3 times a champ
EVANS CITY — Somebodys Riata has struck again.
The 12-year-old bay mare, owned by Robert Jr. and Katie Jamison of Evans City, recently won her third world title in four years at the American Quarter Horse Association World Championship Show in Oklahoma City.
The horse teamed with Dulces Joker, owned by Tommy Brian Buckner of Bastrop, Texas, to win the amateur ranch sorting division.
“This is her first world title in the amateur ranks,” Bob Jamison said. “The other two were in the open division.”
Somebodys Riata won the open team penning division in 2011 and open ranch sorting crown in 2012. Louis Saggione III of Jacksonville, Texas — who the Jamisons bought Somebodys Riata from — showed the horse in those competitions.
Niki Saggione, Louis Saggione's wife. showed Somebodys Riata this year.
“She's not a professional, so Niki could ride and show our horse in an amateur event,” Jamison said.
Sonya Nanette Buckner, wife of that horse's owner, showed Dulces Joker.
Jamison said the horses could have won the amateur team penning title as well, “but a stubborn cow cost them.” They placed fifth out of 38 teams in penning.
“They herded their three cows up to the pen in 19 seconds,” Jamison said. “That easily would have been fast enough to win, but one of the cows just refused to load.
“After a while, you take the two and settle for whatever money you can win with a high placing.”
There were 68 teams competing in the amateur ranch sorting category.
The AQHA World Show is the pinnacle event for American Quarter Horse owners and exhibitors all over the world. Horses qualify for the event by earning a predetermined number of points at other shows leading up to it.
More than 3,600 entries from the United States, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Columbia, Germany, Mexico and Switzerland are competing as this year's world championships, which run through Saturday in Oklahoma City.
Jamison said Somebodys Riata isn't through with big-show competition yet.
“We take special care of her,” he said. “We keep her fit and we only put her in the bigger shows. She's an exceptional animal.
“We have another horse, a 5-year-old named Little Karma, that we're getting qualified for big shows as well.”
The Jamisons own six horses and they all compete at shows out of Region 8, based in Virginia. Jamison is president-elect of the United States Team Penning Association and puts shows together.
“We had a three-day show in Columbus, Ohio, that had 1,000 teams,” he said. “The sport is growing. The bigger shows have primarily been down south or out west, but the sport is slowly moving in this direction.”
