NQHL Huntfield Open Derby Finals Competition Heats Up Frigid AQHA World Show

By: Brittany Bevis

While the Oklahoma City State Fair Park was being blanketed by a soft coating of fluffy, white snow this weekend, exhibitors in the National Quarter Horse League Huntfield Derby Open Finals turned up the heat on the competition at the 2014 AQHA World Show. The crowning event of the NQHL show schedule kicked off on November 15th at the Remington Horse Park with a Derby Draw Party that was sponsored by AQHA stallion Allocate Your Assets.

Horse owners, trainers, and competitors were treated to a selection of fine hors d’oevures, refreshments, and a cash bar in the stately Eclipse Room suite that featured a panoramic view of the horse track. This year’s draw was held a bit differently than in year’s past. NQHL Sponsor Relations Director and last night’s champion Lainie DeBoer explains how the process took place for yesterday evening’s Open Derby Finals.

“Typically, we draw out of a hat, but since we’d been holding Derbies all year, we’ve been giving points to horses depending on how they placed,” DeBoer says. “If a horse had won some of the Derbies or placed well, they received more points and had later draws. For the people who hadn’t done any Derbies this year, they went earlier in the class.”

“I think that worked really well because it rewarded participation throughout the year. There is a definite advantage to going later in the draw. I think people really liked how it worked out, and we made sure to work with everyone so there were no conflicts.”

What made the Derby Draw Party even more fun was the opportunity to bet on evening horse races, surprise visits by AQHA leaders, plenty of Allocate Your Assets raffle prizes, and Nutrena gift bags.

“The party was beautiful,” DeBoer says. “It was overlooking Remington Park on the upper deck. We had a huge set-up for Allocate Your Assets, and about 75 people came. It was so much fun because we could go right down the hall and go to the betting area. It was a nice breath of fresh air to get off the grounds. Don Treadway came, and Ralph Seekins from the AQHA Executive Committee came with his wife. AQHA was super-supportive.”

With 19 horses in both the $2,500 Low Huntfield Open Derby and $5,000 High Huntfield Open Derby, the competition was fierce with top trainers like Linda Crothers, Alfred Hewitt, Chuck Briggs, Jessica Johnson, David Miller, Jerry Erickson, and several non-pro competitors like Lauren Eichstadt and Alexis Parisek participating. In the end, Lainie DeBoer was named the champion in both the High and Low Derbies with Bruce Brown’s Dive and Rick and Lori Bucholz’s Regal Tequila, respectively.

The Reserve Champion in the Low Derby was Carrie Parsons with A One Nite Stand. Coming in third place was Jessica Johnson with ATM. Fourth place was Linda Crothers with Jetset On Cruz. Rounding out the top five was Jessica Johnson with Kruzyn In Style. The Reserve Champion in the High Derby was Linda Crothers with Go Big Sky. Third place was Jessica Johnson with Whenitallgoessouth. Fourth place was Jerry Erickson with Real Time Minute. Rounding out the top five was Linda Crothers with Better Buy The Minit.

Another highlight of the event was a completely different jump course than the one competitors had been riding all week. Beautifully decorated jumps included faux spruce trees, aged wine barrels, oversized tree trunks, and even a giant horseshoe element.

“We brought in a whole new course with Tucker Williams and Doug Russell,” DeBoer says. “Both of those guys do a lot of USEF and USHJA Derbies,” DeBoer says. “The only thing we were allowed to jump [to practice] was the horseshoe jump. I thought all the horses jumped around beautifully, and there were very few problems. I think the horses actually jumped better last night than they did all week. Of course, they were dialed in by then, but it was refreshing to have a whole new group of jumps. It was a great course.”

The National Quarter Horse League Huntfield Derby schedule isn’t over just yet. The Non-Pro Finals will be coming up in January 2015 at Fox Lea Farms in Venice, Florida, which will wrap up the show season. Stay tuned for more details coming soon.

Click on the images below to view complete results.

Scroll below to view more fun photos from the NQHL Open Derbies, courtesy of Gordon Downey and the NQHL.