Quarter Horse News – Written by Krisen Pitzer
Equi-Stat Elite $1 Million Rider Morgan Cromer was ecstatic when she qualified for the Classic Open finals at the Lucas Oil National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) Super Stakes, held Saturday, April 2, in Fort Worth, Texas, at the Will Rogers Coliseum. Three of the four horses she entered had made it back for the final round.
“It was the coolest thing ever. I was so happy to have more than one shot! Usually you get in the finals and you have one that you put all the thought into,” Cromer, of Templeton, California, said.
Cromer’s first horse, Maid Of Metal, came out of the second hole in the first bunch to mark a 223. The score held through 23 other runs to keep the lead. Then, it was CR Tuff Lucy, who sold for $600,000 in the inaugural Center Ranch Production Sale, and Equi-Stat Elite $3 Million Rider John Mitchell’s turn in the pen. They put in a performance that had the crowd cheering in the stands, and everyone held their breath as the scoreboard lit up. It was a 222.5.
The final two runs did not top Cromer’s 223, and at the end of the night, Cromer had achieved her first major win. She and Maid Of Metal (Metallic Cat x Pretty Smart Kitty x Smart Lil Ricochet), who was bred by Beau Galyean and named by Ashley Galyean, walked away with the Championship and $64,816 for owner Judy Siebel, of Ross, California. That sum pushed Maid Of Metal’s lifetime earnings to $108,351.