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AQHA FEATURE: 2026 THE MAN FROM SNOWY RIVER BUSH FESTIVAL
AQHA Highest placed registered Quarter Horse Award Claire Lindley and Yaven Moore Chrome A3-707 Photo by: Stepen Mowbray
The Striplings division is the pathway for the festival ' s youngest competitors, produced one of the weekend ' s most exciting contests. Luca Chaplin and Tom Boy took out the Striplings title with 521 points, headlined by a perfect 100 in Horse Shoeing, 97 in Pack Horse, 95 in the Cattlemen ' s Jump, and a strong 90 in Dry Work, with a finals score of 65 sealing the win.
Maddie Hayes( Elvis) was close behind in second with 480 points, also posting a 90 in Dry Work and an excellent 94 in the Cattlemen ' s Jump. Rhys Laney( Smart RD Royalle) claimed third with 464 points, matching Luca with a perfect 100 in Horse Shoeing and topping the Pack Horse scores across the Striplings field with 100.
Quinn Beckman( QXH Smooth Operator Q-82078) placed fourth |
( 450 points), Jack Turnbull( Montana) fifth( 444 points), and |
Montana Parker( Rusty) sixth with 427 points. |
Place |
Rider |
Horse |
Total |
1 |
Luca Chaplin |
Tom Boy |
521 |
2 |
Maddie Hayes |
Elvis |
480 |
3 |
Rhys Laney |
Smart RD Royalle |
464 |
4 |
Quinn Beckman |
QXH Smooth Operator |
450 |
5 |
Jack Turnbull |
Montana |
444 |
6 |
Montana Parker |
Rusty |
427 |
DISCIPLINE HIGHLIGHTS
WHIP CRACK Harry Vines( Jigsaw) cracked the competition with a winning score of 55 points, including bonus points for the jump. Kieran Davidson had a high 50 points, with five riders- Riley Quinn, Daryl Baines, Stephen Rouch, Wendy Sheather, and Annie Triggs – all on 45 points each across the divisions.
BAREBACK OBSTACLE Again, across the divisions Emma Webb( Western Acres A2- 3875) topped Bareback with 91.0 points across the qualifying rounds, just ahead of Sam Webb( Webbs Copy) on 89.0 and Darren Towns( Contractor) on 88.0 a remarkable performance from Emma that foreshadowed her Ladies Final victory.
The Striplings competitors are our youngest cohort, aged between 10-14years AQHA Highest placed registered Quarter Horse Award was
Quinn Beckman and QXH Smooth Operator Q-82078 Photo by: Stepen Mowbray
PACK HORSE Three competitors hit 99 out of 100 across the divisions in the Pack Horse during qualifying: Daryl Baines, Patrick O ' Ryan, and Morgan Webb. Baines ' consistency in this discipline was a key plank in his Open Final win, he is a mountain man, afterall!
THE WEBB FAMILY- A DAY TO REMEMBER No family had a better weekend than the Webbs. Morgan Webb topped the overall qualifying standings and finished runner-up in the Open Final. Emma Webb claimed the Ladies Championship with 711 points. Sam Webb( Webbs Copy) placed 16th overall in qualifying. Three riders, three horses, one extraordinary family performance on the high country stage – the Australian version of Calgary!
CHAMPIONS SUMMARY |
Category |
Champion |
Horse |
Score |
Open Challenge |
Daryl Baines |
Banjo |
782 |
Ladies Challenge |
Emma Webb |
Western Acres |
711 |
Junior Challenge |
Jack Lindley |
The Lethal Advisor 610 |
Striplings Challenge |
Luca Chaplin |
Tom Boy |
521 |
FINAL WORD The 2026 MFSR Stockmans Challenge was a celebration of everything that makes Australian bush culture special skilled horsemanship, fierce competition, and deep respect for tradition. Daryl Baines took Open honours after a brilliant finals run, Emma Webb ruled the Ladies division, Jack Lindley led the Juniors, and Luca Chaplin showed the Striplings are in great hands for the future.
Congratulations to every competitor who took to the course, and to the organisers who put on another world-class event. We ' ll see you back at Corryong next year April 8-11 2027 for another exciting MFSR.
Results sourced from the official MFSR 2026 Stockmans Challenge scoreboard via Nominate.
AUSTRALIAN QUARTER HORSE ASSOCIATION- www. aqha. com. au