NAAC Youth 13 & Under & NRHA Youth 13 & Under
Sydney Muehlstaetter and Xtra Voodoo Step had a strong run in the Adequan® Arena, walking out with a 217, which held through 41 draws to earn the Adequan® North American Affiliate Championships (NAAC) Youth 13 & Under and NRHA Youth 13 & Under titles.
The 12-year-old mare by NRHA Hall of Famer Wimpys Little Step and out of Voodoo Chic was bred by Rogers Heaven Sent Ranch.
“Her barn name is ‘Lola’, and I have been riding her for almost three years,” said the youth rider about her mount. “I like how consistent she is. She is the same in and out of the pen and never does anything bad.”
Muehlstaetter, who has leased the mare from owner Frederick Christen since 2022, was excited about her run. “This was the first time in the pen that we turned a corner, and she didn’t run off, so she was really good. I love her circles, she can circle really pretty.”
This was the last show for this duo together, so it will be a run to remember.
“Next year, I will have a 5-year-old, my mom’s [NRHA Million Dollar Rider and Owner Kim Muehlstaetter] old horse, so I will show him in the derbies.”
Muehlstaetter thanked her parents, NRHA Million Dollar Rider Martin Muehlstaetter and his wife Kim, as well as NRHA Professional Patrick Flaherty and NRHA Million Dollar Rider Arno Honstetter, who helped her get prepared.
NRHA Short Stirrup
Leah Grove rode Bulletproof Shiner (Shiners Voodoo Dr x Smart N Bulletproof) owned by NRHyA member Heidi Flint and bred by Jason Goldberg.
Grove and the 9-year-old gelding went at the end of the class and had a 218 to beat. After performing a clean pattern, the judges awarded the duo with a winning score of 220.
“I feel like he did really good in the stops and rollbacks,” said the rider, who had to borrow a horse for this show as she was unable to show her own and only got to ride this horse a handful of times.
“I borrowed him from Heidi Flint and I got on him for the first time about a week ago here and then yesterday and today. He is a really nice mover and a good stopper,” said Grove and thanked the horse owner for allowing her to show the horse in the class.
The Adequan® NAAC competition concludes tomorrow with the Youth 14-18 Championship. Follow along with the free NRHA ThorSport LiveStream at nrhafuturity.com/livestream.
