MissCallieCat

Miss Callie Cat & Tarin Rice Win NCHA Summer Spectacular Open

MissCallieCatMiss Callie Cat & Tarin RiceAt the close of this year’s National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) Summer Spectacular, it was anybody’s game in the 22-horse Derby Open finals. But from the last draw of the first set, Tarin Rice piloted Miss Callie Cat to the championship.

Miss Callie Cat (High Brow Cat x Mae Bea Marie x Freckles Playboy), owned and bred by Jim Crawford, of Lexington, Neb., secured a check for $35,457 after marking a 224 to win the class by a four-point margin. The mare now boasts an Equi-Stat record of more than $60,000, including a trip to the semifinals at the 2013 NCHA Futurity with her Centerville, Texas, trainer.

Rice, an Equi-Stat Elite $1 Million Rider, tied to win the 2012 NCHA Futurity Open on He Bea Cat, a full sibling to Miss Callie Cat. He Bea Cat, a 2009 gelding, is the leading performer out of Mae Bea Marie, who has nearly $470,000 in offspring earnings.

The 2014 NCHA Super Stakes Champions, Junie Wood and John Mitchell, impressed the judges to the tune of a 220, taking the Derby Open Reserve title from the first draw. Equi-Stat Elite $3 Million Rider Mitchell, of Weatherford, Texas, and the Slate River Ranch-owned mare (Nitas Wood x Tuffs Junie x Tuff Lena) earned $32,065 for their performance.

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