American Quarter Horses on NBC January 12
January 3, 2008 -- American Quarter Horses return to the small screen on January 12 for a national telecast on NBC Sports. The American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA) America's Horse Championships presented by Ford Trucks is a special, one-hour broadcast of some of the most exciting action from the FedEx Open competition at the 2007 American Quarter Horse Association World Championship Show in Oklahoma City. The show begins at 5 p.m. Eastern Standard Time/2 p.m. Pacific Standard Time on local NBC stations.
Two of the most popular events, cutting and reining, along with other features will be highlighted during the show. The junior cutting, for horses 5 years old and younger, will be shown, and top riders Jerry Bob Seago of Claremore, Okla., Shannon Hall of Loco, Okla., Randy Cherry of Whitt, Texas, and Bryan Jackson of Paradise, Texas, will be featured. Seago has earned more than $600,000 in National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) competition; Hall is a past NCHA Futurity Champion; Cherry and Jackson each have more than $300,000 in NCHA earnings. All are seeking their first AQHA world championship except Seago, who won the senior cutting title in 2003 aboard Harriott Play Kitty.
Reining will highlight the senior competition for horses 6 years old and older. The exciting runs of top competitors Randy Paul of Scottsdale, Ariz., Tim McQuay of Tioga, Texas, and Cody Sapergia of Ardmore, Okla., will be featured. Paul won the 2006 National Reining Horse Association (NRHA) Futurity and is a three-time AQHA reserve world champion. McQuay is NRHA's first $2 million rider and three-time AQHA world champion, and Sapergia, an up-and-coming Canadian trainer, is a multiple NRHA Derby and Futurity finalist.
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The program includes veteran sports announcer Tim Ryan and jockey-turned-reporter Donna Brothers along with analysis by AQHA Professional Horseman Robbie Boyce of Jacksboro, Texas.
"We believe that showcasing the talents of American Quarter Horses on NBC Sports is the perfect way to pique the interest of viewers and offer them a gateway into the marvelous world of American Quarter Horses," said AQHA Executive Vice President Bill Brewer.
In addition to the action from Oklahoma City, Fort Dodge will give viewers an inside look at the recently renovated American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame & Museum. Ford Trucks will highlight the Junior Master Horseman program, and viewers will get a sneak peak at the World Equestrian Games featuring reining, which will be coming to Lexington, Ky., in 2010.
--The American Quarter Horse Journal
