kids, grew up around animals.

“ e rst time my brother and I went for a ride, I got on a mule,” he said. “Everything was good for 15 minutes, and then it took o on me.” As he recalls the inevitable fall, Barney lets out a chuckle that begins soft then builds to a contagious crescendo. (Years later, Barney spent a summer with legendary Texas cutting champ Punk Carter, learning how to ride cutting horses.)

is mule story hints at the duo’s seemingly opposite personalities: While Madison is calm and soft-spoken, Barney is a livewire. His passion is palpable, to the point that one question about his industry can set him o on a detailed discourse about the world which he has now set

about conquering — as a rider and a businessman — through years of hard work.

In this sport, “everything is unpredictable,” he told e Augusta Chronicle back in 2018. He was talking to the Augusta, Georgia newspaper after winning the Augusta Futurity Unlimited Amateur Championship on a four-year-old horse named SJR Smooth Cowgirl. Barney had purchased the horse shortly after graduating from Texas Tech, and he later put her up for sale. e mare didn’t get the price he was hoping for, though, so he continued training her. Barney had entered the Augusta Futurity competition with both a game plan and the understanding that they might have to think on their feet.

“Cowgirl” was the rst cutting horse Barney trained by himself, adding that one of his mentors, Phil Rapp, “helped me nish her.” at’s just one example of a key lesson this couple is eager to share while talking about the future of Beechfork Ranch: In this business, grit and agility are a tough combo to beat.

Madison rides Call Me Catniss.

Photo by Seth Petit Barney pilots One Red Mist.

Photo by Snapshot Ranch

RIGHT :

Yearlings nibble on the Jeep during an early morning visit. “Everyone wants a great cutting horse,” said Barney. “They make you look good.”

“Breeding the horses yourself — raising them, training them and working with them personally — is the best way I know to have the success we dream of,” Barney said. “From our point of view, you have to build it from the ground up.”

Madison and Barney may have di erent ways of expressing themselves, but they share an intricate knowledge of what it takes to breed a winning horse. at’s one of their main focuses now.

During breeding season, which is January through June, the rst thing they do is check on their donor mares and their recipients to track the health of their embryos and ensure any active pregnancies are progressing well.

Each mare’s progress is documented in one of the couple’s many spreadsheets: hyper-detailed breakdowns of which mare received which embryo, what their approximate due date is, and what shots and vaccines they’ve been given. e couple also gives plasma to each of the foals in order to boost their antibodies. After checking on the

mares, they communicate with the team at nearby Weatherford Equine Breeding, which handles sending out semen orders they have for the day. en, they ride. (In summer, the couple rises at 3 a.m. most days, just so they can get some cutting practice in before the heat of the day.)

Barney and Madison are currently training three-year-old horses, so they spend the middle of each day training the horses in their on-site arena.

“Sometimes you’re up before the sun and you work until well after it’s gone down,” said Madison. “But it’s a di erent day every day.”

She’s talking while driving a Jeep one morning, from one corner of her place to the next. A couple hundred cows (and one nosy goat) watch the vehicle pass by as Madison steers it toward the section

of the property where dozens of horses are lounging, frolicking or eating a breakfast including hay and grain. Several animals are nibbling y-resistant paste from a mineral tub. One lly is sleeping under the blanket of a cool spring sun, unbothered by all the activity around her. Above her, her dam stands sentinel, guarding the slumbering baby.

Watching everyday beautiful moments like this, it’s easy to see why Madison loves what she and Barney are building at Beechfork Ranch. Smart, creative and committed, the Smiths clearly have ranch life in their blood.

Recently, the Beechfork team has mixed things up by buying some of their own recipient mares. Whereas some breeders use “recips” supplied by a vet, Barney and Madison have tried to add some predictability to their operation.

“It’s nice to use the same mares every year,” Madison said. “You know them, and you know what to expect.”

“I love watching them as babies, then watching them grow up and eventually show at the futurities and become show horses,” Madison said. She rests one boot on part of a fence that pens in a few dozen

horses, and like a light switch turning on, the horses begin trotting up to her to say hello and receive a quick pat. Madison has a story for practically every horse in this eld, and sometimes these stories involve calls or emails from places as far- ung as Germany and Colombia. People from across the world call up Beechfork Ranch to inquire about the price of a particular horse, and now that Madison and Barney are breeding Cole, this outreach has only increased.

“He actually sired the 2022 NCHA Australian Open Futurity champion, and we’ve bred over 100 mares to him in Australia,” Madison said about Cole. “ at’s just from shipping frozen semen.” ey get plenty of calls about other horses, too. Recently, the couple sold a yearling colt to a buyer in Italy. Brazil and Venezuela also drum up plenty of business, and sometimes a brand-new country enters the fold.

“I got an inquiry once from Japan, and I was like, ‘ ey do cutting horses in Japan?’” Madison joked. “A lot of people just buy o the pictures nowadays, which is always interesting. It wasn’t that long ago that we were mailing DVDs [of the horses in action] all over the world.” e couple’s ongoing success — and the name recognition created by Cole and his famous sire — means that a lot of business comes to Madison and Barney simply through word of mouth. Even still, the couple advertises on social media and through various online outlets, spreading the news about the horses bred by Beechfork Ranch. After giving a few nal pats to some of her favorite llies, Madison drives

BELOW : Barney holds One Red Mist, his “favorite mare of all time,” while Madison stands with her mare, Toytallic. The retired horses are “good friends” and part of the Beechfork broodmare band. Madison's spurs bear the Beechfork Ranch brand.

“ IT MIGH T NO T BE OBVIOUS, BU T BEHIND T HIS ONE [CU TT ING] HORSE, YOU HAVE A T EAM OF 11 OR 12 PEOPLE, AT LEAS T. IT ’S NEVER EASY.”

BARNEY MAC SMI T H

BRIDLES and BRIDALS

Beechfork Ranch isn’t the only booming business in the Crum family. Madison’s father, Kelly, owns and operates American Clothing Express: a thriving, Memphis, Tennesseebased clothing business known for its high-quality wedding dresses. Further, like Beechfork Ranch, this business was built with an excessive attention to detail.

It began as a family-owned fabric store, and then Madison’s parents opened the Bridal Collection, a bridal salon catering to brides throughout Tennessee. e Crum family and patriarch Kelly Crum later seized on the opportunity to manufacture their own bridal gowns, and from there, menswear and creations for other special occasions were a natural next step. e award-winning company produces the stunning Allure Bridal collection, as well as a Disney Princess collection and a wedding dress collection called Madison

James, named after Madison and her brother.

RIGHT : A romantic “Rapunzel” look from the Disney Princess Collection by Allure Bridal.

BELOW : Phil Rapp officiating at the 2020 wedding of Madison and Barney in Graham, Texas.

to the barn where some more mares are waiting for their embryos. Before receiving the embryo from their donor mare, they must rst get checked by a vet.

Madison rounds a corner and sees a check-up in action: A doctor from Weatherford Equine Breeding is performing an ultrasound while, all around, the Beechfork team goes about their daily business.

It calls to mind the rst time Madison saw an ICSI (intracytoplasmic sperm injection) procedure, which is when a stallion’s sperm is directly injected into an egg from a donor mare. She was a student at Texas A&M when the procedure was rst gaining traction, and she described it as an “intense moment; a window into a whole new world.”

Now this procedure has become more standard, which means Madison, even at 29, has had a front-row seat to the way the industry has evolved with medicine and tech. Still, she’s not content being a spectator; she pores over all the latest books and news, soaking up all the knowledge she can about the industry in the hopes of giving Beechfork an edge. It’s also the only way she knows how to live.

“Even before Texas A&M, I was teaching myself the science of breeding a cutting horse,” she said. “It’s just always been my xation.”

She stands for a moment, watching the ultrasound, then moves on. It’s time to meet up with her husband for a late-morning ride.

“It takes a village,” Barney noted while saddling up a horse. “It might not be obvious, but behind this one [cutting] horse, you have a team of 11 or 12 people, at least. It’s never easy.”

But it is fun. By melding their collective breeding and business wisdom, and cultivating a hardworking sta for their ranch, Barney and Madison are building an operation primed for long-term success.

“ is year has already been pretty cool,” said Madison, ever humble. “But we’re always looking forward to the future.”

“You have to have good help, good friends and a lot of luck,” said Barney, as he observed the antics of yearling fillies, exploring a field together.

Clean Hearts Cuts , F ull

PHOTOGRAPHY BY SETH PETIT

ABOVE : Cullen Chartier and Hushh Money won the 4-year-old Open.

OPPOSITE : Jaime Snider and My Pistols Hott grabbed the 5/6-year-old Open.

The National Cutting Horse Association Super Stakes, the second jewel in the NCHA’s Triple Crown, drew cutters of all levels to Cowtown, hoping for a turn in the limelight.

Springtime in Texas means warmer weather, green pastures and the return of cutting to Fort Worth’s Will Rogers Coliseum for the NCHA NRR Cat King Cole Super Stakes. Held March 22 through April 16, 2023, the event hosted some of the best 4-, 5- and 6-year-old cutting horses looking to gain new titles and secure their place in the history of the sport. is year, 20 champions cut their way to the winner’s circle, earning prestige, prizes and paychecks aplenty.

BY KRISTIN PITZER

Hushh Money Wins More Money

Sometimes it’s a long road to the top, but the di culties encountered along the way can make success that much sweeter when it nally arrives. For Cullen Chartier, the 4-Year-Old Open Championship made the blood, sweat and tears he put into Hushh Money from the moment she arrived in his program worth the journey.

“I had a little trouble at a couple shows before the Super Stakes getting her shown, and so I wanted to start my run with a bang,” Chartier said. “She was accurate throughout, and on the last cow, she was crawling around and doing her ‘Reyzin e Cash thing.’ It was the cherry on top, and the moment was indescribable. I wish I could have bottled up that moment and cherished it for a little while.”

Chartier knew Hushh Money was going to be successful the rst time he watched Marcus Spencer put her on a cow as a 2-year-old. e mare had that little something extra, he said, which continued to grow as the year went on.

“It didn’t take me long to gure out how much I really liked this mare and her ability to trap and read a cow,” Chartier said.

He expressed his appreciation to his help — his brother, R.L. Chartier; father, Randy Chartier; Tatum Rice; and Clay Johnson; along with Ryann Packard, who got Hushh Money ready. Chartier was looking forward to continuing to show Hushh Money and hoped to put more earnings on her.

“She’s an open caliber horse, obviously, and so (owner) Kim Ezell is going to let me go with her wherever we go and just keep showing as long as she’s healthy,” Chartier said. “We’ll see what we can do with her the rest of the year.”

KRISTIN PITZER

CLASS: 4-Year-Old Open

RIDER: Cullen Chartier

HORSE: Hushh Money

PEDIGREE: Reyzin e Cash x Foxy Merada x Boon Too Suen

OWNER: Kim Ezell

SCORE: 226

EARNINGS: $77,408.33

Cullen Chartier and Hushh Money.

The Little Mare That Could

When Michael Gregory purchased Dualin Cattarina Le, a full sister to 2019 NCHA Open World Champion CR Gotcha Covered, at the 2021 Western Bloodstock NCHA Futurity Sales, trainer Zeb Corvin wasn’t sure about the purchase. e mare was quite small, Corvin recalled — so much so that Gregory joked he’d bought Corvin’s son, who was nine years old at the time, a horse to train.

e little mare proved to have a big motor, though, and matured as time went on, carrying Gregory to the 2022 NCHA Futurity Amateur semi nals. Gregory stepped o the mare in 2023 to let Corvin show her leading up to the Super Stakes — a decision that paid o with the 4-YearOld Intermediate Open Championship.

“She’s a little reball, and she’s a little quirky. I think that’s what makes her good,” Corvin said of the mare. “If you had asked me six months ago if that horse was going to go win a major aged event, I would have said, ‘I hope so.’ But she’s really come on and wants to be a show horse. She’s got a ton of heart, and she’s gritty. at’s all a guy can ask for.”

Gregory also showed the mare in the Amateur at the Super Stakes but handed her back to Corvin afterward. Corvin planned to show her at the Breeder’s Invitational, then try for another big event title at the NCHA Summer Spectacular. He thanked Gregory and his wife, Leah, for being great owners and keeping him mounted on good horses.

“I’d also like to thank my help,” Corvin said. “ ey have been instrumental in helping me win in that pen, so that’s been huge.” KRISTIN PITZER

CLASS: 4-Year-Old Intermediate Open

RIDER: Zeb Corvin

HORSE: Dualin Cattarina Le

PEDIGREE: Dualin Boon x e Catattac x High Brow Cat

OWNERS: Michael & Leah Gregory

SCORE: 223

EARNINGS: $17,712.65

Zeb Corvin aboard Dualin Cattarina Le.

Midnite Train to the Winner’s Circle

When Justin Wright entered the pen for the 4-YearOld Limited Open nals on CR Tu Swiss Cat, he was out for redemption. e pair had some bad luck in the Open semi nals and Intermediate Open nals, and Wright felt like he had let the mare down. ey persevered, and that determination was rewarded with the Limited Open Championship.

“I told Jesse Lennox and Lee Francois before we went down there that I had a nice run going in the semis and a good run going in the Intermediate nals, and I let my emotions get to me after working two cows,” Wright said. “I just kind of messed up my third cut both times, and I told them to not let me do that this time. Well, I ended up only working two cows, so that was just easier.”

CR Tu Swiss Cat has been cow smart from the beginning, Wright said. His only struggle with the mare was learning how to let her work on her own terms.

“She just wants to work the cow,” Wright said. “Once we started showing, that sure showed through, and she’ll do it every time you walk down there.” Showing at the

Super Stakes was not something Wright would have envisioned for himself once upon a time. He never had much ambition to compete, he said, but ve years ago, Lennox convinced him to move to Weatherford. Now, he can’t imagine why it took him so long to get into the pen.

“A big thanks to Jesse for all he’s done for me,” Wright said. “I originally just enjoyed the 2-year-olds, and he very quickly changed that mindset. It just took a little bit of showing, and I wanted to do more.”

KRISTIN PITZER

CLASS: T/K Cutting Horses

4-Year-Old Limited Open

RIDER: Justin Wright

HORSE: CR Tu Swiss Cat

PEDIGREE: Woody Be Tu x Swiss Cat Pepto x Sweet Lil Pepto

OWNER: Je ry Ogden

SCORE: 222

EARNINGS: $7,976.68

Justin Wright shows CR Tuff Swiss Cat.

Two for Two

Ryan Rapp was already having a good day when he rode Jiggin Lil Joe into the 4-Year-Old Non-Pro nals. He had collected the Championship in the 5/6-Year-Old Non-Pro with another of his horses, and if his Super Stakes journey had ended there, he would have been content. Instead, he rode Jiggin Lil Joe to a 223, winning a second title.

“It just feels very surreal,” Rapp said. “I never thought in a million years that I’d do that in any aged event, let alone here at the Super Stakes.”

e pair’s journey to the winner’s circle wasn’t without its challenges. Due to illness, injury and Rapp being away at school, Jiggin Lil Joe wasn’t worked much in the early stages of his 3-year-old year. By the 2022 NCHA Futurity, though, the horse had gotten more consistent. ere, Rapp made the Open nals and Non-Pro semi nals with the gelding.

Prior to the Super Stakes, Jiggin Lil Joe developed an abscess, which he recovered from only days before Rapp showed in the Open rst go. ey made it to the second round of the Open, then had what Rapp described as a few soft runs in the Non-Pro go-rounds before dominating the nals.

“ e style he has is what kind of just really added to those points in the end,” Rapp said. “He has so much eye appeal.”

Rapp’s mom, Mary Ann, and sister, Emma, showed alongside him in the 4-Year-Old Non-Pro. Mary Ann nished third on Next Stopp Paris, and Emma placed seventh on Beelieve It.

“ ere’s an added element to having everybody there,” Rapp said. “Emma showed, but she still loped Jiggin Lil Jo. Being able to show with all of them was fun.” KRISTIN PITZER

CLASS: 4-Year-Old

4CYTE Non-Pro

RIDER: Ryan Rapp

HORSE: Jiggin Lil Joe

PEDIGREE: Dont Stopp

Believin x Miz Savanah

Ichi x Cat Ichi

OWNERS: Phil & Mary Ann Rapp

SCORE: 223

EARNINGS: $39,177.41

“I never thought in a million years that I’d do that in any aged event, let alone here at the Super Stakes.”

RYAN RAPP

Ryan Rapp pilots Jiggin Lil Joe.

Klean Cuts

Before entering the show pen, most people have several cows in mind they’d like to try to cut, and Kamryn Clark was no di erent as she and Mr Klean made their way into the herd during the 4-Year-Old Intermediate Non-Pro nals to cut their rst cow. But then, nerves got the best of Clark, and she did something on her second cut she didn’t plan — she went back and cut her rst cow again.

“I was so nervous, I just turned around and I was going to cut a di erent one, but that one just walked up there,” Clark said. “So, I cut it again, and it was good. I didn’t know if it looked good, but I was having a good time.”

Even though it wasn’t exactly what she had in mind, Clark’s run scored a 221, which held for the Championship. Clark, whose dad is trainer Jason Clark and husband is trainer Cade Shepard, was elated to nally win a title in the Will Rogers Coliseum after growing up in the sport.

“I never thought I would do anything like that. It’s crazy,” Clark said. “I’ve shown in here three times in the aged events, and I’ve never made it out of the rst go. It was just cool to be there and so fun. at horse is just amazing. I love him.”

In the short time she’s owned him, Mr Klean has been shown by Clark and Clark’s brother, Cooper, who rode him to the 4-Year-Old Limited Non-Pro title. Clark said she’s never had a horse like Mr Klean before, and she appreciates how hard he tries every time. She thanked her sister, Sheridan, for getting him ready, along with her support team.

KRISTIN PITZER

CLASS: 4-Year-Old Intermediate Non-Pro

RIDER: Kamryn Clark

HORSE: Mr Klean

PEDIGREE: Dual Rey x Stylish Martini x Docs Stylish Oak

OWNER: Kamryn Clark

SCORE: 221

EARNINGS: $8,543.73

A Klean Catch Ride

Cooper Clark has been cutting for the last eight years, but when the horse he’d planned to show at the Super Stakes was recently sold, he was horseless for the event. Luckily, his older sister, Kamryn Clark, generously shared her sorrel stallion Mr Klean with her brother. So he catch-rode “Guyo” for the 4-Year-Old Limited NonPro class.

“Kamryn was kind enough to let me show him there,” Cooper said. “I worked him one time on the ag there at the show, and that was the only other time I’d ever ridden him.”

Luckily, Cooper regularly rides a variety of horses at home in Weatherford, Texas, so that helped him get ready to show. Kamryn piloted Guyo to win the 4-Year-Old NonPro class earlier in the show.

“I knew he was a good horse, and he’s pretty easy to get along with,” Cooper said. “I just wanted to go down there and cut as clean as possible, and get him through the run, because I know if I did my part, it would be good.”

Cooper and Guyo showed early in the rst set of the rst go-round.

“Cade Shepard, my new brother-in-law, watches cows for me,” Cooper said. “We watched cows together, and they just told me to go down there and cut as clean as possible. And that’s what we did.”

Kamryn Clark rides Mr Klean.

Cooper and Guyo marked a 217 in the rst round, good enough to make the nals.

“In the nals, I was second-to-last in the set, and there weren’t very many cows left,” Cooper said. “After my rst cow, I had a minute left, and I cut my second cow for 45 seconds. I only cut two cows, I had a little mi on my rst cow and then I stood still for ve seconds, so I didn’t really know what they were going to do with it.”

Despite the bobble, Cooper and Guyo scored a 220 to win the 4-YearOld Limited Non-Pro class and $5,447.

“It felt really good to win, especially because there was a little bit of pressure because Kamryn won before me,” he said. “I was a little nervous because I knew the horse could win. So I felt like it was up to me to not mess up.”

ABIGAIL BOATWRIGHT

CLASS: Limited Non-Pro

RIDER: Cooper Clark

HORSE: Mr Klean

PEDIGREE: Dual Rey x Stylish Martini x Docs Stylish Oak

OWNER: Kamryn Clark

SCORE: 220

EARNINGS: $5,447.30

A Super Stakes Special

After Mike Rutherford’s wife bought him Cowboys N Hippies, the sorrel gelding nicknamed “Floyd” was sent to be trained by Sean Flynn. Rutherford started showing him beginning with the Futurity last year, where they were unfortunately unsuccessful.

“I’d never really ridden him, maybe three or four times before,” Rutherford said. “But I really liked what I felt. en we showed at Abilene and were fortunate enough to win the Unlimited and the Intermediate 4-year-old classes there.”

Keeping the momentum going, Rutherford and Floyd have been to several more competitions this year, where they’ve done well in some, and not so well in others. Rutherford had an eight-year break from cutting, so with the age di erence putting him in a di erent category — Amateur versus Non-Pro — he’s noticed improvements in his competitors.

“ e quality of riders and horses now is really unbelievable,” Rutherford said. e Brenham, Texas, resident brought two other horses to the competition. His strategy with Floyd was straightforward.

“I just wanted to give him a chance to get shown,” Rutherford said. “He’s

a really good, smart horse and I just wanted to keep him out of trouble, be real clean on the cuts, and we’ll keep advancing.”

Rutherford ended up cutting three nice cows that showed o Floyd’s abilities. e pair scored a 218 to take home the $15,985 prize.

“It felt fabulous. It’s what I show for — to be successful in any class, anywhere,” Rutherford said. “But the Super Stakes has always been special to me. I won the Non-Pro in 2000, and the Super Stakes to me is the toughest of the three majors NCHA produces, because of the time of year it takes place.”

Floyd is a good, honest horse, Rutherford said. “He goes out and does his job, he likes his job and doesn’t get rattled by anything.” ABIGAIL

BOATWRIGHT

CLASS: McAlister Assets 4-Year-Old

Amateur

RIDER: Mike Rutherford

HORSE: Cowboys N Hippies

PEDIGREE: Catty Hawk x Snow Rey Me x Dual Rey

OWNER: Mike Rutherford

SCORE: 218

EARNINGS: $15,985.13

Cooper Clark on Mr Klean.

Mike Rutherford aboard Cowboys N Hippies.

Home-Bred Win

Winning the Rios of Mercedes 4-Year-Old Intermediate Amateur aboard red roan gelding Red Rebel Nation was a special accomplishment for Rebecca Drake. “Rebel” is home-bred, and she had owned his mother, One Red Mist, who helped her win a world championship in the $50,000 Amateur.

“ is is my rst time to ever breed, and I just really wanted to do that because of how much she meant to me,” Drake said. “I just wanted to ride one of her babies.”

Rebel was a star right from the start: strong, athletic and cowy, so Drake asked her trainer Justin White to show him his 3-year-old year. ey went to the Futurity and made the nals.

“Red Rebel Nation has made the nals at every show we’ve taken him to,” Drake said.

Drake planned to show him at the Summer Spectacular this year, with White showing him the rst part of the year. But White thought Drake should also show him at the Super Stakes, despite her not yet having ridden or shown him.

ree days before showing, the Houston, Texas, resident and Rebel began working the ag and cutting.

“We just kept progressing,” Drake said. “He is just so fun to ride. He’s very strong, very quick-footed, really cow smart and just amazingly fun to sit on top of.”

Drake loves Rebel’s heart and his similarities to his dam.

“He is so gritty and determined, and not about to let a cow go if he can help it,” Drake said. “He just has the biggest heart and loves his job.”

Drake felt con dent riding Rebel, but nervous about cutting in their performance. She worked with White, watched videos of him showing Rebel, and consulted with trainer and mentor Barbra Schulte. Drake says her

husband, Steve, was a great encourager, from breeding Rebel on through showing at this event.

e preparation, planning, studying and good help in the pen all pushed Rebel and Drake to score a 224, securing the win. Drake says owning Rebel is a dream come true, and it was a delight just to ride him, but winning at Will Rogers Coliseum was “o the chart exciting.”

“It’s a blessing and the sweetest feeling because, as we all know, those moments don’t come very often,” Drake said. “I am honored that it was me and delighted that I could do it on that horse.”

ABIGAIL BOATWRIGHT

CLASS: Rios of Mercedes 4-Year-Old Intermediate Amateur

RIDER: Rebecca Drake

HORSE: Red Rebel Nation

PEDIGREE: Metallic Rebel x One Red Mist x One Time Pepto

OWNER: Rebecca Drake

SCORE: 224

EARNINGS: $9,622.49

“He is so gritty and determined, and not about to let a cow go if he can at all help it. He just has the biggest heart and loves his job.”

REBECCA DRAKE

Rebecca Drake rides Red Rebel Nation.

From Cans to Cows

Before the Super Stakes, Kylar Terlip had mainly racked up wins chasing cans rather than cows, winning the Josey Jr. World four times among other accolades. She only began riding cutters last year and her second show was last year’s Super Stakes. Terlip bought sorrel mare Love Stuck Baby at the NCHA Futurity at the end of 2022. e mare was trained by Ashley Flynn, and her husband Sean Flynn is Terlip’s trainer. He showed “Bex” prior to Terlip taking up the reins. Terlip and Bex’s rst show together was the Super Stakes this April. Terlip recently graduated from Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas. She rides her other horses to practice and began syncing up with Bex about 10 days before they showed together.

“Having a practice horse is the biggest deal to me, just because I am so new to showing,” Terlip said. “Since I’ve never shown her, I just tried to listen to Sean’s advice. But once I made the nals, I thought ‘I’m going to have fun with this.’ I had no expectations going in.”

Watching the cows and runs before hers, Terlip just wanted to make a clean run.

“I felt like this was one of those situations where I just had to show smart, and that’s what I really tried to think about,” Terlip said.

Terlip and Bex were far down in the set in the nals. Unlike in barrel racing, where she goes hard to make her wins happen, she felt she needed to set her run up, but knew she wasn’t the one in control.

“You can’t force anything in cutting,” Terlip said. “One thing that helped me in the nals was after I cut each cow, I took a moment to take a deep breath, make sure my reins were good. And I think that helped me pace my run better.”

Terlip and Bex earned a 216 in the nals to take the 4-Year-Old Limited Amateur title.

“I was so excited,” Terlip said. “I’ve had a lot of success with horses, but nothing has compared to this moment. I think because with barrel horses, I did it all myself with the help of my parents, but they didn’t count on me the same way. Now I have a trainer and there’s other people who have put in so much time and energy, so I can show and win.”

Terlip most appreciates the mare’s sweet personality. She thanks her dad for his support in her competition journey, as well as the Flynns.

“ ey took a barrel racer, and in a year, completely transformed her into a cutter,” Terlip said. “I think that says a lot about Sean.”

ABIGAIL BOATWRIGHT

CLASS: 4-Year-Old Limited Amateur

RIDER: Kylar Terlip

HORSE: Love Stuck Baby

PEDIGREE: Stevie Ray Von x Smart Whittle Margie x Smart Whittle Play

OWNER: Kylar Terlip

SCORE: 216

EARNINGS: $2,289.60

Kylar Terlip on Love Struck Baby.

Coming Back Stronger

My Pistols Hott and Jaime Snider started o the stallion’s 4-year-old year with an Open Reserve nish at the 2022 Arbuckle Mountain Futurity. A couple months later, they made the Open semi nals at the NCHA Super Stakes, and the horse also carried his owner, Kristen York, to the Amateur nals. e future looked bright, but unfortunately the stallion was injured later in the season and had to sit out for the rest of the year.

Snider picked back up where they left o at the beginning of 2023, and in the months that followed, My Pistols Hott got better and better, ultimately carrying Snider to the 5/6-Year-Old Open Championship in Fort Worth, Texas.

“He’s just more mature and stronger, and he keeps excelling on levels that I just don’t know,” Snider said. “He’s really cowy and wild, and I like those wild, touchy horses — their explosiveness, brightness and strength. We get along well.”

Snider channels My Pistols Hott’s energy by working him slowly, often at a walk, he said. All it takes is getting the horse’s mentality right, and then he’ll often take over himself. Add the stallion’s

good looks, feeliness and big stop to the equation, and he becomes di cult to beat when everything else falls into place, said Snider.

at’s just what happened during the nals. ere, despite a deep draw, Snider and the horse were able to cut three cows they liked. All of them worked well, and Snider thanked his help — Lloyd Cox, Sean Flynn, Matt Miller and Clay Johnson — for their assistance during his run.

“ ank you to my wife Ashley, my family and the Yorks,” Snider added. “I’ve ridden horses for them since I worked for Lloyd, and they’ve been great to me for a long time.” KRISTIN

PITZER

CLASS: 5/6-Year-Old Open

RIDER: Jaime Snider

HORSE: My Pistols Hott

PEDIGREE: Hottish x Shes My Other Pistol x Playgun

OWNERS: ad & Kristen York

SCORE: 228

EARNINGS: $30,762.50

Jaime Snider aboard My Pistols Hott.

It Pays to Believe

Cattle can make or break a run at any event, but Cass Tatum wasn’t worried about them. He had an ace up his sleeve — True Believers, a gelding he started riding a few months ago that came o a year of hauling with Gaylon Wells for a World title. He put his trust in the horse’s abilities, and the duo came out with the 5/6-Year-Old Intermediate Open Co-Championship.

“True Believers rises to the occasion,” Tatum said. “ anks to how much he weekended, he’s used to any circumstances.”

e horse’s experience was particularly useful considering he and Tatum drew up 10th in the rst set. Even as the cattle threw tricks at him, the gelding stayed accurate and collected.

“He has a great thought process, and he wants to be super slinky moving,” Tatum said. “ ey call him ‘Spaghetti’ because he’s so noodley and has such a cool way about him.”

Tatum thanked his help, along with Carlee Farrell, who got True Believers ready.

He additionally thanked his wife, Chelsea, for supporting him; Wells, who planned to haul the horse again in the future; and owner Shannon Lamb for giving him the opportunity to show the gelding this year.

“Anytime you can get a win is a big deal, but it’s pretty cool to get a win on him just because he’s always been a steady Eddie for me,” Tatum said. “He really showed up this time, and I thought it was pretty neat.”

KRISTIN PITZER

CLASS: 5/6-Year-Old Intermediate Open

RIDER: Cass Tatum

HORSE: True Believers

PEDIGREE: Dont Stopp Believin x One Red Mist x One Time Pepto

OWNER: Shannon Lamb

SCORE: 219.5

EARNINGS: $9,739.85

Cass Tatum shows True Believers.

Hard Work Pays Off With Deelightful Results

When Terry Hollis started riding Sanndee Light in fall 2022, his main goal was to help her catch up to other horses her age. Sanndee Light had been injured most of her 5-year-old year, and she had fallen behind. eir hard work paid o at the Super Stakes when Hollis rode the mare to a 219.5, tying to win the 5/6-Year-Old Intermediate Open.

“A win in the Will Rogers Coliseum is good any way you can get it, but it was really cool on that horse,” Hollis said. “I always really liked her because she is really smart and cowy and has a pretty look when she works. It was just trying to get her to where she could be what she had the potential to be.”

Hollis’ biggest struggle with the mare was teaching her how to handle the pressure of events since she had missed most of her 5-year-old year. Everything clicked at the Super Stakes, where the mare put together a clean run and did everything Hollis asked of her.

“I watched cows with Tarin Rice and Gavin Jordan, and they were sure a lot of help. I thought the cows were really good for her,” Hollis said. “Without those two guys, Sean Flynn and R.L. Chartier, it doesn’t work like that. It takes a village.”

Hollis has been friends with Sanndee Light’s owner, Amy Adams Strunk, for years, but he only started working for her when Sanndee Light entered his program. He said Strunk and her husband, Bill Hunt, have been great clients.

“ e big thing with them is their understanding of all the ups and downs,” Hollis said. “ ey’re awesome and easy to work with.”

KRISTIN PITZER

CLASS: 5/6-Year-Old Intermediate Open

RIDER: Terry Hollis

HORSE: Sanndee Light

PEDIGREE: Sannman x Scoots Lil Starlight x Smart Lil Scoot

OWNER: Amy Adams Strunk

SCORE: 219.5

EARNINGS: $9,739.85

“It was just trying to get her to where she could be what she had the potential to be.”

TERRY HOLLIS

Terry Hollis rides Sanndee Light.

Midnite Train to the Winner’s Circle

In 2022, Cupids Midnite Train and Chet Simoneaux landed the NCHA Summer Spectacular Limited Open Derby Reserve Championship. ey returned to the Big Pen in 2023 and marked a 217.5, sharing the 5/6-Year-Old Limited Open Championship with Mister Temptation and rider Clayton Carter.

“Any time you can go in there and win an event in that Coliseum, it’s awesome,” Simoneaux said. “I started showing probably ve or six years ago, and to get a chance to go win means everything. It’s everything you’re working for all year long.”

Simoneaux’s plan during the Super Stakes was simply to cut three cows and have a clean run. He amended his strategy when he cut a good second cow, deciding to stay on her and let his horse take her to the buzzer. Known for her cowiness, Cupids Midnite Train didn’t disappoint, staying hooked up the whole time.

Simoneaux broke and started Cupids Midnite Train, then rode her as a 2-year-old. During her 3-year-old year, she transferred to Simoneaux’s former employer, Austin Shepard, then came back to Simoneaux as a 4-year-old.

roughout her time under saddle, the mare has always been smart, tried hard and wanted to please.

“She was one of my favorite mares that year,” Simoneaux said. “She was always super cowy and really gritty. She was just a nice mare from the start until now.”

Simoneaux wasn’t sure what the future plans were for Cupids Midnite Train, who is owned by his wife Blakley’s grandfather, Joel Colgrove. Simoneaux thanked Colgrove and his wife, Jayne, for giving him the horse to ride; Blakley for always being there to help him out; and his help in the show pen — Austin Shepard, Cade Shepard, Sean Flynn and Chris Hanson.

KRISTIN PITZER

CLASS: T/K Cutting Horses 5/6-Year-Old

Limited Open

RIDER: Chet Simoneaux

HORSE: Cupids

Midnite Train

PEDIGREE: Dont Stopp

Believin x One Catty Cupid x One Time Pepto

OWNER: Joel Colgrove

SCORE: 217.5

EARNINGS: $7,160.97

Chet Simoneaux and Cupids Midnite Train.

A Pleasant Surprise

After a corrected score, Clayton Carter and Mister Temptation were elevated to Co-Championship status, sharing the title with Cupids

Midnite Train and rider Chet Simoneaux.

“It was a relief, and it was good to know I wasn’t crazy and that what I felt during the run was actually good,” Carter said. “I recently took a job out on my own training for Ms. Carol Ward, so it was pretty special to do a good job for the new owners.”

During their nals run, Carter rst selected a couple of cows that pushed his horse and allowed him to show o some big stops. He cut his third cow with lots of working time left on the clock, con dent Mister Temptation could hold it until the buzzer.

“He’s just a really good horse, and he has a really neat style,” Carter said. “He can stop big and be really neat in the middle of the pen. He was very good during the go-round and nals, and he was just on his game.”

Carter was grateful to Ward and her husband, David, for giving him the opportunity to work for them and standing behind him. He also appreciated his mentors: Paul Hansma, who he owes most of his cutting education to; Brad Mitchell, who had a big in uence on him as a young trainer; and Lindy Burch, who has helped make him the trainer he is today. He also thanked his ancé, Jenna Hunt, for getting his horses ready, and his daughter, Kay Hunt. Both are his biggest supporters and fans, he said.

KRISTIN PITZER

CLASS: T/K Cutting Horses

5/6-Year-Old Limited Open

RIDER: Clayton Carter

HORSE: Mister Temptation

PEDIGREE: Metallic Cat x Shez Sinsational x Dual Pep

OWNER: Carol Anderson Ward

SCORE: 217.5

EARNINGS: $7,160.97

Clayton Carter rides Mister Temptation.

Next Stopp: Winner’s Circle

As he rode Next Stopp Cowtown into the 5/6-Year-Old Non-Pro nals, Ryan Rapp was looking to defend his Co-Championship title from the previous year. Back then, it had taken a 220.5 to win the class. is year, he did himself one better, marking a point higher to win the class outright with the gelding.

“It’s already hard enough to win in that arena,” Rapp said. “Between all the variables with the two rounds, the semi nals and the nals, you have to have three good runs and one great run. To do that two years in a row, you’re just beating more and more odds.”

Rapp said this year’s run was even better than last year’s, partially due to him cutting better cows. Next Stopp Cowtown has also gained more experience in the last year, he added, helping him display a little more intensity in the show pen.

“ at horse was so smart with everything,” Rapp said. “ ose cows were kind of tricky, and there were a couple little weird moves. He just stayed back on his butt and read those cows right. He’s been so clever this whole show.”

Both the gelding’s parents were ridden by Rapp’s dad, Phil, during their careers, making the win even more special to Rapp’s family. Ryan said Next Stopp Cowtown de nitely inherited his dam’s speed and look on a cow, along with his sire’s athleticism.

Ryan thanked Clay Johnson and Phil for helping him pick cows and get the right ones cut, and Sean Flynn and John Mitchell for keeping the cows coming back to him in the show pen. He was also grateful to Brett Stiles, who got Next Stopp Cowtown ready, and his family for their support.

KRISTIN PITZER

CLASS: 5/6-Year-Old 4CYTE Non-Pro

RIDER: Ryan Rapp

HORSE: Next Stopp Cowtown

PEDIGREE: Dont Stopp Believin x Manytimes x One Time Pepto

OWNERS: Phil & Mary Ann Rapp

SCORE: 221.5

EARNINGS: $19,951.18

Ryan Rapp and Next Stopp Cowtown.

Dancing to the Top

I

n 2022, Reagan Glenn and Boontown Dancer collected the NCHA Super Stakes 4-Year-Old Amateur Championship. They returned to the Will Rogers Coliseum this year and took things up a notch, starting with a win in the 5/6-Year-Old Intermediate Non-Pro. The pair also made the finals in the 5/6-Year-Old Non-Pro — Glenn’s first big non-pro finals, she noted — where they marked a 208 and tied for 14th, then rounded out their time in Fort Worth with a win in the 5/6-Year-Old Amateur semifinals.

“Being able to come back here and do it again, it felt pretty special,” Glenn said. “Especially on her. She’s only gotten better and has been such a consistent horse throughout this past year. She’s really just grown and matured.”

Glenn also qualified a second horse for the Intermediate finals, Sallyfromthevalley, who scored a 216.5 and finished third. Both were in the second set, so she relied on the help of Jessica Alosi and Kadence Slade to get them ready. From there, she followed her strategy of performing smooth, clean cuts to put her horses in the best position to work the difficult cows.

A high school junior, Glenn, 16, has been riding with Morgan Cromer since she was nine years old. In that time, she’s amassed more than $260,000, which she said wouldn’t have been possible without the help of her parents, Jaime and Jason. Looking toward the future, Glenn’s primary goal is to stay consistent and put her horses first.

“The biggest thing for me is making sure my horses are happy and healthy, so we’ll continue to try to achieve that,” Glenn said. “Otherwise, we’ll get ready to hopefully come back here for the NCHA Summer Spectacular and try to make the finals there.”

KIRSTIN PITZER

CLASS: 5/6-Year-Old

Intermediate Non-Pro

RIDER: Reagan Glenn

HORSE: Boontown Dancer

PEDIGREE: Once In A Blu

Boon x Duals Dancer x Reys Dual Badger

OWNER: Reagan Glenn

SCORE: 222.5

EARNINGS: $6,149.41

“The biggest thing for me is making sure my horses are happy and healthy, so we’ll continue to try to achieve that.”

REAGAN GLENN

Reagan Glenn aboard Boontown Dancer.

Reaching for the Stars

Brad Karl might be new to cutting, but he has wasted zero time. From the time he rst threw a leg over a cutting horse in 2020, in his home province of Alberta, Canada, until today, the 31-year-old rancher and entrepreneur has racked up three championships, including his recent win at the 2023 Super Stakes Classic.

Astride A Shoot N Star, Karl achieved a Limited Amateur co-championship berth at the 2022 NCHA Super Stakes competition, their rst show together in Texas. After securing the 2022 World Finals Championship in the 15K Amateur class, the duo proved their 2022 wins were no uke by winning the 2023 NCHA Super Stakes Classic Limited Non-Pro championship.

Growing up in a fth-generation ranching family, “I’ve always been on horses,” Karl said. “But we’re just getting into cutting.”

After starting on a horse “where I got a lot of 60s and zeros,” Karl said with a laugh, “I was like, ‘Let’s go nd a real cutting horse.’” Karl acquired A Shoot N Star, barn name “Benny,” in 2021 from trainer Austin Adams.“It was a big eye-opener for me,” he said. “We were looking at a 2-year-old, but I rode Benny and said, ‘We need this one, too.’ He could do things I’ve never experienced on a horse before.”

Karl, who also trains with Canadian Dustin Gonnet, is looking ahead to the NCHA Summer Spectacular, the Calgary Stampede and to taking his 3-year-old to the Futurity. “My long-term goal is to be one of the best non-pros to come out of Canada,” he added.

Away from cutting, Karl is a husband, dad and a key manager of the family’s Stampede Ranch. He also has fun with sports like Skijordue — riding a horse all out over snow while hauling a skier. “ e sport is getting super big here in Canada,” Karl said. “ e second that snow ies, everyone’s calling everyone to throw big Skijordue events. It’s pretty cool.”

ANNE M. HEINEN

CLASS: Limited Non-Pro

RIDER: Brad Karl

HORSE: A Shoot N Star

PEDIGREE: Smooth Talkin Style x SG Catty Starlight x WR is Cats Smart

OWNER: e Stampede Ranch

SCORE: 217

EARNINGS: $5,113.11

Brad Karl rides

A Shoot N Star.

Plendl Snaps Up Championship on Homebred Mare

Reyzn Cats had an unusual start for a horse that went on to win the McAllister Assets Amateur championship at Super Stakes Classic with rider/ co-owner Regan Plendl.

Given the barn name “Kenny,” after 23-year-old Plendl’s grandfather because the lly was born on his birthday, Reyzn Cats might only be six, but she has had an adventure or two.

“We bred her, raised her and then we started her, all at our house,” said Plendl, who is based in Iowa where she breeds, rides and works cutting horses with her twin sister, Reyly, and dad, Rick. “When Kenny was a 2-year-old, she kept getting fatter and fatter. We didn’t know what was going on. We went to Summer Spectacular and left her home. My grandpa called and said, ‘You’ve got a baby on the ground.’ We didn’t believe him until he sent us a picture, and sure enough, she had a colt.”

e Plendls made sure to separate the babies earlier from then on. When training Kenny, “We’d bring the baby in the arena and she’d hang out while we were working,” Plendl said. “It was interesting for everybody.” Coming in at under 14 hands, Kenny’s athleticism has earned her the nickname Power Pony. “She does her job every time. She’s my safe

horse, the same every time you go down to the curtain,” Plendl said. “She has a bigger heart than most horses — she’s all in.”

For her win, Plendl credits her trainers and heroes Nick O’Dell, Cara Brewer, Lloyd Cox and Sean Flynn, as well as her family. “Every time I show, my oldest niece Harper writes me a good luck note that I put in my hat. She won’t let me leave home without it.”

is summer Reyzn Cats will compete at the NCHA Summer Spectacular. “We want to keep making the nals and hopefully keep doing well.” And Plendl? “I just want to keep getting better, and someday make the NCHA Non-Pro Hall of Fame.”

ANNE M. HEINEN

CLASS: McAlister Assets Amateur

RIDER: Regan Plendl

HORSE: Reyzn Cats

PEDIGREE: Dual Rey x Cats Pepto Star x High Brow Cat

OWNERS: Regan & Reyly Plendl

SCORE: 218

EARNINGS: $18,212.59

Regan Plendl and Reyzn Cats.

Kool First Win

Tracey Woodward and mare is Boons Kool cut a top ride to secure the Rios of Mercedes Intermediate Amateur championship at Super Stakes Classic, keeping in mind trainer Morgan Cromer’s advice.

“She said to make sure you get your cow on an edge and drive it up really far, and you’ll be just ne,” said Woodward, a Southern California native who is also a veterinarian. “As soon as I got is Boons Kool in the right position, she did her job. She was awesome.

“ is was my rst Super Stakes win, so that was very exciting for me,” Woodward added. “I’ve been before and made the nals, but never won the class until this year.”

is Boons Kool, whose barn name is “Holly,” is currently on break at the family’s Los Alamos, California, ranch. “We might do the fall run of shows in the Northwest — Idaho and Oregon,” said Woodward. “For now, Holly gets to relax.”

In the meantime, Woodward is riding herd on her little ones, ve-year-old Teal and three-yearold Weston, and making plans for boating this summer. “California nally has water in the lakes,” she said with a laugh. She also plans to cheer on her nieces and nephew as they participate in rodeo and cutting competitions and state nals.

“I did high school rodeo and made it to the national nals in cutting,” Woodward said. “I also did barrel racing and goat tying, but cutting and barrel racing were my favorite events.” After taking time for vet school and working, “I didn’t really have time to ride until I started my own practice and made the time to ride again.”

Her husband, Donald Woodward, has also gotten into cutting and is an NCHA money-earner. “He’s won a couple of checks in the $50K Amateur, and that’s pretty exciting,” said Tracey. “It’s fun when everyone’s involved.”

ANNE M. HEINEN

CLASS: Rios of Mercedes Intermediate Amateur

RIDER: Tracey Woodward

HORSE: is Boons Kool

PEDIGREE: Once In A Blu

Boon x is Kats Kool x

WR is Cats Smart

OWNERS: Marvin & Paulette Teixeira

SCORE: 217

EARNINGS: $11,005.93

“I didn’t really have time to ride until I started my own practice and made the time to ride again.”

TRACEY WOODWARD

Tracey Woodward aboard This Boons Kool.

Turning Heads and Winning Classes

Even if Brenham, Texas-based Elle Elizabeth Martin and her horse hadn’t given an outstanding cutting performance worthy of the winning high score of 216 in the NCHA Super Stakes Limited Amateur championship, the duo would turn heads.

Red roan Peek A Little’s oating, axen mane is a showstopper, riveting eyes to her low, intelligent head as she whips through moves that have been consistently bringing the mare and her skilled young rider high scores.

“She’s unbelievable,” Martin said. “You can always trust her to do her job — she’s so honest. She’s always all-in, all the time. She takes care of me, and we have a really good bond. She’s perfect for me. I don’t ever really have to worry about anything with her.”

Martin rst showed with Peek A Little, barn name “Shakira,” at the Brazos Bash in 2022. “ e Super Stakes was my fourth or fth show with her, so to pull o a win was awesome,” she added. “My mom was showing her previously.”

Martin, age 14, is a rising ninth grader and daughter of Nancy and Steve Martin, owners of South Texas Tack and Wichita Ranch-Martin Division,

Martin Quarter Horses and Bar Nothing Cattle Co., in Brenham, Texas. Martin rst competed when she was 10 and is looking to show with Peek A Little in Las Vegas and at the Summer Spectacular.

“I think the goal is to keep doing good on her and to have babies every year out of her,” Martin said, adding that the mare already has a colt on the ground. For Martin, “I’m always going to try to get better and hopefully be in the Non-Pro someday.”

Martin expressed gratitude to her parents and also her trainers, Justin White and Cullen Chartier.

“Riding is my favorite thing. I just love cutting,” Martin added. “It brings everyone together, and I can’t get enough of it.” ANNE M. HEINEN

CLASS: Limited Amateur

RIDER: Elle Elizabeth Martin

HORSE: Peek A Little

PEDIGREE: Boon A Little x Peek A Cat x Metallic Cat

OWNERS: Nancy & Steve Martin

SCORE: 216

EARNINGS: $2,215.64

Elle Elizabeth Martin rides Peek A Little.

BOOK FOR 2 023

TWO NRCHA OPEN FUTURITY CHAMPIONS

Making the Cut

ABOVE : Open co-champion Bradey Davis on Rammer Jammer.

OPPOSITE : Open co-champion Guy Woods and EE Columbian Red.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY SETH PETIT

2023 NCHA Eastern National Championship presented by 6666 Ranch

The 2023 NCHA Eastern National Championship presented by 6666 Ranch returned to West Monroe, Louisiana, held March 3–11 at the Ike Hamilton Expo Center. e premier event for weekend cutters is known for its Southern hospitality, including a cat sh dinner and youth night featuring the popular youth costume team cutting. e increase in entry numbers was signi cant — up 134 over last year — for a total of 692 entries. Partly responsible for the increase: e Unlimited Amateur class brought 50 entries and bumped the added prize money by $20,000. e total purse paid out was $422,545.

A gelding named Generator won the rst championship title of the show with a 220 score in the $25,000 Novice Horse with Todd Gann and closed the show with the nal championship earned with yet another 220 score in the $5,000 Novice Horse Non-Pro with Andrew Sligh in the saddle.

BY JENNIFER HORTON

Split Championship in the Open

Guy Woods and EE Columbian Red came back into the Open nals after leading the go round with a 222.5 score. From the rst draw, they set the mark with a 219 and waited for the rest of the eld to chase it.

“Bradey [Davis] came along and matched the 219 to tie,” said Woods. “Bradey is one of my helpers, so if I had to share a tie, it was great that it was with him.

“I had awesome help over there: Ben Roberson, Gabe Reynolds, Bill Pierce and Davis. It’s a team e ort with those cows.”

Woods described EE Columbian Red as “spot-on” the entire show. He had six runs during the week, making the nals in his three classes.

“I didn’t work him very much,” said Woods. “I worked him on the ag some. He’s very casually-minded. He’s just a good horse. A strikingly beautiful horse, he’s a big roan pony and has a pretty good following.

“His mother has four [Eastern Nationals] titles over the years, and he’s got two wins there so he’s halfway to catching her. We’ll qualify him to go back again and see what he can do.”

Just two horses after Woods’ run, Davis and Rammer Jammer matched the 219 score that would share the championship.

“My rst two cows looked like they were going to be a lot, but I thought they would both stay away from me,” said Davis. “ at’s perfect for a horse like her. It gives her time to get stopped and turned around without feeling rushed. I wanted to nish on another cow, but it was on the gate and I didn’t have time to go get it. e black baldy was good enough to keep our run together.

“She has a real big stop,” Davis said, describing Rammer Jammer. “She’s a big mare so I feel like that’s her strength. Her e ort is never light. She gives 110 percent every time. She’s not going to bend down and crawl around, but she’s going to rip the ground and give it all she’s got every time. She loves to hit that ground.”

Davis originally bought the mare as a yearling and trained her. He and his wife, Ashley, showed her at the NCHA World Championship Futurity where Ashley made the Limited Non-Pro nals. ey sold her but the opportunity to buy her came back around.

“We felt this pull that she needed to come home,” said Davis. ey plan to keep showing Rammer Jammer while breeding her using embryo transfers.

“She’s nearly at that golden $100,000 lifetime mark, so we’re going to work to get that goal accomplished,” he said.

JENNIFER HORTON

INSERT CAPTION HERE

INSERT CAPTION HERE

Co-champion Guy Woods and EE Columbian Red.

Co-champion Bradey Davis on Rammer Jammer.

CLASS Open (Co-Champions)

RIDER

Guy Woods

HORSE EE Columbian Red

PEDIGREE

Stevie Rey Von x Ichi Sangria x Cat Ichi

OWNER EE Ranches Inc.

SCORE 219

EARNINGS $4,348.50

CLASS Open (Co-Champions)

RIDER

Bradey Davis

HORSE

Rammer Jammer

PEDIGREE Bamacat x DCD Every Which Rey x Dual Rey

OWNER Bradey Davis Performance Horses LLC

SCORE 219

EARNINGS $4,348.50

Generator Sparks Dual Wins For Sligh

I’ve always been consistent, and I’ve made nals [at Eastern Nationals] several times but never won,” said Andrew Sligh, who rode a six-yearold High Brow Cat gelding named Generator to victory in the Non-Pro and $5,000 Novice Horse Non-Pro classes at Eastern Nationals. “When you can enter three classes and win all three classes, I’ll never do that again,” said Sligh, who also rode Blu Metallic to win the $25,000 Novice Horse NonPro in the back-to-back nals.

Sligh admits he’s a rider that likes to go a little bit too fast, but the e ort he made to slow down paid o .

“I slowed down and thought about sitting on my horse and hitting my stops,” he said. “It wasn’t taking much to get back to the nals, so I concentrated on having a mistake-free run to make the nals. I kept telling myself to just be smart.”

As the rst draw in a tough Non-Pro nals, Sligh and Generator put up a 217 score that would hold for the win.

“In the $5,000 Novice Non-Pro, I won the go round. I felt good going into the nals, but I wondered if I could really win three. We were in the middle of the second bunch. A 215 was leading it when I went in, and I didn’t want to make any mistakes. Todd [Gann] had con dence in me.

My horse was great, and we pulled o another win with a 220.

“ at run probably meant the most to me,” Sligh continued. “I wasn’t worried about the horse, but I’m not going to lie, sometimes I mess up or override my horse or something. With that run, I knew we would take the lead, but when they ashed up that 220, I knew someone would have to come show really hard to beat us.”

Sligh believes everyone has their once-in-a-lifetime horse and Generator is his.

“ e tougher the cow, the better he likes it,” said Sligh. “It’s almost like a game to him. He’s very strong and very athletic. When it’s a tough cow he really shines.”

JENNIFER HORTON

CLASS: Non-Pro | $5,000 Novice Horse Non-Pro

RIDER: Andrew Sligh

HORSE: Generator

PEDIGREE: High Brow Cat x Stylish And Foxie x Docs Stylish Oak

OWNER: Piney Woods Farm

SCORE: 217 | 220

EARNINGS: $4,884.25 | $3,994.38

Andrew Sligh and Generator claimed two championship titles.

Friends Lead Byars To Win

To compete at the highest levels of cutting, Je Byars understands it’s more than just him and his horse; it takes a team, and he’s got a good one.

“I’m very fortunate, especially with the help I had,” said Byars, who claimed the Unlimited Amateur crown at Eastern Nationals. “My wife, Alisa, did all the work getting our horse ready, and then I had so much help the rest of the way with Bill Pierce, Bradey Davis, Casey Crouch, Ben Roberson, Andy Loague and Jessie Pritchard. I couldn’t have done it without them.”

ey were invaluable before, during and after the runs Byars made on Intellicat, an eight-year-old sorrel mare he calls Lola. She has the pedigree that makes for a great cutting horse, and those genetics work wonderfully with his own. Byars was raised around cutting, and he carries on the family legacy with tremendous pride.

“I was born in 1966, and Daddy started showing cutting horses in 1963,” said Byars who is from Tuscumbia, Alabama, and who acquired Lola in December 2021. “ ere are a lot of good horses, but to me, Lola is the same every time I go to the herd. If I do my job, she’ll do her job.”

ey made it happen in northern Louisiana in early March, securing the title.

“An old man told me that if you ride a cutting horse one time, you’ll be hooked,” he said. “My family’s been hooked for as long as I can remember.”

TED HARBIN

Cutting Feeds Watt’s Passion

Kimberly Watt’s life hasn’t always been easy, and it took a direct hit eight years ago, not long after she jumped into the world of cutting. After bouts with cancer and undergoing countless treatments, surgeries and sleepless nights, Watt continues to persevere because of her passion for horses. e methods used to rid her body of the disease have left her unable to tack her own horses, but she still nds her way into the saddle and gleams each time she walks into a herd. She smiled the brightest after winning the $35,000 Non-Pro during the Eastern Nationals in West Monroe, Louisiana.

CLASS:

Unlimited Amateur

RIDER: Je Byars

HORSE: Intellicat

SCORE: 218

PEDIGREE:

High Brow Cat x Mates

Little Cokette x Smart Mate

EARNINGS: $4,430.92

“It’s by the grace of God that I was even able to walk into that herd,” said Watt of Gore, Virginia. “I really looked at that leaderboard, and I was shocked to see that I was in the top ten. To come out in the top ten is just incredible, and to win it is even a bigger honor.”

It’s an honor she earned on Blu Laney Bird, a sevenyear-old bay roan gelding she calls Blu, a talented partner she acquired in August.

“I’m so humbled to be able to ride a horse like that,” said Watt, who will try to continue to hit a show a month. “ e friendships I’ve made through cutting are invaluable, friendships that will last a lifetime,” she said. “I love the horses, but I love the comradery even more.”

Her grandfather raised cutters and shared his love with her. at passion, Watt said, is the fuel that feeds her soul and frame of mind.

JENNIFER HORTON

CLASS: $35,000 Non-Pro

RIDER: Kimberly Watt

HORSE: Blu Laney Bird

SCORE: 220

PEDIGREE: Once In A Blu Boon x Catalaney x High Brow Cat

EARNINGS: $3,282.00

Jeff Byars on Intellicat.

Kimberly Watt showing Blu Laney Bird.

Reaching for the Stars

S andra Lines nished her $50,000 Amateur eligibility with a bang by winning her rst Eastern Nationals championship with Highest Of e Stars in their nal run in the class — the largest of the show with 73 entries. e pair tied for reserve in 2021.

“My run was weird because it felt like I was on autopilot the whole time,” said Lines. “I wasn’t even nervous. I just walked in there and told myself to do what I knew to do. I was thinking about the ride and not the prize.”

A sixth place (tie) in the Unlimited Amateur was a bonus for her.

“I had already won a class so there was no pressure,” she said.

Lines admits she tolerates somewhat rude behavior by the gelding she calls George because he’s all business in the cutting pen.

“He’s got a lot of personality and a big heart. He gets into everything and acts like a stud. He’ll rear and buck when I’m leading him, but as soon as I get on him, he’s a di erent horse. He de nitely has a home for life because not everyone would put up with him,” she said with a laugh. “I let him be him.”

Lines is a hands-on amateur who enjoys getting her own horse ready to show.

“I feel that it puts me in the zone, and I know how he feels. He normally doesn’t need a lot of loping,” she said.

Lines plans to show in the Unlimited Amateur and nish out George’s last year in the $25,000 Novice Horse Non-Pro.

Lines thanks her trainer, Chris Howell, and his wife, Allison, along with her help in the corners (Gabe Reynolds, Billy Kidd and Ryan Howell) and her partner, DeAnna, for all her help and support.

JENNIFER HORTON

CLASS: $50,000 Amateur

RIDER: Sandra Lines

HORSE: Highest Of e Stars

SCORE: 219

PEDIGREE: High Brow CD x Lil Missy Starlight x Grays Starlight

OWNER: Sandra Lines

EARNINGS: $3,925.73

SANDRA LINES

“I was thinking about the ride and not the prize.”

Sandra Lines aboard Highest Of The Stars.

Horse Proving Her Worth

Larabeth Smith had to overrule her husband, and Tony Smith is rather glad she did.

“I wasn’t going to buy this mare, and my wife talked me into it,” Tony Smith said of PRF Madera Model, a seven-year-old he calls Yolanda, which guided him to the $15,000 Amateur title at Eastern Nationals. “It was a lot of money, but Larabeth fell in love with that mare the rst time she saw her and said we had to have her.”

Tony was a busy man at the Ike Hamilton Expo Center in West Monroe, Louisiana, home of the March 3–11 championship; he showed two horses a combined six times and earned a spot in the nals in each show. Yolanda was the top dog when the smoke cleared.

“It was exciting,” said Tony, who posted a 222 with the chestnut mare. “When that buzzer went o , I knew we had marked a pretty big number.”

Tony showed cutters as a youngster, then stepped away from it for a few years. He just returned, and having horses like Yolanda is a big reason why.

“She’s just so talented,” he said. “I’m glad she’s got a little recognition. She’s just a gritty mare. I showed her eight times, and she just got better and better. She’s like a gelding. She doesn’t really get red up. She’s a really sweet mare and loves to be loved on.

“She has huge stops,” he continued. “You can ask her for it every time, and she’s going to give it to you.” It’s because she’s a winner.

JENNIFER HORTON

CLASS: $15,000 Amateur

RIDER: Tony Smith

HORSE: PRF Madera Model

PEDIGREE: Smooth As A Cat x

PRF Maderas Lena x Smart Lil Ricochet

SCORE: 222

EARNINGS: $4,151.79

“When that buzzer went off, I knew we had marked a pretty big number.”

TONY SMITH

Tony Smith working PRF Madera Model.

Three For Three With Bookend Wins

Generator arrived in West Monroe, Louisiana, with $154,886 in total recorded lifetime earnings and added nearly $15,000 with three championships.

“He had a really busy week,” said trainer Todd Gann, his pilot in the $25,000 Novice Horse. “He actually gets better as the week goes on.” Gann also showed him to a third-place nish in the Open.

Working from the seventh draw in the nals, Gann and Generator stepped up their teamwork to mark the 220.

“ e horse is exceptional. He’s a really good horse. He tries hard every time. His biggest asset is probably the try that he has. He’s going to move hard and try to win for you. He really puts out a lot of e ort,” said Gann. “He’s a big-stopping horse and is really strong and bright in front of a cow.”

Generator joined the Sligh family stable when Andrew

Sligh saw him on the Western Bloodstock Sale at the 2020 NCHA World Championship Futurity. “Beau Galyean and Rodrigo Taboga showed him in the fall of his threeyear-old year and won about $50,000 on him,” said Sligh. “I was looking for a horse to show over the next three years and he caught my eye. Todd and I drove to Texas to look at him. I honestly thought he’d bring too much money, but I kept bidding, and we got him bought. He’s an unreal athlete — a very cool horse.”

TED HARBIN

CLASS: $25,000

Novice Horse

RIDER: Todd Gann

HORSE: Generator

PEDIGREE: High Brow Cat

x Stylish And Foxie x Docs

Stylish Oak

OWNER: Piney Woods Farm

SCORE: 220

EARNINGS: $3,152.80

The Luck of the First Draw

Working from the middle of the draw, Hall of Fame Rider Guy Woods and EE Columbian Red marked a 224 to win the go round. Being the rst draw in the nals had its advantages, and they marked a 222 then waited for 27 horses to try to catch them.

“ e last cow was a little weak, but the score held up all the way through,” said Woods. “I was really lucky with the draws. I had lots of rst hole draws all week. e cows can get tough when you get down in them.”

Bred by EE Ranches, EE Columbian Red had over $40,000 in lifetime earnings before his trip to Eastern Nationals.

“I had good success on him as a four-year-old, but things just wouldn’t come together,” said Woods. “But he’s been really good as a ve-year-old.

“He gets more like his mother all the time. He’s a big-moving horse, a big, strong, beautiful animal. He’s just really smart about a cow. If you give him something he can work with, he can really put on a show.”

Todd Gann pilots Generator.

EE Columbian Red is also an easy horse to get ready. “He doesn’t take much loping. We lope a little, walk a lot and go show him,” said Woods. “He’s such a good-minded horse. He actually felt like he was enjoying it. When I’d walk out in front of the judges’ stand, he would get on point ready to show o .”

TED HARBIN

CLASS: $5,000 Novice Horse

RIDER: Guy Woods

HORSE: EE Columbian Red

PEDIGREE: Stevie Rey Von x Ichi Sangria x Cat Ichi

OWNER: EE Ranches Inc.

SCORE: 222

EARNINGS: $3,422.53

Sligh Doubles Up The Wins

After winning the Non-Pro aboard Generator, Andrew Sligh rode Blu Metallic to win the $5,000 Novice Horse Non-Pro in the back-to-back nals.

“ at mare is really good,” said Sligh. “She’ll let me ride her out past the cow and stop it but not get herself in trouble. I felt con dence in my horse and knew she could handle it if I had to go fast and hard. She did exactly that because it was a hard fast run.

“I can push her a little harder. I felt like if I had to stick her out there to stop a cow, she was denitely going to come back with me.”

Sligh liked the mare when they bought her for his father, Terry, last year. Since then ve people have shown her.

“My dad is 73, and he’s been showing her at smaller weekend shows. I show her at big shows. Todd [Gann] shows her, my wife, Alexis, and Todd’s son, Cody, have shown her,” said Sligh. “She works the same for everyone who gets on her. Go cut a cow. Go hit a stop. She’s turned out to be really cool.

She’s gotten stronger and quicker out of the turns.

“My dad and I work together, and now we can go and enjoy the sport that we love together. at mare takes such good care of my dad. He was second on her in the $50,000 Amateur. at was honestly better than all I won myself.”

Sligh appreciates his wife for all she does preparing his horses to show. He also credits Todd Gann for his support.

“Todd’s been my trainer for years,” said Sligh. “I don’t feel we’d have the success we’ve had without the relationship we have. We’re more like brothers.”

TED HARBIN

CLASS: $25,000 Novice Horse

Non-Pro

RIDER: Andrew Sligh

HORSE: Blu Metallic

PEDIGREE: Metallic Cat x Blue

Quilena x Mecom Blue

OWNER: Piney Woods Farm

SCORE: 217.5

EARNINGS: $3,228.62

“If you give him something he can work with, he can really put on a show.”

GUY WOODS

Guy Woods showing EE Columbian Red.

Andrew Sligh on Blu Metallic.

Mind Over Matter Leads To Title

The emotions that come with showing horses are plentiful and varied. Nervousness. Pressure. Excitement. Erica Walton feels all those and more.

After su ering a wreck a year ago while at a ranch show, trepidation has creeped into her mind just a bit. It hasn’t stopped her, but the memories have provided a little more electricity to her heart.

“As soon as I was cleared to ride again, I felt great,” said Walton of Fort McCoy, Florida. “Everything was going great, but whenever I got around cows, I would panic.”

Walton found a way to cope with that anxiety and vaulted her way to the top by winning the $2,000 Limit Rider division at the NCHA Eastern National Championship presented by 6666 Ranch. She and Smarrt Lil Pepto — a 2015 sorrel gelding with roan ashes that she calls Zeke — scored 217 points to claim the crown.

It’s the culmination of a change in equine focus, said Walton, who credits friend Ginger Ho man to guiding her into the world of cutting. She credits Zeke for the championship.

“All I was concerned about was getting through my run and getting to the nals,” Walton said. “I never in a million years thought I’d win it. at was my dream. It was a pretty incredible experience to end up winning it.

“I’ve only owned that horse for a couple months, so we’re still learning about each other,” she said. “He likes his loving, likes his scratches and likes his cookies.”

Undoubtedly, he’s earned a few more with the victory. TED HARBIN

CLASS: $2,000 Limited Rider

RIDER: Erica Walton

HORSE: Smarrt Lil Pepto

SCORE: 217

PEDIGREE: Sweet Lil Pepto x Smart Lil May x Smart Lil Lena

EARNINGS: $4,715.22

“I never in a million years thought I’d win it. That was my dream.”

ERICA WALTON

Erica Walton aboard Smarrt Lil Pepto.

Not Your Usual Success Story

With $74,662 in lifetime earnings, Most Stylish Player has de nitely proven herself and earned a special place in the Cowan Family.

While Makayla Cowan often shows borrowed horses in the youth, she’s managed to take the reins of “Lizzie” from her mother for the bigger youth shows. It’s paid o with wins like the Bosque Ranch Youth Scholarship Cutting and the Eastern Nationals.

“I’d have to ght my mom for her,” admitted Cowan. e 2014 mare started out as a cow horse prospect, but her career path changed to cutting as a late threeyear-old. After an injury sidelined her for a year, she returned to cutting training. She was consigned to a sale where Bill Cowan and trainer Nate Gribble found her. ey took a leap of faith with the nal bid and after just six months of training she went to her rst aged event as a six-year-old.

“She’s been amazing,” said Makayla. “She hadn’t won a dollar in cutting before she was six. She’s our miracle horse. She gets better every year.

“I went in [the go round] just wanting to mark a couple of 72s to advance and it ended up owing perfectly. We marked a 222.5. I thought we might need to get something done in the nals, but I kept the same game plan to be clean and smooth with no penalties, and I guess that’s what happened.

Makayla looks forward to showing Lizzie any chance she gets. “I can’t stay o her, she’s too much fun!”

TED HARBIN

CLASS: Senior Youth

RIDER: Makayla Cowan

HORSE: Most Stylish Player

SCORE: 22

PEDIGREE: Lizzys Gotta Player x Most Stylish Mom x Docs Stylish Oak

Teen Finds Fun In Victory

Competing at a cutting horse show is nothing new for Kate Roberson.

“I was eight years old the rst time I showed, but I’ve ridden horses ever since I could,” said Roberson, a 14-year-old horsewoman from Mineral Wells, Texas. She’s pretty good at it, too, earning the Junior Youth title at the NCHA Eastern National Championship presented by 6666 Ranch.

She scored 225 points on her mount, Laneys Gotta Player, a ten-year-old chestnut gelding she calls Spike, owned by Kandace Stone.

“She’s a really good friend that we’ve known for a really long time now,” Roberson said of Stone. “We’ve had Spike since he was four.”

eir teamwork was evident. Because she knows the horse so well, Roberson’s focus was on remaining calm and avoiding mistakes.

“I just wanted to let the horse do what he knows how, and when I saw the 225, I was really excited,” Roberson said. “I do this because I love being around the horses; I always have and love spending time with them. It’s moments like that when it just works for you that you get to have so much joy with it. You have moments like that where you just break through, and it excites you to keep going.”

Roberson likes her spot in the saddle because Spike is so much fun to ride. Of course, winning just adds to the joy.

TED HARBIN

CLASS: $2,000 Junior Youth

RIDER: Kate Roberson

HORSE: Laneys Gotta

Player

OWNER: Kandace Stone

SCORE: 225

PEDIGREE: Lizzys Gotta

Player x Catalaney x High Brow Cat

Makayla Cowan working Most Stylish Player.

Kate Roberson pilots Laneys Gotta Player.

Florida Cowgirls Love Cutting

A group of friends brought NCHA Hall of Famer Kathy Daughn to the Sunshine State for a special cutting clinic.

Back in May, NCHA Hall of Fame Rider Kathy Daughn came to the L Cross Equestrian Center, in Lady Lake, Florida, to share her passion for cutting with some enthusiastic cowgirls. Daughn was brought in to run a special clinic organized by three cutting friends — Denise Seiz, Kelli Burba and Fran Akin — all of Central Florida. e friends decided to hold the clinic to inspire cowgirls of all ages. Ten riders and four participants audited the two-day intensive clinic, which focused on cutting horse fundamentals, including ag work, dry work and cow work. Daughn, also a member of the National Cowgirl Hall of Fame, taught participants how to make “credit-earning cuts” and how to control the cow.

One of only three women to win the coveted NCHA Futurity Open, Daughn has actually won the title twice. With lifetime earnings exceeding $4 million, Daughn continues to specialize in training cutters and to promote the riding relationship that her customers have with their horses.

As the Florida clinic began, Daughn shared a judging video provided by NCHA Director of Judges Andy Adams, giving participants a rst-hand look at what judges look for.

“As the video played, Kathy explained to us what judges are looking for and visually what a credit-earning cut is,” said one of the clinic’s organizers, Denise Seiz. “It was very bene cial to actually see what Kathy was describing to us. She also emphasized how important it is to make a habit of watching your runs.”

Daughn talked about how riders have to properly give directions to their horse without breaking their concentration, allowing the horse to outsmart a cow.

Words and photos by MaryBeth Gokee

“You go do your job,” Daughn explained. “ ere is a formula: the cow goes, the horse goes and you go.”

Daughn also demonstrated how to achieve the nuances of riding straight and subtle, while always watching the cow. “Facilitate the horse staying straight,” she said. “Speed and destination are two di erent things: Wait a half-a-second longer before you go to using your feet,” she said of making the adjustments when cutting. “ eir feet follow their brain; so, if you get straight, have a pocket for your horse to turn in, this allows the rides to get better and better.”

Loraine Roe of Naples, Florida, who audited the clinic, said she learned a lot from Daughn. “She stressed staying faced up and gave so much detail in managing the cattle,” Roe said. “By explaining the ‘bubble’ and knowing how to control that bubble to your advantage was

OPPOSITE

“Make it your own. Know what you need to work on, get straight, sit up and wait for it. You need to ride assertively, but not rush it aggressively.”

KATHY DAUGHN

BELOW : Kathy Daughn (on foot) instructs riders Gloria Marwell (left) and Fran Akin.

PAGE : Everybody watches the cows.

my biggest take home. I’d never thought of it in those terms.”

Daughn had the riders practice straight-line drills, both on foot and on their horses. She pushed the riders to get the feel on the ground before practicing their turns and draw through on horses. While the initial exercise had participants giggling, it soon became clear how important clear signals to the horse can be.

“If you’re loping across and you’re on the cowside leg, then you’re leaking up the pen,” she explained. “To be balanced, they need to be on the herd-side lead. Keep their shoulders/withers upright, rock back and through the turn.”

Daughn also stressed the importance of visualization before rides and during practice. “Make it your own,” she said. “Know what you need to work on, get straight, sit up and wait for it. You need to ride assertively, but not rush it aggressively.

“When you come to the stop, you’d better be sitting still, ready to go through the turn,” she added. “Let the horse turn underneath you.”

Rider Heidi Denis of Geneva, Florida, joined the clinic with her daughter, Caralina, and their two horses. “I’m so grateful that we had the opportunity to attend,” Denis said. “We learned so much. It was an amazing two days.” e day following the clinic, the riders relocated to the Florida Cutting Horse Association’s (FCHA) May horse show at the Florida Horse Park. As competitors, the riders regrouped, focusing on their horses with their trainers, applying what they had learned. Both clinic riders and auditors alike could be heard cheering, as well as shouting out Daughn’s tips learned during the clinic. e intimate size of the group allowed for intensive focus on their rides. e camaraderie was inspiring.

ABOVE : (Left to right:) Fran Akin, Denise Seiz, Kathy Daughn and Kelli Burba pose while Debbie Dykes (in back) reviews video.

“I’m so grateful that we had the opportunity to attend. We learned so much. It was an amazing two days.”

HEIDI DENIS

THE DRIVE TO BECOME A CHAMPION ...

IT STARTS WITHIN.

INDUSTRY NEWS

RAMSEY WINS THE 2023 ELECTION FOR NCHA VICE PRESIDENT FORT WORTH

e National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) announces the next NCHA Vice President is Barnwell Ramsey from Huntersville, North Carolina. Ramsey assumed his new position as Vice President starting June 25, 2023.

Ramsey received 1,344 votes to win the election with 55.4 percent of the majority.

An NCHA member for over 20 years, Ramsey has been involved in multiple aspects of the industry from showing at both the weekend and limited age events across the country, and breeding and owning cutting horses. He has served on both the Finance and Amateur committees for six years, serving as chairman of the Amateur committee for three and vice chairman for two. Additionally, Ramsey is an active director from North Carolina and has served in this role for six years.

“The NCHA is a strong organization, well positioned on a road that keeps our western heritage alive,” Ramsey said. “That road to success is always under construction and it runs through its members. I want to continue building that road.”

Additional information about Ramsey, including his vision for the future of NCHA, can be found online at nchacutting.com/vpelection.

NCHA ANNOUNCES 2022 HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES

Every year, the NCHA welcomes outstanding riders and horses into the NCHA Hall of Fame based on their lifetime earnings or accomplishments in the arena in one of three categories: Horse, Non-Pro Riders and Open Riders. Joining the Hall of Fame from their 2022 achievements are the following:

2022 Horse Hall of Fame

BAMA JELLY OWNED BY MADALYN COWART

CLAYS LITTLE KIT CAT OWNED BY DAWN CHAPMAN

DURAMAX DUALLY OWNED BY MILNER ENTERPRISE LLC

SOMETHINGTOBELIEVEIN OWNED BY BRETT & JODY MCGLOTHLIN

SPOOKED BY A CAT OWNED BY CAROL ANDERSON WARD

THIRD EDGE OWNED BY TETON RIDGE

2022 Non-Pro Riders Hall of Fame

DAWN CHAPMAN OF CHANDLER, ARIZONA

DEBBIE DAY OF RENO, NEVADA

RIETA DUFURRENA OF GAINESVILLE, TEXAS

LES JACK OF ROCANVILLE, SASKATCHEWAN, CANADA

MELISSA LYONS OF IOLA, TEXAS

ALEXA STENT OF ALEDO, TEXAS

KATHLEEN STRAIN OF WHITE RIVER, SOUTH DAKOTA

BRET WAYNE PARSONS OF CARLOCK, ILLINOIS

2022 Open Riders Hall of Fame

EUGENE ( DELL ) BELL OF LAKE KIOWA, TEXAS

TRAVIS REMPEL OF ABBOTSFORD, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA

STEVE SCHLESINGER OF LOCKEFORD, CALIFORNIA

BRENT ERICKSON OF WILTON, CALIFORNIA

RUSSELL ELROD OF PERRIN, TEXAS

All inductees were honored at the Hall of Fame Gala held during the NCHA Annual Convention in June, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Congratulations to all inductees!

2023 SANDY SOKOL SECRETARY OF THE YEAR AWARD PRESENTED TO KATHRYN WEBB

The NCHA congratulated Kathryn Webb of Lehi, Utah, for being selected as the 2023 recipient of the Sandy Sokol Secretary of the Year Award.

The Sandy Sokol Secretary of the Year award is presented each year in honor of the late Sandy Sokol, who was a long-time and well-loved NCHA secretary. This award is given to an outstanding NCHA secretary who is nominated by NCHA members.

Webb has a long history with the cutting horse industry, now in her 37th year as a show secretary. She began as the secretary for the Utah Cutting Horse Association, where she still works today, and has since worked with shows across the country as their secretary. Additionally, Webb has trained numerous secretaries over the years and helped develop software such as Faster Cut.

“I was actually really overwhelmed; just tickled to death,” said Webb on receiving this award. “You know, when you try to do a lot to really make everyone’s experience really great, and to have some recognition was really pleasing. All of my hard work hasn’t gone unnoticed.”

Webb was presented with the Sandy Sokol Secretary of the Year Award at Hall of Fame Gala and Awards Ceremony held in June during the 2023 NCHA Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada.

2022 AFFILIATE OF THE YEAR HONOR GOES TO GREAT LAKES CUTTING HORSE ASSOCIATION

e NCHA is pleased to announce that Great Lakes Cutting Horse Association has been named the 2022 NCHA A liate of the Year, with Utah Cutting Horse Association named the 2022 NCHA Reserve A liate of the Year.

e Great Lakes Cutting Horse Association is comprised of cutters from Michigan and the surrounding states. ey were named Reserve A liate of the Year in 2021 and wanted to continue positively impacting the cutting horse industry in 2022. Great Lakes CHA focuses on its youth programs, mentorship opportunities and educating its members.

“It’s always nice to be recognized, but what we do is really from the heart,” said Amanda Powell, Great Lakes CHA president. “It was a lot of work from a lot of people to make it y, but we did it! Isn’t that always a great feeling? Now, we are going to strive to do even better for next year; make it more fun for more folks. We are doing it because we are passionate about our sport and about cutting and about showing other people how to have fun in the cutting industry.”

Reserve A liate of the Year is Utah CHA, which focuses on making everyone feel welcome, providing quality customer service and creating a fun and family-oriented atmosphere at events.

“We try to make sure everyone has a great time, and everyone feels welcomed,” said Kathryn Webb, Utah CHA show secretary. “We treat everyone as a guest in our state at our shows, and we want them to have the best, relaxed and fun time.”

CuttingHorse_Template-Quarter.indd

A Night at the Ranch

NCHA FOUNDATION PROVIDES PROJECT UPDATE ON RECENTLY FUNDED EQUINE HIGH-PERFORMANCE SPORTS GROUP FIELD RESEARCH AIMED

AT IMPROVING EQUINE HEALTH AND RECOVERY FROM CRITICAL INJURIES IN PERFORMANCE HORSES

The recently announced pilot study on the use of regenerative/orthobiologic treatments for stifle and suspensory injuries in performance horses, funded by the NCHA Foundation in partnership with the Equine Performance High Performance Sports Group (EHPSG), has been initiated. In early May, research analysts, and initial participating veterinarians, met to discuss and receive training on the research study processes which are being used to record and share project data.

The study, which focuses on the use and impact of Regenerative Biologics and their effect on recovery speed time, is expected to shine a light on alternative preventive measures with the capability to have a positive impact on future performance horse injuries. The primary objective of the study is to be able to provide veterinarians, and subsequently owners/ decision makers, with the data necessary to assist them in determining the best treatment solutions for equine athletes in a quick and efficient manner.

“Plain and simple, it’s time for our industry to provide unbiased information on a large population of performing equine athletes who have been treated with a regenerative/orthobiologic product,” said Dr. Mark Revenaugh, EHPSG Co-founder and project lead. “The ECR program is enlisting top equine veterinary specialty practices around the world to participate in this groundbreaking program with the common goal of providing the safest and most effective treatment options for our horses. We are really excited about the long-term prospects that this project will likely bring to the Equine industry as well as to the emerging field of regenerative medicine.”

Preliminary data has started coming in from the veterinarians associated with the pilot study in the western performance horse sector, as well as those whose practices primarily focus on warm-blood sporting equines. While it is too early to provide any information regarding trends or indications based on the preliminary data, the propensity of suspensory and stifle injuries across all equine performance athletes demonstrates the need to continue research in this area.

The EHPSG team is confident that this research will produce important information for veterinarians and owners, allowing them to make better-informed decisions and improve equine athlete welfare. The NCHA Foundation looks forward to the continuation of this pilot study and would like to extend our thanks to participating veterinarians - Dr. Charlie Buchanan – Signature Equine Hospital Stephenville, Texas, Dr. Chris Ray – Equine Sports Medicine & Surgery Weatherford, Texas, Dr. Beau Whitaker – Brazos Valley Equine Hospitals Salado, Texas, and Dr. Ty Tipton – 113 Equine Millsap, Texas.

We look forward to keeping you informed as the study progresses. To learn more about the participating vet practices or to be included in the study, please contact the above practices directly. To learn more about how you can help the NCHA Foundation support more projects of this nature please visit www.nchafoundation.org/givenow.

For more about the Equine High-Performance Sports Group and their research, visit https://bit.ly/EHPSG.

NCHA Suspension and Denial of Privileges List

Probations and suspensions may have been cleared by the time the magazine is published and mailed. The following persons have been suspended from the National Cutting Horse Association and/or denied all privileges of the Association until further notice. Proceedings have been conducted in accordance with National Cutting Horse Association Rules.

*Please note that the provisions of former NCHA Rule 40 have recently been merged into current NCHA Rule 4. An asterisk beside the Rule 40 number in the following list denotes that the suspension was made pursuant to former Rule 40. Please see the provisions of current Rule 4 on the NCHA Website for current guidelines relating to suspension for failure to make payments.

Non-Pro Suspensions

DUNKLE, DEENA, Farwell, MI

November 16, 2020 - November 16, 2023

(Standing Rule 50.d.4 and 51.a.4)

MOORE, ANNETTE, Williston, FL

November 16, 2020 - November 16, 2023

(Standing Rule 50.d.4 and 51.a.4))

MOORE, KOLBY DON, Williston, FL

November 16, 2020 - November 16, 2023

(Standing Rule 50.d.4 and 51.a.4))

MOORE, WILLIAM COLT, Williston, FL

November 16, 2020 - November 16, 2023

(Standing Rule 50.d.4 and 51.a.4))

New Suspensions

A PERFECT “10”, Adrienne Patou, Fort Worth, Texas.

AARON, CHRISTOPHER, Walker, Louisiana

ABEAR, KENNETH, Burleson, Texas.

ADJUSTO OF TEXAS, Weatherford, Texas.

ADKINS, RL (ROB), Sweetwater, Texas.

AGVEST INTERNATIONAL QUARTER HORSE CUTTING #1, Houston, Texas.

AIR RIDE HITCH, Beach Island, South Carolina.

ALLEN, CHRISTEN, Creswell, Oregon. Rule 40*

ALL PHASE ARENA, Spring Grove, Minnesota. Rule 40*

AMERICAN MASTERCRAFT, Boca Raton, Florida. Rule 40*

AMIGOS EMPLEO LEGAL, INC., Dallas, Texas. Rule 40*

ANDERSON, MERRILL, Marshall, Texas. Rule 40*

ANDERSON, SUSAN, Canby, Oregon. Rule 40*

AERIAL LIGHTING, Watseka, Illinois Rule 40*

ARNOLD, MIKE, dba CUT A COW, Springfield, Missouri. Rule 40*

ASHLEY, SHELLY , Sayre, Oklahoma. Rule 40*

ATLAS HORSEWALKER, THE , Plano, Texas. Rule 40*

AUBIN, GEORGE, dba WICHITA LAND AND CATTLE CO., WHC, SIGMA CORP, et al, Houston, Texas. Rule 40*

AUDIO CEL, Carrollton, Texas. Rule 40*

AYERS GROUP, THE , dba SONNY WOOLEY, Abilene, Texas. Rule 40*

B & S FARM SUPPLY, Winona, Texas. Rule 40*

BAILEY, CHUCK, dba LONESTAR VIDEO, Rising Star, Texas.

BARBER, GALE, Madison, Alabama.

BARRETT, BRIDGETT, Liberty, Utah

BARRON, GRANT, Stephenville, Texas.

BEALS, DENNY & JILL, Lufkin, Texas.

BECK, ERNEST, Midland, Texas.

BENDING B TRADING LLC, Collierville, Tennessee Rule 40*

BENEFIELD, DOUG, Bowling Green, Kentucky. Rule 40*

BERGER, BENJAMIN, Brenham, Texas Rule 40*

BENGSTON, BEN, Ogden, Iowa. Rule 40*

BERNARD, THOMAS, Int. West, France. Rule 40*

BERNIE’S CUSTOM COACH OF TEXAS, INC., Houston, Texas. Rule 40*

BETTER BUILT ARENA CONSTRUCTION, Okarche, Oklahoma. Rule 40*

BLACK FOREST SADDLERY, Louisville, Kentucky. Rule 40*

BLACKMAN, DANIEL, Cat Springs, Texas.............................................. Rule 4

BLACKMON, EDDIE, DeKalb, Texas. Rule 40*

BLACKWELL, REX, Elk City, Kansas. Rule 40*

BLANKS, RENEE, Aubrey, Texas. Rule 40*

BM OF TEXAS, San Antonio, Texas. Rule 40*

BOBBI BROWN COSMETICS/DOTTIE MCGONAGILL, Fort Worth, Texas. Rule 40*

BODE, KEVIN, Frisco, Texas. Rule 40*

BOGARD, BO, Eagles Nest, New Mexico. Rule 40*

BOHANON, BERNADETTE - Heber Cith, Utah. Rule 40*

BONIN, DOUGLAS, LaPorte, Indiana. Rule 40*

BOONE, RICK, dba WOLF CREEK RANCH, Dallas, Texas. Rule 40*

BOOTH, KRISTEN, Temecula, California. Rule 40*

BOSTWICK, DAVID, CREATIVE CHARACTERS, Oblong, IL Rule 40*

BOUGET, BOB, Branch, Louisiana Rule 40*

BOWLES, DEAN, Portland, Tennessee. Rule 40*

BRANNAN, DAVE, dba SOUTHERN AIRS RANCHES, Doralville, Georgia

BUCKLE T HORSES, Pattison, Texas.

BURKE, ROBERT L., Lancaster, California.

BUSH PRODUCTS, Bryan, Texas.

CAMPBELL, JAMES, Gilbert, Arizona.

CANDLESTICK CONSTRUCTION, Deloraine, Manitoba, Canada.

CAPRON, TENAYA, Fort Worth, Texas.

CARROLL, TOMMY, Weatherford, Texas.

CARTER, BILLY W., Natchitoches, Louisiana.

CASTEL INTERNATIONAL, Houston, Texas.

CATAWBA RANCH, Lancing, Tennessee.

CATENA WATCHES/BILL KRAFT, Tioga, Texas.

CATON RANCHES/JUDY CATON, Snohomish, Washington.

CAVANAGH, JOHNNIE, Petaluma, California.

CELEBRITY CLASSIC, Provo, Utah.

CHAMBERLAIN, CONNER, Davis, Oklahoma..

CHINOOK PRODUCTIONS, Vancouver, B.C., Canada.

CHISHOLM TRAIL BOOT CO., Fort Worth, Texas.

CIRCLE H WELDING, Hico, Texas.

CML HEALTH MATTERS, INC., Justin, Texas.

COATES MANUFACTURING INC., Bossier City, Louisisana.

COGBURN, DAVID BRET, Clayton, Oklahoma.

COLLINS, RICHARD, Oceanside, New York.

COLMENAREZ, JOSE, Miami, Florida.

CONNELLA, KEITH, Malakoff, Texas.

CONNELLA, TIM, Seguin, Texas.

CONTINENTAL QUARTER HORSES, INC., Sanger, Texas.

COPENHAVER, TODD, Valley View, Texas.

CORLEY, MELVIN D., Middletown, Kentucky.

COWBOY COUNTRY WESTERN STORE, McAlester, Oklahoma.

COWBOY’S CHOICE GOLD AND SILVER, McAlester, Oklahoma.

COWHORSE SUPPLY, Winter Haven

COW CUTTERS CHA, Anadarko, Oklahoma.

CRAIG, MIKE, Gainesville, Texas.

CREASEY, JUDY BROWNING, Montgomery, Texas.

CROSS, JOHN, Poolville, Texas.

CROOM, MATHEW, Weatherford, Texas.................................................Rule

CUNNINGHAM REAL ESTATE, Bowie, Texas. Rule 40*

CUTTER CUSTOM TRUCKS, Grapevine, Texas. Rule 40*

D & D HORSE TRANSPORT, Oakdale, California. Rule 40*

DALEY, MIKE, Sonora, California. Rule 40*

DALLEY, ROBERT, dba D BAR D MANUFACTURING COMPANY, Gonzales, Texas Rule 40*

DARK, LARRY, Dallas, Texas. Rule 40*

DAVIS, BROOKE, Cantonment, Florida Rule 40*

DAY, TAMRA, Okmulgee, Oklahoma Rule 40*

DE BROGGI FARM HORSE TRANSPORTATION, Stock ton, California. Rule 40*

DETWILER, TIM & SUSIE, Bonham, Texas. Rule 40*

DIAL, JOHN, Fort Worth, Texas. Rule 40*

DIAMOND D ENTERPRISES, Waxahachie, Texas. Rule 40*

DIAMOND GROUP, SEAPORT WHOLESALE, Los Angeles, California. Rule 40*

DONATH, RICK, Peoria, Illinois. Rule 40*

DORN, DOUGLAS & SHERYL, Kuno, Idaho. Rule 40*

DOUBLE M SIGNS, Flower Mound, Texas. Rule 40*

D.R. BROWN CORPORATION, Brownwood, Texas. Rule 40*

DR PERFORMANCE/STEVE SHELLY, Helena, Montana. Rule 40*

DUDDING, BILL, Weatherford, Texas.......................................................Rule 4

DULANEY, CHARLES, Meridian, Mississippi. Rule 40*

DUNCAN, TOM, Greenville, Texas. Rule 40*

DYER, TONY, Corinth, Texas. Rule 40*

EAGLE, AL, dba LONE STAR AUTOMOTIVE, Fort Worth, Texas. Rule 40*

EDWARDS QUARTER HORSES, Milton Florida Rule 40*

ELWOOD, ALAN, Hinsdale, Illinois. Rule 40*

ENDSLEY, SHARON, dba CIRCLE H EXCHANGE, Fort Worth, Texas. Rule 40*

EQUESTRIAN VIDEO PRODUCTIONS, Granbury, Texas. Rule 40*

EQUIHEALTH, Boulder, Colorado. Rule 40*

EQUINE AMERICA CORPORATION, PRESIDENT DON BECKER, Dallas, Texas Rule 40*

EQUINE PLANNED INVESTMENTS, Scottsdale, Arizona. Rule 40*

EQUISCAN, Ray Miller, Jr., Baraboo, Wisconsin. Rule 40*

EVANS, FRED, Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Rule 40*

EVANS, SHERYL, Livermore, California. Rule 40*

ESTEP QUARTER HORSES, Weiser, Idaho. Rule 40*

FAITZ, PAT, Polk City, Florida. Rule 40*

FARR, DUSTY, Wichita Falls, Texas. Rule 40*

FARR, PATRICIA, Palm Desert, California. Rule 40*

FERNANDEZ, FERNANDO, Ocala, Florida. Rule 40*

FISACKERLY, PETER & SANDY, Russellville, Kentucky. Rule 40*

FLETCHER, JERRY, Phoenix, Arizona Rule 40*

FLETCHER, RICKEY, Red Oak, Texas. Rule 40*

FLIT CONNECTION, THE, Chouteau, Oklahoma. Rule 40*

FONTENOT, FORREST, LeBlanc, Louisiana. Rule 40*

FOX, BOBBY, Glen Allen, Missouri. Rule 40*

FOX BRANCH COLLECTION, Moberly, Missouri. Rule 40*

FRANCE, JAMES R., Hudson, BC, Canada. Rule 40*

FRANK, TROY & AMY, DESIGNSOFSTEEL.COM, Stillwater, Okalahoma. Rule 40*

FREIGHTLINER, Fontana, California Rule 40*

FREDERIKS, WALTER J., dba AURORA PACIFIC CATTLE CO., Aurora, Oregon. Rule 40*

FRONTIER HORSE COMPLEX, Pilot Point, Texas. Rule 40*

FULKERSON, TOMMY, Oakwood, Texas. Rule 40*

FUNDERBURG, WILL, Canyon, Texas. Rule 40*

GARRETT, JAY, Lorena, Texas. Rule 40*

GARRIOTT, SHAWN WESTERN ELECTRIC, Emporia, Kansas Rule 40*

GASS, NICK, Spring Branch, Texas Rule 40*

GATSHALL, DR. G. W., Forney, Texas. Rule 40*

GAY, DUSTIN, Mannsville, Ohio Rule 40*

GENENA, LINDA, Aubrey, Texas. Rule 40*

GLENN, TOM, Redmond, Oregon. Rule 40*

GLISSON, MARCO, Wichita Falls, Texas. Rule 40*

GLOBAL CLASSIC CARS, Brownsboro, Texas Rule 40*

GLOBAL COMMUNICATIONS, New York, New York. Rule 40*

GOLDEN HORSE SHOW REVIEW, Bryn Mawr, California. Rule 40*

GOODWIN, GARY, Geary, Oklahoma. Rule 40*

GRAY, RICHARD, Conroe, Texas. Rule 40*

GREEN, D. W., Stanberry, Missouri. Rule 40*

GREEN, ROD & ELAINE, Weatherford, Texas. Rule 40*

GREEN, RICKY J., Tyler, Texas. Rule 40*

GUARDINO, DAVID, Dallas, Texas. Rule 40*

GULF COAST FENCE, Fulshear, Texas. Rule 40*

GUSTAFSON, JOHN, Valley Center, California. Rule 40*

HAMBY, KAY, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Rule 40*

HAMILTON DAN, dba FAIR DOLLAR FARMS, INC., Laurel, Florida. Rule 40*

HANSEN, GARY, Agoura, California. Rule 40*

HARDWICK, NANCY, Dallas, Texas. Rule 40*

HARJO, PHILLIP & JEANNETTE, Maud, Oklahoma. Rule 40*

HARNISH, JAY, Chico, Texas. Rule 40*

HARP, MICHELLE, HORSE SENSE, Beverly Hills, California. Rule 40*

HARRIS, JEFF, Maineville, Ohio. Rule 40*

HASKINS, PEGGY L., Carthage, Missouri. Rule 40*

HASTINGS, JOHN., Castle Rock, Colorado. Rule 40*

HAWLEY, MONTY, Bryan, Texas. Rule 40*

HAYES, JOHN PHILLIP III, Laurinburg, North Carolina. Rule 40*

HEINEY, AMY, Meridian, Texas. Rule 40*

HERNANDEZ, JOEY, Weatherford, Texas Rule 40*

HENKEL, TEAL, Scottsdale, Arizona. Rule 40*

HERSHBERGER, DON, Billings, Montana. Rule 40*

HERTZ, CAROLYN, Happy, Texas. Rule 40*

HEYWOOD, WM & BRENDA, Fallon, Nevada. Rule 40*

HIBBS, S. M., Rowlett, Texas. Rule 40*

HICKLE, LYNN, Fort Worth, Texas. Rule 40*

HOBBS, E. W., Mansfield, Louisiana. Rule 40*

HODGES, CHARLES, Fort Worth, Texas. Rule 40*

HOFFMAN, MARILYN, Mineola, Texas. Rule 40*

HOFFMAN PUBLISHING COMPANY, Glendale, Arizona. Rule 40*

HOGNER, JEFF, dba SILVERWOOD WINTER CIRCUIT, Hardesty, Oklahoma. Rule 40*

HOOF BOND, DANA LEAHY, Hyannis, Massachusetts. Rule 40*

HOPKINS, DENNIS, Sanger, California. Rule 40*

HORSEIN’ AROUND INC., Carthage, Tennessee Rule 40*

HOUSTON RANCH, Whitesboro, Texas. Rule 40*

HOWARD, KELLI, Whitesboro, Texas Rule 40*

HOWARD, RIC, Houston, Texas. Rule 40*

HUCK, BOBBY, dba CIMARRON RIVER CUTTING, Coldwater, Kansas. Rule 40*

HUEY, DANNY, Cleburne, Texas. Rule 40*

HUGHES, JESSE, Burleson, Texas. Rule 40*

I DOTCOM PRODUCTS, San Jose, California. Rule 40*

INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF HORSE FARMS, Dallas, Texas. Rule 40*

INTERNATIONAL LIVESTOCK VIDEO SALE, Alberta, Canada. Rule 40*

JACOB, BOYCE, Abilene, Texas. Rule 40*

JENSEN, GEORGE, Jacksboro, Texas Rule 40*

JERRETT, JOSLIN (Wild Mushroom), Weatherford, Texas Rule 40*

JEWELL EQUINE TRANSPORTATION, Leavenworth, Kansas. Rule 40*

JLD PRODUCTS, Fort Worth, Texas. Rule 40*

JOHNSON, C. NEIL, III, Missouri City, Texas. Rule 40*

JOHNSON, KENNETH, dba GJ INTERNATIONAL, Arlington, Texas. Rule 40*

JONES, MR. & MRS. BRAD, Paris, Texas. Rule 40*

JONES, DREW, Ruston, Louisiana. Rule 40*

JONES, GREGORY, Ardmore, Oklahoma. Rule 40*

JONES, JACK M., JR., J&J SADDLERY, Marion, Kentucky. Rule 40*

JOSHUA TREE MARKETING, Edmond, Oklahoma. Rule 40*

KAFKA, HAROLD, CRAZY HORSE RANCH, Millington, New Jersey. Rule 40*

KAPLAN, LES & ASSOCIATES, Elmsford, New York. Rule 40*

KACE INTERNATIONAL, Mesquite, Texas. Rule 40*

KAUFMANN, ASHLY MEREDITH, Sonora, California. Rule 40*

KEETON, DOYLE & CAROL, Giddings, Texas. Rule 40*

KEITH, LARRY, Sugar Grove, Virginia Rule 40*

KING, DAVID, Louisville, Mississippi. Rule 40*

KING, ED or JUDY, Santa Fe, Texas. Rule 40*

KING, MR. & MRS. JERRY, Corpus Christi, Texas. Rule 40*

KING OF SPORTS, HAROLD FLYNN, DIRECTOR, Little Rock, Arkansas. Rule 40*

KNOX, TONNIE & JAMIE, Yuma, Arizona. Rule 40*

LAIRD, HOWARD, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Rule 40*

LAMB, CHERYL-HOOF DOCTOR, Burleson, Texas Rule 40*

LANDSBERG, AUDREY, Agua Dulce, California. Rule 40*

LANGFORD, RANDY L., Katy, Texas. Rule 40*

LAREDAO CONVERSION TRUCKS, Burleson, Texas. Rule 40*

LAWRENCE INSURANCE GROUP, Greensboro, North Carolina. Rule 40*

LAYLAND, CRAIG, Lubbock, Texas. Rule 40*

LEACH, BOB, De Leon, Texas. Rule 40*

LEATHER HORSE MERCANTILE, Weatherford, Texas. Rule 40*

LECHNER, ANNABELLE, Templeton, California Rule 4

LEGATE, CAROL/LARRY BROWN REALTORS, Amarillo, Texas.

LEVITRE, JOSH, Bountiful, Utah

LEWIN, MICHAEL, Salado, Texas.

LEWIS, DAN, Caldwell, Idaho.

LEWIS, DAVID, LONE OAK STALLION STATION, Hendersonville, Tennessee.

LIFELINE EQUINE c/o JILL HINDS, Arena, Wisconsin.

LITTLE MONTANA LTD., Vienna, Virginia.

LOGO IT!, Logan, Utah

LONE STAR FORD, Houston, Texas.

LONG, GREG, dba SHOW OFFS, Van Alstyne, Texas.

LUCAS, BOBBY, Edmond, Oklahoma.

LYLES, LINDA, dba THE RANCH HOUSE, Abilene, Texas.

LYNCH, DURWOOD, Plainview, Texas.

MACLEOD & HOPPER, Lexington, Kentucky.

MAG BAR SYNDICATE, ALAN WEISS, Dallas, Texas.

MAGNETIC SOLUTIONS, Wichita Falls, Texas

MANDEVILLE, LISA, Northridge, California.

MARRS, MIKE, Abilene, Texas.

MARSHALL, LINDA, Vero Beach, Florida.

MARTIN, MICHELLE, Batavia, Illinois.

MASSIMO, BELLEZZA -Italy, (Roma)

MATTHEWS, MICHELLE, Chino Valley, Arizona

MAY, LYNN, Monroe, Washington.

MAYFIELD, GREGORY SCOTT, Scott, Louisiana.

McCLELLAND, JOHN R., New Iberia, Louisiana.

McFADDEN, EDDIE, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

McGEE, JIM & FRIGGA, Hampton, Georgia.

McGUIRE, ARVID, Anderson, Alabama.

McKEE, MIKE & VICKIE, Cleveland, Tennessee.

McLEOD, MARILYN, Flora, Mississippi.

McRORY, BRYAN, Perry, Florida.

MEBANE RANCHES, Woody, California

MID-ISLAND KENNELS, St. Croix, Virgin Islands.

MID-WEST FEED & BEDDING, Lacygne, Kansas.

MILAM, JULIE, Alta Loma, Texas.

MILEY STARFLEET TRAILER COMPANY, Sacramento, California.

MILLER, BRAD/PREFERRED REINERS PRS, Inc. Wilmer, Texas.

MILLER, FRED, Metairie, Louisiana.

MILLER, RAY JR., EQUISCAN, Baraboo, Wisconsin.

MILLER, ROBERT GLENN, Houston, Texas.

MILLER, TERRY, Bunkie, LA.

MILLICAN, JOHN, Whiteville, North Carolina.

MILLIGAN, KELLY, Laurinburg, North Carolina

MILLS, JERRY, Englewood, Colorado.

MILLSAP, RANDY, dba RED ROCK CATTLE COMPANY, Cumby, Texas.

MIZE, ALLEN, Dallas, Texas.

MONEY, MIKE, Santa Ynez, California.

MONTGOMERY, BETTY, Austin, Texas. Rule 40*

MOORE, G.W., dba WESTERN WOOD SHAVINGS, Dallas, Texas. Rule 40*

MOREHOUSE, KIANA -Buckley, Washington Rule 40*

MORRELL, KEITH, Hardy, Arkansas. Rule 40*

MOSIER, KARL, Stevensburg, Virginia. Rule 40*

MOSS, MICHELE, Aubrey, Texas. Rule 40*

MOXY PRODUCTS, INC., Torrance, California. Rule 40*

MURDOCH, DON, Dallas, Texas. Rule 40*

MUSICK, STAN & SUZI, Fort Smith, Arkansas. Rule

NATION ADVERTISING, Albuquerque, New Mexico.

NAT’L TEAM ROPING ASSN/DARLENE MILLER, Weatherford, Texas.

NORRIS, DESTIINY, Ruskin, Florida

NOSAL, CHARLOTTE, Houston, Texas.

OLD HICKORY FURNITURE CO., Roanoke, Texas.

OLSON, TRACY, Canada Rule

O’MALLEY & ASSOCIATES, Los Angeles, California. Rule 40*

OUTLAW TRUCK, Carthage, Missouri. Rule 40*

OUT WEST FINE PROPERTIES, SI JARBOE, Dolores, Colorado. Rule

OWEN, SUSAN, Elizabeth, Colorado. Rule 40*

P & J ASSOCIATES, North Miami Beach, Florida. Rule 40*

P.J. FINANCIAL, Los Molinos, California. Rule 40*

PACE, JERRY, Conroe, Texas. Rule 40*

PACE, STEPHANI A., Renton, Washington. Rule 40*

PASS, MICHAEL, Whitesboro, Texas. Rule 40*

PARKS, ROBBIE, Stephenville, Texas. Rule 40*

PEARSON, LONNIE, dba GOLDEN VALLEY RANCH, Norman, Oklahoma. Rule 40*

PERKS, ANDREW, Brock, Texas Rule 40*

PERRIN, WIL, dba UNITED HYDROCARBON CORPORATION, Corona Del Mar, California. Rule 40*

PITTMAN, MIKE, Temple, Texas. Rule 40*

PLEASURE ACRES PERFORMANCE HORSE SALE, Arcadia, Indiana Rule 40*

POKOJ, MALGOZATA, Poland Rule 40*

POLLARD BITS & SPURS/DANNY POLLARD, Merkel, Texas. Rule 40*

PONS, PHIL, Ocala, Florida. Rule 40*

PORTER, JEROME & JAMIE, Rogers, Arkansas Rule 40*

POSEY, RANDY, Comanche, Texas. Rule 40*

POWERS, GEORGIA, dba WESTERN SLOPES SPRING

CUTTING, Grand Junction, Colorado. Rule 40*

PRESTIGE TRUCK CONVERSIONS, JOE SLOWIAK, Burleson, Texas. Rule 40*

PROMENSCHENKEL, MARLYS, Olathe, Kansas. Rule 40*

PRO WALK MANUFACTURING -Ada, Oklahoma Rule 40*

PYLE, BOBBY, Bloomburg, Texas. Rule 40*

QUINTANA, REX, Benton City, Washington. Rule 40*

RAFTER C, Lindale, Texas. Rule 40*

RAINBOW, FRANK, Springtown, Texas. Rule 40* RAMADA LIMITED WILLOW PARK, Aledo, Texas. Rule 40*

RANCHLAND REALTY, INC., Granbury, Texas. Rule 40*

RATJEN, JACK, Mansfield, Texas. Rule 40*

RB QUARTER HORSES, Valley View, Texas Rule 40*

RED RIVER WESTERN DECOR/JEFF BURNS, Fort Worth, Texas. Rule 40*

RED STAR BREEDERS, Fayetteville, Tennessee. Rule 40*

REEK, TOM, Brenham, Texas. Rule 40*

REUTER, SHELIA, Kirkwood, California. Rule 40*

RIDENS, D. C., Salem, Oregon.

RIVER RIDE OF TEXAS, INC., Alpine, Texas.

RODDY, DEWEY, Jonesboro, Arkansas.

RODGERS, TEX, Pinehurst. Texas.

ROE, DOUG & MARY ANN, Moody, Texas.

ROOT, HEIDI, Red Bluff, California.

RUSSELL, DON, dba REDBUD CLASSIC, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

SACHTLEBEN, TROY J., Antonio, Colorado.

SANTA FE SPIRIT, Albany, Georgia.

SANTA ROSA EQUINE, Vernon, Texas

SARATOGA STALLS, Cedar Rapids, Iowa

SCHAEFER, DARLENE, Las Vegas, Nevada.

SCHAEFER, ROBERT, Las Vegas, Nevada.

SCHWAB, RICHARD, dba SUMMIT LAND AND CATTLE COMPANY, Marietta, Oklahoma

SCHWARZ, SHELDON, Springfield, Georgia.

SEABREEZE TRAVEL, North Miami, Florida.

SEGO, J.T., Tahlequah, Oklahoma.

SEGUIN HORSE CENTER, Seguin, Texas.

SHOW OFFS, Van Alstyne, Texas.

SHOWTIME SLEEPERS, INC., RICK WILLIAMS, Ocala, Florida.

SHRIMPERS, Fort Worth, Texas.

SIDE SADDLE BOUTIQUE/TAWNI Maughn , Weatherford, Texas. Rule 40*

SILLIMAN, DARRELL, Bernie, Missouri. Rule 40*

SILVERWOOD WINTER CIRCUIT, Jeff Hogner, Hardesty, Oklahoma. Rule 40*

SIMMONS, LUTHER, Florissant, Missouri Rule 40*

SIMS, HARVEY, FLYING BAR A RANCH, Rhome, Texas. Rule 40*

SIMS RANCH, Stephenville, Texas. Rule 40*

SKAGGS, CHRIS, Lancaster, California. Rule 40*

SMITH, DANIELLE, Ripley, Maine Rule 40*

SMITH, SID & VICKIE, Edgemont, Arkansas. Rule 40*

SNODGRESS EQUIPMENT/Randy Snodgress, Joshua, Texas. Rule 40*

SODA CREEK RANCH, Oronogo, Missouri. Rule 40*

SOUTHEASTERN CHA, LISA ETHERIDGE, Sec’y, Unadilla, Georgia. Rule 40*

SOUTHWEST DISTRIBUTORS, Cleburne, Texas. Rule 40*

SPEIGHT, JOHN, Midland, Texas. Rule 40*

SPINNING F RANCH, Lake Forest, California. Rule 40*

STAHL, JOHN, De Soto, Kansas. Rule 40*

STAN TAVENNER QUARTER HORSES, Ennis, Montana Rule 40*

STANLEY, STEVEN, Chillicothe, Texas. Rule 40*

STAR HORSE PRODUCTIONS, INC., San Diego, California. Rule 40*

STARNS, C. M., Fort Worth, Texas. Rule 40*

STEINMEN, ROBERT & SUSAN, SK, Canada. Rule 40*

STEPHENS, ROBERT, Rocky Comfort, Missouri. Rule 40*

STEPHENS, SHA, Weatherford, Texas. Rule 40*

STEPHENS, STEVE, Clinton, Mississippi. Rule 40*

STEVENS, J.C., Canon City, Colorado. Rule 40*

STICKLER, MIKE, Templeton, California. Rule 40* STITES, MARK, Custer, South Dakota. Rule 40*

STOCKYARDS REALTY, Fort Worth, Texas. Rule 40*

STONEMAN, MARK, Granbury, Texas. Rule 40*

STRUCTURAL STEEL BLDG., Boca Raton, Florida. Rule 40*

SUPERIOR BARNS AND BUILDINGS/DEBBIE PEELE, Franklinville, South Carolina. Rule 40*

SUPERIOR EQUINE PHARMACEUTICAL, Pleasant Grove, Utah Rule 40*

SWZT / STEVE TACKETT, Longmont, Colorado. Rule 40*

T-TREE QUARTER HORSES, Kerrville, Texas. Rule 40*

TACKETT, STEVE - SWZT, Olney, Texas. Rule 40*

TAYLOR, CATHY, Olympia, Washington. Rule 40*

TAW, Wingate, Texas. Rule 40*

TERRAL, RUSTY, Santa Maria, California. Rule 40*

TETON RANCH CORP. c/o STEVE TUSHA, Emmetsburg, Iowa. Rule 40*

TEXAS AMERICAN RANCHES, INC., Sanger, Texas. Rule 40*

TEXAS EXOTIC BOOT COMPANY, Fort Worth, Texas. Rule 40*

THORTON, MARY JO, GREAT SOUTHWEST RANCH, Greenville, Texas. Rule 40*

TIMBERCLAD PRODUCTS, Richardson, Texas. Rule 40*

TOOTHACRE QUARTER HORSE SHOW, CAROLYN RENNINGER, SEC’Y, Sandburg, Pennsylvania. Rule 40*

TRAILS APARTMENTS, Fort Worth, Texas. Rule 40*

TRAVEL LODGE SUITES, Fort Worth, Texas. Rule 40*

TRIPLE C WELDING, Cleburne, Texas Rule 40*

TRUCK & LIVESTOCK CONCEPTS, GLEN MILLER, Bleiblerville, Texas. Rule 40*

TUBAUGH, JOHN, EAGLE HORSE TRADING CO., Kansas City, Missouri. Rule 40*

TURNER, KELSEY, Eufaula, Oklahoma Rule 40*

TUTTLE, FERRELL, Victoria, Texas. Rule 40*

TYNAN, RUSSELL, Mesquite, Texas. Rule 40*

UNITED SPRTSMANS ASSOCIATION, Fort Davis, Alabama. Rule 40*

UTAH TAILORING, Baird, Texas. Rule 40*

VAN HAM QUARTER HORSES, Pilot Point, Texas. Rule 40*

VAUGHN, DAN, Waxahachie, Texas. Rule 40*

VAUGHN, LLOYD & SHARON, Beeville, Texas. Rule 40*

VAUGHN, LLOYD (EMMITT), Kenedy, Texas. Rule 40*

WALKER, MILLIE, Opelousas, Louisiana Rule 40*

WALL, TREY, Valley View, Texas. Rule 40*

WALLACE, LOUIS N. & LINDA, Belton, Texas. Rule 40*

WALTON, BOB, Fort Worth, Texas. Rule 40*

WALTON, GERRY, FLY TECHNOLOGIES, Bedford, Texas. Rule 40*

WATKINS, BILL, Denton, Texas. Rule 40*

WEATHERBUSTER, INC., El Cajon, California. Rule 40*

WELLS, JACQUELINE, Austin Texas. Rule 40*

WELLS, JULIE, Boyd, Texas Rule 40*

WESTERN CAROLINA HORSE SALES, Central, South Carolina. Rule 40*

WESTERN TRUCKWORKS, Edmond, Oklahoma. Rule 40*

WESTON, DONNA, Parma, Idaho. Rule 40*

WHITE, JEANNE, Pampa, Texas. Rule 40*

WILLETT, TIMOTHY, Dallas, Texas. Rule

WILLIAMS, BONNIE, NRM SADDLE RIDGE MORTGAGE, Weatherford, Texas. Rule

WINCHESTER, LORI, Searcy, Arkansas

WINEY, MICHAEL, Evening Shade, Arkansas

WMIT STUDIO A DESIGN LLC, Moneta, Virginia.

WOLFE, PATSI, Trinidad, Colorado..

WRIGHT, KENNETH & ROXANNE, Kaufman, Texas. Rule 40*

WYNKOOP, JAMES, Tomball, Texas. Rule 40*

ZIMMERMAN, DICK, Portage, Indiana. Rule 40*

NCHA Probation List

DUNKLE, DEENA, Farwell, MI

November 16, 2020 - November 16, 2023

(Standing Rule 50.d.4 and 51.a.4)

MOORE, ANNETTE, Williston, FL

November 16, 2020 - November 16, 2023

(Standing Rule 50.d.4 and 51.a.4)

MOORE, CASEY, Williston, FL

November 16, 2021 - November 16, 2024

(Standing Rule 51.a.4)

MOORE, KOLBY DON, Williston, FL

November 16, 2020 - November 16, 2023

(Standing Rule 50.d.4 and 51.a.4)

MOORE, WILLIAM COLT, Williston, FL

November 16, 2020 - November 16, 2023

(Standing Rule 50.d.4 and 51.a.4)

Pursuant to the NCHA’s Constitution and Bylaws, the director elections for terms of service for the period of June 2023 - June 2026 were concluded on March 30, 2023 All directors elected in this year’s election will begin their three-year term of service at the commencement of the NCHA Convention. Below is a listing of the NCHA Board of Directors effective June 23, 2023

Alabama

Julie Beasley (24)

James Hooper (LD)

Joey Nail (26)

Andrew Sligh (24)

Arizona

Sherry Cowan (25)

Joe Kalt (25)

Glen Nelson (26)

Tim Smith (25)

Mike Wood (26)

Arkansas

Diana Cunningham (25)

Toddy Pitard – President

Tommy Williams (25)

Lewis Wray (LD)

California & Hawaii

Robert Adams (26)

Dana Azevedo (26)

Phil Benadum (24)

Kathy Cardon (26)

Tim Castilaw (24)

Norm Clark (26)

Morgan Cromer (24)

Katie Fonsen-Young (26)

Rock Hedlund (24)

Fiina Ugrin Jolley (26)

Suzanne Rodoni-Silverberg (24)

Bernie Talbot (25)

Carol Ward (24)

Colorado

Nathan Miller (24)

Steve Norris (LD)

Nicole Pietrafeso (24)

Ron Pietrafeso (LD)

Joel Schulz (24)

Bob Tregemba (24)

Florida

Josh Deason (25)

Ora Diehl (LD)

Bill Kidd (26)

Sandra Lines (25)

Sharon Overstreet (26)

Pam Scott (25)

Georgia

Alison Howell (26)

John Hulsey (24)

Nate Pettit (24)

Mark Senn – President Elect

Idaho

Barbi Madgwick (25)

Denise Shewmaker (24)

Illinois

Rick Jackson (25)

Scott Shaw (26)

Indiana

Byron Green (25)

Andrew Larsen (25)

Iowa & Wisconsin

Travis Grover (25)

Seth Kirchner (26)

Kansas

Kirby Smith (26)

Rebecca Waters (25)

Kentucky

Trent Harrison (26)

Randy Mesalam (25)

Louisiana

Robert Charles Brown (26)

Gwen Coie (24)

Keith Deaville (LD)

Elizabeth Quirk (25)

Bruce Richerson (LD)

Chris Thibodeaux (24)

Michigan

Dan Agnew (24)

Crystal DeWitt (24)

Minnesota

J. P. Bell (26)

Bob Janssen (25)

Mississippi

William Cole (24)

Taylor Flowers (24)

Don McGraw (24)

Missouri

Ernie Beutenmiller, Jr. (LD)

Greg Beutenmiller (24)

Joe Wes Davis (24)

Sonny Martin (24)

Montana

Suzanne Nellen (25)

John Seymour (26)

Nebraska

J. B. Atkins (26)

Mike Christensen (24)

Nevada

Cookie Banuelos (24)

John Echeverria (26)

New England (CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, VT), NY,

NJ & PA

Jason Liddle (26)

Marty Miller (25)

Bill Stein (24)

Faye D. Stein (26)

Jack Werner (26)

New Mexico

Leslie Graor (25)

Richard Hicks (25)

North Carolina

Chase Lackey (26)

Garry Merritt (24)

Barnwell Ramsey (26)

North & South Dakota

Matt Lopez (25)

Jason Reed (25)

Ohio

Jeff Brown (24)

Steve Duff (24)

John P. Lavelle (24)

Scott McKinsey (26)

Chuck Smith (LD)

Oklahoma

Cara Brewer (25)

Michelle Cowan (26)

Jody Galyean (24)

Kathleen Moore (24)

Ty Moore (25)

James Payne (25)

Bill Riddle (LD)

Brad Wilson (25)

Oregon

Julie Clarke (26)

Marcea DeGregorio (25)

T. Scott Tullis (24)

Cameron Verstegen (24)

South Carolina

Tracy Barton (25)

Wendy Warne (24)

Tennessee

Barbara Brooks (LD)

Zeke Entz (25)

Kevin Herzke (26)

Maben Thompson (24)

Jason Whitaker (26)

Texas East

Johnny Bates (24)

Punk Carter (LD)

Bradey Davis (24)

Billy Emerson (26)

Sylvia Fuentes (24)

Jan Gandy (24)

Cynthia Patty (24)

Ronnie Smith (24)

Texas North

Clint Allen (24)

Jeremy Barwick (24)

Sharon Beach (24)

Jaime Beamer (26)

Chris Benedict (LD)

Lindy Burch (LD)

R. L. Chartier (24)

Dennie Dunn (LD)

Jo Ellard (LD)

Jennifer Foland (26)

Matt Gaines (24)

Casey Green (24)

Leon Harrel (LD)

Cody Hedlund (24)

Gavin Jordan (24)

Tom Lyons (LD)

Susan McBryde (24)

Frank Merrill (26)

Matt Miller (24)

Jim Milner (LD)

Ken Mock (24)

Bruce Morine (24)

Mike Mowery (LD)

Rick Mowery (24)

Steve Oehlhof (24)

Lachlan Perks (24)

Phil Rapp (LD)

Tarin Rice (24)

Ben Roberson (24)

Jonathan Rogers (26)

Corrie Rousey (25)

Ted Sokol (LD)

Chubby Turner (LD)

Bronc Willoughby (LD)

Texas South

Denise Bendele (26)

Frank Bowen (24)

Burt Bull (24)

James Davison (25)

James Eakin (26)

Scott Ferguson (25)

Bobby Hunt (26)

Janice Little (24)

Jane Mancuso (25)

Harrison Perrin (25)

Sam Wilson (LD)

Texas West

Cheryl Callis (25)

Sherry Graham (24)

Skip Jones (26)

Coleta Rosson (26)

Steve Smith (24)

Utah

Josh Hofeldt (24)

Steve Williams (24)

Virginia, West Virginia, D.C., Maryland & Delaware

Roy Bauer (26)

Jim Johnson (26)

Ryan Smith (26)

Washington & Alaska

Holly Jones (26)

Jeff Knight (24)

Dean Rebhuhn (26)

Wyoming

John (Jack) Enright (24)

Kristen York (26)

Eastern Canada

Eric Van Boekel (25)

Amanda Law (26)

Western/Central Canada

Connie Down-Cicoria (25)

Darcy Geherman (25)

Les Jack (26)

Sandy Reid (25)

Amanda Smith (25)

Doug Wiens (24)

Europe

Josef Bachmeier (25)

Jana Kucerova (25)

Denis Pini (25)

Sergio Traverso (25)

Pietro Valeri (26) •••••••••••••••••••••••••

(LD) Life Director

(EC) Executive Committee

Term Expires: (24) 2024

(25) 2025

(26) 2026

Judge Evaluation Form

Reason for Evaluation:

Commendation: I wish to recognize an individual who is hard working and consistently does a good job.

Spot Check: I do not wish to make an official protest, but I want a class reviewed by the Weekend Monitor.

Official Protest: I am enclosing the protest fee ($500* for LAE or $200* for Weekend). I understand that I must be an owner or exhibitor in the class to file a protest.

*Fee is refundable if protest is upheld.

Judge(s) name(s) about whom you are submitting this report: _______________________________

If you are submitting a commendation, please describe why you feel this judge deserves recognition: ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________

If you are submitting a spot check request or an official protest, please complete the following:

Show Name: _________________________________________________________

Show City and State: __________________________________________________

1. Have you reviewed the tape? ___ Yes ___ No

Show Dates: __________________________

Class Name: __________________________

2. In your opinion, how did the judge do on penalty application? ___ Excellent ___ Average ___ Poor

3. In your opinion, how did the judge do on “placings” based on run content? ___ Excellent ___ Average ___ Poor

4. In your opinion, did the judge act professionally? ___ Yes ___ No

If no, please explain: _______________________________________________________________

5. In your opinion, how was the judge’s performance during the entire show? ___ Excellent ___ Average ___ Poor

6. Please explain fully the circumstances that prompted you to complete this report: ______________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________________

Member Name: _______________________________________ Member Number: ______________________ Date: ________

Email Address: __________________________________________________________ Phone Number: ____________________

This form will be available online at NCHAcutting.com and in the Cutting Horse Chatter. This form is confidential and will be seen only by officials in the NCHA Judging Department. This report can be used to commend a hard-working, consistent individual which will help the Judging Department recognize the best judges. Spot Checks and Official Protest:

1. If a pattern of complaints emerges regarding an individual judge, the Judging Department will review tapes of the show or shows in question and take further action when appropriate.

2. Report must be submitted by a contestant in the class or an owner who has a horse in the class.

3. This report must be filed within seven (7) days of the incident.

4. A member can submit only one Judge Evaluation Form in a calendar month.

5. When submitting an official protest, the protest fee ($500 for LAE or $200 for Weekend) will need to be enclosed. Return form via mail to NCHA Judges Department, 260 Bailey Avenue, Fort Worth, TX 76107.

All standing committee members appointed for 2023-2024 will begin their three-year term of service immediately following the 2023 NCHA Convention through the annual convention in 2026 Below is a listing of NCHA Standing Committee Members effective June 25, 2023

Affiliate Officers/Secretaries

Caren Birdwell (24) R7

Cheryl Callis (26) R7 – NVEO

Kathy Cardon (26) R2

Kim Cox (25) R7

Vicki Green (25) R4

Della Hillerman (24) R8

Brooke Manion (25) R5

Dee McLauchlin (26) R8

Cynthia Patty (24) R6

Erin McGinn Smith (25) R1

Ashley Thomas (25) R2

Kathy Unfried (25) R2

Rebecca Waters (25) R3

Amateur

Dawn Brehm (26) R5

William Cole (25) R6

Taylor Flowers (26) R6

Jan Gandy (26) R6

Sandra Lines (26) R5

Brooke Manion (24) R5

Jennifer Palmer (25) R8

John Primasing (25) R2

Erin Russell (24) R8

Andrew Sligh (26) R5

Grant Smith (26) R3

Paul K. Smith (25) R7

Peri Suenram (26) R1

Katherine Van Boekel (24) R4

Kelley Whitis (26) R7

Approved LAE Show Producers

Donna Bachand (26) R8

Tracy Barton (26) R5

Robert Charles Brown (26) R6

Cheryl Callis (26) R7 – NVEO

Kathy Cardon (24) R2

Julie Clarke (26) R1

Kim Cox (24) R7

Della Hillerman (25) R8

Jim Johnson (26) R4

Nina Lundgren (26) R1

Theresa Nelson (25) R1

Jason Reed (26) R3

Coleta Manahan Rosson (24) R7

Pam Scott (26) R5

Mark Senn (26) R5

Finance & Audit

Denise Bendele (26) R7

Frank Diehl (24) R5

Ora Diehl (25) R5

Jeff Fehrman (26) R5

Jim Haworth (25) R3

Garry Merritt (24) R5

David Pilcher (25) R4

Phil Rapp (26) R8

Dean Rebhuhn (25) R1

Tatum Rice (25) R8

Suzanne Rodoni-Silverberg (25) R2

Steve Smith (24) R7

Governance

Dan Agnew (25) R4

Sharon Beach (25) R8

Tracy Barton (26) R5

Ora Diehl (26) R5

James Eakin (26) R7

John Echeverria (26) R2

Jim Haworth (24) R3

Anita Janssen (26) R3

Skip Jones (26) R7

Kevin Knight (24) R2

Corrie Rousey (24) R7

Ronnie Smith (24) R6

Buddy Westphal (26) R1

Growth and Development

Shelby Agnew (24) R4

Phil Benadum (26) R2

Angela Bull (24) R7

Janet Cagley (24) R6

Nancy Clayton (24) R8

Casey Connally (24) R1

Sherry Cowan (25) R2

Ora Diehl (26) R5

Cody Hedlund (26) R8

Jim Johnson (26) R4

Joe Kalt (26) R2

Shelly Mowery (26) R8

Glen Nelson (25) R2

Darrell Parsons (26) R3

Dean Rebhuhn (26) R1

Judges Rules

Roy Bauer (25) R4

Jaime Beamer (26) R8

Joe Cameron (24) R5 – NVEO

Tim Castilaw (25) R2 - NVEO

Bradey Davis (26) R6

Walt Erwin (25) R5

Rock Hedlund (24) R2

Seth Kirchner (25) R3

Ken Mock (26) R8

Sarah Morine (26) R8

Rick Mowery (26) R8

Nate Miller (24) R1

Don Pooley (25) R7

Kenny Pugh (25) R7 – NVEO

Jonathan Rogers (25) R8

Grant Setnicka (26) R8

Tim Smith (26) R2

David Stewart (24) R7

Limited Age Events

Monty Buntin (24) R2

Julie Clarke (24) R1

Zeke Entz (26) R5

Les Jack (24) R1

Clay Johnson (26) R8

Seth Kirchner (25) R3

Barnwell Ramsey (26) R5

Phil Rapp (26) R8

Ronnie Smith (25) R6

Jaime Snider (26) R8

Eric Van Boekel (24) R4

Wendy Warne (26) R5

Justin White (24) R7

Michael Wood (26) R8

Non-Professional

David Booth (26) R2

Libby Bowman (25) R4

Ryder Carpenter (26) R8

Lisa Clark (26) R1

Kathy Foote (26) R1

Phillip Garrison (25) R6

Sherry Graham (26) R7

Alison Howell (26) R5

John Kratzer (25) R6

Nate Pettitt (26) R5

Regan Plendl (26) R3

Elizabeth Quirk (26) R6

Kylie Rice (26) R8

Jamie Sokol (24) R5

Cameron Thompson (26) R8

Professional Trainers

Tracy Barton (25) R5

Phil Benadum (25) R2

Cara Brewer (25) R8

David Costello (25) R6

Kathy Daughn (26) R7

Mason Griffin (25) R6

Andrew Larsen (25) R4

Jesse Lennox (25) R8

Matt Lopez (26) R3

Ken Mock (24) R8

Rick Mowery (25) R8

Kenny Platt (26) R1

Stallion Owners

Burt Bull (26) R7

Julie Clarke (24) R1

Michelle Cowan (24) R8

Crystal DeWitt (26) R4

Alvin Fults (26) R7

Bobby Gale (24) R5

Rock Hedlund (26) R2

Lauren Kimble (26) R4

John Kratzer (26) R8

Todd Quirk (24) R6

Sarah Sherman (26) R1

Suzanne Rodoni-Silverberg (25) R2

Madison Smith (26) R8

Michael Wood (26) R8

Weekend Show

Sharon Beach (26) R8

J.P. Bell (24) R3

Bradey Davis (24) R6

Byron Green (26) R4

Richard Hicks (25) R7

Chris Howell (25) R5

John Hulsey (26) R5

Holly Jones (26) R1

Joe Kalt (26) R2

Nate Miller (26) R1

Barnwell Ramsey (26) R5

Corrie Rousey (26) R8

Ted Sokol (26) R8

Bill Stein (26) R4

Mike Wood (24) R2

Youth

Shannon Collier (26) R5

Cori Cosper (26) R8

Michelle Cowan (25) R8

Sherry Cowan (24) R2

Mary Crow (26) R7

Barb Himsel (24) R4

Amy Lippincott (25) R7

Sabrina Mesalam (24) R4

Chad Newton (25) R5

Shawna Parsons (26) R3

Nikki Roberson (25) R8

Leigh Ann White (24) R6

Kristen York (26) R1

NVEO - Non-Voting Ex-Officio

(24) Term Expires in 2024

(25) Term Expires in 2025

(25) Term Expires in 2026

TO ALL NCHA MEMBERS

ZERO TOLERANCE

The National Cutting Horse Association is increasingly aware of the sensitivity of its members and the general public in assuring that its activities show the utmost respect for the cutting horse as an animal and that any perception of inhumane treatment is avoided. The Executive Committee, upon the recommendation of the Judges’ Rules Committee, other standing committees and many members has instructed the staff that a “zero tolerance” policy must be followed in connection with the enforcement of Rule 35.A.

35.A. Zero Tolerance Policy

Inhumane treatment or excessive training of a horse in any manner is strictly prohibited. Both owner and rider of any horse entered in an NCHA approved or sponsored event, by said entry, consents to the implementation of any action allowed by this Zero Tolerance Policy (Rule 35.A) by either show management or judge. This includes any act which the general public would perceive to constitute inhumane treatment or excessive training of a horse. Any act of inhumane treatment, mistreatment or intent to mistreat a horse will be dealt with in the strongest possible manner as provided for in this Standing Rule. This Zero Tolerance Policy covers acts occurring not only in the show arena, but also those occurring anywhere on the show grounds–the warm-up area, practice pen or any other location.

The “ Zero Tolerance” policy encompasses all of the following acts:

Excessive Training: Excessive Training includes: excessive jerking; cueing; whipping; use of lip wire or similar device; slapping or hitting a horse on the head, or any other part of the body, one time or more than one time, in any manner, either with the rider’s hands, reins or any other object; using a bit in such a way that a horse is caused to bleed from its mouth or face; using any object held in the rider’s hand to hit a horse; or any other act which may cause trauma or injury to a horse.

Inhumane treatment: Inhumane Treatment is the exhibition of a lame or injured horse, or a horse that appears lame or injured, or a horse with any other health abnormality, which could thereby result in the horse’s undue discomfort or distress.

Your cooperation in promoting the welfare of our cutting horse athletes through enforcement of our rules is appreciated and absolutely essential to the ongoing success of the NCHA and its affiliates.

Very Truly Yours,

Ted Sokol Jr. NCHA President

1. 2.

2 0 2 3 NCHA EVENTS

(as of June 1, 2023):

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

Abilene Spectacular

The Ike

Arbuckle Mountain Futurity

Cattlemens

NCHA Super Stakes

PCCHA Derby

The Non Pro Plus the Open

APHA World Show ($26,000 added)

NCHA Summer Spectacular

Cascade Futurity

PCCHA Futurity

Brazos Bash

Waco Futurity

NCHA Futurity

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)

Here are some APHA registered performance sires & dams :

• BADBOONARISING

• CATTY HAWK

• DUAL REYISH

• HISSY CAT

• HYDRIVE CAT

• METALLIC REBEL

• METALLIC REY MINK

• ONCE YOU GO BLACK

• ONE TIME ROYALTY

• QUEJANAISALENA

• REYZIN THE CASH

• RUSTY BLUE METALLIC

• SMOOTH AS A CAT

• SMOOTH TALKIN STYLE

• STEVIE REY VON

ONLINE PERFORMANCE & PEDIGREE RESEARCH

The QData Online Database offers a variety of reports with extensive money-earning detail and a summary of AQHA points and awards. Horse, Sire, Dam and Grandsire reports are available.

RobinGlenn.com

MONEY-EARNER LEADERBOARDS

Updated weekly and available for free, the interactive Leaderboards provide the top 50 money-earners in 16 different event groups, both yearly and all-time. Sires, dams, grandsires, owners and breeders are available with more filters included inside each list.

QStallions.com/QDataLeaders.html

DIY SALE CATALOGS

The QData Catalog Builder allows self-serve production of your own fully-researched sale catalog complete with photos, a real-time internet preview and a presence on the QData Catalog App. Five pedigree types and numerous layout styles are available. Catalogs.RobinGlenn.com

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