At the end of two days of Non Pro preliminary competition at the 2024 National Reining Horse Association (NRHA) Futurity, it is NRHA Hall of Famer Mandy McCutcheon and Spookin At Nite who lead the way to the CINCH Non Pro Futurity Finals, which will take place at the Jim Norick Coliseum on Friday, December 6.
Spookin At Nite, a gelding by NRHA $7 Million Sire Gunners Special Nite and out of Spooks Lil Princess, bred by Helga Smith Quarter Horses and nominated by NRHA Million $2 Owner Tom McCutcheon, carried his rider to the top of the leaderboard with a 221.5.
Mandy has known the horse his whole life. “He was born at our place to our clients who own his dam and keep her at our ranch,” she said. “We bought him right away as a baby, so we’ve owned him the whole time.
“It’s exciting but also nerve-racking going into the go round knowing you have a really nice horse. I just wanted to get him shown clean and smart,” said the NRHA $3 Million Rider. “According to Cade [Mandy’s son and NRHA $2 Million Rider], I could have been a little smoother, but I think I was a little bit nervous. The horse helped me out in a couple of places. That’s what is important— having horses that try to help you out in the pen.”
Mandy and Spookin At Nite also won the American Paint Horse Association Chrome Cash Incentive, which is determined by the preliminary round of competition, taking home an additional $2,744.
Level (L) 3 Leaders:
Taylor Zimmerman and Take What You Want (Inferno Sixty Six x All About Business) held their lead in the L3 from the previous day with a score of 218.5. The gelding, bred and nominated by Neiberger Performance Horses LLC, is now owned by Zimmerman’s grandfather, NRHA Hall of Famer Vaughn Zimmerman.
L2 Co-Leaders/L1 Leaders:
Audrey Martinotti and Helll Hath No Fury (Inferno Sixty Six x MMB Spook Gotta Girl), bred by Giovanni Cioli and owned and nominated by Martinotti Equine Services LLC, also kept their lead in the L2 and 1 with a score of 217.5. Martinotti shared the top spot of the L2 with Kevin Ball and David McGee.
L2 Co-Leaders:
Ball rode his stallion U Can Doo It (Shiners Voodoo Dr x This Chic Guns It), bred by Judy Box and nominated by Ball, to a tie for the lead in the L2. At the 2017 NRHA Futurity, Ball and the stallion’s dam rode to the L3-1 Non Pro Championships.
L2 Co-Leaders/Prime Time Leaders:
McGee rode MCG Just Dig (Shiners Voodoo Dr x Miss Whizarima), bred, owned, and nominated by McGee Farms LLC, to the top of the L2. The pair also leads the Prime Time Non Pro division heading into the CINCH Non Pro Futurity Finals.
Youth Leaders:
Michelle Fumagalli rode Peptos Big Stop (Late Night Stopper x Peptos Lil Melody) to the top of the Youth Non Pro after scoring a 217. The gelding was bred and nominated by Marc Gordon and is now owned by Fumagalli’s family business, Smoking Roosters PH LLC.
CINCH Non Pro Finals bubbles are:
Level 4: 215
Level 3: 213
Level 2: 211
Level 1: 209
Prime Time (with handicap): 208
Youth: 193.5
Those unable to qualify for the finals get another chance through the CINCH Non Pro Futurity Consolation on Tuesday, December 3. Below are the bubbles for the consolation round, and the full 2024 Futurity Terms and Conditions can be found here.
Consolation Round Bubbles:
Level 4: 211.5
Level 3: 211
Level 2: 209.5
Level 1: 206.5
If you are not planning on competing in the consolation round, please let the show office know by 12 p.m., Monday, December 2.
Join us for the Platinum Performance Draw Party on Thursday, December 5, at 8 a.m. in the Sale Arena to set the stage for the CINCH Non Pro Futurity Finals, which will be held on Friday, December 6. L3-1, Prime Time and Youth will begin at 9 a.m., and Section 2 follows at 4 p.m. with the L4.
For a full schedule, tickets, and more, visit nrhafuturity.com. If you cannot attend in person, view the free NRHA ThorSport LiveStream at nrhafuturity.com/livestream.
