2014 was a standout year for Spooks Gotta Whiz. Before they dominated at the
World Equestrian Games, Shawn Flarida and Spooks Gotta Whiz had to defeat their Gold Medal teammates to win the 2014 Adequan/USEF Open Reining National Championship. Their performance at the
Kentucky Reining Cup was a sign of things to come and hailed as one of the “Best of 2014” by the
United States Equestrian Federation.
The story of Spooks Gotta Whiz aka “Baby Spooks” began in September, 2009, when Michell Kimball met his then owner, Duane Hicks, at the High Roller Reining Classic show in Las Vegas.
Seeking a
National Reining Horse Association (NRHA) Open Futurity prospect, Duane Hicks told her about his two year olds out of Spooks Gotta Gun. The icing on the cake for Michell was that both of Duane’s horses were bay and she had been looking for a bay
Reiner for over eight years! She flew to The Hicks Ranch in Marietta, Oklahoma, the very next day. The minute Kimball sat on Spooks Gotta Whiz, she knew that he was extraordinary. The deal was sealed and down the road went “Baby Spooks”, moving to Southern California.
“In a sea of Paints, Palominos and Red horses, a beautiful Bay always catches your eye,” said Kimball. But, it was more than beauty that led to Spooks Gotta Whiz becoming the 2010
National Reining Horse Association Open Futurity Champion with a score of 227.
Fast forward to April 2014 when Kimball’s
American Quarter Horse Association/
American Paint Horse Association stallion posted the top scores on both days of competition to win the Adequan/USEF Open Reining National Championship and Selection Trial for the 2014 Alltech FEI
World Equestrian Games U.S.
Reining Squad with Shawn Flarida.
The pair headed to Normandy and took the
FEI Reining World Championships by storm. With his teammates on the Adequan U.S. Reining Squad having already secured the Gold medal, Flarida and Spooks Gotta Whiz did not hold back when it was their turn, giving the sold-out venue a master class of FEI pattern six. A score of 229.5 would give the U.S. team a final score of 677.5, an amazing 14.5 points better than the Belgium Silver Medal team.
Their work was not done there, as they still faced the Individual Final at the end of the week. Flarida and Spooks Gotta Whiz were the final competitors to take to the show pen, leaving a lasting impression with a score of 233.5. A fan favorite coming into the competition, the duo did not disappoint with unbeatable work at the circles, powerful sliding stops and rollbacks, and crisp transitions. Their score was the highest in WEG reining history, earning the Individual Gold and bragging rights for the next four years.
“He runs his butt off. This horse has a heart as big as his spirit”, said-Shawn Flarida. Kimball agrees, “He’s the most talented, athletic, and personable horse that I have ever owned!”