Sisters Metallic and Lance Johnston Win Big In Reno

Going into the Reno Snaffle Bit Futurity, held Sept. 9-15 at the Reno-Sparks Livestock Event Center in Reno, Nevada, Lance Johnston’s goal with Sisters Metallic was to gain the mare some experience on the road to the National Reined Cow Horse Association (NRCHA) Snaffle Bit Futurity in October. He also hoped to redeem their herd work at the earlier National Stock Horse Association Futurity in Las Vegas, where the pair was run over by a cow, resulting in a score of 196.

Fortunately, things worked out perfectly in Reno when the pair scored a composite 658.5, winning the Open Futurity and a check worth $50,000 for owner Rocking BS Ranch.

“Just the fact that she’s really matured in the last month going to these two shows and going through this makes me feel really comfortable with her and confident in what she can do,” Johnston said. “Obviously, the win really helps with that, too. This is just a start in her career, but it’s sure a nice start.”

The duo started off in the herd work by marking a 216, despite a tricky second cow that nearly took them out of the competition.

“My second cow was really eating my lunch, but the mare was incredible,” Johnston said. “I probably got most of my points off that cow, but she would never release me, and I couldn’t get off of her. By the time I did get off of her, I didn’t have much time on my third cow. If I could have gotten off that second cow sooner and made a prettier third cut, the mare is so good out of the herd, we could have been even better.”

Sisters Metallic (Metallic Cat x Boon San Baby x Boon San) and Johnston marked the second-highest score in the rein work, a 219. Throughout their pattern, the mare was dialed in, and Johnston was pleased with her performance. She was also strong down the fence, winning the cow work with a 223.5.

“I kind of thought her fence work might be her weaker event there for a while training her, but it’s really come on. It’s really solid,” Johnston said of the mare, who was bred by Rocking P Ranch LLC. “She’s always really felt like the herd work was her strongest event through the training, but now, after this show, the other two events feel equally as strong.”

Johnston thanked his wife, Tammy, and his assistants, Cara Hencratt and Amber Johnson, for keeping him going down the road. He also thanked Rocking BS Ranch’s owner, Brent Steward, for all his support.

“Rocking BS Ranch has been a major player in my career for me the last several years,” Johnston said. “We’ve had a lot of success together from Here Comes The Boon and Annies Smart Cat, through several more horses all the way to this mare now, so I really appreciate their confidence in me to send me down the road with all these nice horses.”

One Secret Cat (WR This Cats Smart x Secrets Blue Angel x One Time Pepto) and Justin Wright nabbed the Reserve title with their composite 654.5 (218 herd/218.5 rein/218 cow). The pair collected $27,000 for owner Stephen Silva.