The first-ever Ranch Horse Triple Crown Challenge successfully shook up the ranch horse market with its huge payouts and all-breed format. More than $116,000 was paid out across the event’s six Open and Non-Pro classes, which took place July 3-6 in Fort Worth, Texas, in conjunction with the APHA World Championship Show.
- 147 competitors
- $116,839 awarded
- Over $40,000 in prizes
The Ranch Horse Triple Crown was the brainchild of APHA member Daniel Patton of Ostrander, Ohio, who developed the premier incentive competition based on inspiration from friend Clark Bradley. Clark, a National Reining Horse Association Hall of Famer and two-time NRHA Open Futurity champion, envisioned a program that would elevate ranch competition purses to a reining-like level; Clark died in January 2022.
“The competition was just incredible,” Daniel said. “The Non-Pros were paid the same as Open riders across the board. That was just phenomenal. I am unbelievably proud to be able to put this on and work with APHA to do this.”
One of the most exciting parts, Daniel says, was watching Youth rider Treylyn Hancock—APHA’s new Youth president from Wharton, Texas—nearly sweep the three Non-Pro Ranch Horse Triple Crown classes. Treylyn and her Paint, Slide My Way, won the ranch riding and ranch trail portions, and were reserve in the ranch rail pleasure class. She won more than $12,000 in the Ranch Horse Triple Crown classes, and also scored other prizes that included two saddles and a director’s chair.
“It was a great experience because it was so competitive with a good amount of horses and even payout with the Open, which was really neat,” Treylyn said. “This event is such a valuable addition to the ranch horse market. It also brought more people to Paint World to see how good the classes are, and there were more people who entered the Open/Amateur Paint classes because they were already going for the Triple Crown.”
Bud Lyon of Tioga, Texas, scored big in the Ranch Horse Triple Crown; together, Bud and his customers took home more than $77,000 in prize money at the APHA World Show, with a large chunk of that coming from the Ranch Horse Triple Crown events.
“We are grateful for the success we had and were excited for the opportunity,” he said. “The ranch events have evolved really quickly and there is definitely a market and desire by the exhibitors to show not just for titles, trophies and buckles, but also for prize money. This is something that’s the next evolution of our ranch horse industry. Hopefully it’s a great stepping stone.”
Bud loved the all-breed aspect to the Ranch Horse Triple Crown and brought both Paints and Quarter Horses to the event, which also drew entries from other breeds, too.
“All segments of the Western performance industry, regardless of breed, is seeing increased interest and growth in the ranch events. There is so much popularity and interest in these ranch horse classes because of the versatility of the horses and the natural way of going,” Bud said. “It didn’t go unnoticed that the quantity and quality of horses showing in the Paint Horse classes had increased in the past couple of years. I hope this Triple Crown is mutually beneficial for ranch events and also for APHA and their World Show. Better caliber competition makes everything better, in my opinion.”
More info: Check out The Ranch Horse Triple Crown Challenge on Facebook
Congratulations to the inaugural winners (APHA-registered horses are in bold):
RHTC: Open Ranch Riding | RHTC: Open Ranch Rail Pleasure | RHTC: Open Ranch Trail |
Champion: LIL TRASH TALK, owned/leased by SUSAN M VAN CLEVE-JUNG; exhibited by BUD LYON | Champion: FM COTTONWOOD, owned/leased by CARLTON & DR KHRIS CROWE; exhibited by MIKE MOSER | Champion: LECTRIC CHIC OLENA, owned/leased by KIMBERLY COLVIN LYON; exhibited by BUD LYON |
Reserve Champion: DOUBLE TAPN, owned/leased by DAN E. FOX; exhibited by BUD LYON | Reserve Champion: GOTTA HOT GUN, owned/Leased and exhibited by KAREN M JOHNSON | Reserve Champion: ONE COOL SPOOK, owned/leased by JENNIFER C. JUBB; exhibited by STEVE MEADOWS |
3. FM COTTONWOOD, owned/leased by CARLTON & DR KHRIS CROWE; exhibited by BUD LYON | 3. WHIZ CHIC GRACE, owned/leased by PAM TROUTMAN; exhibited by STEVE MEADOWS | 3. LIL TRASH TALK, owned/leased by SUSAN M VAN CLEVE-JUNG; exhibited by BUD LYON |
4. CHEX OUT MY DOUGH, owned/leased by KERRY PAPENDICK; exhibited by BUD LYON | 4. LIL TRASH TALK, owned/leased by SUSAN M VAN CLEVE-JUNG; exhibited by BUD LYON | 4. VOODOO DOCTOR, owned/leased by RONDA BULLARD; exhibited by CODY CROW |
5. VOODOO DOCTOR, owned/leased by RONDA BULLARD; exhibited by CODY CROW | 5. WHIZNT SHE LUVLY, owned/Leased and exhibited by KIRSTIN BOOTH | 5. SEISMIC REACTION, owned/leased by DAN E. FOX; exhibited by KATIE FOX |
6. GOTTA HOT GUN, owned/Leased and exhibited by KAREN M JOHNSON | 6. SS JUST PLAIN WICKED, owned/leased by CAROLINE BRUNSON; exhibited by JESTIN SIMPER | 6. MY CHIEFS DELIGHT, owned/leased by MICHELLE STEELE; exhibited by CODY CROW |
7. DONT MESS WHIZ ME, owned/leased by DAWN BODEL; exhibited by JOHN IRISH | 7. COLOR ME MARKED, owned/leased by CLAIRE M. ARMSTRONG; exhibited by TOM NEEL | 7. PRICELESS INVESTMENT, owned/leased by ANN HARDS; exhibited by CODY CROW
|
8. COLOR ME MARKED, owned/leased by CLAIRE M. ARMSTRONG; exhibited by TOM NEEL | 8. DOUBLE TAPN, owned/leased by DAN E. FOX; exhibited by KATIE FOX | 8. NITENSHININGARMOR, owned/leased by DAN E. FOX; exhibited by BUD LYON |
9. MY CHIEFS DELIGHT, owned/leased by MICHELLE STEELE; exhibited by CODY CROW | 9. CHEX OUT MY DOUGH, owned/leased by KERRY PAPENDICK; exhibited by B. LOGAN PLUHAR | 9. PAINTED N BLUEGRASS, owned/leased by ANGELA SCRUGGS; exhibited by LESLIE TEMPLE |
10. ONE COOL SPOOK, owned/leased by JENNIFER C. JUBB; exhibited by STEVE MEADOWS | 10. PAINTED N BLUEGRASS, owned/leased by ANGELA SCRUGGS; exhibited by LESLIE TEMPLE | 10. CHEX OUT MY DOUGH, owned/leased by KERRY PAPENDICK; exhibited by B. LOGAN PLUHAR |
RHTC: Non-Pro Ranch Riding | RHTC: Non-Pro Ranch Rail Pleasure | RHTC: Non-Pro Ranch Trail |
Champion: SLIDE MY WAY, owned/leased and exhibited by TREYLYN HANCOCK | Champion: GOTTA HOT GUN, owned/Leased and exhibited by KAREN M JOHNSON | Champion: SLIDE MY WAY, owned/leased and exhibited by TREYLYN HANCOCK |
Reserve Champion: GOTTA HOT GUN, owned/Leased and exhibited by KAREN M JOHNSON | Reserve Champion: SLIDE MY WAY, owned/leased and exhibited by TREYLYN HANCOCK | Reserve Champion: LECTRIC CHIC OLENA, owned/leased and exhibited by KIMBERLY COLVIN LYON |
3. FRECKLES NU LIL GUN, owned/leased and exhibited by KATHLEEN L ROACH | 3. DOUBLE TAPN, owned/leased by DAN E. FOX; exhibited by KATIE FOX | 3. FRECKLES NU LIL GUN, owned/leased and exhibited by KATHLEEN L ROACH |
4. TALKIN CHEAP, owned/leased by JOHNSRUD RANCH; exhibited by NOLAN JOHNSRUD | 4. WHIZENBOONSMAL, owned/Leased and exhibited by MADISON HAYDEN RAFACZ | 4. NITENSHININGARMOR, owned/leased by DAN E. FOX; exhibited by KATIE FOX |
5. GUNNABEATYA, owned/leased and exhibited by JEANINE BURKART-JONES | 5. CHEX OUT MY DOUGH, owned/leased and exhibited by KERRY PAPENDICK | 5. WHIZZIN BANJO, owned/leased by FOUR STAR QUARTER HORSES; exhibited by EMILY SAVANNAH PATTON |
6. SEISMIC REACTION, owned/leased by DAN E. FOX; exhibited by KATIE FOX | 6. DAISY BB GUNNER, owned/leased and exhibited by DEBBIE ALLEN | 6. BOONFULL OF CAESAR, owned/leased and exhibited by JESSICA ANN RUMBAUGH |
7. LECTRIC CHIC OLENA, owned/leased and exhibited by KIMBERLY COLVIN LYON | 7. TALKIN CHEAP, owned/leased by JOHNSRUD RANCH; exhibited by NOLAN JOHNSRUD | 7. GUNNABEATYA, owned/leased and exhibited by JEANINE BURKART-JONES |
8. NITENSHININGARMOR,
owned/leased by DAN E. FOX; exhibited by KATIE FOX |
8. LECTRIC CHIC OLENA, owned/leased and exhibited by KIMBERLY COLVIN LYON | 8. DUALIN ME TRASH, owned/leased and exhibited by MINDY E SCOTT |
9. DAISY BB GUNNER, owned/Leased and exhibited by DEBBIE ALLEN | 9. FRECKLES NU LIL GUN, owned/leased and exhibited by KATHLEEN L ROACH | 9. SEISMIC REACTION, owned/leased by DAN E. FOX; exhibited by KATIE FOX |
10. WHIZENBOONSMAL, owned/Leased and exhibited by MADISON HAYDEN RAFACZ | 10. GUNNABEATYA, owned/leased and exhibited by JEANINE BURKART-JONES | 10. GUNNER GOT OUT, owned/leased and exhibited by S. LYNN WALKER |
##
[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 in 1962. APHA promotes, preserves and provides meaningful experiences with Paint Horses.