MrShineyLights

Mr Shiney Lights Takes Over Reno

MrShineyLightsMr Shiney Lights & Nicolas BarthelemyThe first finals at the National Reined Cow Horse Association (NRCHA) Snaffle Bit Futurity took place Thursday, Oct. 1, in Reno, Nevada. It was an exciting day filled with talented horses and riders, but Nicolas Barthelemy left little up to question when he piloted Mr Shiney Lights to the Intermediate Open Championship.

Mr Shiney Lights (CD Lights x Lil Miss Shiney Chex x Shining Spark), bred by Lee Smith, of Columbus, Ohio, came to the Snaffle Bit Futurity with $1,277 on his Equi-Stat record from showing at the National Stock Horse Association Futurity. Barthelemy, of Ramona, California, had lifetime earnings of nearly $190,000.

Barthelemy piloted Mr Shiney Lights to a strong 219.5 in the herd work, followed by a 217 in the rein work. As the last draw in the second of three sets in the fence work, the duo had to mark a 218 or higher to take the win. They surpassed that goal by far when they earned a 225 – the highest overall cow work score in the Intermediate and Limited Open finals.

“I’m really, really proud of that horse,” Barthelemy said. “He’s a very talented horse. He doesn’t have a weak event. He wanted to do his job. We bought him as a yearling, and he’s not going anywhere.”

Mr Shiney Lights took home a $30,000 paycheck to owner Sheri Jamieson, of La Jolla, California. The 3-year-old stallion is a half-brother to Blind Sided (by Peptoboonsmal), whose lifetime earnings total nearly $155,000. Blind Sided was the NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity Open Reserve Champion with Equi-Stat Elite $1 Million Rider Jay McLaughlin in 2013.

Limited Open

ShineSmarterFuturity Limited Open Champions Shine Smarter & Sarah DawsonFor Shine Smarter and Sarah Dawson, who qualified for the Open finals as well as the Intermediate and Limited Open finals, Thursday’s event was a dress rehearsal for the big finale on Saturday. The duo finished in a tie for eighth in the Open preliminaries with a 652.5 (216.5 herd/219.5 rein/216.5 cow), and they really upped the ante on Thursday.