Wishes and dreams came true tonight in Oklahoma City as the winners of the CINCH Non Pro finals were crowned at the National Reining Horse Association (NRHA) Futurity. A total of 91 horses and their riders battled it out for top honors in six divisions. With the largest purse ever in the Levels 4-1 Non Pro Futurity, Tish Fappani bested the field after piloting Wish I Was Yours to a 222 for the Level 4 Non Pro Championship.
Astride her and her husband Andrea’s self-nominated mare (Colonels Shining Gun x Whizzen For Chex), Fappani ran in the pen as Draw 9 and held off the competition in the 32-horse CINCH Level 4 Non Pro finals to earn $75,000, including nominator incentives.
“It’s incredible because we raised her,” said Fappani of Scottsdale, Arizona. “It’s always super rewarding to be able to come and get it done.
“I was early [in the draw], so I knew we needed to get out there and get it done,” she continued of the run. “I ran in and stopped good. She hit her turns, and she circled awesome. I was a little worried having to wait till the end, but it hung in there, so it was awesome.”
Fappani started riding Wish I Was Yours, who is deaf, as a 2-year-old. The mare’s inability to hear was a challenge at first for the experienced horsewoman, but it was nothing she couldn’t handle.
“I’m not used to deaf horses,” Fappani said, crediting her husband for helping her with the learning curve. “I’ve had to adapt. She’s sensitive. You have to not be too stiff, but let her know you’re there. It’s been a challenge, but it’s been a good challenge.”
Wish I Was Yours, bred by NRHA Corporate Partner Tamarack Ranch, has been a star from the start. She and Fappani kicked off this futurity season with The Invitational Level 4 Non Pro Futurity Championship at the 100X Reining Classic. The mare walked into the Jim Norick Arena with more than $71,000 already on her record, a sum she’s more than doubled in two weeks’ time.
“She’s not going anywhere. She’s a keeper,” said Fappani, an NRHA Million Dollar Owner. “After Tulsa [at the 100X], we just tried to keep her happy and comfortable and rested, and it worked.”
And the next generation is already on its way. Fappani said they have pulled an embryo from the mare, who they call “Fendi,” and she has a foal by the Fappanis’ stallion Spooks N Jewels due next year.
“She doesn’t know it, but she’s got a baby coming,” Fappani said with a smile. “Her mom was always a really special mare, so she [Wish I Was Yours] was always special. With our stud horse, we were able to start thinking of horses for me and good, solid horses we could breed. So far, I’m happy. It’s working, and that’s exciting.”
This is the fourth Level 4 Non Pro Futurity Championship on Fappani’s impressive resume. She also won the title in 2010 aboard Litn Up Conquistador; in 2015 riding Legend Slides Wright; and in 2018 with Icecube. Her NRHA Lifetime Earnings (LTE), which reflect $972,000-plus, are now nearing the million-dollar mark.
Fappani, who also rode homebred mare Fashion Genes (Spooks Gotta Whiz x Joes Genes) in the finals tonight, will be the last Level 4 Non Pro Futurity Champion crowned in the Jim Norick Coliseum. Next year’s event will be held in the OKC Fairgrounds’ new OG&E Coliseum.
“It’s amazing,” Fappani said of winning such a prestigious title in the final year at the outgoing arena. “We got to go do the tour and see the new facility, and it’s beautiful. I know I don’t have as much history as many others do here, but I’ve been coming here for a long time. To be able to win and be one of the last ones in this coliseum is pretty cool.”
Fappani thanked Andrea, reining’s all-time leading rider, as well as her whole team at the show and at home which helped make it possible for her to succeed.
“It takes a village, and I’m so lucky to have such a great team,” she said.
Level 3 Non Pro Futurity Champions: Taylor Zimmerman & Ruf Jewels
Taylor Zimmerman was all smiles as she walked out of the Jim Norick Arena after her final run in the historic coliseum. A score of 218.5 far exceeded her expectations for the night with a horse for whom she originally did not have the highest hopes.
Zimmerman and Ruf Jewels (Not Ruf At All x Gotta Get A Diamond) clinched the Level 3 Non Pro Futurity Championship and secured a seventh-place tie in Level 4, bringing home a total of $61,438 (including nominator incentives). A hefty $40,000 of that check came from their win in the Level 3 Non Pro, which had a payout of more than $200,000 for the first time in history.
“Being in the Level 3 was awesome,” Zimmerman said. “It’s been lovely. The money they’ve added to the lower levels is awesome, and it’s so much opportunity for so many people.”
The opportunity to show Ruf Jewels is one Zimmerman said she almost didn’t get. When the horse didn’t show much promise in training, her family decided to consign him to a sale. When he didn’t meet his reserve, Zimmerman asked NRHA Professional Debbie Brown if she would try to get him ready for her to show at the NRHA Futurity.
“I was thinking he would not make that fantastic of a horse for me as far as this year goes, but maybe as a derby horse next year,” Zimmerman said. “He has come full circle. It’s really incredible what they can do.”
In the past few months, Brown’s work brought out the best in Ruf Jewels, and today, he blossomed into a champion.
“I think he and Debbie mesh really well,” Zimmerman said. “He tries his heart out. He’s pretty easy to just climb on and ride. He might not be the most talented horse in there, but he gives everything he’s got, and I think she [Brown] could feel that. She really loves him, and he gets lots of carrots all the time. I honestly owe it all to her because she’s done so much for him and me.”
Zimmerman showed Ruf Jewels’ dam, Gotta Get A Diamond, to an American Quarter Horse Youth Association World Championship in 2018. She said her experience with the mare gave her a leg up when building a relationship with this horse.
“He is a replica of her. He’s as quirky as she is,” Zimmerman said. “It is crazy; he looks just like her and everything. He’s a weirdo, but in a really goofy way. Getting to know him has been a lot of fun.
“He’s going to stick around and stay in the barn,” she continued of the horse who was bred, owned and nominated by her grandfather, Vaughn, an NRHA Hall of Fame inductee. “ I just really love this horse, and it’s kind of a different bond when you breed them. Knowing that and knowing what he’s done for us is really cool. He very much exceeded expectations.”
Before the show, Zimmerman worked to stay consistent and not overload Ruf Jewels. When she ran him in the pen for their finals performance, she did her best to stay focused and not let him down.
“‘Just don’t screw up,’” Zimmerman said she was thinking. “My horse is very broke and was right underneath me the whole time. I just wanted to not get in the way of him and let him do his job and pilot him to the best of my ability.”
Zimmerman thanked her family, Brown, NRHA Million Dollar Rider Cade McCutcheon and everyone else who has stood behind her and supported her. She felt lucky as she watched show officials drape the ribbon of roses around her horse’s neck.
“I just love that. The neck ribbon is what I care about,” she said with a grin. “This being the last time that I’ll get to show in there [the Jim Norick Coliseum] is really special. I kind of had a weird intuition that something good was going to happen. It was a great year.”
Level 2 Non Pro and Youth Non Pro Futurity Champions: Michelle Fumagalli & Peptos Big Stop
National Reining Horse Youth Association member Michelle Fumaglli took home the Level 2 Non Pro and Youth Non Pro Championships aboard Peptos Big Stop (Late Night Stopper x Peptos Lil Melody), a gelding owned by her family’s Smoking Roosters PH LLC.
“I have been away at school, so I haven’t had very many rides on this horse. It felt really good to go out there and have an aggressive run and do well and build trust together this week,” she said. “It was a fun night!”
Even though the youth rider did not have much time with “Rudy” to practice before the major event, she has a strong bond with him.
“If you just look him in the eyes, you can tell he is the sweetest horse. He just wants to do well and tries really hard for you,” she said of the Marc Gordan-bred and -nominated gelding. “He is super talented. He has a big stop maneuver, big turns. He runs pretty, and he is just a special horse all around.”
Fumagalli competes on the National Collegiate Equestrian Association team at Auburn University, which she credits for helping with her riding even though she cannot practice with the gelding.
“It definitely helped a lot with this horse because I have learned to ride what you have beneath you and not go into it with too many expectations,” she said.
Fumagalli, who won the Youth Non Pro at the 6666 NRHA Derby presented by Markel earlier this year, said this was her first time competing in the NRHA Futurity. All told, the pair took home $58,002, including nominator incentives, after also placing ninth in the Level 4 Non Pro and second in the Level 3 Non Pro.
“It is super special; even making the Level 4 finals my first time being here was super exciting, so I am proud of us. It feels good to be competitive against everyone my age,” said Fumagalli, who plans to compete in derbies next year with Rudy.
Level 1 Non Pro Futurity Champions: Elisabeth Bourassa Carter & Colonel Crush
Elisabeth Bourassa Carter rode her own Colonel Crush (PS Mega Shine Chic x Shining Hit Girl) to top the Level 1 Non Pro with a 216.
The newlywed bought “Moose,” who was bred and nominated by NRHA Professional Brent Loseke, as a yearling. He is her first futurity horse.
“He has been in [NRHA Professional] Austin Roush’s program until now. His assistant trainer helped me get him here today. He [Moose] has been really consistent and incredible to show,” she said. “He did everything I asked him to do — I did my part, and he did his part. I was really proud of both of us today.”
The pair also placed 10th in Level 4, third in Level 3 and second in Level 2. In total, they took home $46,394, including nominator incentives.
“Honestly, this horse can do it all. It is the first horse I have ever owned that I can trust,” she said. “I never had a horse my whole life that I can be so relaxed and trust 100%.”
Bourassa Carter thanked Roush’s team, especially Marcus Miller. She also thanked Heidi Pichotta, who has worked on the horse’s body after each run.
“I have honestly been the perfect non pro and let the trainer do his job and stayed out of the way,” she said. “I would come and ride four times a month. Moose has been so easy and good. He is not one that needs extra riding or extra prep. I have shown him five times, and he has won money five times. Tonight, it worked, and I am really proud.”
The Canadian was emotional as she thought about her journey in the sport of reining and this win.
“Honestly, I came from nothing,” she said. “It is huge, and it is a good feeling. I am really emotional and wanted to cry. Everything we have worked so hard for came true.
“I left my house at 16 years old and went to work for a reining trainer back home in Quebec, Canada,” she continued. “The first time I sat on a reining horse, I knew reining was something that I wanted to do. Up north, it is a little harder to make a living with horses of any kind. At 21 years old, I moved here with my horse and my dog. I didn’t even speak English.”
Bourassa Carter later became a non pro and has enjoyed being part of the industry ever since.
Prime Time Non Pro Futurity Champions: David McGee & MCG Just Dig
David McGee rode MCG Just Dig to the Prime Time Non Pro Futurity Championship with a 217 (including handicap). The McGee Farms LLC-nominated, -bred, and -owned gelding is by NRHA $4 Million Sire Shiners Voodoo Dr and out of Miss Whizarima.
“He is a homebred little thing,” McGee said. “He is real calm in there, and he is a good horse. My trainer [NRHA Professional] Deon Locke did a great job getting him ready; all I really had to do was ride.”
The pair also placed in all four levels of the Non Pro Futurity, banking $33,506, including nominator incentives.
“He is really good-minded, and he feels like I could go do it again, no problem,” McGee said of MCG Just Dig. “He is really fun to stop. I like stopping him. I wish I had went a little harder. I let him go where he wanted to go, and he felt comfortable there, so that is what we did. I had, ‘Don’t override him,’ in the back of my head because I can be bad to do that. He stopped big every time and turned good.”
After their success in the first round, the pair went into the finals, hoping to follow the same plan.
“He always comes to work,” McGee said. “He just doesn’t have bad days. I love the Shiners Voodoo Doctor [cross] on Miss Whizarima. We have two more on the ground, and I love those. I hope they all turn out like this one.
“He is like a kid; he picks on you, but he is a sweet horse and fun to be around,” he continued. “I wish we had 10 of them.”
McGee thanked his team that helped him achieve the win, including his wife, Gina, who competed on Miss Whizarima.
“You always have to thank your wife! She is always the one to give the speeches before you go in like, ‘Don’t screw this up,’” he said with a laugh. “Deon got the horse ready; without him, this doesn’t happen. He is probably the best I have ever worked with anywhere.
“I would like to win the whole thing one day,” he said of the NRHA CINCH Non Pro Futurity. “I think this is the first one that we have bred at home that we made it back [to the Level 4 finals] on.”
The NRHA Futurity concludes tomorrow, Dec. 7, with the Open Futurity finals. With more than $2.2 million in payouts on the line, it promises to be an unforgettable event. Watch the magic unfold on the NRHA ThorSport LiveStream.
