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From
the Back Cover --
"Fame & Glory: The First Decade
of NCHA Futurities" begins in 1961 when a few horsemen held fast to the
idea of a
show for young horses, amid a field of pessimism about such a
preposterous idea. Told by the men and women who helped to make it
happen, these pages step you back into Futurity history starting with
that first event in Sweetwater Texas, in 1962.The Futurity was then, and
continues to be, a show like none other. Remembering that first show,
Zack Wood, who, in 1962, had just been hired as the secretary for NCHA
shared, "Those guys riding down there were white as a hell! They'd never
cut for anything that big in their life!" The excitement of that show
was contagious, and yearly, the momentum grew. In these pages you will
read about the early behind-the-scenes struggles to hold the financially
wobbling show together, the fortitude of strong-minded cutters unafraid
to step out into a new frontier, and the fantastic horses on which they
competed. Each chapter is also rich in stories, not only of that year's
show, but of the events leading up to it. Relive how Buster Welch didn't
have a good futurity prospect
until he heard about Rey Jay's Pete standing in Illinois; how Bubba
Cascio swears that Matlock Rose couldn't have moved a hair during his
treacherous ride on Christmas Four; how Doc Hamilton went from a rider
unable to sit in the saddle to winning the Futurity, the first
non-professional to do it. In essence, "Fame & Glory: The First Decade
of NCHA Futurities" is a history book, preserving the abundant heritage
of a show that has become the greatest cutting
horse show on earth.
About the Author
Gala Nettles has been writing about horses and the people who own
and train them for twenty years. She has been living in the midst of
them, however, longer than that. Married to NCHA Hall of Fame cutting
horse trainer Ronnie Nettles, the couple reside on a ranch in
Madisonville, Texas, along with kids and horses and dogs and buffalo.
Life with a cutting horse trainer gives plenty of fodder for writing.
The love for writing, though, blossomed years ago under the tutelage of
Miss Mary, her sixth grade English teacher. "I'll never forget sitting
in her classroom, third row, front desk. She was fascinating. At one
time, our English lesson was to describe fences, and we spent days doing
it. The challenge was to make the reader 'see' that fence in only one
sentence. That's when I realized how important one word can be to get
plenty of bang for your buck." Since then writing has become her
passion. After receiving a Bachelors Degree from Baylor University and a
Masters Degree from Sam Houston State University, she followed in
Miss Mary's foot steps, teaching English for awhile before venturing out
to become a freelance writer. Today she not only writes books, but she
also free lances articles, primarily for the equine industry, and pens
three columns.
With Fame & Glory: The First Decade of NCHA Futurities" she has 14 books
to her credit and eight instructional cutting booklets.
Gala Nettles
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