The Southwest Reined Cow Horse Association (SRCHA) Pre-Futurity, held in Fort Worth, Texas, gives exhibitors a chance to get their futurity horses into the big pen before the National Reined Cow Horse Association Snaffle Bit Futurity. It also draws derby competitors to the hallowed Will Rogers Memorial Complex, like Boyd Rice, who rode Quahadi to the Derby Open and Intermediate Open championships on Aug. 14.
The herd work was up first, and Rice, an Equi-Stat Elite $4 Million Rider in cutting, rode the stallion to a 74, which tied to top the go-round. The next day the duo came back in the reining and fence work, where they marked a 73 in each. Their composite 220 gained them the two Open titles.
“I was training him actually for the cutting and then I started doing the reined cow horse on him also,” Rice explained. “He’s been real green in the reining, but he’s getting it figured out now. He was good today in the reining and real good down the fence. I just luckily got a good enough cow that I got along.”
Though Quahadi is strong in the cutting pen, Rice said he stopped and turned so well that he thought he’d made a nice cow horse. The Weatherford, Texas-based horseman is an Equi-Stat Elite $1 Million Reined Cow Horse Rider and was the 2014 World’s Greatest Horseman aboard Oh Cay N Short.
By Bet Hesa Cat, Quahadi is out of the Tanquery Gin mare Ginnin Attraction, who has $28,727 in career earnings. Rice rode and trained Ginnin Attraction, and he noted her son didn’t gain many of her personality traits.
“She was pretty hot, and he’s pretty laid-back,” he said.
Quahadi, who banked $3,183 from the show, is owned by Burnett Ranches, of Fort Worth, who has had horses in training with Rice since the 1990s. Rice said they will likely breed the stallion in the future.
Taking Reserve in the Derby Open was Moonshineandtwoadvil, shown by Shawn Hays to a composite 219.5 (72 herd/73.5 rein/74 cow). The stallion son of Metallic Cat (out of Little Short Stuff x Shorty Lena) is owned by Randy Massey, of Louisville, Tennessee, and was bred by Brenham, Texas-based Wichita Ranch. He added $1,834 to his bankroll.
Smart Flags Please (Dual Smart Rey x ARC Cat Her Please x Chic Please) and Wade Meador, as well as Jerry Smoke (Dual R Smokin x Kool Arista Cat x Cats Merada) and Todd Crawford, each scored a composite 219 for the Derby Intermediate Open Reserve Co-Championship. Smart Flags Please (74 herd/71.5 rein/73.5 cow), a mare bred by Flag Ranch in Scottsbluff, Nebraska, and owned by Martha Jo Soule, of Anna, Texas, collected a check for $2,579 including the Novice Horse Championship, money earned from the herd, rein and cow works, and tying for third in the Open. Jerry Smoke (72.5 herd/72.5 rein/74 cow) received $1,879, also tying for third in the Open. The stallion is a homebred belonging to J Five Horse Ranch Management, of Weatherford.
Clayton Anderson and Wrock Star’s 214.5 composite (74 herd/70.5 rein/70 cow) took the win in the Derby Limited Open. The duo garnered $889 for owner Caroline Gilmore, of Franklin, Tennessee. Wrock Star was bred by Hare Quarter Horses LLC, of Lipan, Texas. The gelding is by WR This Cats Smart and out of Dashing Starlight (by Grays Starlight).
Taking the Derby Limited Open Reserve Championship were Sinful Merada and Matt Turner, whose composite 213.5 (71 herd/70.5 rein/72 cow) earned them a $414 check. Sinful Merada (Cats Merada x Sinful Style x Docs Stylish Oak) is a homebred belonging to Cowan Select Horses LLC in Havre, Montana.
A composite 215.5 gave Iconic Cat and Taylor Carlile Gillespie the Derby Level 1 Limited Open Championship. The duo, who marked a 72 in the herd work, a 72.5 in the rein work and a 71 down the fence, banked $1,268. Iconic Cat (High Brow Cat x Wood I Never x Zack T Wood) is owned by Lesley Marshall, of Rosston, Texas, and was bred by Wrigley Ranches.
