“The timing of this accomplishment is really crazy. You know, we just lost Sam Rose last week, and he’s a big part of how we got us into all this,” said Hershel Reid, who, along with his wife, Shannon, recently became a National Reining Horse Association Million Dollar Owner.

The Reids had previously been team ropers, later moving to calf roping and reined cow horses. “Sam really taught us a lot about how to breed good horses and also how to really get one shown,” Reid shared. “He had an integral influence on our business, and we miss him a lot.”

Although the influence of the late National Reined Cow Horse Association Hall of Fame Inductee is undeniable, the Reids’ road to NRHA elites was aided by many horsemen, horsewomen, and horses.

It was through a horse named Lena Cat Jac in training with NRCHA Two Million Dollar Rider Todd Crawford that the Reids were first introduced to reining. Although the horse had never been shown in reining, Crawford made the Level 4 Futurity Finals on him, and the Reids were intrigued with the new event.

Shannon, a lifelong horse enthusiast, credits NRCHA Hall of Famer Ron Ralls and his wife, Patty, with teaching her true horsemanship. She said, “I still ride with them today. They are just amazing people that taught me the caring side and the horsemanship side of it. They are just good people who have had a lot of influence on my life.”

Eventually, NRHA Stefano Calcagnini came to the ranch and leased the training facilities and started training and showing the Reids’ horses. With him and their crossover cow horses, they attended their first NRHA Derby.

One day, the Reids heard of a horse that NRHA Million Dollar Rider Nathan Piper was selling. They bought the horse, and Shannon and Piper’s wife, Jean, hit it off right away. The seed of a new relationship had been planted.

Later, Nathan and Hershel found themselves attending the same Bible study group, and the two were quickly united by their love for the Lord, horses, and doing honorable business. “I had known [Nathan] for a few years, and we started putting a few colts in training with him. He is top-notch in integrity, and we prioritize integrity in our own business, so we feel really blessed to know him,” Hershel explained.

At this time, the Reids’ horse business had grown to huge proportions. Selah Performance Horses had become home to about 100 horses, mostly broodmares and foals, and the Reids were beginning to feel the pressure. Their need to downsize came to a head after a series of events, including the Calcagninis’ resignation, the death of a daughter, and a residence that was located too remotely from the ranch in Pilot Point, Texas. The Reids were actively cutting back when they received a call from their friend Nathan Piper.

Piper had been training a horse owned by Toyon Ranch that he knew would be great. When Toyon Ranch decided to sell the stallion, Piper hoped to find a buyer that would keep him in training with him. Jean urged him to contact the Reids, as they had been searching for the right breeding stallion for years.

“Nathan called us and said that he had a stud that we needed to look at,” Hershel said. “A lot of people don’t know this, but my wife has a natural eye for spotting a good horse, and she can do this across many disciplines: the rope horses, the cow horses, and even jumpers. My daughter shows jumpers, and Shannon can pick a good jumper, too. She passed that ability on to our daughter. I was hesitant to go look at this stud because we were trying to sell horses, not buy them, but since Nathan said we needed to look, we went and looked.”

The Reids arrived at Piper Performance Horses in Aubrey, Texas, late one evening to see the stud Piper had spoken of. Piper, always a stickler for the well-being of the horses in his care, told them that he had already worked the horse that morning and didn’t want to work him again. “He still didn’t know about the eye my wife had for a good horse,” Reid said of Piper. “She told him that all he needed to do was throw a saddle on him and trot him around a little, and that would be enough for her. He didn’t need to slide him or spin him for us at all. Boy, when he came out of the stall with that horse, we were asking where to sign!”

That stallion was none other than Patriot, who has since won the 2022 The Run For A Million Championship, the 2019 National Reining Breeders Classic Co-Championship, and the 2020 NRHA Derby Reserve Championship. He is by NRHA Eight Million Dollar Sire Smart Spook out of Dunit A Lil Ruf, who recently became an NRHA Million Dollar Dam.

Reid admitted he was more interested in his bird dogs and rope and cow horses than he was reining until that fateful day when he first saw Patriot. The charismatic sorrel stallion has earned more than $834,600 through his many accolades and helped boost the Reids to NRHA Million Dollar Owner Status. He currently stands at Brent and Paula Loseke’s Colt Company in Valley View, Texas.

The Reids thanked the many people they have met along the path to Million Dollar Owner status, including the Pipers, Crawford, Rose, the Ralls, Calcagnini, Toyon Ranch, and the Losekes for the care and hard work they put into Patriot. They also thanked their Office Manager, who keeps up with their endless paperwork, Joanne McDonald.

For more information about Patriot, visit coltcompany.com/patriot.

When standout athlete Patriot, ridden by Nathan Piper, claimed the 2022 The Run For A Million Championship, he became the highest money-earning horse in the history of the National Reining Horse Association.

But that’s not all. His win catapulted both his owners, Shannon and Hershel Reid, and his dam, Dunit A Lil Ruf, past the million-dollar mark.

Dunit A Lil Ruf was bred by Sandi Holt and was sold to NRHA Professional Ann Salmon-Anderman during her two-year-old year. With Anderman at the reins, Dunit A Lil Ruf won more than $32,000, including a Level 2 Open Championship at the 2013 Derby.

From the beginning, Dunit A Lil Ruf was a producer. Her first foal, Ruf Lil Magnum (Magnum Chic Dream), won more than $107,000. Ruf Lil Magnum won an American Quarter Horse Association World Championship in Senior Reining, a Level 3 Open Championship at the NRHA Derby, was an NRHA Futurity Finalist, and placed just outside the top 10 at the 2019 The Run For A Million Invitational.

The mare’s next four foals were winners, as well, averaging nearly $20,000 per horse.

Then came Patriot, sired by NRHA Eight Million Dollar Sire Smart Spook. An NRHA Futurity finalist, the colt hit his stride in his first Derby year, tying for the win of the 2019 National Reining Breeders Classic, then finishing third at the NRHA Derby before winning an AQHA Junior Reining World Championship to wrap up the year.

In 2020, Patriot continued to reign, finished second at the NRHA Derby, and placed well at other major events. In 2021, Patriot made his first appearance at TRFAM, finishing sixth. By the time the 2022 TRFAM came around, Patriot had already become one of the Association’s biggest money earners at more than $330,000. As the year nears its end, the 7-year-old stallion boasts earnings of $834,632, becoming not only Dun It A Lil Ruf’s highest earner but also the highest money-earning horse in NRHA history.

In November, NRHA Corporate Partner Teton Ridge purchased the blue-hen mare, who has continued to produce winners. In fact, Dunit A Lil Ruf’s first nine foals have all won money in NRHA events. The mare was honored for her achievement during the MS Diamonds TX L4 Open Finals at the NRHA Futurity.

Dunit A Lil Ruf’s top earners include:

• Patriot (Smart Spook) $834,632
• Ruf Lil Magnum (Magnum Chic Dream) $107,276
• Maximum Mag (Magnum Chic Dream) $54,031
• Dunit At Nite (Gunners Special Nite) $28,018
• Ruf Nite (Gunners Special Nite) $22,814
• Ruf Lil Joe (Lil Joe Cash) $21,665
• Ruf Up My Jersey (Yellow Jersey) $14,654
• Shine Ruf Shine (Shine Chic Shine) $5,529
• Ruf Lil Sixty Six (Inferno Sixty Six) $2,728