Casey Deary Leads NRBC Open Preliminaries

Katy, TX - April 20, 2005 - One hundred three of the 174 National Reining Breeders Classic Open entries competed today in the first section of Open Preliminaries with Casey Deary taking the early lead after a 224-point run. Riding Jacs Little Sunrise (Sunrise Enterprise x Miss Whoa Jac) for owners Harry and Deb McCandless, Fort Worth, Texas, Casey put in a picture-perfect run as draw 99.

Casey’s 224 on the pattern bumped the score needed to make the finals to a 220. The young trainer from Weatherford, Texas, not only leads the Open competition, but he also leads the Intermediate Open and Limited Open.

The remaining 74 Open entries take to the arena tomorrow, April 21, at 8am in hopes of keeping up with today’s impressive Open preliminary scores. The top 25 in the Open, and top 20 in the Intermediate Open and Limited Open, will return to the arena for the Finals scheduled for Saturday, April 23. The rider that tops the Open Preliminaries after tomorrow’s competition will earn a check for $15,798, with Saturday’s Open Finals Champion receiving $60,000.

Horse show classes began with a winner-take-all Open Jackpot where exhibitors had a chance to prep their horses for other classes. Casey Hinton, Whitesboro, Texas, topped the class riding Sunrise Enterprise, an entry he’s showing in the USEF Qualifier. Alicia Howard, Bryan, Texas, topped the Rookie 1 class riding Fritz Fitz for Paull Marcella. Alicia earned a check worth $39 for the win.

The day’s festivities closed with the Welcome and Non Pro Draw Party sponsored by Point Bank. One of the NRBC’s oldest sponsors, Point Bank is a local Texas banking institution that has provided banking services since 1892. The Draw Party invited everyone to pizza and desserts while Non Pro finalists took turns drawing for their Finals competition order. Twenty-two riders made it back to the Non Pro Finals while 33 will be competing in the Intermediate Non Pro, Limited Non Pro and Prime Time Non Pro divisions concurrently.

The NRBC Classic and horse show continues through Sunday, April 24, at the Great Southwest Equestrian Center in Katy, Texas. The prestigious event will award more than $1 million at this year’s competition.

The National Reining Breeders Classic is the most successful stallion incentive program in reining history. In just eight years, the NRBC has grown to include over 275 subscribed stallions and over 16,000 enrolled foals. For information on the NRBC, visit the web site at www.nrbc.com or call 580-759-3939.