NRCHA Celebration of Champions

Did I tell y\’all that I was headed for San Angelo, Texas this week to take in the National Reined Cow Horse Association Celebration of Champions? Nope, probably not. Things got a little busy for

me last week. But here I am, sitting in the lone star state, watching cow horses. <grin>

And the continental breakfast at our hotel consists of waffles grilled into the shape of Texas! Does it get any better than that…? Well, yeah. Honestly, I wish things had gone a little better for my husband, our horse and I. But hey – that\’s horse showin\’!

There are several Canadians who made the long drive to Texas. Thus, we have been able to take in the sights and visit with a few friends along the way.

And of course, there are lots of amazing equine athletes to watch. The weather has been pretty lovely too. But it\’s truly impressive to see how many Canucks qualified in 2012 for the right to contend at this special international event.

The NRCHA Celebration of Champions features the top horses and riders from each of the NRCHA\’s eight geographic regions competing for World Championship titles in 12 exciting events.

Several Canadians have done very well in their respective divisions. Here\’s an update on all the Canadians who have made the hard cut from the preliminaries into the finals of their respective divisions so far:

Open Bridle Preliminaries:

3rd Position –  Smart Sassy Date – shown by Brad Pedersen / owned by Greg Gartner – 434
4th Position – Maximum Echo – shown by John Swales /owned by Flo Houlton – 432.5

7th Position – Smoke N Pep – shown by Vance Kaglea / owned by Monica Wille – 429.5

Prelims for the Novice Non Pro Bridle and $5,000 Non Pro Limited:

8th Position – Erin Baumung/Big Boots To Fill – 421.5

Prelims for the $5,000 Non Pro Limited:

2. Briana Goucher/Cook N Oak – 431

Open Two Rein Preliminaries:

3. Smart Marina, shown by John Swales/owned by Jim Baird – 435

5. In The Nic Of Sign, shown by John Swales/owned by Heather McLevin and Jim Dobler – 433.5

8. Twice The Bet, shown by Clint Swales/owned by Clint Swales – 426

Limited Open Bridle Preliminaries.

3. Smart Lil Boonlight, shown and owned by Kent Williamson

I hope I didn\’t miss anyone, but if I did – please let me  know! Good luck to everyone who will contending in finals classes later this week!