Equifest Program 2020

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Special Events

C.A. Cofer C.A. is a lifetime member of both the national and state Quarter Horse Associations, a past president of the KQHA and a member of the Board of Directors. In 1979, he initiated the Midwestern Quarter Horse Circuit and directed it for 20 years. He also began the Flatland Circuit in 1984 and directed it until 1991. Over the years, C.A. has managed and served as auctioneer for numerous KQHA sponsored horse sales. As an AQHA judge from 1974- 2000, C.A. has overseen shows from coast to coast and border to border plus Hawaii. With a wide berth of international judging experiences. C.A. was elected an AQHA national director in 1992 and was elevated to Director Emeritus in 2002. He is currently a member of the Show and Contest Committee and Chairman of the World Show Sub-Committee. No stranger to the show arena, C.A. has bred, raised, and/ or shown numerous KQHA year-end high point winners and futurity champions. Denny Hassett Denny was born in Tonganoxie, Kansas. While growing up, Denny really didn’t care for horses, even though the rest of the family did. Finally, a family friend, George Wingate, talked him into going to some open horse shows where he and his son showed a few reining horses. It didn’t take long before Denny was hooked. Denny began to attend open and saddle club sponsored shows. In 1962 he began to take in a few outside horses to train at the same time he worked. Finally, in 1970 Denny became a full-time trainer. He showed and won in reining, pleasure, and halter classes. Twenty-three AQHA World Championships and 22 Reserve World Championships, followed by numerous winnings in futurity classes. Hassett has given back to the Quarter Horse industry as well. He has served on the KQHA Board of Directors and is currently serving on the AQHA Board of Directors representing Kansas. He is also the author of “Winning at Halter”, a book which describes how to select, fit, and show the halter horse. Hassett was also inducted into the KQHA Hall of Fame for his outstanding achievements and contribution to the industry. DuaneWalker Duane Walker has been a Quarter Horse breeder for more than 40 years. Born in Brookville, Kansas, in 1935, Duane grew up surrounded by horses. After marrying his wife, Jo, Duane moved to Canton, Kansas, to work in a grain elevator. Duane returned to the horse business in 1964, when his oldest son, Tim, needed a horse for 4-H. Walker purchased Frosty Money for $300 and the Tee Jay Ranch was formed. Duane remains active in the Kansas Quarter Horse Association, with whom he has served two terms as president, and in 2000 was inducted into the Kansas Quarter Horse Hall of Fame. One of the main projects that occurred during Duane’s service to the organization was the initiation and promotion of the now highly successful Kansas Quarter Horse Futurity. In 1997, Duane served as a Miss Rodeo America judge and, in 1999, was honored as the Kansas State University Stockman of the Year. Duane was inducted into the American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame in 2008. Brent Wright Brent become an NRHA Million Dollar Rider at the 2008 National Reining Breeders Classic (NRBC) in Katy, Texas. According to NRHA records Brent’s lifetime earnings totaled just over $973,417 before the NRBC. Brent grew up showing horses but took his first reining horse in the pen in 1987. He says he didn’t have a trainer and taught himself the ropes through much trial and error. Some of Brent’s major wins include earning the 2002 NRHA Open Futurity Reserve Championship and the NRHA Open Derby Championship. The number of winnings on Brent’s list is vast and too much to put into one list.

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