Gavin Jordan is well acquainted with the feeling of being a World Champion after winning his fifth such title at the 2016 NCHA World Finals.
Gavin won the $25,000 Novice buckle convincingly aboard Mercedes Smooth with a total of $43,589 in earnings, some $17,000 ahead of the field.
Mercedes Smooth scored 222.5 and 218 in the two go rounds respectively. The mare, by Smooth As A Cat, is up for sale at the Futurity.
Gavin, who is based in California, placed second in the average for the division and also clinched a reserve title in the $5,000 Novice Division. On top of that, Gavin made the NCHA Futurity semi-finals on A Hollywood Royalty.
Todd Adolf from Arizona laid down the run of his career to take out the 2016 NCHA Futurity Limited Open Final in Fort Worth.
Todd rode his own horse, Pitchforks Bet to sneak past Robbie Boyce by half a point and finish on 219.5, taking home more than $21,000.
Not only was it Todd’s first major title, but also his first finals in the Will Rogers Coliseum. While Todd missed the Open Semi Finals by just half a point, his wife Kim made the second go-round in the Non Pro as well as the Limited Non Pro Semis on the horse.
Pitchforks Bet is by Bet Hesa Cat and out of Pitchforks Lena. Todd purchased him as a yearling and says he’s a great minded horse.
He spoke to CHTO’s Simone Cobb about his winning run.
Robbie Boyce came second on Dualin Catts while Andy Sherrad claimed 3rd aboard Moriah Kitty Hawk with a 217. The total prize purse paid out $150,000 for the final.
Cows look all the same yeh? I mean seriously how does one black cow look different to the next, especially when they are the same size, sex and state of health? And then how the hell do you remember 30 of them and on top of that you have to keep track of which ones have been worked or not? Arrrgh!!!! Yes cutting is certainly a mind game!
You might have a great horse, you might be a great at riding a cutting horse and even confident making cuts, but do you go into the arena knowing which cows you are going to cut?
Do you leave watching cows up to your trainer, or your herd-help? Or do you just hope that the right cow offers itself up in the herd?
Until you take full responsibility for the cows you pick, then you are really just competing on a wing and prayer. The time always comes when you have to step up and own the whole process of showing if you want to progress in the sport.
If you don’t know what makes a good cow to cut, that’s ok. The first step in the process is just to start observing them. It’s amazing how much you can learn by watching and asking questions.
If you don’t know how to differentiate the cows in a herd, especially when you have a bunch of black angus, check out our video with Gabe Reynolds and Cullen Chartier in Video Categories under Showing, then go to Herd Work , who give excellent explanations on how to do exactly that.
For many, the biggest challenge is memorizing the herd. It’s a skill the best competitors have certainly mastered. There are many things you can do to help you remember. Some are lifestyle, long-term habits you can form (which have many other benefits) and others are tips you can apply straight away.
Write it down
One of the simplest things you can do immediately is to write down every cow in the herd with a description. Writing something down instantly helps you to recall it. To make it even more effective, draw a picture of each cow and exaggerate their main descriptive feature/s. You don’t have to be an artist, this is purely for your recall. Another trick is to give each cow a crazy, unusual name about one its features that will help you remember it.
Let’s get to the lifestyle tips that will improve your memory. (Ok get the groaning and eye-rolling over with – but yes it does requires some effort!)
7 Lifestyle-Based Ways to Improve Your Memory
Eat Right. The foods you eat – and don’t eat – play a crucial role in your memory. (That means cutting back on those burgers and baked potatoes at the Coliseum and maybe throw in a salad not drowned in ranch. Gluten is also widely linked to brain fog.)
Exercise. …(Ok you’re good here – loping for hours definitely counts)
Stop Multitasking. …(That means getting off that iphone while you watch those cows!)
Get a Good Night’s Sleep. …(That means putting down the phone and going to sleep!)
Play Brain Games. …(more on this below)
Master a New Skill. …(Insert fun here! How about taking up whittling or playing the spoons?)
Try Mnemonic Devices. (that’s a fancy word for memory tools – more on that below)
Brain Games
Invest at least 20 minutes a day playing various brain games, but no more than five to seven minutes on a specific task. When you spend longer amounts of time on one task, the benefits weaken (according to studies). A great online source for boosting your memory is Luminosity.com. Another is BrainHQ.com, both sites have been developed by scientists and offer some games for free.
Mnemonic Devices
Don’t be put off by the high-tech sound of these tools. Essentially, they are handy tricks and techniques you can use to help organize information to make recalling it much easier. Examples are:
Acronyms (such as PUG for “pick up grapes”)
Visualizations (such as imagining a tooth to remember your dentist’s appointment)
Rhymes (if you need to remember a name, for instance, think “Shirley’s hair is curly)
Chunking, which is breaking up information into smaller “chunks” (such as organizing numbers into the format of a phone number)
Mental Mapping
This is probably one of the best techniques for cutting. It’s a method used by two-time USA Memory Champion, Ron White. Click HERE to read a blog post he wrote about using a system of mental maps. You can easily apply this to memorizing cows. In fact you will be amazed at the amount of knowledge you will be able to store.
Vitamin D
Make sure you get some sun. Vitamin D helps the part of the brain that forms new memories. Research has shown up to 85% of the American public may be Vitamin D deficient. In older adults, research has shown that low vitamin D levels are associated with poorer brain function, and increasing levels may help keep older adults mentally fit.
But be like Goldilocks, not too much sun and not too little, just the right amount. Of course this means getting sun exposure without wearing sunblock. It varies between skin type, time of day and the season, but an average of 15 minutes a day of sun exposure is very good for the brain and the body to ensure you get enough vitamin D. Just use your common sense and the second you start to feel uncomfortable in the sun, then cover up.
What do you do to help remember those cows? Do you have any tips or a system for keeping track of the herd? Enter your comments below!
There was a coronation of historic proportions when Armando Costa Neto won the Non Pro Derby Final at the 2016 NCHA Summer Spectacular and became the first ever Non Pro to claim the Triple Crown title!
Armando stirred up a frenzy in the Will Rogers aboard Watch Me Whip when he marked a 223.5 to secure the win in a close final.
Armando had a gut-wrenching 20 minute wait before the win was made official after he was given a review with his initial score of 221.
Armando told CHTO’s Simone Cobb the significance of his achievement was sill sinking in.
Armando and Watch Me Whip won the Super Stakes Non Pro Derby in April and the Non Pro Futurity Championship in December last year, making him the first person to win all three major titles consecutively in that division.
The horse has now amassed some $117,000 in winnings while Armando is just $35,000 short of the million dollar mark.
The Reserve Championship went to Kyle Manion who rode A Smooth Satin Doll to mark a 220 and Ty Moore clinched third aboard Set Fire To the Reyn just a point behind.
Ryan Rapp put on an impressive display of cutting action to take out the Limited Non Pro Final at the 2016 NCHA Summer Spectacular.
Fifteen-year-old Ryan rode Tuff Julie and scored a 222, a strong six points ahead of second place.
Tuff Julie was sired by Woody Be Tuff out of the dam Missys Powder and has now won more than $35,000. Meanwhile, Ryan himself has increased his winnings to more than $54,000.
Ryan told CHTO’s Simone Cobb he’s proud to be following in his parent’s (Phil and Mary Ann) footsteps.
Teresa Padgett won the Reserve buckle on Cutting N Black with a 216, while Douglas Pritchett came third aboard Dual Glen Rey 012 scoring 214.5.
CHTO is delighted to work with Cole Agency for outstanding Horse, Cattle and Dog insurance coverage – a must for serious Cutting Horse enthusiasts. Please Call Cole Agency at (622) 578-8300 or Visit: coleagencylivestock.com to learn more, and tell them CHTO sent you. Here’s a round up of information about available types of insurance.
Horse Insurance
At Cole Agency we offer full mortality insurance for horses, which includes death and theft coverage on a broad perils basis including losses due to accident, injury, sickness disease, and emergency colic surgery expense ($3,000 included in your basic mortality policy). We write insurance through The Hartford, Praetorian, and Great American.
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Cows look all the same yeh? I mean seriously how does one black cow look different to the next, especially when they are the same size, sex and state of health? And then how the hell do you remember 30 of them and on top of that you have to keep track of which ones have been worked or not? Arrrgh!!!! Yes cutting is certainly a mind game!