Exhibitors competing in select divisions at the 2021 National Reining Horse Association Adequan® North American Affiliate Championships can earn the opportunity to perform center stage in the Jim Norick Coliseum. That is because longtime NRHA Corporate Partner Bob’s Custom Saddles has expanded its sponsorship to include a bonus round for three classes.

Those classes – Intermediate Non Pro, Intermediate Open, and Rookie Level 2 – will be held in the Adequan® Arena, with entries competing for 2021 Adequan® NAAC titles. The top 10 for each class (plus ties) will earn a spot in one of the Bob’s Custom Saddles Showdowns.

A staggering $10,000 will be awarded during the Showdowns for each class. That means that, for no additional entry fee, the Bob’s Custom Saddles Showdown Champion will win $5,000, the reserve champion will take home $2,500, third will receive $1,500, and fourth will earn $1,000. Money won in the Showdown will be considered Category 7 affiliate earnings.

“There are so many exciting aspects to this new sponsorship, and we are thrilled for our NAAC competitors to have this opportunity. Someone could win both an NAAC Championship and a Bob’s Custom Saddle Showdown title, but it also gives someone who might not have shown their best in the Adequan® Arena a redemption round,” noted NRHA President, Rick Clark. “We appreciate Chris Weaver of Bob’s Custom Saddles for always stepping up when there is an opportunity to grow our sport and support our riders.”

Chris Weaver, Vice President of Bob’s Custom Saddles, noted, “We are focusing on growth for the reining industry and for ways to attract new people and increase the longevity of the sport. This sponsorship is based on not only expanding the overall Futurity but also strengthening the reining industry.”

The Bob’s Custom Saddles Intermediate Non Pro and Intermediate Open Showdown will be held Friday, Dec. 3, and the Bob’s Custom Saddles Rookie 2 Showdown will be held on Saturday, Dec. 4.

The new Showdown format will also apply to the Toyon Ranch Rookie of the Year. Rookie Level 1 riders will compete for Toyon Ranch Rookie of the Year honors in the Adequan® Arena, and then the top 10 in that class will also advance to the Toyon Ranch Showdown, which will run concurrently with the Bob’s Custom Saddles Rookie Level 2 Showdown on Saturday, Dec. 4.

“The reining industry as a whole is blessed with many generous sponsors, and Bob’s Custom Saddles and Toyon Ranch are two of the best. Their vision is to grow this sport beginning with specific NAAC division while benefiting the industry as a whole,” noted Senior Director of Corporate Relations and Communications, Sammi Miller.
For more information about the NRHA Futurity, visit NRHAFuturity.com.

In 2018, the National Reining Horse Association debuted its Novice Horse Derby, giving horses with limited lifetime earnings the opportunity to compete against other fledgling reiners. Now the NRHA Novice Horse Derby has a new name and a new sponsor in GlycoGuard®.

The GlycoGuard® Novice Horse Derby will be held during the NRHA Derby presented by Markel and takes place during both the Open and Non Pro preliminary rounds.  The 2021 premier event for 4, 5, 6 and 7-year-old reining horses is slated for June 19 – 27 at State Fair Park in Oklahoma City, Okla.

NRHA Senior Director of Corporate Relations & Communications Sammi Miller collaborated with GlycoGuard® Senior Sales Representative Caitlyn Caldwell to create this important new partnership. She said, “On behalf of the association, a huge thank you to Caitlyn Caldwell and GlycoGuard® for choosing to support this and come on board as a corporate partner.  For the past several years, this company has sponsored NRHA events consistently and their decision to become the title sponsor of the GlycoGuard® Novice Horse Derby will greatly enhance the growth of this division, the NRHA, and GlycoGuard®.”

The GlycoGuard® Novice Horse Derby will feature a $15,000 Open Derby and a $10,000 Non Pro division to horses who have won less than $10,000 before May 15, 2021. Horses may also be entered into the Derby, but cross entry is not mandatory and there are no nomination requirements to enter only the Novice Horse Derby.

Caldwell’s connection to reining goes back years.  She said, “I’ve worked with NRHA for over a decade with both competing and sponsorships. My goal with GlycoGuard® is to make product knowledge available to more owners and trainers.”

GlycoGuard® entered the equine health care scene just six years ago but it is already becoming a staple for the performance horse industry. The combination of being a unique and effective product, along with supporting major equine events across the board, has quickly brought increased brand awareness.

The product is ideal for protecting the health and careers of reining horses. Caldwell noted, “Equine athletes can experience stress on a daily basis. GlycoGuard® is a unique drug-free probiotic made from live active bacteria, and strong enough to reach the hind gut, where much of our equine’s discomfort comes from.  I hope it will be the first product you grab for complete gut health in your equine athletes and foals!”

For more information about GlycoGuard® and to read testimonials from some of the industry’s top professionals, visit GlycoGuard.com.

Competing at the National Reining Horse Association Derby presented by Markel is thrilling, and beginning in 2021, a new division has been added for Non Pros. The Story Book Stables Amateur Derby will debut this year, featuring $25,000 added money for this special segment of riders.

Creating this new opportunity was a goal for Brenda Joyce, owner of Story Book Stables – NRHA Corporate Partner since 2017. Brenda noted, “My husband, Rick Christen, and I are so excited to be sponsoring an Amateur Derby in conjunction with the NRHA Derby presented by Markel. As always, we want to support the grassroots of the industry and encourage newcomers. We believe that these groups are critical to the health, vitality and future of the Industry. So come on Amateurs, get ready for the Derby in June!”

NRHA President Rick Clark’s enthusiasm for this new division and the opportunities it will offer to reiners is palpable.  “I appreciate Brenda and Rick for their support in getting this going. They are willing to try something new and I predict that we will get a large number of entries in this division. We look forward to seeing new faces and new winners in the Story Book Stables Amateur Derby.”

To compete in the Amateur division at the NRHA Derby presented by Markel, the same horse and rider must be fully entered in the Non Pro Derby. Excluded riders include those whose NRHA Lifetime Earnings exceed $100,000 in Categories 1-12 as of Dec. 31, 2020. Also excluded are riders currently only eligible for Level 4 Non Pro only. Other exclusions include Youth riders, legal dependents of professional equine trainers, and spouses or legal partners of professional equine trainers.

The Amateur Derby Champion will be determined during the preliminary round of competition, which concludes on Tuesday, June 22, during the 2021 NRHA Derby presented by Markel.

For more information about the Story Book Stables Amateur Derby, visit nrhaderby.com.