Open Futurity Heavy Metal & Todd Graham
Article - Janine Leichsenring
This amazing event is held annually and tips the scales as the most attended horse show in Australia. Held at the
Australian Equine and Livestock Events Centre in Tamworth, it’s here you can see the cream of the crop in Australian
cutting horses. Not only is it the largest horse event on the calendar, but also it offers the gathering place for old friends,
a horse sale, trade stands and an exciting two weeks of equine professionalism. The pilgrimage to this event is huge!
This year it was held from the 26th May
to 7th June, and with approximately
$700,000 in prize money on offer, it’s
no wonder this is the place for the top
cutting horses, their owners and trainers
to be. The event offers Open and Non Pro
aged events for three to six year olds, as
well as the prestigious Open and Open
Non Pro Gold Cup. The NCHA Futurity
attracts more than 500 competitors and
their horses from all over Australia as
well as USA, Canada, New Caledonia and
New Zealand.
This year the top honours for the Open
Futurity went to Todd Graham riding
Heavy Metal owned by the Mearns
and Ware partnership, with a score of
148.00, with Mark Buttsworth riding his
own horse Almora Peps Double Rey, into
2nd place, with a score of 146. It’s worth
Page
Page 56
56 •• The
The Australian
Australian Quarter
Quarter Horse
Horse Magazine
Magazine •• July
July •• August
August 2015
2015
noting that Todd had seven Futurity
horses. Of those seven horses he finalled
six of them. The NCHA ruling is that a
rider can only ride five horses so of the
five Todd rode he finalled all and Jamie
Secombe who works for Todd rode the
other two and finalled one – outstanding
result!