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Catch NRHA Futurity Recap on the Cowboy Channel

For Immediate Release – Jan. 29, 2021 – Oklahoma City, Oklahoma – Over the past couple years, the sport of reining has reached new audiences through television broadcasts, and that trend continues Saturday, January 30, at 7 p.m., CST. That’s because the iconic western-lifestyle Cowboy Channel will be airing an hour-long segment dedicated to the 2020 National Reining Horse Association (NRHA) Futurity.

“We are honored that the producers at the Cowboy Channel chose to spotlight the NRHA Futurity,” noted Sammi Miller, NRHA Sr. Director of Corporate Relations and Communications. “For them to take an interest in reining and put some extra light on our sport is great for our exhibitors, owners, breeders, our Corporate Partners, and our industry as a whole.”

The show will feature highlights from the MS Diamonds TX Level (L) 4 Open Finals as well as the CINCH L4 Non Pro Finals. There will also be special interviews with L4 Open Champion, NRHA Six Million Dollar Rider Andrea Fappani, and L4 Non Pro Champion, NRHA Two Million Dollar Rider Mandy McCutcheon.

Lending his voice and knowledge to the broadcast will be NRHA Professional and Judge Steve Ross of Scottsdale, Arizona. In addition to being a judge, trainer, and coach, Ross is an experienced broadcasting and radio personality and has provided color commentary for the live feed of the NRHA Futurity for the past several years.

“Steve knows the ins and outs of the sport and can share the knowledge he has in a way that even people who are unfamiliar with the sport can understand it,” Miller said.

Also making an appearance on Friday evening’s show is NRHA Commissioner Gary Carpenter. “We thank Cowboy Channel President Jeff Medders, Rural Media Group Founder Patrick Gottsch, and the staff of the Cowboy Channel for making this happen. This is a great opportunity to introduce reining to people who may have never seen it before,” Carpenter said.

He added, “We at the NRHA look forward to continuing a great relationship with the team at the Cowboy Channel going forward as they strive to become the ESPN of western sports.”

About The Cowboy Channel:

The Cowboy Channel is the official network of ProRodeo and the first 24-hour television network totally dedicated to Western sports and the Western lifestyle. Headquartered in the Fort Worth Stockyards, The Cowboy Channel features content focused on ProRodeo, bull riding, roping, reining, barrel racing, and other western sports genres, along with western fashion and music. The lineup also features a wide variety of “live” coverage from major western events showcasing the world’s toughest and most talented cowboys and cowgirls. The network enjoys distribution into 42 million homes on cable/satellite systems on Altice, Charter Spectrum, DISH, DIRECTV®, AT&T U-Verse, Cox, Comcast, Mediacom, Verizon FIOS TV, and many other rural cable systems. In addition, The Cowboy Channel can be streamed online via The Cowboy Channel Plus at cowboychannelplus.com, DIRECTV NOW, Roku, iOS, Android, Firestick, Apple TV, and Sling TV’s Heartland Extra package. For more information, visit TheCowboyChannel.com.

Photo by Carolyn Simancik

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NRHA Futurity Success Catapults Lil Joe Cash to Million Dollar Sire Status

For Immediate Release – January 21, 2021 – Oklahoma City, Okla. – In a meteoric rise, Lil Joe Cash became a National Reining Horse Association (NRHA) Million Dollar Sire with only four performing foal crops.

“With all the show cancellations in 2020, it’s almost certain that Lil Joe would have become a million dollar sire earlier in the year, and to me that is incredible,” noted owner Russell Giles. “Having Lil Joe Cash become a million-dollar sire was never my goal because it has always been to breed the best-minded, athletic horses that people love. I believe we’re achieving that.”

An incredible show resume with NRHA Six Million Dollar Rider Andrea Fappani has segued into an equally impressive breeding career. Prior to the 2020 NRHA Futurity, Lil Joe Cash was less than $6,000 away from achieving NRHA Million Dollar Sire status, and while he would have achieved that milestone regardless, Tish Fappani’s Level (L) 3 Non Pro Futurity Championship and L4 Co-Reserve Championship on Joes Genes (out of Electric Genes) catapulted the stallion’s progeny earnings across the million dollar threshold.

Tish Fappani was proud to play a part in Lil Joe Cash’s milestone. “Lil Joe Cash has always been a special horse to our family. He had an amazing show career,” she said. “It’s amazing to be a part of this achievement of his. My mare’s mind and her trainability are where I see his influence.”

Her husband, Andrea Fappani, added, “Tish’s mare has a mind remarkably like her sire [Lil Joe Cash]. You never had to force him to do anything. You just had to show him, and if he understood what you were asking, he would do it for you.”

Lil Joe Cash was also well-represented in the Adequan® Arena at the NRHA Futurity. Madison Gustin piloted Win My Cash (out of Win My Shine) to top finishes in the North American Affiliate Championships (NAAC) in the Non Pro and Intermediate Non Pro divisions, winning more than $5,100. Earlier in the year, Gustin and Win My Cash won the L2 and L1 Non Pro Derby Championship to earn more than $12,000 in NRHA Lifetime Earnings (LTE).

Bred by Kurt and Angie Harris, Lil Joe Cash is by NRHA Three Million Dollar Sire Nu Chex To Cash and out of RS Lilly Starlight. Giles purchased the colt at the 2009 Legacy Sale and sent him to Brent Loseke to begin his career. It was Loseke’s recommendation to pair Lil Joe Cash with Andrea Fappani. “Brent’s honesty and integrity in suggesting I send Lil Joe Cash to Andrea speaks volumes about his character,” Giles said. “I believe some trainers would not have been as gracious or truthful about my horse’s potential.”

With Andrea Fappani in the saddle, Lil Joe Cash quickly made his mark on the reining industry, winning the 2011 NRHA Futurity Open L4 with an incredible 227.5. The pair also won an American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA) Jr. Reining World Championship in 2012, then the NRHA $75,000 Shootout Championship in 2014.

“Lil Joe Cash was a special horse, not just as a show horse, but in our barn, too. He is probably the only horse I have been able to get from a different program later in his 3-year-old year and be very successful. I got him in April from Brent, who has a great program and puts a great foundation on horses but rides differently than I do,” Fappani shared. “Lil Joe Cash really molded to me, and I remember looking at my wife just two weeks after getting him and telling her I had never been on a horse that fit my style so much.”

Andrea Fappani thought so highly of the stallion, that he brought him out of retirement in 2019 to compete in The Run for a Million Shootout, where they finished third with a score of 226.

“I always tell people that if I had to pick a horse in my career that depicts the way I want reining to be done, it would be Lil Joe Cash,” Andrea Fappani said. “To me, he has the style I want. He’s a great mover who’s very collected naturally. I have gone back and watched his videos from when he went through the Legacy Sale, and it was amazing to me that he showed as a 6-year-old the same way he moved as a yearling. Twenty years from now, if someone asks me who my ideal reining horse was, I will always say Lil Joe Cash.”

Giles was quick to credit several people with Lil Joe Cash’s success. “I thank Andrea and Tish, who believed in Joe all the way. I also thank Brent Loseke, who gave Joe a lot of credence with trainers,” she said. “Also, I give a lot of credit to Jo Ellard of EE Ranch. He stood there first, and Jo, Steve and Kim Adams, and Tony Nunez, did a great job with him there.”

As Lil Joe Cash’s progeny began to compete, it became apparent he was a good cross on mares by NRHA Leading Sire Gunner. “Moving him to Tom McCutcheon Reining Horses was inevitable,” Giles shared. “We have only had one breeding season there, but it has been phenomenal. Over the years I have been incredibly fortunate to find great people to help me, and the credit goes to all of them.”

For Giles, the diversity of the riders that found success on Lil Joe Cash is a testament to the stallion. “Joe is always affectionate and wants to know what is going on, and his babies are like that, too. It’s funny because it seems like once someone gets a Joe in the barn, they’ll have 10,” she said. “I think with the propulsion he’s had, people are going to be excited about owning a Joe of their own.”

Lil Joe Cash’s top offspring also includes:

  • NVR What A Lucky Joe (out of What A Lucky Hit): $108,182 NRHA LTE
  • Lil Patron (out of Miss Rey O Shine): $76,459 NRHA LTE
  • Cashing In Diamonds (out of Diamond Steppin Whiz): $57,473 NRHA LTE

Congratulations to Lil Joe Cash on this monumental milestone!

Photo by Veronika Photography

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Wimpys Little Chic Makes Her Mark as NRHA’s Newest Million Dollar Dam

Wimpys Little Chic

For Immediate Release – January 19, 2021 – Oklahoma City, Okla. – In just four short years, Wimpys Little Chic amassed more than half a million dollars in National Reining Horse Association (NRHA) Lifetime Earnings (LTE). She’s the only horse in history to win the NRHA Futurity, NRHA Derby, and the National Reining Breeders Classic (NRBC) consecutively. Wimpys Little Chic is officially the newest NRHA Million Dollar Dam.

The stunning palomino was bred by Monica Watson of Double Run Farm of Leland, North Carolina. Eleuterio Arcese, of Arcese Quarter Horses USA, purchased the mare in 2007. “In the early spring of that year, we went with our friend Frank Costantini to Shawn Flarida’s to see some 3-year-old futurity prospects. Among all the prospects we looked at, when we saw her, we realized she was really special and unique,” Arcese recalled.

The special mare, now 17 years old, is by NRHA Twelve Million Dollar Sire Wimpys Little Step out of Collena Chic Olena. She had magnetism in the show pen, drawing spectators to the rails when it was time for her to compete.

“She had a great brain, and when that mind mixed with the incredible athletic ability she had, greatness happened,” said Flarida, an NRHA Professional and NRHA Six Million Dollar Rider. While he’s ridden many incredible horses in his career, Flarida believes Wimpys Little Chic towers above the rest. “She’s absolutely the greatest. She’s the one who will change this sport if she hasn’t already.”

All Bettss Are Off – photo by Carolyn Simancik

Now it’s clear that her foals have that same commanding presence. When NRHA Six Million Dollar Rider Andrea Fappani and Arcese’s All Bettss Are Off, by the newest NRHA Leading Sire Gunner, won the 2020 NRHA Futurity Level (L) 4 Open Championship, Wimpys Little Chic became the fourth, and latest, mare to join the elite club of Million Dollar Dams with only 12 money-earning foals.

“This meant a lot to me because Mr. Arcese asked me at the beginning of the year if I thought I had the quality of horse I needed to win the Futurity,” Fappani shared. “He knew that Wimpys Little Chic was getting close to that big mark, and it would mean a lot to him to win the Futurity and put that mare over one million. Being able to do that for him was a big deal to me.”

In a career that includes many great horses and achievements, this most recent one is special. “It’s great, it’s a dream come true. It means all the effort, the commitment, and the passion dedicated to our program is now repaying us with great satisfaction,” Arcese said. “This is the third Open Futurity won by horses we raised out of Wimpys Little Chic, and they’ve also won at the NRHA Derby and had many reserve championships.”

Wimpys Little Chic’s top earner is ARC Gunnabeabigstar, by NRHA Four Million Dollar Sire Gunnatrashya. With NRHA $2 Million Dollar Rider Jordan Larson at the reins, ARC Gunnabeabigstar, now owned by HDC Quarter Horses, won the 2014 NRHA Futurity L4 Open and finished as the L4 Open Reserve Champion at the 2017 NRHA Derby. All totaled, ARC Gunnabeabigstar accumulated $298,999 in NRHA Lifetime Earnings (LTE).

Wimpys Little Chic’s second highest money earner is All Betts Are Off with $281,311 in NRHA LTE, thanks in part to the record-setting $250,000 Futurity check.

Shesouttayourleague, by NRHA Three Million Dollar Sire Walla Walla Whiz, rounds out the top three earners with $252,470 in NRHA LTE, including championships at the NRHA Futurity, Derby, and High Roller Reining Classic. Shesouttayourleague, owned by Curtis Performance Horses LLC, was ridden by NRHA $2 Million Dollar Rider Casey Deary.

“I’ve ridden some of her babies, and she stamps them. She could stop like crazy, and every single one of her foals can stop, too,” Flarida said. “She’s already produced three Futurity champions, but the point is, she’s a great horse. You can use a lot of words, but she is the one who just makes you sit there and ask, ‘Wow, how did she do that?’ Now, she’s continuing to produce great horse after great horse.”

With Wimpys Little Chic’s latest success, there is no doubt that Arcese Quarter Horses USA will continue its mission. “Our goal has always been to do better, and always improve the quality of our horses,” Arcese shared.

Wimpys Little Chic’s ten money earning offspring also includes:

  • Lonely At The Top (by NRHA Twelve Million Dollar Sire Gunner): $73,151 NRHA LTE
  • ARC Trashin Yer Chic (by NRHA Four Million Dollar Sire Gunnatrashya): $67,055 NRHA LTE
  • Wimpys Lil Tag (by NRHA Two Million Dollar Sire Whiz N Tag Chex): $58,924 NRHA LTE
  • Wallas Chic Diana (by NRHA Three Million Dollar Sire Walla Walla Whiz): $54,602 NRHA LTE
  • Trashy Chics Dig Me (by NRHA Four Million Dollar Sire Gunnatrashya): $35, 648 NRHA LTE
  • ARC Wimpysgottagun (by NRHA Four Million Dollar Sire Gunnatrashya): $25,709 NRHA LTE
  • ARC A Step Above (by NRHA Three Millon Dollar Sire Walla Walla Whiz): $18,994 NRHA LTE
  • Gunna Go Big (by NRHA Four Million Dollar Sire Gunnatrashya): $18,603 NRHA LTE
  • Gunna Be A Big Hit (by NRHA Four Million Dollar Sire Gunnatrashya): $9,935 NRHA LTE
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NRHA ReinerSuite™ Introduces Eligibility Tool

Gone are the days of long, extenuating lists of member ineligibility lists thanks to an online, member portal: National Reining Horse Association (NRHA) ReinerSuite™. All it takes is an email address, NRHA member number, and PIN for reiners to gain access to their eligibility and that of their equine partners.

To check eligibility, members need to have an account with ReinerSuite. Click here for the three easy steps to registering with the online portal.

How to check eligibility on ReinerSuite:

  1. Log into your account
  2. On the main, Dashboard, page, the “Eligibility Tool” will be at the very top (pictured above). If you’re on a mobile device, scroll down until you see the tool.
    1. CLASS: Choose what class you would like to check your eligibility for
    2. RIDER: Input your name in the “Rider” search bar
    3. HORSE: You can also search for the eligibility of a horse, but a rider will need to be listed
      1. Pro tip: You don’t have to input a horse name to search for rider eligibility, but you do have to input a rider name to search for horse eligibility
    4. EVENT DATE: Since your eligibility remains the same from Jan. 1, 2021, through Dec. 31, 2021, you don’t need to include the exact event date. BUT you do need to make sure the event date is some time in 2021
    5. ELIGIBILITY AREA: Click the dropdown menu to choose your eligibility area or keep it listed as “WorldWide”
    6. After you’ve checked your information, click “Submit” or hit “Clear” if you need to start over

After hitting “Submit,” you’ll see a screen similar to this with either green or red to indicate the status of your eligibility. One unique feature of this tool is its ability to give you reasons why you might not be eligible for a certain class. If your membership is not active, you may see this listed as a reason. If this is the only reason, check back after your membership is renewed and you will see that you are eligible for the class.

If you are not eligible for the class selected, hit “Clear” and search your eligibility for a different level. In this case, NRHA Professional “John Doe” is not eligible for Category 2 – Level 3 Intermediate Open Aged Event (2200) because he’s in the Top 35 Pro Riders for the 2020 show season.

“John Doe” is, however, eligible for Category 2 – Level 4 Open Aged Event (2100). After hitting “Clear,” the Eligibility Tool will take you back to the previous screen and will not clear your information so all you have to do is change the class and submit again.

The Eligibility Tool also takes membership status and declarations into consideration when calculating your eligibility. Remember, all memberships (both horse owner and rider) need to be up-to-date before entering the show pen to avoid disqualification and penalty fees when the results are submitted to NRHA.

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Beginning of Year Events – For any events scheduled January–May 31 

AS COVID remains a concern through the winter/spring months, NRHA will offer an extension of the deadline for all events starting now through May 31.

Parameters:

  • Any size event received 30 days prior to the start of the event will be considered a Top Ten event.

Approval requirements:

  • Must be submitted with required information – retainage, fees, patterns, judges, general conditions (ex. ages and equipment) for aged events.
  • Membership for secretary must be current; not needing to be renewed.
  • If you wish to order trophies, we need the completed order with a form of payment no later than 45 days prior to the event.
    • On request, we can wait until approximately 30 days out to order trophies. In this case, we recommend using a shipping address that is acceptable should the trophies arrive after the event. In most cases, this is not an issue and something we work hard to avoid, but if there is a spike in orders or other issues with shipping channels, this could create delays. NRHA cannot reimburse additional shipping expense for any order placed less than 45 days prior to the event.
    • We will continue to work with events that place an order, but later have to cancel.
  • This will apply to any event submitted thus far for 2021.


Event Calendar Tips for ReinerSuite

To search for approved, tentative and pending events in ReinerSuite, click on the EVENTS tab on the left sidebar.

If you want to see all events for the year, simply enter 01/01/2021 in the Start Date field and hit SEARCH. This will give you a complete list.

If you want to search by more detailed criteria, use the fields provided to narrow down your search by date, country, “Only Top Ten Events,” etc.