2015 RSNC WORLD FINALS exceeds 4,600 Teams Wellington, Colorado- There were a total of 4,608 excited and energized teams of Ranch Sorting competition at this year’s RSNC World Finals. It was held June 8th through 13th in Fort Worth, Texas at the Will Rogers Memorial Center Complex. This was the third year for the Finals of the Ranch Sorting National Championships at this prestigious facility, and the sport continues to see tremendous support from equine enthusiasts all across the country. Dave Wolfe, president and founder of the association, said “The most exciting part of the results of this year’s event is that of the 18 classes offered for all different levels of the competition, all but two saw an increase in entries and the two with the highest percent of increases were the Beginner Ranch Hand and the Beginner Youth classes. Those are the two introductory classes for new novice members and this continues to be where our association excels”. Just this year RSNC has gained over 1,600 brand new members with our overall membership now exceeding 23,000 since it’s inception in 2007. Many equine associations are experiencing a decline in participation but RSNC continues to grow at a rapid pace. Another group of classes that experienced a strong spike in participation were the Futurities and Maturities. Last year there were 74 teams and this year there were 124. These are high stakes classes with high entry fees and huge payouts. Contestant’s horses have to qualify through stallion, trainer, owner and sales company nominations. In these classes the emphasis is on promotion of the horses within in our sport. Wolfe said “Over the last 5 years the quality of horses have improved tremendously. Many are by some of the top cutting horse stallions within the industry”. Ranch Sorting is quickly becoming one of the premiere cow horse competitions available, with skilled horsemen and exceptional horses competing. Overall, the Futurities and Maturities paid out over $64,000, and, with this kind of payout, RSNC expects to see even more of the top cow horse riders and horses joining in to compete for the big purses. RSNC has 9 different rating levels so anyone who can ride a horse has a chance to be competitive. Many of the RSNC members are brand new to cow horse competition, but even for new members, there are introductory classes with payouts of $20,000 and above. You don’t need a trainer or even experienced cow horses at the introductory levels to be competitive and to win big payouts and exciting awards including saddles and buckles. This year, RSNC sanctioned events paid out over 2.1 million dollars in cash and hundreds of thousands of dollars in awards. The 2015 World finals paid out an additional $400,000 in cash and awards. The sport is now expanding internationally with RSNC partnerships in Brazil, Australia and Canada. Without question, Ranch Sorting, as the fastest growing equine sport in the world, is quickly becoming a sport of choice for the entire family and a premiere equine activity. ### To learn more about the Ranch Sorting National Championships go to ranchsorting.com 60 Issue 6 • 2015 www.PerformanceHorseDigest.com