|
| Paint
Horse make strong showings at nation's top reining
competition
Gunner wins showdown
at USET Festival of Champions
FORT WORTH-An American Paint Horse named Colonels
Smokingun, "Gunner," aimed to outdraw
the competition at the $100,000 United States
Equestrian Team (USET) Opening Reining Championship
in Galdstone, N.J., June 26, and didn't disappoint
the crowd of 5,000 people who turned out for
the showdown.
| 
|
The talented
American Paint Horse named Gunner always
aims to win and did just that at the USET
Opening Reining Championship in Galdstone,
N.J.
Hirez JPEG (185 kb)
Hirez TIFF (2.41 mb)
(APHA photo by Ross Hecox) |
The American Paint Horse won the Championship
by a wide margin, with a two-round composite
score of 448.5-nine points ahead of the second-place
competitor. A team of five judges awarded the
points.
Gunner's totals were considered exceptionally
high. In fact, the 8-year-old sorrel overo stallion
went into the competition with the highest USET
reining score in history -a 233 in the semi-finals
at Oklahoma City, Okla. Ridden by Bryant Pace
and owned by Kim and Debra Sloan, all of Newfoundland,
N. J., Gunner has proven to be a master at the
sport, earning more than $160,000 over his career.
"He's all start and he's all stop,"
said Kim Sloan, emphasizing that Gunner is cool
under pressure and never wastes energy.
"That's where his success comes from.
"He'll be calm when he needs to be and
then explodes in the pattern right when you
want him to.
"All his energy is directed to responding
to the rider. That's what's so special about him.
Gunner is a great horse." |
|
|
The thousands of people who attended the reining championship
knew they were witnessing a special horse as well. Their enthusiastic
response to his final performance, with loud cheers and applause,
made it obvious they knew who was favored to win.
"But we never take anything for granted, and neither
does Gunner," said his owner. "Every horse out there
had the potential to win that championship, or they wouldn't
have made it that far. But when Gunner is "on,"
he's very tough to beat. And Gunner was on."
Another American Paint Horse, Mark This Spot, also qualified
for the Championship in Gladstone and participated in the
competition. The 6-year-old bay tobiano stallion is owned
by the Haverty Ranch in Krum, Texas.
In USET's Nation's Cup team competition, the Paint stallion
Smokin Chic Olena was a standout.
Craig Johnson of Gainesville, Texas, helped capture a silver
medal for the United States on the 7-year-old sorrel overo.
In the Nation's Cup competition, teams that included four
horses and riders competed in two rounds of action. The class
featured four national teams, including Canada, Germany, Japan
and the United States.
Smokin Chic Olena, owned by Susan Mason of Fairmont, W. Va.,
also earned a silver himself with the second-highest individual
score in the class.
"To have three horses qualify to participate and do
that well in the competition is a real credit to these horses
and to our breed," said Jim Kelley, APHA assistant executive
secretary. "We're proud of the horses and everyone involved.
"When you look at what these horses have accomplished,
it reaffirms that, as a breed, American Paint Horses have
the conformation, athleticism and talent to be international
champions."
More about APHA
The APHA was founded in 1962. By that year's end, early association
members had recruited 150 fellow Paint Horse enthusiasts and
registered 250 horses. By the end of 2000, APHA had enrolled
more than 100,000 members. To date, the association has registered
more than 616,000 Paint Horses.
The Fort Worth-based non-profit association employs 165 people
and maintains an operating budget of more than $15 million
for activities worldwide.
For more information about APHA or APHA programs, call (817)
834-2742, ext. 788, or log on to www.apha.com. |
