Chad Evans/Ginnin, Blake Weis/Snap Krackle Pop Win Sr. Level 3 Trail, Jr. Level 3 Trail at AQHA World

By: Brittany Bevis

After nearly five hours of Trail competition today at the 2015 AQHA World Championship Show, two World Champions have been crowned. First, Blake Weis rode Snap Krackle Pop to win Junior Trail Level 3 for owner Twylla Brown with a score of 243.5. The Reserve Champion was Hayley Saul with PutaDrinkInMyHand scoring a 237. Third place was Blake Weis once again with Lover Treat Me Good. Fourth place was Jason Gilliam with No Question I’m Lazy. Fifth place was Jason Gilliam with So Dang Lazy.

This has been quite a big year for Blake and Snap Krackle Pop, aka “Brandi.” Just a few weeks ago, they won Junior Western Riding at the Quarter Horse Congress; it was both Brandi and Blake’s first time winning a Congress title in the class. Then, just a few days ago, they were named the World Champions in Junior Western Riding Level 2 and Junior Western Riding Level 3, marking Blake’s first Open World Champion title. In addition, Brandi placed 10th in Performance Mares, just won Junior Trail Level 3, and placed eighth in Junior Western Pleasure with just one class in between the Trail and Western Pleasure finals.

“I was concerned, because I was the only one in the Junior Western Pleasure that also did the Trail finals, and she was exhausted,” Blake says. “We took her back to the stalls and went to the cold water spa, just to try to freshen her up a bit. We practiced Trail at two in the morning, and then we had to get ready to show, so it’s been very busy.”

“Also, the pattern was really hard today, especially because her strong suit, and mine, isn’t necessarily the slow work. Our strengths are more the lope-overs and trot-overs, but this pattern was mostly walk-overs, gates, backs, sidepasses, and a bridge. It was really hard, but that’s what we’ve been working on for the past two days, and she was really good.”

Of all the challenging elements in this course, Blake is most proud of Brandi’s sidepass and walk out of the box portions.

“She definitely plussed her lopes and trot-overs, and her sidepass was awesome! I was really proud of that. Then, the little box trots were phenomenal. My walk out at the end was what I was the most proud of, because we’ve been struggling with that. She wants to be so careful that sometimes we get awkward steps coming out of the box, and then I try to micromanage. Today, she knew exactly what she was doing, and it was amazing how focused she was.”

Winning the Senior Trail Level 3 was Chad Evans with Ginnin, scoring a 245. The Reserve Champion was Whitney Lagace riding Range To A Te. Third place was Jason Martin with She Made It Happen. Fourth place was Robin Frid with Credits For Heaven. Fifth place was Chad Evans with Lil Bit Western.

This win is very special for Chad, because it’s his first time winning a World Champion title at the AQHA World Show. “It kind of feels like a finally,” he says. “I’ve been Reserve a lot of times, but this is my first World Champion. It’s fun and special, and I love that it’s with this horse and this family.”

His equine partner for today’s class was Ginnin, a 12-year-old gelding owned by Caroline Ammons. Ginnin has been in training with Chad for six years now, and he’s confident this horse just keeps getting better with age. Later on in the show, Caroline will show Ginnin in Amateur Trail, Amateur Showmanship, and Amateur Horsemanship. Her sister Sara will show in Amateur Level 2 Horsemanship and Level 2 Trail.

“This horse is a goofball with a lot of personality,” Chad says. “He always tries his best at the big shows; that’s what makes him fun. It’s almost like he knows, and he puts his best game on. When I walked down the chute today, he put his ears up and looked at the pattern, and I knew. He knows when it’s time, and he loves showing in this arena.”

“This pattern was dicey. It seemed like every obstacle had a little trick to it. The first fan and the single trot poles were high, and we were doing a lot of bends, so that’s tricky with their feet. The two gates were hard with the little poles on risers that are easy to knock over. I was worried about those. Even the trot singles to the extended trot was challenging.”

Of all the obstacles Tim “The Trail Man” Kimura presented today, Chad feels Ginnin was best able to score bonus points in the box. “I think he’s so good in the box,” he says. “He loves to spin fast. Also, he’s super deliberate in his walk-overs.”

Congratulations to Chad and Blake on their big wins!