Kit Kat Sugar, recent winner of the Bonanza Cutting, scored 223 points on Thursday to claim the championship of the Cattlemen’s Derby, Graham, Tex. The High Brow Cat son, shown by Pete Branch for his breeders, Lonnie and Barbara Allsup, Clovis, N.M., is out of a daughter of 1993 NCHA Horse of the Year Little Badger Dulce, winner of 14 major limited age events and $657,276.
That Sly Bob, ridden by Tarin Rice for Carl Smith, scored 218.5 points as reserve champion and also won the Open Gelding championship.
In the 4-year-old Limited Open division, Geoffrey Sheehan turned a hat trick placing first, second and third on Starlight Starbrite, Pepto Royal 008, and KF Boon A Lena, respectively.
Pounce lands Cattlemen’s Classic
Pounce, open reserve champion of four major events in 2010 and 2011, claimed her first limited age win on Wednesday, in the Cattlemen’s Classic. The six-year-old High Brow Cat daughter, owned by Clarke Butte Ranch, has earned over $177,000 under her trainer, Phil Hanson, and in amateur and non-pro competition with her owner Julie Clarke.
Hanson and Pounce scored 221 points for the win; Cat Zahir, ridden by Matt Miller for Georgia Husby, claimed reserve with 218.5 points. Pounce shared the high cumulative go-round score of 437.5 points with Boons A Dreamin (3rd in finals), ridden by Roger Wagner for Marvine Ranch, and George C Merada, shown by John Wold for Furst Ranch.
“She can stop really strong,” said Hanson of Pounce. “She’ll bend her nose right back past your leg and get right back through there. Sometimes she can be a little too quick, but she’s smart enough that she’ll usually catch herself and keep reading that cow.”
One-two for Shepard in Jackson
Austin Shepard, reigning NCHA World Champion, won the $10,000 Novice division of the 2011 NCHA Eastern National Championships in Jackson, Miss. with 221.5 points on Great Chief; he also captured the reserve title with 220 points on Sweet Lil Cat 007.
Great Chief, a 5-year-old gelded son of Cats Red Feather and with career earnings of $17,510, is owned by Joel Colgrove, Boligee, Ala. Sweet Lil Cat 007, a 5-year daughter of High Brow Cat, with earnings of over $25,000, is a full sister to High Brow CD, the 2007 NCHA Futurity champion and 2008 NCHA Horse of the Year, also trained ans shown by Shepard. Sweet Lil Cat 007 is owned by John and Nancy McCoy of Houston, Tex.
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