National Finals Rodeo header Rhen Richard pulled back on four steers worth 491.17 points aboard the 2016 gelding Cowboys N Indians to win the Royal Crown Open Heeling Futurity, worth $4,219.
“That horse just wins,” Richard said. “He was a cow horse, and there’s nothing super special about him but he knows how to win.”
The 6-year-old gelding won second at the Royal Crown Open in Rock Springs in 2021, and he made the Finals in the American Rope Horse Futurity Association’s World Championships in October, too.
“He’s always got a chance to win,” Richard said. “He’s ready to go to somebody. He’s easy to rope on, and he can get down the arena and he’s good in the box. He’s a solid horse. He’s got just enough cow to know they’re there, but not enough he’ll cow down too much.”
Richard had some tough draws throughout the day, never placing higher than sixth in the first three rounds. But he came back at fourth callback and made an aggressive run to score a 124.92 to win third in the short go, and the rest of the field faltered.
“It’s kind of one of them deals. We just stayed the course and everyone else had heck,” Richard said.
The futurity, held in Buckeye, Arizona Feb. 13, was open to any 4- to 6-year-old rope horse, with the Royal Crown Stallion Incentive-only futurity the following day Feb. 14. TRJ
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