NRHA Monthly Service Report—August
NRHA Community Mourns the Loss of Hall of Famer Ronnie Sharpe
The reining community mourns the loss of one of its memorable members. A National Reining Horse Association Hall of Fame inductee, competitor, breeder, and judge, Ronald Sharpe’s impact on the industry was immense. He was one of the first accredited NRHA Judges when the Association was born. He is noted for judging in five of the world’s seven continents for five different associations including NRHA, for which he served in various capacities for over 45 years. He was also the longest-standing chairman of the American Quarter Horse Association Judges Committee.
As a horseman, he was one of the few to have made the futurity finals in both the NRHA and the National Cutting Horse Association. As a breeder, he was and is the leading producer of AQHA champions.
A former Marine, he had a passion for his country, horses, and his family. In fact, he was quoted for saying, “A loving wife, family, and some good horses is all a man can ask for.” Sharpe passed away at 84 years old in his home surrounded by the family that he loved on Saturday, September 3, 2022.
A memorial service will be held at Riley Funeral Home in Hamilton, Texas, on Saturday, September 10, 2022. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Star Volunteer Fire Department.
You can find his official obituary here.
Cowboy Conversations comes to Cowtown
Mark your calendars! Wednesday, September 21, Cowboy Conversations brings two of the most knowledgeable and colorful cowboys/cattlemen to the stage at Billy Bob’s Texas. Pete Bonds and Bob Loomis will share stories that will make you smile and maybe even squirm. Event co-chairs Lori McCarty and Sally Brumbaugh promise a unique entertaining and educational evening that will raise funds for Friends of the Fort Worth Herd.
Pete Bonds, cattle rancher and former Texas Southwestern Cattle Raisers Assn president, owns and leases acreage in more than two dozen counties in Texas as well as in seven other states. Bonds Ranches runs cattle from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico. Bonds has received the Foy Proctor Memorial Cowman’s Award of Honor and the W.A. “Bill” King Award for Excellence in Agriculture from the Fort Worth Farm and Ranch Club. He was inducted into the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame in 2017.
Bob Loomis is an icon in the equine industry, a universally recognized master in the world of precision riding and also a who’s who in the Texas Longhorn Breed. The former president of the National Reining Horse Association, Bob has won six NRHA Open Futurity championships, more than any other trainer. He was inducted into the NRHA Hall of Fame in 1992 and the American Quarter Horse Association Hall of Fame in 2012.
Bob lives on his Loomis Ranch at Marietta, Oklahoma, where he raises horses and Texas Longhorn cattle. His Longhorns have swept Ultimate Awards. He and his wife breed Texas Longhorns for conformation, horn length, color and disposition.
Emcee Tom Johnson Operates 87 Ranch and Johnson Cattle Marketing and will lead Pete Bonds and Bob Loomis through spirited Cowboy Conversations.
Friends of the Fort Worth Herd provides financial and volunteer support for the Fort Worth Herd Twice Daily Cattle Drive. The Old West comes alive every day at 11:30 and 4 PM as real Texas drovers (cowhands) drive a herd of Texas Longhorns down East Exchange Avenue in the Fort Worth Stockyards National Historic District. The Fort Worth Herd attracts thousands of visitors each day and is a major driver of tourism in Fort Worth and North Texas.
What: Cowboy Conversations
When: Wednesday, September 21 – 6 pm
Where: Billy Bob’s Texas
For more information, sponsorship opportunities, and to make reservations, visit CowboyConversations.com
The National Reining Horse Association is not responsible for the information contained in this press release. Please contact the author or submitting organization for further information, requests, or questions.
Judges and Stewards Selected for 2022 NRHA Futurity
The 2022 National Reining Horse Association Futurity, set for November 24 through December 3, is the premier reining event in the world. Fans travel to Oklahoma City from around the globe to watch NRHA’s top trainers and riders make the big stage debut for elite 3-year-old reining horses.
The landmark event will pay $350,000 to the Level 4 Open Champion and $75,000 to the Level 4 Non Pro Champion, and will also determine the Adequan® North American Affiliate Championships. Not surprisingly, being chosen to score the performances of the exhibitors as a judge is both an honor and a serious responsibility.
The individuals chosen to officiate at the NRHA Futurity this year blend veteran experience with freshman enthusiasm. For the Open Futurity in the Jim Norick Arena, the team includes Sandy Jirkovsky from Mississippi, Van Luse of Texas, Italian Manuela Maiocchi, Kim Myers of Pennsylvania, and Mark Turner from Indiana.
Evaluating performance for the Non Pro Futurity will be Buddy Fisher from Pennsylvania, Oklahoman Don Flohr, Margaret Fuchs of Ohio, Hiram Resende Silva Filho from Goias, Brazil, and Pat Wickenheiser from California.
Jan Dublin of Texas, Linda Hitt from Colorado, and New Yorker Kelly Hedges are the judges chosen for the NAAC classes in the Adequan® Arena.
Ed Cridge and Jeff Buckley, both from Texas, will serve as Equipment Judges in the Jim Norick Arena and the Adequan® Arena, respectively. Monitors for the event will be Eugenio Latorre of Spain and Doug Allen of Arizona.
The group includes four first time Futurity judges, including Maiocchi, Dublin, Hedges and Buckley.
The Futurity Show Steward team is headed by Ed Bricker. He will be joined by Lyle Jackson, Alessandro Dezzutto, Walt Larson and Marlin Holroyd.
“The Judges and Stewards committees take the task of Futurity Judge, Monitor and Steward selection very seriously. These are key positions that move the reining industry forward and set the standard for future competition. We are proud of this year’s lineup of officials and look forward to an exciting event,” said Patti Carter, NRHA Senior Director of Education & Officials.
Raise A Million Auctions Garner More than $190k for Reining Horse Foundation
When reiners gather, great things happen, and it happened in spades in Vegas.
The 2022 Raise A Million Auctions, held during The Run For A Million presented by Teton Ridge in Las Vegas, Nevada, brought in more than $190,000 through both the live and silent auctions. The proceeds benefit the reining community through the Reining Horse Foundation, the charitable arm of the National Reining Horse Association.
It was the second year for the Raise A Million Auctions to be held in conjunction with TRFAM, and although expectations were high, they were exceeded.
“It was an incredibly successful event, and between the two years that the Reining Horse Foundation has been invited to The Run For A Million, nearly a million dollars has been raised,” shared Tim Anderson, president of the Reining Horse Foundation. “On behalf of the RHF Board of Directors, I thank Taylor Sheridan and Amanda Brumley who have been incredibly supportive of the Foundation. Without them, we wouldn’t have been able to pull something like this off.”
Anderson added that fundraisers – whether large like the Raise A Million Auctions or on a smaller scale – all contribute to the RHF’s mission. “Because of fundraising activities like this, we have been able to expand and increase our scholarship program as well as increase the amount of the grants we distribute through the Dale Wilkinson Memorial Crisis Fund,” he said. “The Foundation is not like a bank. We’re not trying to save this money; we are going to give it out to the people who need it and use it in ways that best support the Foundation’s mission.”
The Reining Horse Foundation received 37 lots for the Silent Auction from generous donors, including art, décor, tack, apparel, jewelry, autographed memorabilia, equine products, services, breedings, and unique experiences such as events and travel. The Silent Auction was held over several days and closed just prior to the Million Dollar Invitational competition. When the bids were tallied, the Silent Auction had brought in more than $42,000.
“In addition, NRHA member Diana Duffey pledged to match the donation made from Elite Equine for their equine spa services. Elite Equine donated 10 percent of their service proceeds to the RHF during The Run For A Million,” shared Reining Horse Foundation Executive Director Leslie Baker.
The generous spirit of the reining family continued to be on full display during the Live Auction, which was held just prior to the Million Dollar Competition Draw Party. There, seven incredible and unique items were auctioned off, raising $147,000.
There was a tie for the high-selling lots in the live auction. The first was a Supreme Breeding Package that was donated by Amber Gokey, Schmersal/ThorSport Inc., and NRHA Corporate Partner Toyon Ranch. The impressive lot included breedings to 2021 TRFAM Champion Gunna Stop, a breeding to 2019 TRFAM Co-Champion No Smoking Required, and an embryo from Icing Required. It was purchased by NRHA Corporate Partner Santa Hill Ranch.
The other high seller was a NASCAR Truck Series Primary Partnership Package to Daytona International Speedway, which was donated by ThorSport and purchased by NRHA Corporate Partner Clark’s Pump-N-Shop.
“Thank you to the generous donors to both the live and silent auction and of course to the purchasers of those items. We are grateful for everything they have done,” Anderson said. “Thank you also to Leslie Baker for her efforts in making this a success, and also to the volunteers who were there day after day helping. We have a tremendous Board of Directors for the Foundation, and it’s a great group of people who truly have the reining community in mind.”
The mission of the Reining Horse Foundation is to care for and honor the reining community. Core programs include the Dale Wilkinson Memorial Crisis Fund to benefit reiners enduring hardships such as major illness, accidents, and disasters; youth leadership development and scholarships for members of the National Reining Horse Youth Association; and perpetuation of the sport’s history through the NRHA Hall of Fame.
For information on the RHF, visit ReiningFoundation.com
Photos by Leslie Baker