10 19 16 congress

Return From Congress

10 19 16 congress

Hi All!

I just returned home from the All American Quarter Horse Congress, where my wife, Ginger, and I showed four futurity horses by Pale Face Dunnit that we bred and raised. Between the four of them, they brought home more than $36,000 in prize money. I am very proud of these horses and look forward to their futures in the show ring!

We are roughly four weeks away from the National Reining Horse Association (NRHA) Futurity. My plan now is to keep my horses sound and happy until then. I have done all of the hard work during the last 18 months. We have ridden them regularly, maintained their feet, kept up with their veterinary needs and spent hours and hours of valuable riding time, along with schooling and show prepping them at the early futurities.

Now, it is about adding a little more polish and fine tuning. They will get out five days a week for a nice ride, and we will work on specific details that I think can be improved. By now, they are what they are. I am not going to be trying to change things up, as it is too close to the big event. I will also be working closely with my vets to make sure the horses are in their best health.

On another note, we will be taking eight NRHA Markel Futurity Prospect Sale horses to Oklahoma City along with the show horses. We have worked hard to bring a nice set of 2-year-olds to be shown and sold there. Needless to say, Schmersal Reining Horses has been a busy place this month! My staff and I are looking forward to seeing many of you at the Futurity and invite all of you to come and say hello.

We are currently on our way to the Legacy Reining Sales, where we are meeting clients to preview all of the yearlings in hopes of finding some great up-and-coming prospects. It is always amazing to me to look back on all of the foals we have either raised or bought early on at these sales and to see them many years later showing in the non-pro and youth arenas. It is a rewarding job that I am fortunate to be able to do.

I look forward to seeing everyone at the shows and sales, and I am always available to consult with you on prospects and breeding plans!

About Craig

Reining horse professional Craig Schmersal is the third-leading rider of all-time, with earnings of more than $3.2 million. Over the last decade, Craig has won almost all of the major reining events, often taking all three of his entries into the finals.

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