AQHA MAGAZINE May / June 2020 AQHA May-June YB 2020 WEB LR | Page 40

PG.38
AQHA FEATURE
Warren Backhouse on NPH Gunner Be A Goodnite Q-91426
Photo by: OZ Shotz Sports Photography
From the moment the horse stepped off the trailer,
Dave’s interest soared.
‘To be honest, I was pretty excited about him,’ Dave
recalls. ‘It was quite freakish how much he resembled
his sire, Gunners Special Nite Q-80153 (IS). This was
exciting new blood from America, and being out of the
Neylon’s outstanding producing mare, Lil Miss Nu It All,
I knew it was the perfect combination! This flashy liver
chestnut with iridescent aqua blue eyes, was a strong,
compact ball of horseflesh, and to top it all off, I found
he also had an outstanding mind.’
The super-pretty colt took to his breaking-in well,
exhibiting all the promise that his pedigree suggested.
After only 10 or so rides, Dave rode back to unsaddle
him, his thoughts persistent. This horse was definitely
good enough to make a Level 4 Open Futurity Horse,
and perhaps even win.
They were grand thoughts, but ones that motivated Dave
enough to step off the colt, and immediately make a call
to Dennis Neylon. After some persuasion, the Neylon’s
graciously parted with the colt. ‘Magic Mike’, as Dave
and Jane called him, had just found himself a new home.
The combination of Manchon started Futurity horses
that have gone through the Backhouse program, boasts
a great record of success, with horses like 2017 Non-
Pro Futurity Champion, DNA Genetics Q-85746 and
the current Reining Australia’s Open Mare of the Year,
Smart Nu Georgie Q-85747. Then there was the 2018
ARBC Champion, Smart Little Roy Q-80962, and the
current National Reining Australia Open Derby Level 2
Champion, RU Readyforthis Q-91078.
The thought and planning behind the success of these
champions is not just significant, it’s also a tribute
to the calibre of breeding programs in Australia, and
highlights, too the decisions made prior to David, and
then Warren, receiving these horses into their programs.
The relationship held by these two professionals was
displayed further in the recent 2019 ‘Night Of The
Horse’ Spectacular, a night for horse-lovers of all ages,
witnessed by and performed in front of a record crowd
at AELEC, Tamworth NSW.
Warren Backhouse has championed the phrase: ‘You
only get out what you put in’. He’s no stranger to
the winner’s circle, with over $500,000 in lifetime
prizemoney earnings, making him Australia’s highest
money-earning Reining horse trainer. Warren has won
a staggering 37 Open Futurities, including the 2018
National Futurity aboard Hasta Shine Q-82712. His
work ethic speaks volumes, a backdrop to his great
success, and his capacity to teach others through his
Five Star Reining Clinics, undoubtedly the reasons
he can consistently present one of the most popular
training programs in the industry today, not only for
horses, but for riders, too.
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