Saturday saw new and repeat champions named in NSBA World Championship and Breeders Championship Futurity classes, including several repeat champion riders and owners who won titles with multiple horses..
Gil Galyean and Best To Be Lopin started out the day with a world championship in Color Junior Western Pleasure for owners Richard and Betty Jo Carr. "Richard and Betty Jo bought 'Carla' to be Richard's next Select Western Pleasure horse," Gil explained. "She is by The Lopin Machine and out of an RL Best Of Sudden mare, and Richard and Betty Jo also bought her in mind to raise some foals with her as well.
"She is just great minded and really likes doing her job. She also looks very elegant on the rail. We really like her."
Jay Starnes added to the two year old mare VS Whole Lotta Lucy's show resume by winning the Breeders Championship Futurity Two Year Old Open Western Pleasure for Kristen Galyean. The duo were the unanimous choice on judges Lisa Ligon, Jody Finkenbinder, Nancy Sue Ryan and Mark Shaffer's cards.
After watching her two year old win a Breeders Championship title, Kristen Galyean followed up in the very next class by winning a world championship title with her mare, KM Suddenly So Easy in another unanimous decision by the judges in the Maturity Non-Pro Western Pleasure.
The Maturity is always one of the toughest classes at the horse show, because there are always so many seasoned and well trained horses, and today was no exception," Kristen said.
"I mainly just tried to stay out of Penelope's way. She really is a one of a kind horse, and I thank Ken and Marilyn Masterson every day for selling her to me. In my opinoin, she is one of the very best show horses there ever was, and she exemplifies everything that a Western Pleasure horse should be. We love her, and we kind of pick and choose classes for her to show in so that she can keep loving her job.. We bought her with the idea to also raise babies with her as well, and my daughter is also showing her in Small Fry. She has a VS Code Red yearling that we are excited for and more babies planned.
Laura Spell took Al Be Under The Hood to the world championship in the Three Year Old Limited Open Hunter Under Saddle for owner Allison Board. Allison purchased the Mechanic gelding known as Wally sight unseen from Facebook.
"I work for an Equine Production for Kathy Avolt, so I don't get to see this side of a horse show very often," Allison said. "I took Wally to Wade and Laura Spell in June of 2021 before the APHA World Show, and they've done a great job with him. Today he settled in well, used his ears and found his spots and just showed. He's now four for four in his classes!"
Im Willy Good Today continued to live up to his name by adding yet another NSBA world championship title to his resume with Keith Miller. "I am so fortunate to have this horse with me," Keith said.
"We had looked and looked for a good, competitive and solid horse for Erin Boatwright to show, and I had been looking for a while. It just happened that I asked Sandra Morgan if she would consider selling him, and she agreed to sell him to us. It just goes to show that if you don't ask, the answer is always know and you never know until you ask. He's been perfect for Erin, and he's a joy to work with and show."
Elizabeth "Spike" Brewer took her gelding Well Ill Be to another NSBA world show win in the Color Amateur Hunter Under Saddle, marking two championship titles for 'Stix,' The Brewers bred and raised the gelding, and Spike's husband, Jody, did all of the ground work on the gelding before taking him to Joy and Justin Wheeler.
Kristin Pokluda had been coming close to winning a world championship title all week, and did just that on her last class to show at the 2022 NSBA World Championship Show. She piloted Pretty Dang Good to win the Two Year Old Limited Open Hunter Under Saddle fo owner David Beck. "He's by Good Better Best and out the show mare Pretty Assets," David said. "We bought him in the Yearling Sale last year from Megan Tierney," David said. "He's a great horse. He is great minded and he loves his job. Our plan is to keep winning trophies with him."
"He's the best horse I've ever ridden," Kristin noted. "He has so much ring presence, and he just has a different look that you can't help but notice. He's also very consistent, and I think the judges liked that."
Scott Frye and A Lazy Holiday proved that you don't have to be a young trainer or a young horse to win a world championship title at the NSBA World Championship Show. The duo won the world championship in the Maturity Limited Open Western Pleasure for Seaside Farm LP. The class took two splits and a final to determine the winner, and Scott felt his finals go was a definite improvement over the split.
"In the split, we were a little sketchy, but during the finals, he relaxed a bit and just let me show him. Once he loped off, he was great. He profiles so well, is a great jogger, and is just one of the great ones. Seaside Farm's Adria Smith purchased JD in 2018. "The Rowlands raised him. He is by Lazy Loper and out of Shes On Holiday," she said. "Jay Starnes and Kelby Hutchinson had shown him quite a bit.
When announcer Chad Horkey began to play George Strait's "The Fireman," the crowd knew that the champions in the Three Year Old Non-Pro Western Pleasure were Kristen Galyean and her stallion, VS The Fireman. The Machine Made Stallion earned three first place scores on the judges cards and became the third horse in Kristen's show string to earn a world title on Saturday.
In the Color Green Western Pleasure, Sara Simons added to the list of accomplishments for Made Me Famous when she won the world title for owner Cathy Ryden.
In the Novice Amateur 50 & Over Hunter Under Saddle, Rebecca Edward showed her horses, Im Always Sleepy, to a unanimous world championship.
Michelle Bauer earned her first world championship title under saddle with her horse, Give Me A Good Alibi, in the Three Year Old Non-Pro Hunter Under Saddle. The duo had won a world championship earlier in the show in Amateur Pleasure Driving.
It seems like Only Ride The Best has been around the show pen for a long time, but Dawn Baker noted that the gelding known as Teddy is much more mature than he was at last year's NSBA World Show, where they won the same class that they won again on Saturday for the second time. They showed for owner Caroline Cavallo.
"We won the Junior Hunter Under Saddle last year here, but he was too scared to make a victory lap," Dawn laughed. "This time, we were OK to do it. We had saved him for the Maiden Hunter Under Saddle at the A Sudden Impulse last year, so he really hadn't been shown that much when he came here. It's cool that we won it last year and were able to maintain that this year. He's become so solid, and he's always the same. He's so pleasant. He likes his job and it's easy for him. He's just the sweetest horse."
Julie Schmidt showed I Woke Up Like This all week for owner Ashlee Facteau, who also showed him in the Non-Pro, and they were always in the placings, but on Saturday they earned a Breeders Championship Futurity championship in the Breeders Championship Two Year Old Limited Open Western Pleasure.
"Elmer is just super chill," Julie said. of the Heart Stoppin gelding. "He's a very sweet horse. He has really fluid movement and a lot of cadence. We're going to take him home and start working on his lead change, and hopefully do the three year old events and maybe add Trail next year."
Blake Britton has watched KM Slot Machine mature from a great three year old into a Maturity horse, and he took the gelding to the BCF championship in the Color Breeders Championship Futurity 4-6 Year Old Open Western Pleasure for owner Libby Trucco.
He's really grown up," Blake said. "He is a lot of fun to show. He's a great Open horse and he's also great as a Non-Pro horse for Libby to show. Not every futurity horse can do that, but he can."
By the end of the show day on Saturday, Taft Dickerson could no longer say that he's never won a class at the NSBA World Championship Show, because he had won a world championship and a Breeders Championship Futurity class in the span of two days - on two different horses. On this day, he showed The Whos Who in a catch ride for Wayne and Judy Davis to win the Breeders Championship Futurity Three Year Old Limited Open Western Pleasure.
I've ridden him three or four times here at the show, and we were ready to go," Taft said. "Katy Jo Zuidema had him ready to go and he was great. I could show him off the rail or on the rail and he would just stay where you put him and just show him. JR (Pickard) has won quite a bit with him. He's just a big, pretty horse, and you can't help but notice him. We were also reserve in the Green Western Pleasure too. My wife Adrianne is going to be showing him at that Congress."
The NSBA World Championship Show and Breeders Championship Futurity will conclude on Sunday, August 21. To view complete show results, view the link to the live video feed, or learn more about NSBA or the show, please visit nsba.com.
