Another American Paint Horse has dominated a major National Reining Horse Association (NRHA) event recently. Gunspinner won the Open Level 3 division of the 2010 NRHA European Futurity on March 13, and took the reserve title for the Open Level 4. The European futurity is held in Kreuth, Germany, and is the largest NRHA-approved show held outside the United States. The event brought together the top riders and reining horses from nine European countries, with more than 300 horses and 200 riders, and yielded a packed crowd of more than 4,000.
Gunspinner is a 4-year-old registered American Paint Horse stallion sired by Colonels Smokingun ("Gunner"), who is the top Paint sire in the NRHA and was recently named into the elite NRHA Two Million Dollar Sire category, an honor only held by eight stallions currently. Gunspinner's dam is an American Quarter Horse named My Private Enterpriz. Nathalie McEntire of Selma, North Carolina, bred the horse and sold the colt to Greenway Stables of the Netherlands in 2007.
Ann Fonck of Belgium rode the horse in the futurity, scoring a 220 in the Level 3 and Level 4. Tim McQuay, a top rider in NRHA and owner of the sire of Gunspinner, trained this horse for futurity competition. The European Futurity was the first competition in which Fonck had ridden Gunspinner, whom she calls "Frankie." He was shipped to Fonck about seven weeks prior to this futurity.
After reviewing her first round on the horse, they made some improvements for the finals. "I tried out our theories in the finals, and this time he was really good at the circles. His spins were breathtaking, and he stopped strong." Fonck said, "I think what put us in the lead was that I was able to show him on a loose rein and make no penalties (except for an overturn in my first set of spins). The horse was very controlled and relaxed and had a lot of power in his maneuvers."
"He is a very, very nice horse to handle and to ride. He is not studdy at all, and very nice to other horses and people." She continued, "He is also the biggest friend of our 4-year-old daughter. He always wants to be good!"
Fonck was the only female competitor to make it into the finals of the futurity. Her husband, Bernard Fonck, was also in the finals of the Level 4 but Ann came out on top. Gunspinner will now be turned out to pasture and allowed to rest before preparing for the upcoming futurities. He won more than $28,000 in earnings from this one event, making his lifetime earnings $34,027.
"I would like to thank Mr. McQuay and his team for the excellent job they did on Frankie. He is a great horse and they trained him really well," said Fonck. "He is very good and solid in his maneuvers. It's because of their great job that I was able to do so well. I would also like to thank the owners, for choosing our stall to bring their horse to and for the confidence and the great cooperation we have."
She commented on the overall experience, "It's the first time I have competed on a Gunner offspring, and I liked it! Frankie is such a great horse, gentle and honest. We bred our best mare to Gunner last year, so I'm very excited to start working with this baby." According to Fonck, since the futurity win the Gunner-bred horses are getting very popular in her barn. They have already had two customers looking to buy that line, so in the coming years she plans to show more from the accomplished sire.
The Foncks have more American Paint Horses in their barn, two by Paint sire Like A Diamondone of which will be competing this year.
For more information about the 2010 NRHA European Futurity, visit www.nrha-european-futurity.com.
More About APHA
Currently, American Paint Horses are being registered at APHA's Fort Worth, Texas, headquarters at a rate of more than 30,000 horses each year. APHA has registered more than 981,000 horses in 59 nations and territories since it was founded 48 years ago, and now serves approximately 85,000 active members around the world. APHA, a non-profit organization, prides itself on community involvement and educating the public about the beauty and talent of the breed. Among its many activities, APHA works to preserve bloodlines and maintain the outstanding characteristics of Paint Horses. For more information, visit the Association's Web site at apha.com or call (817) 834-APHA (2742).
