A new competition will reward horses and riders who are the stars of authentic ranch work.
The Ranch Work Championship – an all-breed, all-age event – will be held July 7 in conjuction with the American Junior Paint Horse Association Youth World Show at Will Rogers Memorial Center in Fort Worth, Texas.
Hosted by the American Paint Horse Association (APHA) and Classic Equine, the event will pay out $10,000 in a divisional format. It will feature ranch work, ranch roping, ranch cow work and ranch cutting.
A 3D divisional payout—where each division pays equally—offers increased payout opportunities for all skill levels. Each division also includes a $600 high-point champion and $400 reserve champion award bonus. Additionally, the high-scoring Paint Horse in each event will receive special awards.
The Paint Horse Journal announced that pre-entry deadline for the Ranch Work Championship is 5p.m., June 29. Entries will be accepted after June 29, but fresh cattle will not be guaranteed.
More information will be posted as apha.com/ywcs/rwc/ as it is available.
A CLOSER LOOK: Ranch Work Championship
Divisional Payout System
* Division Splits – 4-point splits
* Example: 78 is high score in class
* 1D winner = 78 score
* 2D winner = 74 score
* 3D winner = 70 score
Ranch Work: $1,750 added
* The Ranch Work tests the horse’s ability to cope with situations encountered while being ridden through a pattern of obstacles and maneuvers generally found during the course of everyday ranch work. Horse-rider teams are judged on the correctness, efficiency and pattern accuracy with which the obstacles are negotiated and the attitude and mannerisms exhibited by the horse. Judging emphasis is on identifying the well-broke, responsive and well-mannered horse that can correctly navigate and negotiate the pattern.
Ranch Roping: $1,750 added
* The purpose of this event is to show the horse’s ability to assist the rider in roping a cow out of a herd, as would be done on a ranch for branding or doctoring. The horse should move quietly through the herd to locate the desired cow and position the rider to make the catch quietly with as little disturbance to the herd as possible.
Ranch Cow Work: $1,750 added
* The ideal ranch horse should also be a cow horse and this event demonstrates and measures the horse’s ability to do cow work. There are five parts to this work: boxing the cow; setting up the cow and driving it down the fence to the opposite end of the arena; boxing it at the opposite end of the arena and then driving the cow past the middle marker again, then circling or roping. There is no expectation that the exhibitor will make a “fence turn,” rather the boxing, driving, boxing, driving, roping or circling.
Ranch Cutting: $1,750 added
* This class is judged on the ability of the horse to work a cow by separating it from the herd and holding it to demonstrate the horse’s ability to work the cow.
