Finalists Set for 100X Stakes Open Finals
The preliminary round of the inaugural 100X Open Stakes at the 100X Reining Classic wrapped up today in all four levels. It was an exciting day of competition with the industry’s best of the best all vying for a top 25 spot in order to make it into the clean-slate finals on Saturday, where Level 4 riders will go head-to-head for a $150,000 top prize.

The 100X Open Stakes–an exclusive aged event for four-year-olds by nominated stallions–will payout more than $1 million dollars in the Open divisions alone. The Level 3 Champion will win $75,000, $32,000 goes to Level 2, and $20,000 will be awarded to the Level 1 winner.


Mirjam Stillo, who qualified for the Level 4 Finals on Got Itt (Spooks Gotta Whiz x Sail N Step) predicts the event will be well-received. “The response has been amazing. I feel like people are really liking everything about the show: the setup, the formula, the things that are a little bit different than a regular show,” she said. “So I’m excited to be here.”



With the prelims concluded, two sons of NRHA Five Million Dollar Sire Spook Gotta Whiz topped the Level 4 Open. Mic Dropp (out of Dun Dry Whiz), owned by Tim Anderson and Rick Clark, came away in first with a 227. The colt was ridden by NRHA All Time Leading Rider Andrea Fappani, who reached a historic eight million dollar milestone in the first days of the 100X Reining Classic.


Marking a 224.5, Renata Lemann’s Spook Lil Whiz (out of Lil Dreamer) took second with Rodrigo Nieves in the saddle.


The draws for the Finals will be determined Thursday night at the Guns And Dynamite Open Draw Party which will be held concurrently with Fair Night, where food trucks and entertainment will be available for exhibitors to peruse on the Esplanade. Festivities will begin at 5pm, with the Guns And Dynamite Open Finals Draw Party starting at 6 p.m.


The bubbles to advance to the Finals on Saturday were:
Level 4 – 220.5
Level 3 – 217
Level 2 – 212.5
Level 1 – 185.5



Cade McCutcheon Rides All Nite Partier to Win Open Futurity at 100X Reining Classic
With an impressive score of 223.5, Cade McCutcheon and All Nite Partier were the Open Futurity Level 4 Champions at the 100X Reining Classic in Tulsa, Oklahoma. All Nite Partier, a stallion by NRHA Six Million Dollar Sire Gunners Special Nite and out of Topsail Survivor, was bred by Deana Nell and is owned by Sotol Investments LLC. The colt is known around the barn as “Harvey.”

Although it was the three-year-old stallion’s first time in the show pen, McCutcheon, a NRHA Million Dollar Rider, said, “He walked in, turned really good, and just buried it when I said the word.”
When the final horse had left the pen, the results became official, and Harvey had posted his first earnings of $24,244.


McCutcheon thanked his fiance, Lexi, for her help this week. He also thanked Harvey’s  owners for the opportunity, and Harvey most of all.


“He’s just like riding Guns N Dynamite, like an uncanny reminder,” said McCutcheon, comparing Harvey to the horse on which he won the NRHA Level 4 Open Futurity Reserve title in 2019. “All those horses have an otherworldly stop, so it’s just cool.”

Open Futurity Level 3 Champion
Josiane Gauthier & Pale Face Vintage
Josiane Gauthier and Pale Face Vintage won the Level 3 Open Futurity at the 100X Reining Classic in Tulsa, Oklahoma, with a score of 217.5. Gauthier has been riding the horse for the last year, and said he has shown nothing but a steady increase in talent. Pale Face Vintage, a stallion by Platinum Vintage and out of Chic Out My Gold, is owned by Robert Escoe.


“He’s a really kind horse who just tries hard. He may be a stud but he really doesn’t know that,” said Gauthier.


Next for this team is to refine the work in the pattern to be able to be smooth and consistent leading up to the NRHA Futurity. Today’s win added $19,969 to the horse’s lifetime earnings. Gauthier thanked her team, especially her dad, for helping her this week.

Open Futurity Level 2 & 1 Champion
Debbie Brown & Thesesparksrspecial
This horse may be called ‘Dopey’ around the barn, but in the Open Futurity at the 100X Reining Classic, he was anything but. Debbie Brown piloted Thesesparksrspecial, by NRHA Six Million Dollar Sire Gunners Special Nite out of Stars and Sparks, to the championship in Levels 1 and 2 with a 218.

“He did everything without really any bobbles,” Brown said of their run, which earned them $7,348. “He took a little look at the judges’ seats coming into the middle of the circle, but other than that, he was there with me the whole time.”
Regarding ‘Dopey’s’ unusual barn name, Brown said, “Just look at that face. Put it this way: it just fits.”


Nicknames aside, Brown said the colt is a big stopper. “I know I can trust him to run it down there and stop. He’s never not stopped, so we ran hard,” she said.


Brown thanked owner Jennifer Greenleaf for letting her show this horse–although Jennifer may take over the reins soon. She added that the plan is to go home and work on his circles, as well as getting him ready to show one-handed, in preparation for the NRHA Futurity.

Allison Thorson Leads NARS Non Pro Derby following First Section
The Non Pro Derby kicked off with a strong start  in the Ford Truck Arena this afternoon, with the North American Reining Stakes Non Pro Derby and the 100X Non Pro Derby running concurrently.


The North American Reining Stakes strives to be a partnership between stallion owners, breeders, and competitors in order to create premier aged horse events. The NARS Non Pro Derby is held with the 100X Reining Classic and the program has a Futurity which will be held in Ohio in November.


The end-of-day high point leaders in each level are: 


NARS Level 4 Non Pro: Allison Rae Thorson with Surprizedya (Gunnatrashya x Dun It With Surprizes)
NARS Level 3 Non Pro: Allison Rae Thorson with Surprizedya (Gunnatrashya x Dun It With Surprizes)
NARS Level 2 Non Pro: Tristan Bagby with Our Major Nite (Gunners Special Nite x Our Major Affair)
NARS Level 1 Non Pro: Allison Renee Chappell with Sushi Sixty Six (Inferno Sixty Six x Madeof Pure Spangled)
NARS Non Pro Primetime: Michael A Garnett with Gunabeaspecialnite (Gunners Special Nite x Hollywood Starburst)
NARS Non Pro Master: Michael A Garnett with Gunabeaspecialnite(Gunners Special Nite x Hollywood Starburst)


Non Pro Derby Level 4:Allison Rae Thorson with Surprizedya
Non Pro Derby Level 3: Allison Rae Thorson with Surprizedya
Non Pro Derby Level 2: Tristan Bagby with Our Major Nite
Non Pro Derby Level 1: Allison Renee Chappell with Sushi Sixty Six
Non Pro Derby Primetime: Michael A Garnett with Gunabeaspecialnite
Non Pro Derby Novice Horse: Allison Rae Thorson with Pale Light (Pale Face Dunnit x Luz Del Conquistador)


In an effort to recognize the mares that play such a large role in the industry, the NARS Non Pro Derby has a Mare Power Program, sponsored by Toyon Ranch. The current leader is Joes Genes, ridden by Tish Fappani. Joes Genes is out of Electric Genes, a mare with a lifetime earnings of $89,000.

Invitational Non Pro Level 4 and XCS Ranch Futurity Non Pro Level 4 Mandy McCutcheon & Dun It For Whiz

With the last name of McCutcheon, it’s no surprise that even on a horse she’s only owned for two weeks, NRHA Three Million Dollar Rider and Two Million Dollar Owner Mandy McCutcheon is the Invitational Non Pro Level 4 and XCS Ranch Futurity Non Pro Level 4 Champion. McCutcheon and Dun It For Whiz won with a score of 220.5, clearing the competition by an entire point.

“My brother-in-law came over to ride and I said, ‘Just let me ride that one,’” said McCutcheon. “And once I did, I just said, ‘I’ll just keep this one here for now.’ So we struck a deal and I bought him and I’m happy I did.”


Dun It For Whiz is by Dun It For Whizkey and out of Indians Gunalena. Before being purchased by the McCutcheons, the gelding was in training with McCutcheon’s niece’s boyfriend, Eduardo Maranho Giannasi, making the wins in the Ford Arena a family affair.


The Non Pro Futurities’ payouts will add an impressive $71,041 to McCutcheon’s impressive lifetime earnings, which total over three million dollars.


“Having programs like the ones here at the 100X Reining Classic is good for the business,” said McCutcheon. “There’s a lot out there to win, and that just makes people want to breed and have more good babies on the ground.”


McCutcheon thanked her whole team for their support, her husband Tom, and Giannasi for his work on the gelding.

Invitational Non Pro Level 2 and XCS Ranch Futurity Non Pro Level 1 & 2
Dani Latimer & Snap My Crush
On a homegrown horse, Dani Latimer won the Invitational Non Pro Level 2, XCS Ranch Futurity Non Pro Level 2, and the XCS Ranch Futurity Non Pro Level 1 Championship with an impressive 219.5. Bred and owned by her dad, Dean Latimer, Snap My Crush is by PS Mega Shine Chic and out of Snapbacks.


Latimer was also the Reserve Champion in the Invitational Non Pro Level 4, making the day’s total earnings an impressive $52,835, more than doubling her lifetime earnings of $34,581.


“His mom, she was my favorite horse ever. I showed her when I was 15,” said Latimer. “Since the day this horse was born, I’ve just been waiting to get to go show him.”


Latimer knew that if she did what she was supposed to do in the Non Pro Futurity, “Finn,” would do his job, and that’s exactly what he did.


“Finn just has a lot of confidence, and I knew he would pull through and show off for me,” said Latimer.


Thanking her parents for every opportunity they’ve given her, and her trainer, Wade McDonald, Latimer already has her vision set on the next set of shows, ready to get back in the pen with Finn.

XCS Ranch Futurity Non Pro Level 3
Samantha Smith & Ur Cheating Heart
With a 217, Samantha Smith won the XCS Ranch Futurity Non Pro Level 3 aboard Ur Cheating Heart, by NRHA Five Million Dollar Sire Spooks Gotta Whiz out of Revolutionary Jewels. Unlike his name, this horse – called ‘Rev’ at home – is not a heartbreaker. In fact, he’s so sociable that Smith, who describes him as a “silly little guy,” says she may have to get him a companion somewhere down the line.


“I think in his future, there might be a goat as a friend or a dog,” said Smith. “He wants to be in your pocket. He’s like, ‘Save me! From everything!’ But I like that, though.”


Smith thanked NRHA Million Dollar Rider Trevor Dare for keeping ‘Rev’ in his barn, adding a special thanks his assistant trainer, Damian Rico, who’s been riding ‘Rev’ all year.


“Damian has done a fabulous job and a lot of what this horse is because he’s that broke,” she said.


Smith and ‘Rev’ earned $2,894 for their L3 win and another $2,758 for a third place finish in the L4. Smith says she’s looking forward to the horse’s future in the show pen.


“He wants to be a show horse. He just wants to be a good horse. He’s a little bit quirky and a little bit weird… He didn’t warm up super quiet,” Smith recalled, “but he got in there and was just a show horse. And I’m excited to show him again. I’m going to take him to the [High Roller Reining Classic] next.”

XCS Ranch Futurity Non Pro Primetime
Kary Key & My Whizkey Girl
Kary Key made her debut aboard her “little red mare,” My Whizkey Girl, winning the XCS Ranch Prime Time Futurity with a 211.5. With this win, along with their placings in all levels of the XCS Ranch Futurity and The Invitational, Key will be adding $19,331 to her lifetime earnings.


“Sophia,” as she is affectionately known, is sired by Dun It For Whizkey and out of Spooked Out Chex. Bred by Brugger Enterprises LLC, and purchased by Key from Rodrigo Nieves, Sophia is one of the few horses Key has shown that was not bred by her family. “The year she was born was the one year I told my mom she couldn’t breed anything,” stated Key. “So, we had to go buy something!”


Key was drawn to the mare from the moment she and her trainer, Brian Bell, tried her as a two-year-old. “She was super cute, and she’s as tall as she is wide… she’s not that tall, but she’s pretty wide,” said Key of the sorrel mare. “She just had everything, and is very good minded. Anything Brian asked her to do, she was happy to do it.”


Still, the road to the 100X Reining Classic certainly was not easy, and Key believes this mare was only showing to about 50% of her full potential.


With everything Sophia has been through, Key was very eager to thank her veterinary and farrier teams at home, as well as her mom, Pat Fletcher, and the entire team at Brian Bell Performance Horses- especially Brian and his wife, Naike.


The mare will spend the coming weeks resting up and rehabbing, before returning to the show pen at either the SWRHA or NRHA Futurities. Long term, Key is excited to add the royally bred, well built, great minded mare to her family’s string of mare power.

– Photos by 100X Reining Classic

By 100X Reining Classic Press Release