| Paint Horse
Claims Super Stakes Title
FORT WORTH, Texas-Prove you
have the best horse and beating the odds isn't
a factor. So it seemed for rider Chubby Turner
and JR Colord Prom, a 1996 bay American Paint
Horse. As one of the three American Paint Horses
to make the finals of the 2000 National Cutting
Horse Association (NCHA) Super Stakes, the 4-year-old
mare was up against stiff competition. JR Colord
Prom took on 1999 NCHA Futurity Champion Shania
Cee (AQHA) and her own half-brothers to become
the second Paint Horse in history to capture
the the event, held April 16 in Fort Worth.
Owned by Nancy Clayton of
Weatherford, Texas, the Breeding Stock mare
(so termed because she does not exhibit a white
coat color pattern) posted a score of 224 to
win the event over reserve champion Shania Cee,
who scored a 221.5 But rider Turner saw her
talent early on when he first saw her work.
"I just knew this horse had
the talent. She had tenacity and a tremendous
amount of cow," said Turner.
JR Colord Prom is by APHA
World Champion Color Me Smart and out of the
Quarter Horse mare Senorita Summer Prom. She
bested 223 contenders in first go-round competition,
posting a 217.5 to qualify for the semi-finals.
That leg of the journey, however, proved to
be a nail biter. The mare squeaked into the
finals with six others who posted a qualifying
score of 216. Also sired by Color Me Smart,
JR Colord Haida Boon, ridden by Turner, and
JR Colord Termite, ridden by Chris Benedict,
scored a 219 and 217, respectively, to outscore
their determined sister. Clearly, the mare was
saving her best for last and she didn't waste
any time proving it.
The fifth to work out of
25 horses in the final go-round, JR Colord Prom
set the standard early with her high score and
earned a total of $59,622 for the win. Half
brothers JR Colord Haida Boon and JR Colord
Termite placed fourth and 16th respectively.
Taking the 1986 Super Stakes
by storm, Delta Flyer, who died last year, is
the only other American Paint Horse to have
won the event. Owned by Floyd Moore of Huntsville,
Texas, and ridden by Kenny Patterson of Madisonville,
Texas, the stallion scored a 220.5 and earned
more than $200,000 in NCHA competition.
The APHA was formed in 1962 with approximately
3,800 horses in the registry. Today, more than
530,000 Paints are registered with the association,
making Paint Horses the fifth-largest horse breed
in the world. Now more than 84,400 members strong,
the APHA strives to preserve and promote the history,
breeding, training, racing, showing, sales and
enjoyment of American Paints. |
