It already boasted the second-highest paying championship in the entire reining industry. But for its 10th anniversary, the National Reining Breeders Classic will step up to another level--paying $75,000 to the open champion at the 2007 show, slated for April 16-22 at the Great Southwest Equestrian Center in Katy, TX.

That's a 25% increase from the $60,000 that the event has paid in recent years, and a huge step for the officers and board of the NRBC.

NRBC President Tom McCutcheon noted, "We did not make this change lightly. Our concern was that if we went to an increased amount we wanted to maintain it in coming years and we wanted to do this concurrently with increasing the payoff in the lower placings."

The board certainly stayed true to that tenet, increasing the number of horses qualifying for the finals from 25 to 30, and raising the payout for last place in the finals from $2,000 to $5,000.

NRBC secretary/treasurer Cheryl Magoteaux noted, "The tremendous support from the reining breeders and exhibitors has resulted in increased foal and stallion enrollment. Those enrollments and the support from the reining community have allowed us to take this step. With the NRBC, we actually plan and budget four years in advance. For example, our funding for the 2009 show is based on the foal enrollments for 2005."

The next National Reining Breeders Classic Show will take place at the Great Southwest Equestrian Center in Katy, TX, April 16-22. As it has in the past two years, the 2007 event is expected to boast a total payoff well in excess of a million dollars.

The National Reining Breeders Classic is the most successful stallion incentive program in reining history. In just nine years, the NRBC has grown to include nearly 300 subscribed stallions and over 16,000 enrolled foals. For information on the NRBC, visit the web site at www.nrbc.com or call 580-759-3939.
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