DECEMBER 2016 PARKER COUNTY TODAY
28
Shelly Mowery of Mowery Cutting Horses , one of the early cutting businesses established in Weatherford , joined the NCHA in 1987 . She said proximity to Cowtown has been key for Weatherford and Parker County . “ It ’ s the real estate ,” she said . “… Fort Worth has three major aged events — the Futurity in December , April for the Super Stakes , and in July there ’ s what they call the Derby , the summer cutting . Those aged events have a lot of not only [ name recognition ], but big purses .”
According to the NCHA , the group “ has given the cutting horse new life in one of the world ’ s most exciting equine events .”
But today ’ s competitive cutting horses were simple tools of the trade in the days when cowhands moved the mammoth herds of the great cattle drives north and west out of Texas . Cutters were prized animals within a cowboy ’ s string of horses , special horses with demonstrable “ cow sense ” or instincts for working cattle .
“ A typical cutting horse might have started out in a cowboy ’ s string , but his sensitivity to cattle brought him to the attention of the roundup boss . He was the horse that pricked his ears toward a cow and followed her with his eyes . He instinctively knew not to crowd her , yet was wary of her every move . He made the difficult job of separating cattle easier and quicker . He even made it fun .” ( NCHA )
“ There ’ s no question . It ’ s an adrenaline rush !” Mowery said . “ It ’ s different than most equine events , to allow that horse to not only have the instinct , but to do most of the work and work that cow — that , to me , was like nothing I had ever experienced on a horse . It ’ s like a dance . The horse is not to do any more than the cow does , he mimics that . They draw that line in the sand ; you want them to hold their ground . It ’ s basically to keep that cow that you picked and separated from the herd from going back to the herd … . That horse is an athlete .”
During the open range-era , that long-gone time before barbed wire and private land use , the cattle of various stockmen often roamed relatively free , intermingling with other herds , necessitating spring and fall cuttings . Cowboys roamed the hills and valleys in search of cattle wearing their outfit ’ s particular brand . When found , the cattle were cut from the mishmash herd and returned to their own .
Of course fences were built cutting the wide-open West into small
“ There ’ s no question . It ’ s an adrenaline rush ! It ’ s different than most equine events , to allow that horse to not only have the instinct , but to do most of the work and work that cow — that , to me , was like nothing I had ever experienced on a horse . It ’ s like a dance . The horse is not to do any more than the cow does , he mimics that . They draw that line in the sand ; you want them to hold their ground . It ’ s basically to keep that cow that you picked and separated from the herd from going back to the herd ... . That horse is an athlete .”
— Shelly Mowery
ranches and farms , but the skills of the cutting horses were still valued and needed . But with the pickup trucks and squeeze chutes of the 20th Century , less and less of the cowpuncher ’ s work transpired on horseback . As the NCHA put it : “ Cutting horses were fast becoming obsolete .”
The old ways often die hard , and cutting continued on a small scale and at times as friendly competition , an opportunity for proud equestrians to earn bragging rights for their prize animals . According to the NCHA , the first advertised cutting contest took place in 1898 at the Cowboy Reunion in Haskell County , Texas . Ads placed in the Dallas News and Kansas City
Star drew some 15,000 people — incredible given the nearest railroad was 50 miles away and spectators had to come by horse , wagon or hack . Eleven riders cut for a $ 150 prize .
By the mid-1940s cutting competitions were becoming popular events . The first recorded arena-style spectator ’ s event involving cutting occurred at the 1919 Southwestern Exposition and Fat Stock Show in Fort Worth . That year cutting appeared as an exhibition , the following as a competitive event .
With so many different events operating under diverse rules and conditions , some within the cutting community began to feel the need for uniformity . May 1 , 1946 , 13 cowboys and ranchers met at the 50th Annual Southwestern Exposition and Fat Stock Show in Fort Worth and established an association to develop standards and procedures for cutting . It was expected to be a local association , lucky to draw 50 members in its first year , but later at a meeting held in Mineral Wells , aspirations were a bit loftier ; recognizing the growth potential for both the sport and association , members adopted the name the “ National Cutting
Horse Association .”
The NCHA hosted its first event in September 1946 in Dublin , Texas . In 1955 , the association sanctioned 300 events with total purses of $ 190,000 . Less than a decade later , in 1963 , there were 727 cutting-horse competitions held worldwide — 504 were NCHA championship events . According to the NCHA website , now some 2,200 annual events are held with combined prize winnings topping $ 36 million .
The NCHA continues to celebrate the cutting horse and through uniform rules and conditions works to create a “ level playing field ” for competitors of all stripes — beginner to advanced .