First 2020 NSBA World Champions Named- Ratkowski, Niffenegger, Roper, Walsh, Wellhouse, and More

NSBA News

By: Connie Lechleitner

The Over Fence classes and Heroes On Horses have kicked off the 2020 NSBA World Championship Show. The show is taking place August 7-16 at the Built Ford Tough complex at Expo Square in Tulsa, Oklahoma..

The NSBA World Show Over Fence classes saw a large increase in entries in 2020, with stiff competition throughout the series. Morgan Ratkowski and her reliable mount, Better Buy The Minit, kicked off the classes by winning the Working Hunter Derby on Friday. “We were a little conservative in the first go, but in the handy round we just went for it,” Morgan said.

The 15-year-old Do You Have A Minute gelding has been Morgan’s show horse for several years. “He loves to horse show,” Morgan said. “I won this class here at the NSBA World Show six years ago, and we had a pretty good show, so I hope we repeat. It’s awesome to win here.”

Morgan noted the pandemic did not slow her down. “I keep him at home, so we just kept on riding,” she said. Morgan has been able to continue working at her chiropractic practice, Carmack Chiropractic,  in Pleasantville, Tennessee as well.

Jo Ann Niffenegger dominated the Amateur 50 & Over Working Hunter classes at the NSBA World Show, winning Amateur 50 & Over Working Hunter, Equitation Over Fences, and Hunter Hack with SG Rich N Royal.

“Bentley is 12 years old and is by Rich N Chocolately,” Jo Ann said. “All my girls are home having babies so I decided to bring him out. He’s only ever been to a handful of Quarter Horse shows. We took him to the Sun Circuit and qualified for the Select AQHA World Show, but then that was postponed, so we came here. My trainer Kim Tasker couldn’t come here because of COVID-19, because her mother is ill, so Ryan Painter was kind enough to take me under his wing.”

“I wasn’t sure how he would do, but he’s been great. He’s kind of goofy, and a little bit suspicious, but he’s learning to trust us.”

Samantha Roper and her two mounts, Caspen and Al Betcha Wanna Look, were also dominant in the Amateur events, showing in Amateur Working Hunter, Amateur Equitation Over Fences and Hunter Hack. Samantha showed Caspen to win the Working Hunter and Equitation Over Fences, while Al Betcha Wanna Look took the Amateur Hunter Hack title.

“Henry is a six-year-old Dutch Warmblood, and I’ve had him for a year,” Samantha said of Caspen. “He’s one of my favorite horses to ride. He’s always happy, and his ears are always forward. He’s really an old soul. We let my seven-year-old niece, Avery, ride him.”

In the youth over fences events, two good friends kept trading first and second place. Amanda Walsh and Do U Wanna Dance took first in Youth Working Hunter while Naturally Immortal and Denim Wellhouse earned the reserve title, while Denim Wellhouse took world titles in Youth Equitation Over Fences and Hunter Hack.

“We’ve had Riley since he was a yearling,” Denim said of the eight-year-old gelding, Naturally Immortal. “I think the judges like how I sit him. He just folds up underneath me.”

Amanda’s 11-year-old gelding, Do U Wanna Dance, is by Hot N Blazing. “His name is Clayton, and I’ve only had him two months. He’s such a character, and he’s fun to ride.”

Jessica Johnson started Saturday with a world title and ended the day with another. She took Allocated In Blue to win the Green Working Hunter, and piloted DGS Vintage to win the inaugural Working Hunter Under Saddle class at the end of the night.

The former Hunter Under Saddle champion, Allocated In Blue, took the first title. “This is only his third show over the fences and his first year jumping,” Jessica said. “He goes out very willing and is very pleasant. He showed in Florida, the Redbud and then here. He really enjoys his job.”

Jessica also piloted the World Champion DGS Vintage in the inaugural Working Hunter Under Saddle class at the NSBA World Show. “This is the first year for this class, and it is meant to show a horse that you would picture going over the fences,” Jessica explained. “I am super excited for this class, and everyone worked very hard to get this class approved.

“People are very excited to have the class, because it gives us a flat class where we fit in. This horse has a true 12 foot step, and he’s so balanced at the trot and the canter. It’s ground-covering. In a regular Hunter Under Saddle class, I’m not going that fast but I lap everyone because he has a big stride. This class allows us to show off this ground-covering stride on the flat. We had great support for the first time for this class too, with more than 20 horses competing.”

Open World Champions included In The Hotseat, shown by Chuck Briggs for Justine Tidwell, winning the Green Hunter Hack; Kamanyawannadance and Ryan Painter, for Carly Estreich-Lueck, winning Open Working Hunter; Look N Hott, Ryan Painter for Laurel Champlin winning Senior Hunter Hack; and Enuff Is Enuff, shown by Jerry Erickson for Megan Brown, earning the Junior Hunter Hack world title.

“This horse is just a four-year-old, and I’m really excited about him for next year,” noted Jerry Erickson of Enuff Is Enuff, who is known as Thor.

“We started him over the winter, and then went to the Sun Circuit, and then he went home for a while and learned to drive. I’ve just had him back about a month.”

“He’s got a good, big, slow-legged stride. This was just his first show jumping. He was fourth in the Green Working Hunter earlier. We just took our time in the Green Working Hunter. He could slow down and still lengthen his stride nicely, so it went well”

Saturday also saw the Heroes On Horses competition, but the real win came for all the veterans who competed and shared some laughs and fellowship over the past few days.

Jeff Harris showed Cruize to win this year’s Heroes On Horses class. “I showed at the Congress last fall for the first time, and won, and now I’ve won here. I’m just overwhelmed,” he said.

Jeff served in the United States Navy as a Sea Bee, stationed in Cuba, Puerto Rico, Panama, Afghanistan, and in Memphis, Tennessee. “Some of the guys and I have been talking trash all day, and even in the line up after the class we were at it,” Jeff laughed. “I love that we get to meet new people through this class, and we all have three things in common: we love God, we love horses, and we are part of this brotherhood.”

“This class was tougher than the Congress. I was lucky in that I had the Cody squared team – Cody Campbell and Cody Parrish – you can’t go wrong with that team. Everyone did a great job. I also have to thank Dee Staley, who got me started doing this.”

No stranger to horses, Jeff had been a rodeo cowboy for 27 years, riding roping and barrel horses and serving as a rodeo clown. “This is a whole different type of riding, so it takes some getting used to. But it’s a lot of fun!”

The NSBA World Championship Show continues through August 16,.