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Cash for color at the 2016 USTRC Cowtown ShootOut

APHA members know it always pays to ride a Paint Horse, but that really came to life November 11–13 at the USTRC Cowtown ShootOut, a joint venture presented by APHA and the United States Team Roping Championship as part of the 2016 APHA World Championship Show in Fort Worth, Texas.

Ropers converged on Fort Worth, ready to compete for cash in 10 events; APHA sweetened the pot for those competing aboard registered Paint Horses with a pair of $2,500 incentives and custom Gist Silversmith trophy buckles to the high-money winners with chrome in the #6 & Above and Elite #5 & Below categories.

shootoutweb_dec7933#6 & Above: Ty Harris & Bar Dice

Paired with a new horse and a new partner, Ty Harris of San Angelo, Texas, claimed the $2,500 APHA incentive for #6 & Above ropers at the Cowtown ShootOut. The header competed aboard Bar Dice, a 2000 sorrel tobiano gelding he had purchased only three weeks earlier.

The decision to roll the dice with heeler Dustin Searcy of Mooreland, Oklahoma, paid off—literally—in Fort Worth: they won the #15 Handicap to split $6,426.

“We made four good runs and came out on top. It was a good roping,” Ty said.

“Snake” ended up as the high-money Paint in the #6 & Above category, and Ty has his heeler to thank for the $2,500 bonus payout.

“When I got there and he saw I was riding my Paint Horse, he reminded me they have that incentive, so I decided I should go register for it,” Ty said. “I bought this horse for $12,000 and I’ve already won about $11,000 on him. He’s real easy and fun to be around; he has a real calm and gentle personality. He’s really helped me step up my game.”

 

shootoutweb_dec9317Elite #5 & Below: Kenneth Foy & Colonel Jackuno

A Cowtown ShootOut veteran, Kenneth Foy’s had his eye on APHA’s high-point Paint buckle for a long time. A missed shot by his heeler in the short-round last year let it slip through his fingers, but Kenneth saddled up Colonel Jackuno again in 2016, and the stars aligned to lay claim to both the buckle and the bonus.

“I was bummed out about it last year, and I told my wife, ‘I really want that buckle for that horse.’ It worked out this year,” Kenneth said.

Kenneth and heeler Charlie Beach of Hempstead dominated the #10 Gold Plus roping: they were second in the average, and won both the incentive and century bonus, splitting a total of $7,058. And because he roped aboard his stalwart Paint “Bronco,” Kenneth snagged the buckle and an extra $2,500.

Bronco’s been part of the Foy family since he was a yearling—Kenneth and wife Jeannie purchased the 2005 sorrel tobiano gelding in a county fair’s silent auction near their hometown of Hempstead, Texas. Since then, the couple’s done all of the gelding’s training themselves, and while Bronco can hold his own around the barrel pattern with Jeannie, it’s in the roping pen that he really shines.

“He just loves it. He likes to pin his ears and go catch one,” Kenneth said. “He’s so cowy, I guarantee if one were to run up a telephone pole, he’d try to follow it. I know when I go somewhere, if I draw good I’m going to get a check. That means a lot when you’re roping.”

The gelding’s business-like approach paid off in Fort Worth, and the stars aligned for Kenneth and Charlie. The $2,500 APHA incentive is making ropers sit up and take notice of the opportunities that come from riding a Paint, Kenneth says.

“More guys I know are talking about getting Paints to come back next year. It’s a good deal, and I’d like to thank the Paint association for it,” he said. “God blessed us with this horse. He’s a winner.”

 

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[Reprinting all or part of this news release is permitted, so long as credit is given to the Paint Horse Journal and a link provided back to apha.com.]

 

About APHA

The American Paint Horse Association is the world’s second-largest international equine breed association, registering more than a million horses in 59 nations and territories since it was founded. APHA creates and maintains programs that increase the value of American Paint Horses and enriches members’ experiences with their horses.

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