It’s been a salty two days of non pro reining at the 25th National Reining Breeders Classic, held at the Great Southwest Equestrian Center in Katy, Texas. Two sections of Non Pro Classic contestants gave it their best inside the Coliseum, and as the preliminary action wrapped up April 19, a bevy of riders secured a place in the Finals on April 22.

Two scores of 220 are on top in the Level 4 preliminaries. Tish Fappani and Joes Genes (Lil Joe Cash x Electric Genes) won Level 3 and tied for first in Level 4 with Gina-Maria Schumacher and Gunnastepya (Gunnatrashya x SDP A Lasting Step). Mandy McCutcheon and JLosa (Arlosa Whiz x Spook N Jessie) finished third in the Level 4 with a 219.5.

Monica Hicks on Girlz On Fire (Inferno Sixty Six x Fabulous Guns) won Levels 1 and 2 with a 218.5. She and Girlz On Fire also finished second in the Level 3 and fourth in the Level 4.

Francesca Sternberg held onto the top spot in the Prime Time on Red Dirt Paleface (Pale Face Dunit x Lost In Tinseltown) with a 219.5 (includes handicap). The pair will also advance to the Level 4 and Level 3 Finals on Friday.

The top 30 overall Non Pro horses in Levels 4, 3, 2 and 1 plus ties and the top 20 Prime Time horses moved on to the Finals on Friday, which kicks off at 8 a.m.

It took a score of 215.5 to make the Finals in Level 4 and a 214 for Level 3. The bubble score for Level 2 was a 212.5, and it took a 210 to make the Level 1 Finals. In the Prime Time, a score of 213 or better moved on to the Finals.

Draw positions will be determined at the Markel Insurance Non Pro Draw Party, which will be held on April 20 at 7 p.m. in the Sponsor Area.

First Slate of Ancillary Classes in the Books at 25th NRBC

In addition to a full day of Non Pro Classic action in the Coliseum, ancillary classes took over the Tellepsen and Wheless arenas at the Great Southwest Equestrian Center during the 25th National Reining Breeders Classic. 

Intermediate Open Champion – Sumer Opinker and Dont Tell Me

Sumer Opinker’s first time in the show pen on Dont Tell Me (Hollywood Dun It x Shiney Enterprise) was a success, as the pair marked a 141 to win Slate 1 of the Intermediate Open at the NRBC.
“She turned good for me, a little better the first way than the second way, but I was still happy with her. I loped her off, and she was good,” Opinker said. “I didn’t want to overdo it, because it was her first time in the pen. She’s a big-stopping mare, so she’s a lot of fun, and her rollbacks are good. I was happy with her.”
Opinker, who trains under Mirjam Stillo, has only been riding the Toyon Ranch LLC-owned mare for a short time. She says her keys to a successful first show on a horse is to build confidence in the pen first and go from there.
“I’ve only been riding her about a month, but Mirjam has been riding her and preparing her. She decided I could show her, so I was excited for the opportunity—she’s a great mare,” Opinker said. “I don’t ever want to overdo it, especially with it being the first time to show her. Warming up, I just gauge how they are and try to build their confidence, then try to build off of it each time we show. She felt great warming up, so I decided to just see what we have, and she was good.”
Opinker has worked for Stillo for seven years and has been reining since she was 13 years old.
“I just love how elegant it is. It’s extreme horsemanship, and I think it’s beautiful,” she said. “The horses are just incredible. There’s nothing like it to me.”

Limited Open Champion – Naike Bell and With Add 

Naike Bell showed what she knew With Addy Tude was made of, marking a 142.5 to win the Limited Open Slate 1.
“She felt honest as can be, and she was with me the whole time,” Naike said. “She’s actually lazy. I need to ride her forward the whole time in everything I do. When she’s trying hard, I reward her, and she was trying every bit as hard as I was trying out there today.”
It hasn’t been an easy road to polishing the mare for the show pen, but the Valley View, Texas, trainer is up for the challenge.
“She was really green when we got her. She didn’t come from our program, so we started from zero and took about a year to rebuild,” said Naike, who trains alongside her husband, NRHA Professional Brian Bell. “We had some issues in the spin and she was brace-y in the front in the stop, but I think it’s almost fixed and we can get better still. I still work on that; it’s an everyday job.”
Today’s slate of Open ancillary classes was Naike’s first day in the show pen of the 25th NRBC. The accomplished horsewoman is looking forward to building on her win the rest of the week.
“I love the ambiance of this place; the people are always happy and nice. And I like the show arena—it’s big, you can really run out there!” she said with a laugh.

Rookie Pro Champion – Katherine Davis and Who Dat Hot Chic

Good clients are crucial to any horse trainer’s career, and Jenna Hornick is making trainer Katie Davis’ job a dream. On the first day of ancillary action at the 25th NRBC, Davis rode Hornick’s 2010 mare Who Dat Hot Chic (Wimpys Little Step x Smart Chic Aloha) to a score of 141 to tie for the win in the Rookie Pro, ultimately taking first place after Eric Grondin elected not to run off.
“The mare was actually a little fresh being in the pen for the first time at this show, so we just cruised through. I tell Jenna all the time, you ride better on that horse than I do!” Davis said with a laugh. “She’s done a wonderful job and rides her beautifully. I’m just here to train her; Jenna’s more the showman for that one. I’m excited to see her show later this week.”
Hornick, who is a sophomore in high school in North Carolina, recently became more invested in reining and has owned “Hootie” since the beginning of 2021. She flies to Weatherford, Texas, to ride Hootie and train with Davis at Deary Performance Horses under multiple NRHA champion Casey Deary.
“It’s wonderful as a trainer, because it’s one less horse I have to worry about when you have clients you can rely on and have taken to your program so well. It really does lighten the load,” Davis said. “She’ll come for a long weekend and we’ll coach together, and in the meantime, Hootie gets loped around and I’ll train on her a little, and she gets some days off to go out in the pasture. She knows her job.”
Davis thanked the Hornick family and her support system at Team Deary, including farrier Glen Spradling and vet Dr. Frank Fluitt, DVM.

Limited Non Pro Co-Champions – Terry Saxton on MJG Hollywood Jersey

A pair of 71s earned the Limited Non Pro victory for Terry Saxton and Ainsley Larcombe. Saxton says her run on her mare MJG Hollywood Jersey (Yellow Jersey x MJG Hollywood Dry) was one of her best.
“I had a really nice run. I had the best spins I’ve ever had, and nice rundowns. I was really happy with that, and my score was strong,” Saxton said. “Giada Camparsi from G Reining Horses helped me this week, but normally Ted Chancey is my trainer. I had a great cheering squad!”
Saxton showed Arabians for 20 years and has been reining for eight years after her husband bought her two reining horses as a surprise Christmas present. She’s only owned her mare for about a year, but it didn’t take long for her to fall in love.
“She’s just so steady; she’ll give me when I ask. She’s just the best horse I’ve ever had,” Saxton said fondly.

Limited Non Pro Co-Champions – Ainsley Larcombe on Tinseltown Memory

Ainsley Larcombe rode her 4-year-old mare Tinseltown Memory (Gunners Tinseltown x Wimpys Memorabilia) to a score of 71 to tie for the Limited Non Pro win.
“She felt pretty good warming up. She went in and did everything the same, so I’m just trying to see where she’s at for the derbies and preparing,” Ainsley said of the mare her aunt Shauna Larcombe purchased at the Legacy Sale in September 2021. “Once you find the good spots on her, she’s really easy and rewarding to ride. And her stops, oh my gosh. Point and shoot; it’s really fun.”
Ainsley’s father, Martin Larcombe, is a professional reining trainer and Ainsley’s main coach. She keeps her favorite piece of dad’s advice in her mind every time she shows.
“In the warmup pen and preparing to show doesn’t matter if you look cool or not, you’ve got to get it done in the show pen. It’s not about appearance; it’s about what you get done in the show pen, so I take that to heart,” Ainsley said. “I thank my friends and family, Shauna for giving me the opportunity and buying the horse for me, my dad for putting up with me and teaching me, and my mom, sister and friends and everyone who helped me get there.”

Prime Time Non Pro Champion – Kevin Rosenbaum and Rolex N Chex

Rolex N Chex (Nu Chex To Cash x Miss Moth Money) came out of retirement with a bang, marking a 72 to win the first slate of the Prime Time Non Pro with Kevin Rosenbaum.
Rosenbaum has owned the 2008 gelding since the horse was six. He retired him in 2019, but a fateful just-for-fun ride several months ago sparked prep work to bring “Rolex” back to the show pen.
“He’s just been out in the pasture having a nice life. I promised him I was going to keep him forever, and in February I got on him one day just to ride around, and he felt so good,” said Rosenbaum, who owns Pinnacle Ranch in Scottsdale, Arizona, where he breeds and raises horses.
“My trainer Daniel Schloemer said we should get him ready and try for NRBC. At first I thought no, he’s been too good, and I’d never do it if it wasn’t going to be good for him. But we put shoes on him, thinking that I could always decide not to show him again, and I took him to Sun Circuit, Cactus Classic and then here.”
Rolex is Rosenbaum’s comfort zone. After a bad showing on his other horse in the Non Pro Classic this morning, Rosenbaum turned to his ever-steady Rolex to boost his confidence again.
“He’s my once-in-a-lifetime horse. I was mad at myself after that [first class], but I know him and he knows me, and I just needed to go through and do a run, and it was a good score,” Rosenbaum said.
“I actually bought him for my daughter when she was going to college, but she never got him. We just had a connection together; we got along really well. I showed him a bunch in the maturities and I won about $25,000 on him as an older horse. I love everything about him. He’s like a dog; he’s perfect.”

Hygain Welcome Party Draws Large Crowd

On Tuesday evening, NRBC Sponsor Hygain hosted a festive and popular welcome party. The event was catered by award-winning restaurant Cooper’s Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que.
Hygain representative Sarah Christen was on hand to welcome everyone, pass out Hygain swag, and answer questions about the company.
Thank you to Sarah and Hygain for sponsoring such a great event!

Join Us for the Markel Non Pro Finals Draw Party Tomorrow Night!
The Non Pro Finals Draw will be determined at 7 p.m. during the Markel Insurance Non Pro Draw Party. The Draw Party is open to everyone, and will be held in the Coliseum Sponsor Area. Markel Director of Western Disciplines Frank Costantini will be on-hand to assist with the Finals draw and to present the Markel Non Pro Commitment Award.

Donations Needed
NRBC Teams Up with Rein in Cancer for Silent Auction
Imagine trying to decide between gas to get to a cancer treatment, or a meal to build your strength. Or the choice could be between hay for your horses, or dietary counseling to stop the endless nausea that accompanies chemotherapy. These are not uncommon choices for those diagnosed with cancer.
“Facing cancer is a battle no one should have to fight, but unfortunately that disease affects millions of people each year, including those in the reining industry. Helping those in the industry is the reason 501c3 Rein In Cancer was created,” noted Rein In Cancer co-founder Cheryl Cody.
Rein In Cancer Silent Auction items can be dropped off at the NRBC Sponsor/Media Office. The Silent Auction will kick off Wednesday during the Markel Insurance Non Pro Finals Draw Party, and will wrap up with the completion of the Non Pro Finals on Friday afternoon.
For more information about Rein In Cancer, visit www.ReinInCancer.com

By NRBC Press Release