The First Time: Stephen Hutchins earned his first Limited Open Snaffle Bit Futurity Champion title on HQ Time To Shine

Stephen Hutchins has only been riding horses about a dozen years, but the trainer from Lindale, Iowa, has captured a title many strive for their entire lives, a National Reined Cow Horse Association (NRCHA) Limited Open Snaffle Bit Futurity Championship. Riding Reid Hockenson’s homebred 2021 stallion, HQ Time To Shine (CD Dyna Cee x Shiners Pearl x Shining Spark), Hutchins rode to the Limited Open win with a 645 (herd 215/ rein 214/ cow 216), earning $20,000.

“It was really good; I was really happy with how ‘Pepe’ was really consistent through all three events,” said Hutchins. “He stayed cool, calm and tried his hardest. I was happy for the win for him and for the owners. They’ve been in this awhile and had horses with me for a couple of years. Pepe was a good horse, stayed the same and I was proud of his efforts and to win it for the Hockensons.”

In 2023, Hutchins made the Limited Open finals with another of Hockenson’s horses, and he used that experience to prepare for Friday’s Finals. The cattle were unpredictable, but Hutchins fell back to advice Chris Dawson gave him last year.

“He [Dawson] told me not to let the cows get an advantage on me, don’t stay too long and keep the cow kind of fresh, and those cows in the Coliseum, they come at you quickly on those ends,” Hutchins said. “I tried to bully that cow and not stay too long on the cow end, and that worked last year and this year I tried to emulate that. This is the opposite of what I usually do, trying to sneak up to the cow and train it.”

Hutchins credits three mentors with helping him get to this point in his career, NRCHA professionals Luke Jones and Corey Cushing, and Jeremy Michaelis. The Limited Open title this year means that Hutchins is no longer eligible for the division, but he appreciates the levels in cow horse that help him, and other young trainers, to build a program.

“I think the NRCHA has done a good job making a place for everybody to have a chance for success with the right horse and rider,” Hutchins said. “After I worked for Luke for four years, I won out of the Limited Open but then I worked for Corey, didn’t show much while I was learning from him and with the three-year money, I went back to the Limited from the Intermediate. When you’re starting a business, getting the stock and getting set up, it helped to be back in the Limited. [The divisions] give a young trainer like me a chance to get on their feet and take nice horses that may not be Open but be able to compete for good money at the level they are capable of competing at.”

In the end, Hutchins is simply grateful for the chance to show talented horses in the sport he enjoys.

“It’s not about the wins but more about how the horses come out and compete, give everything they have on a big stage,” he said. “I’m thankful for the people who have helped me get started and the opportunities to learn to get to this point. It’s not a one-man show, and its owners like the Hockensons who breed horses that go and perform for us.”