Click image to read full article - Deary Performance Horses

In the Level 3 Open, NRHA Professional Jason Vanlandingham
of Whitesboro, Texas, claimed the reserve championship
aboard Wimpys High Bid (Wimpys Little Step x Lucky Little
Jewel), owned by Vaughn Zimmerman. The pair finished one
point behind the division winner, Vandorp and Legacy In Lights,
and earned $24,432 for the performance. The win doubled the
stallion’s NRHA Lifetime Earnings.
“He was my best horse, by far, going into the Futurity. I knew
he was gonna give me a chance. He is just so trustworthy that
he built my confidence all year and I knew coming in that he
would be a hard horse for the others to get around,” said Vanlandingham.
“He was the first horse I would get on every morning. He’s
just kind of a special horse around the place,” he concluded.
Splitting third place in the Level 3 Open with matching scores
of 218.5 points was NRHA Professional Brad Giesbrecht, formerly
of Canada, and Pedro Baiao, who began his career in Brazil.
Giesbrecht of Pilot Point, Texas, rode Ruff Spook (Smart Spook
x Ruffle Me Up by Lil Ruf Peppy) for owner Don Byrne. The
horse was nominated for the Futurity by NRHA Million Dollar
Owner Rosanne Sternberg who bred the stallion.
Giesbrecht scored 218.5 in the preliminary round and felt confident
that his horse would be a contender in the finals. He went
in on Saturday and matched that score, but in his mind, the stallion
had made an even better effort than in the prelims.
“This horse is good-minded, willing and a big stopper. In the
end, he had the guts to pull out the best run of the week for
me. We had a disappointing result in round two, but I trusted
my horse and my training to get it done in the finals,” he said.
Baiao, making his debut NRHA Futurity Finals appearance
on Wimpys Cable Lena (Wimpys Little Step x Miffs Cablelena
by Mifillena), captured the Open Level 1 and Level 2 championships
for his ride and was 12th overall in the Level 4. All
told, the rider picked up a check for $72,570 for owner and
breeder Robert Anderson of Flanders, New Jersey.
“I was just flabbergasted,” said Anderson following the wins.
“This is a feeling I will never forget. I am 70 and I may never
get this feeling again. But I sure want to try.”
Anderson said that the march to victory began way back in
1987, when he bought the mare Cable Connection from NRHA
Hall of Fame inductee and Million Dollar Rider Bill Horn and
his wife, Kimberly. Her first foal was Miffs Cablelena.
“At the time, Bill and Kim lived in Cable, Ohio. That’s where
the ‘Cable’ name came from and I use it in all my horses now.
Anything I breed has the name Cable in it,” he said. “Though
Bill passed away, Kim was at the show and saw the horse do
well, so that was really wonderful.”
Asked what the Level 1 and Level 2 Open division wins meant
for him, Baiao replied, “It is life-changing.” Prior to the Futurity,
Baiao had NRHA Lifetime Earnings of $19,761; with the
win, his career total now stands at more than $90,000.
“This is my first time competing in the Futurity. I’ve been doing
all the work with this horse since the time he was a baby.
I was the first person to put a saddle on and the first to ride him,”
said Baiao.
Baiao said that he was so focused during Saturday’s ride that,
“I was not even aware of all the Brazilians watching me— and
they cheer for us tremendously. I know they were shouting and
whistling, but I could not even hear them!”
The raucous applause at the end of his run drowned out the
sound of the announcer calling Baiao’s score. As the only Level
1 and Level 2 Open rider in the second section of finalists,
he clinched those victories with the 218.5 mark. Not that it mattered
to Baiao, who said that he’d dreamed of competing in the
Futurity since he began riding reining horses in Brazil at the
age of 15.
“I could not hear the announcer; I didn’t know that I had won!
But I knew that I would make lots of money!” he said, with obvious
delight. “Bob [Anderson] was so excited. It was really a
dream come true for us.” ✦
NRHA Million Dollar Sire
NRHA Million Dollar Owner Rosanne Sternberg’s Smart Spook
was honored for achieving NRHA Million Dollar Sire status.