Evening Winners at NSBA World Show Include Vroegh, Roberts, Gultz, Brown, Long, Green, Mellott, and Debuhr

By: Brittany Bevis

During this afternoon’s classes, 16-year-old Mallory Vroegh won Youth Showmanship with her partner A Krymsun Belle. After having a bit of trouble during the finals of Showmanship at the AQHA Youth World, due to an equine sickness, Mallory was thrilled to have this opportunity for redemption.

This team has been a pair since January of this year and compete under the guidance of Mallory’s mother, Shannon Vroegh, and Jason Gilliam. They gave Mallory some helpful advice before she entered the pen this afternoon. “They said the spots, like where I hit my hip, were very important,” she says. “I paid a lot of attention to that. They also said the width of the circle was a big deal too.”

Showmanship is one of Mallory’s favorite classes, because it’s a true test of athletic ability. “A lot of it is being able to run with good posture,” she says. “Your shoulders need to be back, and you need to run with elegance. You can’t waddle or look very stiff. You need to show a lot of presence. It’s easy to show it off  if you have a very flowing pattern. Being able to move throughout the pattern quickly is also a very important aspect.”

Hillary Roberts rode her mare, Scoot Over, aka “Molly,” to win the BCF 3-Year-Old Non-Pro Western Pleasure. Molly is a RL Best of Sudden mare that Capital Quarter Horses purchased this year.

“I started showing her in June,” Hillary says. “We showed at the Little Futurity and won the Non-Pro Novice Horse slot class. She’s really fun, and she always wants to please. Every time I ride her, it gets better, softer, and we get more together as a team.”

As far as this mare’s movement is concerned, Hillary describes her hock as “ridiculous.” “I really like how effortless it is for her. You can ask for any pace you want, and she will give it to you and look good doing it. She has a little something extra.”

Sherrie Gultz rode her 5-year-old mare, PS Im Hot, aka “Annie,” to win Select Hunter Under Saddle. Annie was also the Reserve Champion in Green Hunter Under Saddle with Dawn Baker in the irons. This team competes under the guidance of Pierre Briere.

“This is a new discipline for me,” she says. “I haven’t done this in six years, but I’ve always loved Hunter Under Saddle. She gets in there, puts her ears forward, drops her head, and shows. She shows better in the pen than she rides outside.”

This pretty 17.2 hand mare is by Signature of Honor. Sherrie and Annie will also compete at the Select World Show and Quarter Horse Congress in Hunter Under Saddle.

Emma Brown rode Some Hot Potential, aka “Brett,” to win Novice Youth Horsemanship. Earlier in the show, Emma and Brett also won Youth Trail. She describes him as a “once-in-a-lifetime” horse. “He’s so cool, and he always listens. He makes it look so easy.”

For this particular pattern, Emma’s trainers, Judd and Jennifer Paul, made sure to emphasize the importance of proper spacing. “There were three cones, so you didn’t want to go too far one way and get out of the cone radius. This pattern was about really finding my spots and making sure my spacing was correct. That was the most important part of the pattern.”

“I really liked my spins, left lead lope, and back. For posture, I always try to remember to keep my elbows in and my right arm up. Those two things are constantly going through my head.”

Liz Long rode her 4-year-old mare, RR A Moonlite Stroll, to win the Maturity $10K Limited Horse Non Pro Western Pleasure. Fun fact: Liz named this mare “Dez” after one of her favorite contestants on The Bachelor.

“We actually bought her as a yearling through Darol Rodrock’s sale, and we sold her to one of Jeff’s customers. Then, I bought her back! I leased her last year and got her qualified for the World Show in Amateur Western Pleasure. Then, I decided I had to have her back. She’s very fluid, natural, has a great top line, and has a cool look.”

Rusty Green won 2-Year-Old Open Western Pleasure with Johnnie On The Spot, a double-registered mare by RL Best of Sudden and out of an Investor-bred Buddy Man Jack mare. This is a new acquisition for Capital Quarter Horses. “We bought her for Sue at the Little Futurity, and it works really good for her. She won the BCF Non-Pro 2-Year-Old Western Pleasure earlier today. She’s so rhythmic and really good across her top line and front leg.”

Kaylee Mellott rode Only In Showbiz, aka “Juan,” to win both the Youth Western Riding and Youth Horsemanship here at the NSBA World Show. Kaylee and Juan were a team in the past, and she decided she had to have him back for her final year in the youth division. “I got him back in January of this year,” she says. “He’s my most favorite horse ever, so I just had to have him back. He’s super talented and so giving. He has the biggest heart ever.”

Kaylee prepares for horse shows with help from Troy Lehn, her father, Jeff Mellott, and Highpoint Performance Horses. “It’s a huge team effort,” she says.

She will be leaving the NSBA World Show to attend college and compete on the Baylor Equestrian team, but she will be making an appearance in Horsemanship at the Quarter Horse Congress.

Drew Debuhr rode Huntin For Certain, aka “Chrome,” to win 2-Year-Old Intermediate Open Western Pleasure. This horse was bred and raised by Susan Knapp, so he’s been Drew’s pet project from the very beginning. Here at the show, Susan rode Chrome to two Reserve Championships in the BCF Non-Pro Intermediate 2-Year-Old Western Pleasure and Non-Pro Intermediate 2-Year-Old Western Pleasure.

“He’s very easy and good-minded. He never gets an attitude, and he’s always looking forward to coming out of his stall. It takes me five minutes to get him ready. He carries himself very naturally and has good self-carriage.”