Tamworth hosts National Cutting Horse Association of Australia Futurity

The National Cutting Horse Association of Australia (NCHA) Futurity has kicked off at the Australian Equine Livestock Events Centre (AELEC) with events being held every day for the next fortnight.

But it will be the $100,000 Futurity event on June 11 that New England horse trainer Phil Dawson and hundreds of others have their sights set on, as their Quarter Horses go through the grades across the two-week event.

Mr Dawson owns Phil Dawson Cutting Horses, located near Bingara, and is one of only five people competing in the event whose earnings in the game of 'cutting' have ticked over the one million dollar mark.

During a cutting competition the rider has only two and a half minutes to separate two or three cows from the herd.

The rider then has to drop his or her reins and use only their legs to steer the horse while 'working' one cow to prevent it returning to the group.

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Mr Dawson said a lot of effort goes into ensuring each horse is physically and mentally prepared and at the top of their game.

"I always use the analogy of an NRL football team; for example, the Brisbane Broncos," Mr Dawson said.

"So, how many 18-year-old guys have they got signed? And how many of those are going to make first grade, or the state of origin, or play for Australia?"

Of the 23 Quarter Horses Mr Dawson handpicked to compete in the $100,000 Futurity for three-year-old horses on Sunday, only six were intelligent, witty and athletic enough to be chosen to compete.

"The other horses didn't make the grade because they either physically didn't have the attributes, weren't intelligent enough or didn't have enough of the 'cow sense' to be at that level," Mr Dawson said.

Event goers will be able to see Mr Dawson riding his trusty grey named Scooter, an eight-year-old workhorse, as one of three who help corral the cow picked by the competitor during each event.

The event is free with stalls such as Ariat, Dixie Lane, Just Country, Grace and Wild, Cinch and many more selling everything from women's and men's western wear to horse riding gear, and New Holland Double R tractors.

Futurity competitions are for three-year-old horses, whereas the Classics are for five, six and seven-year-old horses, and the Derby is for four-year-olds.

There are also non-pro and amateur sections.

Local horseman Wayne Brown recently returned to his hometown of Tamworth after 40 years living in Queensland, to take up the position as NCHA General Manager.

"I've been involved as a competitor and a breeder for more than 20 years," Mr Brown said. "I am very passionate about it."

He said this year's NCHA at AELEC, with more than 500 competitors expected, is the biggest indoor equine sporting event in the southern hemisphere and is expected to pump an estimated $2.3 million into the Tamworth economy.

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