On Tuesday, February 23, Andy Sherrerd, riding C Spot Betty for Mark Gardiner, Ashland, Kan., scored 225 points for a definitive win in the Arbuckle Mountain 5/6 Open $200,000 2-Year Rollback go-round. Twelve riders with scores of 218 or higher, from a field of 45 entries, qualified for the finals, to be held on February 26. Troy Riddle, on Boot Scootin Skeet, earned 221 points, the second-highest score, while Steve Oehlhof was third with 220.5 on Miaia.
Andy Sherrerd and 6-year-old C Spot Betty LTE $43,736, by C Spot Cut, were 2020 Open 5/6- year-old finalists in the Arbuckle Mountain Futurity, as well as the Cattlemen’s Derby. Sherrerd, the NCHA Hall of Fame earner of $1.1 million, was co-reserve champion of the 2016 Arbuckle Mountain Open Limited riding Dualcious LTE $56,199, sired by Halreycious and owned by Randall Bass.
C Spot Betty is the first money earner out of Bet On The Cat, by Bet On Me 495, and Bet On The Cat is a half-sister to Divas On Time LTE $179,620, by One Time Pepto.
Six-year-old Boot Scootin Skeet, by Kit Kat Sugar, was bred and owned by Troy Riddle’s father, Terry Riddle, who passed away earlier this year. Troy Riddle, the NCHA earner of $568,943, showed Boot Scootin Skeet as a finalist in the 2020 Arbuckle Mountain 5/6 Open Limited Classic and in the 2019 Non-Pro Plus The Open 4-Year-Old Open.
Steve Oehlhof, the NCHA Hall of Fame earner of over $1.7 million, shows Miaia LTE $13,683 for Charles Burger, Chatsworth, Ga. Bred by Jose Sigala, 5-year-old Miaia was Open reserve champion last year at the The Non-Pro Plus with Chris Hanson. Sired by Cat Belue, Miaia is out of Uno Tassa Mia by Smart Little Uno, producer of 18 earners of over $682,410
Steve Oehlhof also earned 219 points in the $200,000 go-round riding the 6-year-old Dual Rey daughter Silver Rey Queen, for Chantee Freeman, Quinlan, Tex., and tied four other riders, with 218.5 points, aboard Metallic Cat gelding LBR Chic LTE $10,172, also owned by Charles Burger.
On Wednesday, February 24, NCHA Futurity Open champion All Spice, sired by Once In A Blu Boon and owned by Hill/Holmes Partnership, Glen Rose, Tex., scored 221.5 points under Adan Banuelos, in the second go-round of the Arbuckle Mountain Futurity, for a cumulative of 446 points, to top 25 qualifiers headed to the finals, on Thursday, February 25. All Spice and Banuelos had also won the first go-round with 224.5 points.
Owned by Billy Wolf, sired by Once In A Blu Boon, and shown by Austin Shepard, Fancy Deville claimed the second-highest cumulative, with a pair of 222-point scores, for a total 444 points. And Chaty Catty, owned by James and Nadine Payne, Overbrook, Okla., scored 221.5 points under James on Wednesday to the realize third-highest cumulative score of 442.5 points going into the finals.
The Arbuckle Mountain Futurity continues through Sunday, February 28.