Reed Boos marked an 886.75 on Joe Hubbard’s CGS Smart Cat to win the Limited Pre-Futurity Heading and
$7,973 Saturday, April 11, injecting a boost into the program of the the 25-year-old trainer from White Cloud, Kansas.

CGS Smart Cat is by Savanah Cat Stetson out of Shes My Paycheck, and she’s been in Boos program for two years.

Q: Tell me a little bit about yourself. Are you running your own business right now or are you still working for Dakota Kirchenschlager?

A: I’m on my own now. It’s been three years since I’ve been at Dakota’s, and I was there for two years before that. So yep, I’m on my own. But I still go stay there. This time of year, I bounce back and forth between my place and his. I stay at his for a week or so at a time, then I come home for a little bit, then I go back.

Q: How many horses do you have in your program, and what’s it like?

A: We probably keep anywhere from 25 to 40 most of the time. Where I live, it’s not as many show horses, but the longer I’ve been doing it, the more people are getting involved, so we’re getting more. I always keep five or six of my own or partner horses that we ride and show a little bit, then take to sales like Rancho Rio or the Riata Sale.

Q: Tell me about the horse you won on this weekend.

A: That horse belongs to Joe Hubbard. He lives in St. Joe, Missouri, about an hour from me. I started riding horses for him two years ago, and that one was the first one he brought. I didn’t really know how old it was. The people that worked for him just dropped it off and told us to start riding him. We had no plan of him being a show horse.

The more I rode him, the better he got. So I called Joe, and said we should figure out how old he was. Turns out he was only 2 or 3 at the time, and we were already roping on him. He was ready to haul, and I was like, “Oh my, we’re going to have to slow this down.”

So we backed it all up, and now we’re showing him. It’s kind of crazy because I didn’t even plan to ride him at first. I normally only ride the show horses, and the guys that work for me ride the colts. But now he’s in my barn, and I ride him.

Q: What makes him special?

A: He’s big and always wants to stay on his butt. He stands in the box really well. That’s probably one of the best things about him. He’s not super blessed with speed, but he’s always good in the box. You don’t have to try to get him tired. You just back him in there, he scores good, and you can get a good start. Then he stays on his butt and faces pretty well.

Q: Do you know anything about his breeding?

A: No, I had no clue. All I knew was they told me he wasn’t eligible for anything. When it was time to enter Scottsdale, I called them and they finally sent the papers. I don’t even know what he is. I just know his name.

Q: What was his training process like?

A: Bennett, the kid that works for me, heeled on him all of his 3-year-old year, and he was pretty good to heel on. During July and August, I try not to ride 3-year-olds much, so he got a break. He got big, so then I started riding him and thought, “Gosh, this is a head horse. I need to quit heeling on him.”

So I switched to heading. We break in a lot of steers for Three Point Productions where I live, so I just started turning steers on him, and he took to it.

Q: What did you learn working for Dakota Kirchenschlager?

A: There were a lot of lessons. I think the biggest thing was teaching the horse’s mind to accept what we’re doing and making them think the way we want them to. If it takes 20 minutes or an hour to warm them up, as long as their mind is in the right place, it makes them a lot easier to train.

Q: What rope did you use to win?

A: I used the new Fast Back test rope. I don’t even know what the name of it is.

Q: What lay do you like?

A: Extra soft. Sometimes extra, extra soft depending on the weather, but now that it’s warmer, extra soft.

Q: What do you see for that horse’s future?

A: I hope we just keep showing him. That’s the plan. Show him everywhere, and then probably sell him at some point when he’s aged out. As far as I know, Mr. Joe doesn’t sell them until they’re aged out.