CR Too Tuff, with Ronnie and Theresa RiceThe 4-Year-Old Open at the Bonanza Cutting in Glen Rose, Texas, was brimming with talent. Six of the top 10 finalists from the 2014 National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) Futurity Open, including Champion Classy CD Cat and Reserve Champion Smooth Talkin Style, made it back to the finals on Sunday, Feb. 15. But it was CR Too Tuff, a flashy colt with a blaze face and four white legs, who took top honors.
Center Ranch’s homebred CR Too Tuff (Woody Be Tuff X Brogans Fancy Cat X High Brow Cat) parlayed one of his few runs that didn’t include being the last draw into a championship performance. Working sixth in the second set of cattle and 19th out of the 25-head finals, Ronnie Rice guided the stallion to a 225.5 to take the lead from Matt Miller and Kitty Kat Rey (Dual Rey X Etickets Cat X High Brow Cat), who marked a 222.5 as the second team to work in the second set.
Rice and CR Too Tuff won the first go with a 220.5 and were tied for sixth in the second go with a 218. CR Too Tuff earned $33,044 for his winning effort in the finals. Rice was quick to thank Sean Flynn for settling the herd before he discussed his winning run.
“We had all three of those cows picked from the start,” Rice said. “It just so happened that we got them cut just like they were supposed to be cut. The second cow was one of our picks, too. It was the best one, and I stayed a long time on her. She just kept trying and trying, and I was just so proud of that colt. I’ve had bad luck on him at the Futurity. I showed him seven times and drew dead last five and it’s hard to do that because these boys won’t leave you any cattle. I’m really proud of him. He’s been a good horse from the get-go.”
Miller and Kitty Kat Rey’s score held for the reserve championship, which was worth $26,436.
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