JUNIOR PLEASURE DRIVING

AT ONLY 3 YEARS OLD, ARTFUL PERSUASION WINS HIS FIRST WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP TITLE.

BY TONYA RATLIFF-GARRISON, INTERNET MANAGER

Artful Persuasion is a 3-year-old. So his owner, Emily Harrington, wasn’t expecting the tall bay gelding to earn a championship at his first World Show. Needless to say, she was pleasantly surprised.

“I was very amazed,” the Aubrey, Texas, woman said.

With Team Wrangler member and AQHA Professional Horseman Jason Martin driving him, “Steve” turned in a winning performance in the junior pleasure driving finals on Wednesday, November 16, taking the world title. The gelding was the only 3-year-old in a class of 11 4- and 5-year-olds.

“I had a great drive today,” Martin said. “As young as Steve is, his attention span is limited. In the go-round the other day, he probably gave about 50 percent, but today, I felt like he gave 100 percent.”

But even at only 3 years old, Martin had confidence in the gelding.

Jason Martin and Artful Persuasion won the junior pleasure driving finals.

“He’s very young, but I just came from winning the (All American Quarter Horse) Congress on him,” Martin said. “Now, I’ve won the World.”

What makes this win even more special for Martin is that Steve is from the second foal crop of the stallion, Artful Investment, which he and his business partner, Charlie Cole, own.

“This is the first world championship for an Artful Investment (foal),” he said. “It’s pretty neat because Artful Investment won the same class as a 4-year-old.”

Harrington, who purchased Steve in April 2004, said the gelding is a natural at pleasure driving.

“When Jason told me last January that he had already broke Steve to the cart, I was like, ‘What!? OK.’ And then Steve was qualified immediately,” she said. “But then I just saw how he really took to it. He can jog, and he has a big trot. It was just really easy for him.”

Martin plans to start teaching Steve to jump and, hopefully, have him qualified at next year’s World Show for the Sooner Trailer Superhorse competition.

For Harrington, she and Steve may try out the amateur pleasure driving event at the 2006 World Show.

“I plan on showing him in driving next year. I’ve just got to learn how to do it,” she said. “They went ahead and put my name on the cart though, so I’m definitely committed.”