Shawn Flarida & Einsteins Revolution Win 2006 NRBC Open

Shawn Flarida continued his reining major event winning streak by adding the National Reining Breeders Classic Open Championship to his list of accomplishments. Riding Einsteins Revolution, Shawn topped the 2006 event Saturday, April 22, at the Great Southwest Equestrian Center in Katy, Texas. For the second year in a row, the NRBC awarded more than $1 million in prize money.

From Springfield, Ohio, NRHA Million Dollar Rider Shawn Flarida has had a very impressive winning streak. He earned the 2004 NRHA Futurity Championship and 2005 NRHA Derby Championship riding Smart Spook, by Smart Chic Olena and out of Sugarplum Spook, owned by Rosanne Sternberg of Bodiam, East Sussex, England. With KR Lil Conquistador, by Conquistador Whiz and out of Smart Little Prize, owned by Cheree Kirkbride, Shawn picked up the 2005 NRHA Futurity Open win.

Shawn qualified both Smart Spook and KR Lil Conquistador for the Open Finals but it was Einsteins Revolution, by Great Resolve (Einstein) and out of Fly Flashy Jac, that carried him to an impressive 232 for the Open Championship. Owned by Wagner and Vandorp, Einsteins Revolution earned $60,000 for the win.

Co-owner Ruben Vandorp trained Einsteins Revolution and Tim McQuay showed him as a 3-year-old. Shawn started working with the stallion earlier this year.

“It’s taken me a little while to get hooked up with him,” Shawn admitted. “He’s got some quarks that are different but he’s a nice horse. Ruben called and asked if I’d be interested in riding him and I said I would love to. I was excited.”

Custom Legend carried Andrea Fappani, Scottsdale, Arizona, to the Open Reserve Championship with a 227.5. Custom Legend, by Custom Crome and out of Dry Doc Bobbie, is owned by Steve Simon and earned $52,000 for the win.

Jared LeClair, of Tioga, Texas, won the Intermediate Open Classic with a 222.5 riding Dun It In Tinseltown. Jared and the mare, by Hollywood Dun It and out of Miss Tinsel Town, owned by David Silva, were the 2005 NRBC Intermediate Open Reserve Champions. Tim McQuay made the Open Finals at the NRHA Futurity with her as a 3-year-old and Jared has worked with her for the past year.

“Every time I’ve shown her I’ve made it to the Intermediate Open Finals on her,” Jared said of the 6-year-old mare. “She’s a special horse. Horses like her are born like that. It’s up to us to get them to the pen and let them prove themselves. You’re not going to train one like her. You’ve just got to get out of her way and let her show herself.”

Riding Jacs Little Sunrise, by Sunrise Enterprise and out of Miss Whoa Jac, Scott McCutcheon earned the Intermediate Open Reserve with a 222. Jacs Little Sunrise and Scott, from Whitesboro, Texas, earned $16,765 for owners Harry and Susan Jones.

Missouri trainer Jay McLaughlin topped the Limited Open with a 217.5 riding Just Like Starlight for owners Henry and Lynn Rohwedder of Waterloo, Illinois. Jay was the last to run in the afternoon’s Limited and Intermediate Open Finals and knew a 217 was leading his division. He and Just Like Starlight earned $10,817 for the Championship.

Jay is better known for his success in reined cow horse competition. When Jay started working with Just Like Starlight, he was a trained reiner and Jay started him on cattle in hopes of having a top-notch cow horse. Now that he’s won the NRBC Limited Open, Jay is making plans that include both disciplines.

“I think he’s a future World’s Greatest Horseman horse and I might go to the NRHA Derby with him,” Jay said. “He’ll go to the AQHA World Show in reining and cow horse and then I’ll start roping on him and go to the World’s Greatest next year.”

Chris Ferguson, Tioga, Texas, marked the 217 early on and earned the Limited Open Reserve riding Escalante Chic. By Chic Please and out of Spanish Dun It, Escalante Chic picked up $6,584 for the win.

The NRBC honored Green Valley Ranch’s Lil Ruf Peppy as part of the Open Finals opening ceremony. When the NRBC began April 18, Lil Ruf Peppy was less than $8,000 away from siring earners of over $1 million. The stallion’s offspring accumulated earnings throughout the show and as Lil Santana, MM Pop Tart and Dry Ruf each placed in the Limited or Intermediate Open Finals, Lil Ruf Peppy passed the million-dollar mark. By Peppy San Badger and out of Rufas Peppy, Lil Ruf Peppy is the National Reining Horse Association’s 10th Million Dollar Sire.

Eleven teams from nine universities traveled to Katy to compete in the second-annual NRBC Collegiate Judging Contest. West Texas A&M University, Canyon, Texas, earned the team Championship and was awarded $1,000 from the NRBC. West Texas A&M team members included Laura Wilder, Jessica Crouch, Tyler Crouse, Brian Dundon and Brittany Morgan, along with coaches John Pipkin and Alexis Adams. Joe Pluhar from Texas A&M, College Station, Texas, won the Individual Championship and was awarded a CR Morrison Championship Trophy from the NRBC.

The NRBC will continue with its final day of competition Sunday, April 23, and includes a day of horse show competition. Visit www.nrbc.com for complete results from the event.

The National Reining Breeders Classic is the most successful stallion incentive program in reining history. In just nine years, the NRBC has grown to include over 275 subscribed stallions and more than 18,000 enrolled foals. For information on the NRBC, visit the web site at www.nrbc.com or call 580-759-3939.