Yesterday, Riddle showed homebred and home-trained Steve Earl, owned by Jim Short, FulÂshear, Tex., to score 219 points and top the first day of the second round of NCHA Futurity Open competition.
“Truthfully, from day one he has wanted to be a good horse,” said Riddle of Steve Earl, named for Grammy Award-winning, singer-song writer and Texas native Steve Earle. “He has been simple the whole way.
“He’s real smart and cautious, and he doesn’t want to step anywhere he doesn’t need to go. And he slips around pretty.
“I guess styles have changed, but I’ve always liked a horse that felt like that. And I liked a horse that felt like that thirty years ago.”
Riddle, 68, Ringling, Okla., a former high school teacher and coach, as well as an NCHA president, ranks among the sport’s all-time leading open riders, with earnings of over $3 million.
Steve Earl, as well as Mean Girl, who Riddle showed to score 217 points in the first go-round, are both descended from Clarks Little Fanny, a Clarke’s Doc Bar daughter foaled in 1984 and shown by Riddle’s wife, Anne, to earn $65,000 in the non-pro limited age division.
Clarks Little Fanny produced four NCHA money earners of $119,727, including two daughters by Smart Little Lena who, between them, produced, 16 NCHA money earners of over $757,414.
Steve Earl is sired by Boon A Little, bred and shown by Riddle’s brother-in-law, the late Bill Freeman, a Triple Crown winner and earner of $4.5 million.
Riddle also scored 217 points in the first go-round on Mean Girl, sired by Cat Ichi and owned by Riddle’s daughter, Havey Riddle.
Nothing To Lose and Tate Bennett, who tied with 221 points for the win in the first go-round with Bennett and his other mount, Rios Jewel, scored 217 points yesterday to claim the high cumulative score of 438 from both go-rounds.
Matt Sargood and Beau Galyean both marked 218 for Saturday’s second high score.
Australian native Sargood rode his homebred gelding Cats King James, from the second crop of Sargood’s first NCHA Futurity finalist, King Of The Cats.
“He’s a big, strong colt and he thinks about it a lot,” Sargood said. “He knows where he’s going and what he’s doing. He just doesn’t have a bad day.”
Galyean, who won the 2008 NCHA Futurity with Metallic Cat, impressed on Saturday with MK Jessies Cat Ms, a mare by Smooth As A Cat out of Jessies Starlight Ms, a mare that has produced earners of $379,000, including NCHA Futurity finalist CDs Starlight Ms, and NCHA Derby finalist MK Little Miss Trona.