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Mathison Reaches NRHA Million Dollar Rider Status

This time of year is peak show season for the National Reining Horse Association (NRHA). With many Affiliate Regional Championships and exciting reining events held across the country, it is a great opportunity for riders to add to their lifetime earnings (LTE) and reach new goals for themselves. NRHA Professional Justin “Gunny” Mathison was one competitor looking to hit an association milestone and achieved it during the 100X Reining Classic and South Central Affiliate Regional Championship, where he became the newest NRHA Million Dollar Rider.

At 12 years old, Mathison competed in his first NRHA competition during the Saltgrass Roundup in Rosenberg, TX. It was safe to say he was hooked from then on—as the now NRHA Professional has a show record spanning 29 years within the association. He has shown across the United States and has piloted a wide variety of horses.

Mathison began training professionally in 2001. He and his wife, Monica, live in Tioga, TX, and run Mathison Reining Horses and Just Stitch It, the official retailer of NRHA Outfitters. Outside of his reining endeavors, Mathison has spent time making bits and spurs, including a special set for the Night Stalker Association’s auction at the 2022 The Run For A Million (TRFAM). Additionally, he is a co-host on “The Show,” a podcast run by NRHA Professional and Two Million Dollar Owner and Rider Tom McCutcheon.

Heading into the 100X Reining Classic in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Mathison was less than $10,000 away from crossing this career milestone, which he knew and had tracked very closely. Throughout the course of the event, he and his three mounts took home checks in over ten classes—earning more than enough to surpass the NRHA Million Dollar Rider mark.

“I was in the make-up pen, and there were 129 that showed that day, and I was draw 128 on the horse that I cracked it on,” said Mathison. “My wife was texting show management to find out how much money I won, and she is actually who gave me the news!”

His most notable title at the show came aboard Shes Reddy On Line, a 2016 mare owned and bred by Mary Jansma. Together, the duo scored a 224 in the Level 4 Elementa Open Derby, were the ancillary Intermediate Open division high point champions, and won the class earlier in the week. Crossing this milestone on Shes Reddy On Line is fitting for the NRHA Professional who is part owner of her sire, Shine On Line.

“That was very special actually to cross on that mare,” he said. “I was responsible for buying the sire and dam, so she was a direct result of two decisions that I made. To do it for the people I did it for was probably the most exciting part – we met 20 years ago, and very soon after I went out on my own, they were customers. To be so involved in the decision-making that created that mare and for her to be such a special horse is really amazing.”

During the Shine On Line’s show career, the stallion and Mathison garnered $107,692 in LTE. The duo’s highest earning performance came during the 2012 National Reining Breeder’s Classic (NRBC) where they took 4th place and a check of $33,000.

Mathison is eager to push Shes Reddy On Line over $100,000 in NRHA LTE, which she is only $1,500 away from, and looks forward to getting his great group of 2-year-olds into the show pen.

Mathison’s most notable wins on his journey to the million include:

  • 2015 NRHA Level 4 Open Futurity 4th Place aboard Reddy Aim Shine On (Shine On Line x Guns R Reddy), bred and owned at the time by Mary Jansma, earning $52,636
  • 2015 NRHA Level 4 Open Derby Reserve Champion aboard Snap Dun The Bases, bred and owned by Lewisville Development, LP, earning $37,545
  • 2012 NRBC Level 4 Open 4th Place aboard Shine On Line (Shining Spark x Oaks Little Diamond), owned by Mary Jansma and Justin Mathison and bred by Carol Rose, earning $33,000
  • 2013 NRBC Level 4 Open 4th Place aboard Snap Dun The Bases, bred and owned by Lewisville Development, LP, earning $26,875
  • 2021 NRBC Level 4 Open 5th Place aboard Shes Reddy On Line, bred and owned by Mary Jansma, earning $22,500

Photos courtesy of 100X

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Fappani Adds to an Outstanding Legacy After Being Named NRHA’s First Eight Million Dollar Rider and Newest Million Dollar Owner

It’s no secret the name Fappani is synonymous with greatness within the reining community. As the National Reining Horse Association’s (NRHA) all-time leading rider, Andrea Fappani continues to set the standard within the sport and shatter records. Recently, he stamped his name in the history books once again by becoming the first NRHA Eight Million Dollar Rider. In addition, he accomplished yet another rare feat by adding his name to the list of NRHA Million Dollar Owners.

The further you investigate Fappani’s history, the more impressive he gets. Hailing from Bergamo, Italy, the now 46-year-old professional grew up on a dairy farm. His love for reining blossomed from a horse-riding hobby shared between him and his father. That passion grew until Fappani finally moved to the States to pursue a career in the sport and eventually went out on his own in 2003. Three years later, the young professional surpassed his first NRHA million and has only continued to grow from there.

During his climb to $8 million, three owners seem to have found the formula for success with NRHA’s all-time leading rider at the reins: Rancho Oso Rio LLC (owned by Pat Warren), Tim Anderson, and Marilyn Overgaard. Of Fappani’s top 10 earning performances on his way to this milestone, nine were aboard a horse owned by one of these elite NRHA members.

Fappani entered the 100X Reining Classic in Tulsa, Oklahoma, less than $12,000 away from this historic milestone after amazing performances at The Run For A Million (TRFAM) and Reining By The Bay. Only three days into the competition, he more than surpassed his needed earnings after snagging the Level 4 Open Futurity Championship aboard Bill Coburn’s Vintage Chex for $14,879 and fourth place on Hypnotyze owned by Overgaard, earning an additional $9,565.

Since becoming the first NRHA Seven Million Dollar Rider, Fappani’s highest earning performances on his way to eight million include:

  • 2022 TRFAM Million Dollar Competition Reserve Champion aboard Trash Talkin Spook, owned by Marilyn Overgaard and bred by Vicki Dias, earning $100,000
  • 2022 NRHA Futurity 4th Place aboard Gunna Run N Slide, owned by Tim Anderson and bred by Toyon Ranch LLC, earning $78,620
  • 2023 The American Performance Horseman Reserve Champion aboard Trash Talkin Spook, owned by Marilyn Overgaard and bred by Vicki Dias, earning $75,000
  • 2022 NRHA Futurity 5th Place aboard Mic Dropp, owned by Tim Anderson/Clark Reining Horses LLC and bred by Clark Reining Horses LLC, earning $64,159
  • 2023 National Reining Breeders Classic Reserve Champion aboard Trash Talkin Spook, owned by Marilyn Overgaard and bred by Vicki Dias, earning $60,000

In addition to an impressive career in the showpen, Fappani has found great success as an NRHA owner. Much of that success has been a family affair, with nearly all his owner earnings coming from the success of the people closest in his life. In fact, over 20% of Fappani’s owner earnings are from Spooks N Jewels (Smart Spook x Whiz Jewels), whom he; his wife, Tish; and sons, Luca and Jeremy, rode to a combined $200,285 in lifetime earnings (LTE).

The Fappani family has combined earnings on several other horses, including Icecube, whom Tish and Luca piloted to more than $176,000 in LTE when Fappani owned the 2015 gelding. Icecube’s most notable win came when Tish and the SG Frozen Enterprize x Taris Designer Genes bred Quarter Horse won the 2018 NRHA Level 4 Non Pro Futurity.

In addition to the aforementioned horses, top performers contributing to Fappani’s NRHA owner earnings are:

  • Joes Genes (Lil Joe Cash x Electric Genes) bred by Rancho Oso Rio LLC and contributing $155,438
  • Sharp Dressed Spook (Spooks Gotta Whiz x Dolittle Lena) bred by Bobby Lewis and contributing $100,891
  • Gotta Get Diamonds (Spooks Gotta Whiz x Tinker With Diamonds) bred by Rancho Oso Rio LLC and contributing $66,953
  • Litn Up Conquistador (Conquistador Whiz x Aleena Starlight) bred by Cache Performance Horses LLC and contributing $44,296
  • Gunna Chic Dream (ARC Gunna Sparkya x Magnum Chic Dunit) bred by Rabboni Reining Horses and contributing $41,207

Fappani has flown through the milestones within reining and earned the right to call himself one of the greatest riders in NRHA history. Now, he is also considered one of the greatest owners and is one of the few able to call themselves a multi-million dollar rider and a million dollar owner within the association. And, considering his competitive drive and fierce passion for the sport, this impressive NRHA Professional certainly has more to come.

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Schmersal Slides Into NRHA’s History Books as an NRHA $5 Million Rider

When NRHA Professional Craig Schmersal pulled into Las Vegas for The Run For A Million (TRFAM), he was sitting at around $5,000 away from crossing his next NRHA milestone. When the dust settled, Schmersal had slid his way to more than three times that amount—earning the title of NRHA Five Million Dollar Rider.

In 1988, Schmersal won his first check and added $61.38 to his lifetime earnings. Since then, the NRHA Professional has built a successful reining business in Scottsdale, AZ, with his wife, Ginger, and children Chris, Nick, Brendyn, and Addisyn. Having won many of the sport’s major events, his riding experience has helped pave the way to this new milestone and maintain his status as the association’s third all-time leading rider.

No stranger to pressure, Schmersal piloted two horses to checks during TRFAM’s Open Shoot Out and surpassed the $5 million mark before the show’s final event even began. It was icing on the cake when he earned another $5,000 during the Million Dollar Competition aboard No Smoking Required (Gunner x Icing Required)—a mount the NRHA Professional has ridden to great success on his journey to this milestone.

No Smoking Required is a 2013 stallion owned by Schmersal/Thorsport Inc. and bred by Carluccio Orsi. Together, ‘Ice’ and Schmersal have earned more than $458,000 since becoming an NRHA Four Million Dollar Rider in 2018. Most notably, the pair scored an impressive 229.5 to win the inaugural 2019 TRFAM Invitational, although the $307,500 in earnings did not count toward Schmersal’s road to $5 million, making this milestone an even larger achievement.

A seasoned trainer, coach, and horse owner, Schmersal’s passion for reining and NRHA is apparent to all he meets as he continues to impact non pros, youth, and the industry as a whole.

Schmersal’s top earning performances on his way to $5 million include:

  • 2021 TRFAM Million Dollar Competition 4th Place aboard No Smoking Required, owned by Schmersal/Thorsport Inc. and bred by Carluccio Orsi, earning $65,000
  • 2019 NRHA L4 Open Derby 4th Place aboard No Smoking Required, owned by Schmersal/Thorsport Inc. and bred by Carluccio Orsi, earning $40,545
  • 2019 NRHA L4 Open Futurity 8th Place aboard Starjac Vintage, owned by Teton Ridge and bred by Petra Zeitler, earning $29,791
  • 2019 NRHA L4 Open Futurity 11th Place aboard Pale Whiz, owned by Thorsport Inc. and bred by Hickory Creek Ranch LLC, earning $20,316
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NRHA Futurity Judges Selected

As entries and added money are on the rise during summer horse shows and elite 3-year-old horses begin their futurity careers, the National Reining Horse Association (NRHA) is eagerly looking ahead.

The NRHA Futurity Judges Final Selection Subcommittee met on August 2 to finalize the list of judges for the 2023 NRHA Futurity & Adequan® North American Affiliate Championships (NAAC). The subcommittee unanimously voted to accept the following judges and alternates.

The non pro team in the Coliseum will include Bob Kail, Van Luse, Terry Thompson, Patrick Wickenheiser, and Buddy Fisher. The open team in the Coliseum will include Bub Poplin, Maik Bartmann, Kelly Sapp, Cathy Luse, and Mark Turner. Coliseum alternates include Ryan Kail, Rick Lemay, and Enrico Righetti.

The equipment judge will be Greg Darnall, with Tom McBeath as an alternate.

The Adequan® arena judges will be Todd Arvidson, Mack Weaver, Ryan Kail, and Jan Hay, with Rick Weaver and Jan Dublin as alternates.

“I am so pleased with the selection of judges for the 2023 NRHA Futurity,” said NRHA Sr. Director of Education & Officials Patti Carter. “The judging process is crucial to ensuring fairness and accuracy in evaluating the performances of our great equine athletes and their riders. This is a top-shelf group of judges and monitors. Kudos to the judges committee for their commitment to excellence in judge selection.”

We look forward to a successful 2023 Futurity & Adequan® NAAC.

The selection process for judges at each major NRHA event begins several months before the first horse even enters the pen. Here is how they are chosen for the NRHA Futurity and NRHA Derby:

  • Each eligible judge is contacted for their availability for the event.
  • All available judges are compiled into a list and sent to each member of the Judges Committee.
  • Judges Committee members make selections from the list to fill the allotted slots for the event.
  • These names are compiled into a shortlist and discussed on a conference call with all members of the Judges Committee. Nominations are allowed on this conference call.
  • The committee members, except for the chair, then rank their choices, and each ranking equates to a certain number of points. The points are compiled and submitted to the committee chair.
  • The committee chair reviews and makes recommendations based on the outcome of the vote and the needs of NRHA.
  • The ranked list with the Judges Committee Chair recommendations is submitted for final selection.

This process is set in place to ensure that the Futurity and Derby will be well-judged competitions with the quality and professionalism of the selected judges.

For more information, visit NRHA.com/judges

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Updates from the 2023 NRHA August Board Meeting

The National Reining Horse Association (NRHA) held its annual August Board Meeting virtually on August 23. The efficient meeting reviewed event conditions and other committee initiatives, and the Board also heard updates from multiple departments.

NRHA Chief Financial Officer John Foy gave an extremely positive, in-depth financial overview of the association. Not only is NRHA in its strongest financial position to date and boasting stable membership numbers, but the industry is also experiencing the highest purses in history. Additionally, reining is experiencing more media coverage than ever, adding to the good positioning. An official budget for the fiscal year was unanimously approved.

Following the Board meeting, the Judges Committee presented a review of the 2023 6666 NRHA Derby presented by Markel. Each judge made 840 decisions during the Open Finals, 2,079 decisions during the Open go-round, 768 decisions during the non pro finals, and 2,051 decisions during the non pro go-round. Their dedication throughout the event showed impressive consistency and a wide use of the judging scale.

The following items were also discussed:

2024 NRHA Elections

Following the deadline for NRHA elections, three North American regions had only one candidate nominated. The board unanimously accepted the following candidates by acclamation for the 2024-2025 term: East Central, Margaret Fuchs; North Central, Mike Davis; and Northeast, Ed ‘Hoot’ Bricker. The remaining seats are up for election September 1-15, 2023; Director-at-Large: Paulus Beurskens and Sebastian Petroll; Northwest: Nicole Renick and Kylie Warn; South Central: Andrea Stillo and Brooke Wharton. Voting information is located at nrha.com/elections. Members will be emailed a link to the voting portal along with their information to log in to vote.

NRHA Dues and Fees Policy

In 2022, the Board approved a multi-year plan to proactively ensure member fees kept up with NRHA’s expenses of providing services to those members. Roughly, the plan set a path for small incremental increases in membership and competition license fees in 2023, 2025, and 2027. Additional fees were approved, including raising the medications fee at European events in an effort to address increased costs, as this fee has been the same for over a decade.

North American “AA” events and North American Affiliate Regional Championships will also see a medications fee increase to $35 to support increased testing and the overall program. Statistics from the past five years can be found online at nrha.com/welfare.

Additionally, there was support to enhance the fees and fines related to show approvals and results as NRHA nears the release of show approval and show results programs within ReinerSuite to improve the efficiency with which results will be available to riders, breeders, and owners, creating a more accurate picture of standings.

Eligibility Policy

The NRHA Worldwide Eligibility Policy for show year 1/1/2024–12/31/2024 was unanimously approved. The policy features Category 7 being counted toward Categories 1 & 5 eligibility and the addition of amateur eligibility as previously approved for 2024 implementation. The 2024 NRHA Mexican, Oceania, and Israeli Restricted Eligibility policies were also approved, which are all tracked and managed by each affiliate, not by ReinerSuite. Additionally, the 2024 NRHA Restricted European Eligibility Policy was approved. View all of the policies at nrha.com/eligibility.

2024 6666 NRHA Derby presented by Markel and NRHA North American Futurity Conditions

The Board approved conditions for both events, including fee schedules. The events will be held June 11–June 23, 2024, and November 26–December 7, 2024, respectively.

2024 Nomination Conditions

In February, the Board announced the official addition of a 4-year-old component to the North American nomination program to begin with 2023 foals. NRHA is proud to provide new and significant additional investment in the industry by committing $100,000 in added money for the next three years to elevate the 4-Year-Old Derby, grow the entire event, and add further value to horses. Approximately $285,000 in total added money based on a 3-year average of nominated weanlings will be provided to the purse once the 2023 foal crop is of derby age.

This is an exciting and unique opportunity for this specific group of horses as they progress in their show career from futurities to derbies. The support of this program will also draw more participation in the NRHA Derby, creating supplementary event success.

The existing North American weanling fee increase of $100 has been incorporated to supplement this program, which you can read more about here.