SENIOR CUTTING

IT CAME DOWN TO THE CATTLE.

BY CHRISTINE HAMILTON, FIELD EDITOR 

Cutting legend Bill Freeman qualified two horses for the World Show senior cutting finals: Cats Rhett and Boon A Little.

Boon A Little’s shown a lot; Cats Rhett not as much, and is a year older. Which one did Freeman think would do better?

“Both are extremely strong, extremely smart and extremely athletic,” Freeman said. “It just depends on who gets the luck of the draw on the cattle, and if I do my job right.”

With an unusual 20 horses in the finals, show management opted for two herds of cattle. Freeman rode Cats Rhett (aka “Rhett”) first, hard on the heels of Peptolena and Clay Johns score of 221, which was the highest to that point.

“I was seventh in the first bunch and cut three cows that I wanted to cut, which was fortunate being that deep in the [first] pen of cattle,” Freeman said. “The first cow stepped right out, [we] stepped in behind her, and we went to business in the middle of the pen. I worked her quite a long time, actually.

“When I quit my first cow, I turned around and kind of had a little time out and caught my breath, let him catch his breath, refocused,” he continued, “And then cut my second cow and repeated the process.

“When I quit my second cow, I had 20-some seconds left. What I did was I just came with the cow that I knew was going to be there and nailed her right in the middle of the pen and finished the run.”

The run earned him a 222.5 and the new score to beat. But the second set of cattle was a whole new ball game. When Freeman rode in last to go on Boon A Little, the highest score on the second set was Josh Townsend and Blue Duck Okie’s 219.5. Freeman had the world championship wrapped up; the only question was on which horse.

The cattle decided. After a rough first cut and a game try by the horse, the second cow got by them.

Cats Rhett and Bill Freeman win the AQHA world championship in senior cutting.

“The first set was a lot better than the second set of cattle; cutting is just that way,” Freeman said, matter-of-factly. “But the cattle come from the same place; they weren’t gate-cut; so it’s just the luck of the draw.

“Quite honestly, I didn’t think a 222.5 would win it,” he added. “I figured it would take a 225 or a 226 to win it because of the caliber of horses that were in the finals.”

Rhett’s owner, Cool Acres LLC, is actually two brothers, Brody McFarland of Nevada and Bret (and wife, Kamie) McFarland, of Oklahoma City.

Freeman trained and then showed Rhett as a 4-year-old for his previous owners. Due to tightened finances, they pulled the horse from training, and he didn’t show at all as a 5- and 6-year-old.

After the McFarland brothers bought him in late 2004 they stood him in California then sent him to Freeman after the 2005 breeding season.

“I actually loped him for about a week and showed him the next weekend,” Freeman said. “We got him qualified for here and were fortunate enough to win it; there were some great horses here tonight.”

Rhett also qualified for the National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) world finals February 2006.

A legendary horseman, Freeman has approximately $4.5 million in NCHA earnings. But this is only his second AQHA world championship in cutting, though he’s won reserve several times including last year in the junior cutting on Boon A Little.

“I think the crowd here at AQHA really appreciates a good cow horse and they appreciate action,” he said. “It’s always fun to come up here.”

WINNER STATS Total Class Entries: 52 Purse: $61,724 Champion: Cats Rhett Pedigree: By High Brow Cat X Scarlet Dance by Peppy San Badger Owner: Cool Acres LLC Exhibitor: Bill Freeman Breeder: Jack Waggoner, Bridgeport, TX World Champion Prizes: Gold trophy, Montana Silversmiths buckle, Cripple Creek jacket, Tex Tan AQHA spurs, Justin ostrich Tekno Crepe boots, Professional's Choice products, Nutrena feed, neck ribbon