April 4, Fort Worth, Tex.

NCHA Super Stakes Classic Unlimited Amateur Finals
Jimmy Baros, Blanco, Tex., and his 5-year-old gelding Two Time Dual, by Dual Rey, took on 37 other finalists to win the Rios of Mercedes Classic Unlimited Amateur championship with 220 points at the Lucas Oil NCHA Super Stakes.

Grace Vangilder and Smooth As Puddin, by Smooth As A Cat, reserve champions of the 2016 NCHA Super Stakes Classic Amateur, scored 219.5 points for the 2017 Super Stakes Classic Unlimited Amateur reserve title. Wade Smith, Geary, Okla., placed third and fourth with 219 and 218 points, respectively, on Magistic Moon, by Metallic Cat, and Smoothee Lou, by Smooth As A Cat.

Baros and Two Time Dual, who qualified for Wednesday’s Super Stakes Classic Amateur Finals, also placed in the finals of the 2016 NCHA Super Stakes Amateur Unlimited and earned money with third-place in the Unlimited Senior division of that event. They also claimed unlimited amateur reserve championship titles in the 2016 PCCHA Derby and the PCCHA Futurity 4-Year-Old division, as well as earnings in the amateur gelding, unlimited amateur gelding, and unlimited amateur senior divisions of those events.

Grace Vangilder, 19, Weatherford, Tex., had a banner year in 2016 with two championship wins and three reserve championships showing 6-year-old Shes Smokin Dually and 4-year-old Peppy The Poo. It was Shes A Smokin Dually, by Third Cutting, who Grace showed to place third in the 2014 NCHA Derby Amateur and as reserve champion of the 2015 NCHA Classic Challenge Amateur Finals.

Grace Vangilder has NCHA earnings of $95,207; Smooth As A Puddin is the NCHA earner of $80,204.

NCHA Super Stakes Unlimited Amateur Finals
Gary Rosenbach scored 220.5 points on Herding Instincts, by Herding Cats, to win the Super Stakes Unlimited Amateur championship. Eddie Young, San Angelo, Tex., took reserve with 218.5 points riding Herding Reys, also sired by Herding Cats. Both Herding Instincts and Herding Reys were bred by Young and his wife Barbara, and are from the only crop of Herding Cats to perform. Michael Holman, Benjamin, Utah, riding Metallic Moe, by Metallic Cat, and Stacie McDavid, Fort Worth, Tex., on Studio Fifty Four, by Hes A Peptospoonful, tied for third with 218 points.

Gary Rosenbach, owner of Rose Valley Ranch, Weatherford, Tex., home of NCHA World Champion Stallion Boon Too Suen, also won the 2013 Super Stakes Amateur championship, riding Scooters Daisy Dukes, as well as the 2013 NCHA Classic Challenge Amateur championship and the Super Stakes Classic Amateur with Tapt Out. Rosenbach has NCHA earnings of $118,656.

Eddie Young, the NCHA earner of $362,657, was a finalist aboard Herding Reys in the 2017 Abilene Spectacular Non-Pro and won the Senior division of that event on the mare. He also showed her dam, Flo Dancing With Rey LTE $25,423, by Dual Rey, and her granddam, Que Floyd LTE $42,469, by Freckles Floyd. In addition, in 2010, Young showed Short Nitas Jazz, the dam of Herding Instincts, in the NCHA Super Stakes Non-Pro Semi-Finals.

Stacie McDavid and her husband David owned Studio Fifty Four’s sire, Hes A Peptospoonful LTE $72,851, who died at 13, in 2011. Stacie showed Studio Fifty Four’s dam, Cee Stylish Oak LTE $51,668, as a non-pro finalist in the 2002 NCHA Classic Challenge and the Music City Futurity 5/6-Year-Old division, as well as reserve champion of the 2002 Abilene Spectacular 5/6 Classic.

Studio Fifty Four is also a full sister to DMAC Fuzzy Spoons LTE $39,207 and DMAC Cee Jane Go LTE $36,780, both non-pro limited age events finalists under Stacie McDavid.

Michael Holman and Metallic Moe LTE $19,461 won the 2016 Utah Futurity Non-Pro, Non-Pro Limited and Non-Pro Gelding championships. They also placed as reserve champions of the 2016 Big Sky Futurity Non-Pro and the Idaho Futurity Non-Pro gelding divisions. Holman is the NCHA earner of $94,314.

NCHA Super Stakes Amateur Finals
Kaden Rutherford, Forth Worth, Tex., won the Super Stakes Amateur championship with 215 points riding Fantastic One, by Fantastic Cat. Rick Thompson, Bryan, Tex., scored 214 points aboard Smooth Lil Operator, by Smooth As A Cat, for the reserve championship. Thomas Herold, West Point, Iowa, and German Lugo, Gainesville, Tex., tied for third with 213 points riding Desires Phenom, by Dual Rey, and Ichi Bitsy Spider, by Cat Ichi, respectively.

Rutherford and Fantastic One, who had scored 218.5 points in the go-round, came to the Super Stakes with the reserve championship title from the 2017 Bonanza Amateur Finals. Fantastic One was also 2017 Abilene Spectacular Open Limited reserve champion under Kody Porterfield, who will show him this week in the Open first go-round. Rutherford, who has NCHA earnings of $37,551, also took the 2017 Bonanza Amateur 5/6 reserve title riding Hey Mr Buddy Boy.

Thompson, with NCHA earnings of $14,052, and Smooth Lil Operator had previously placed fourth in the 2017 Bonanza Amateur Finals.