Shawn Flarida, an icon in the National Reining Horse Association, recently passed a major career milestone. The charismatic trainer, who hails from Springfield, Ohio, became only the second NRHA member in history to pass more than $7,000,000 in lifetime earnings.
There has never been anything cold about SG Frozen Enterprize, unofficially the National Reining Horse Association’s newest Million Dollar Sire. From the beginning, the son of Frozen Sailor out of RS Rose SJ by SJ Enterprise was on fire, wowing audiences, making fans and showing incredible ability.
The 6666 National Reining Horse Association Derby presented by Markel is the second richest event in reining, with more than $1.3 million paid out in 2021. Once again, the Level 4 Open Champion will win $75,000, the Level 4 Non Pro titlist will pocket $30,000, and there are guaranteed payouts for the rest of the regular divisions in the Non Pro and Open. Special division sponsors, including Story Book Stables, Colston Paving, Tamarack Ranch, and Clark’s Pump-N-Shop account for an additional $110,000 in added money.
Less than four years after becoming a National Reining Horse Association Million Dollar Sire, Spooks Gotta Whiz achieved Four Million Dollar Sire status.
The stunning stallion is by NRHA Million Dollar Sire Spooks Gotta Gun and out of Prettywhizprettydoes. Bred by Clint Haverty, the 2007 stallion is owned by Michell Anne Kimball, who purchased the horse from Duane Hicks in 2009 after meeting him at the High Roller Reining Classic.
With the airing of the December 17, 2021 episode of The Last Cowboy on the Paramount Network, reining fans around the globe were able to watch history be made at The Run For A Million presented by Teton Ridge. Although the event was held August 21, a media embargo meant fans had to wait to learn who the winner was until the final episode of The Last Cowboy aired.
With earnings of $23,014 at this year’s National Reining Horse Association Futurity, Mandy McCutcheon became only the fifth rider in reining history to earn more than $3 million in the show pen.
McCutcheon, of Aubrey, Texas, joins a very small group of riders, including Seven Million Dollar Rider Andrea Fappani, Six Million Dollar Rider and Hall of Fame inductee Shawn Flarida, Four Million Dollar Rider Craig Schmersal, and her father, NRHA Three Million Dollar Rider and Hall of Fame inductee Tim McQuay.
“I didn’t realize there were only four others to win that much. That’s pretty cool,” she said. “It’s so special to be there with my dad. I can say, 100 percent, that’s the most important part to me.”
With a record payout exceeding $2.8 million, the National Reining Horse Association Futurity & Adequan® North American Affiliate Championships made history. Thanks to that historic payout, it also unofficially pushed multiple horses and individuals into new tiers of earnings, including sires Smart Spook and Shiners Voodoo Dr.
Gennaro Lendi recorded his first earnings in the National Reining Horse Association in May 2004, when he won the Non Pro class at the Italian Reining Horse Association Derby on OT Taris High. Less than two decades later, Lendi joined the elite list of riders who have won more than one million dollars in competition.
Recent wins at the 2020 European Futurity, the Austrian Futurity, the German Breeders Futurity, the IRHA Maturity, and ARTA Futurity propelled him past that milestone.
“As I got closer to the million, it became all the more stressful as I wanted to surpass that mark as fast as I could. I put pressure on myself – especially after the pandemic stopped our shows – and it affected my performance in the show pen,” Lendi admitted.
An intense week of competition at the Great Southwest Equestrian Center in Katy, Texas, culminated Saturday, April 25. That’s when the top horses and riders from across the country competed in the Open Finals of the 2021 National Reining Breeders Classic, which kicked off April 18.
Dany Tremblay and Jason Vanlandingham both piloted their horses to scores of 228.5, tying for the win of the Open Level 4. With several more major events on the books for 2021, the two professionals elected to stay as Co-Champions.
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