ReysmHigh and Corey Cushing win the 2023 Snaffle Bit Futurity®

Written by: Kelly Lynch

ReysmHigh, a 2020 stallion by Dual Smart Rey and out of Prowlin High, and rider Corey Cushing, are leaving Fort Worth, Texas the 2023 NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity® Open Champions. Marking a 221.5 in the herd work, a 220.5 in the rein work and a 220.5 in the cow work for a composite score of 662.5 to end the night victorious.

Cushing made it to the Open Finals with an astounding group of five horses – Hot Jule, Robert Crey, ARA Rebel King, Gunna Wanna and ReysmHigh.

“It was a problem I was blessed to have,” Cushing explained. “I had to mentally prepare when I knew that I had made the Finals on all five.”

Although each of Cushing’s futurity horses have their strong suits, he knew going into the Finals with ReysmHigh that he could count on the stallion to show up when it counted most.

“He gets so excited and is so cowy,” Cushing says. “He wanted to stay straight up with the cow and I needed to make sure that I could put him in spots where I could travel with the cow.”

Leading up to the final set of cow work with ReysmHigh, Cushing had already shown three of his other futurity horses and didn’t have quite the success he had hoped for.

“On the last set, I was very frustrated,” Cushing admitted. “But I just had to sit there for a minute just to take a moment for myself and say, ‘We’re just going to go work another cow and we’ll see how it plays out’.”

The crowd in the Will Rogers Coliseum was electric as Cushing and ReysmHigh, also known as Preacher, entered the arena for their cow work. Immediately after the horn blew signaling their run was complete, cheers erupting throughout the arena for the 220.5 score.

“We drew the right cow down the fence and Preacher was where he needed to be. I know him, he wasn’t going to quit; he just tried his heart out the whole way through.” Cushing expressed.

Despite making it look easy, Cushing admitted the cows on Finals night weren’t a walk in the park.

“The cows were goods but they were also really tough – a guy had to be on his A-game,” Cushing shared.

Additionally competing with three-year-old futurity horses on this big of a stage can be a challenge in itself.

“Between the crowd, the noise and the excitement, it can distract the horse a lot,” Cushing says.

Clearly the environment didn’t faze ReysmHigh in the slightest as he stayed consistent throughout the three events and never lost stride.

It goes without saying that Cushing couldn’t have got it done without the team of individuals standing behind him throughout the duration of the 16 day futurity.

“I have an incredible team that stands with me. Those guys have been nothing but great all week long through the short nights and very long days,” Cushing commended.

Being a four-time Snaffle Bit Futurity® Champion is no small feat but to Cushing, this win is just as special as the first.

“It’s the greatest feeling in the world,” Cushing expressed. “It feels just like the first time – it truly does. I hope there’s more in the future because I’m not done yet. But I’m just blessed with great horses, great customers and great opportunities.”