12/10/2021
On an 11th hour whim, Jade Whitmarsh traveled from Canada to compete in the Adequan® NAAC classes. Finishing as part of a three-way tie for eighth in the NAAC round, Whitmarsh earned a spot in the Bob’s Custom Saddles Intermediate Non Pro Showdown.
There, she finished in a three-way tie for the top score (210.5) of the Showdown, and it was time for a run-off.
Whitmarsh, who competed as the final horse of the runoff, bested her original run by five points, and claimed the Bob’s Custom Saddles Showdown Championship and accompanying check for $5,000!
“I am so excited! We came down here just to have this experience, just on a last-minute whim,” Whitmarsh, a college freshman, explained. “So I got the lucky chance to show, and I knew I needed to come out and try my best.”
Whitmarsh noted she was proud of her horse’s performance in their original run. “I was super happy with him. I pushed him and it went well. He’s pretty tired, but he listened super well and got those big stops that helped us since we had a turn penalty,” she explained.
Then it was time to prepare for the runoff. “My coach, Austin Seelhof, said, ‘Go in there and no penalties. We need to make sure he is soft, and we need to run him the same way and make sure those stops are big because that’s his best part,’” Whitmarsh recounted. “I was last in the runoff, so I knew what I needed to be. He was right there with me and listening to me.”
North Sail Solitaire, by NRHA Twelve Million Dollar Sire Topsail Whiz out of Solitary Gunner, is special to Whitmarsh’s family. “He is the first baby we raised on our farm. He was started down here by Casey Deary, and then we brought him home after a minor injury. Then Austin, my coach up north, has been showing him and riding him through his derby years, and has done phenomenal with him,” she explained. “I just got to start riding him a couple years ago, and we are finally starting to work more as a team and our styles are starting to mend.”
Whitmarsh added her appreciation to Bob’s Custom Saddles for sponsoring the Showdowns. “Thank you so much for putting it together. It was an amazing opportunity to get to show in the Coliseum. I didn’t come down here with the thought that that is where I would be showing at the end of the week, so it’s super awesome. I am so appreciative that they decided to offer this new class. It gives people the chance for some people who may not have futurity horses to get in that big pen,” she said. “I thank my coach, Austin Seelhof. He has been amazing in supporting me along this journey. I also thank my mom and dad for helping me and supporting my dreams of coming down here. I also thank my sister for always being there, and my entire barn for helping me get ready.”
Bob’s Custom Saddles Int. Non Pro Placings
• Jade Whitmarsh & North Sail Solitaire - $5,000
• Rebecca Asmussen & The Crowd Goes Wildd – $2,000
• Abby Budd & Gunnadream – $2,000
• Paige Vernon & Magnum Starlight - $1,000
