Reining
Flarida Ties for Seventh Congress Title
By Kellie Carr
Oct 13, 2008, 15:17

For the past three years, Shawn Flarida has dominated the All-American Quarter Horse Congress Open Reining Futurity. After the dust settled over the 2008 event, Flarida can now make that four in a row. He tied Bryant Pace and All Juiced Up with a 224 on Whizs Chic A Dee to share the Open Futurity title, marking his seventh Congress Futurity Championship overall.

Flarida also tied for eighth on Skid Whiz with a 219.5, and tied for 12th on Megas Sugar Baby with a 219. When the checks were tallied, Flarida took home an impressive $33,092.57, including a check worth $1,834 for winning the NRHA Open class on his 2004 NRHA Futurity Champion, Smart Spook. That win put Spook, owned by Rosanne Sternberg, over the $300,000 NRHA earnings mark, making him just the third horse to do so. In fact, all three horses that have now earned more than $300,000 in NRHA reining competition – Einsteins Revolution, KR Lil Conquistador and Smart Spook – have all been shown and won on by Flarida. Prior to the Congress, Smart Spook was just $44 short of the $300,000-mark.

“I’m really happy for Rosanne and Spook,” Shawn said after the win. “He’s always been a great horse for me, and I’m glad he’s now got that accomplishment to his name.”

The money took a big chunk off Flarida’s quest to become the first-ever NRHA Three Million Dollar Rider. Prior to the event, he needed approximately $70,000 to get to the goal, and now that margin is cut to just nearly $37,000 (exact figure to be posted after Clemson, S.C., and Congress shows are official). Flarida also won reserve in the AQHA Senior Reining on Spooks Rey Jay, owned by Jimmy Pierce, but the earnings from that class do not count toward NRHA money.

During the Friday night Open Futurity finals, Flarida put together a solid run on Whizs Chic A Dee, the same horse that won titles in St. Paul and Tulsa, but the run wasn’t without some hiccups.

“On my right spin, I lost my stirrup and that cost us a little bit,” Flarida said after his run. “It was human error, for sure.”

Still, Flarida’s score was announced at a 225, but later adjusted to a 224. Competing as draw third Open draw in a field of 24 finalists, Flarida knew he had left the door open a little bit, but it was a tough night for everyone. One by one, the top horses from the go-round all struggled with bobbles in their runs, and as the competition came down to the last few, it was anybody’s game. When Pace rode into the ring, Flarida knew his leading score was in jeopardy.

“Bryant has a great horse, and he’s been competitive all season,” Flarida said of Pace, who beat him at The Tradition Futurity in early September. “But any of these guys in the finals could have come in and won. There were some very talented horses here.”

Pace put together a smooth run, and his score was announced at a 224 – tying for the lead. While the reining enthusiasts at the Congress hoped for a run-off, the two horsemen decided to share the title.

“If this were it, I’d have loved to run it off,” Pace explained. “But we’ve got another horse show coming up here pretty quick, and you have to think about these horses. We both have good mounts for Oklahoma City, and we didn’t want to make them run them again tonight. It would have been nice for the crowd, but I’m happy to share with Flarida.”

Flarida was equally proud to share the title with Pace.

“We’ve tied each other a lot over the years,” he said. “He’s got a great horse, and I’m looking forward to seeing what will happen in Oklahoma City.”

The NRHA Futurity is the next stop for Flarida and his top 3-year-olds. With just seven weeks to go until the run for the roses, you can bet that Shawn Flarida will be on top of his game in his quest for a fifth NRHA Futurity title and another record-setting year.

Flarida is the NRHA’s All-Time Leading Money-earning rider, with more than $2.9 million dollars won and counting. He is just the second rider to earn two million dollars in NRHA competition, and has four NRHA Open Futurity wins to his credit. Flarida is proudly sponsored by eZall, Pards Western Store, Bob’s Custom Saddles, Wrangler, Classic Equine, Purina Mills, Leonard Truck & Trailer/Blue Ribbon Trailers, Lubrisyn and Rambo/Horseware Ireland.

For more information, contact kellie@thegreenshirt.com, or call 940-626-4250.

www.bridleandbit.com