Ivy Hurst came out on top of the futurity aboard JJ Flyinginthewind on day one of The 2023 Ruby Buckle Central race in Guthrie, Oklahoma, with a 16.906 on the standard pattern inside the Lazy E Arena, earning $10,000 total on the day.
“JJ’s,” run—which ended in a an elated fist pump from Hurst—nosed Brandon Cullins and JL Gun Totin Charmer out from the No. 1 position. As the only other clean run to break the 16-second barrier all day, Cullins and his 16.988 held the lead from his draw at 79 to Hurst’s at 301.
Hurst and JJ earned $8,000 for owner Jamie Neven, plus a total of $2,000 for Copper Spring Ranch as both JJ’s breeders and Furyofthewind’s owners.
“He’s just fast,” Hurst said. “It wasn’t pretty, but they wrote me the check at the end of the day. That’s what he does—he lets you survive. It doesn’t matter what position you put him in, he always gets the job done.”
Fast is right. JJ has a speed index of 95 to back that up. His April 25 earnings may go down as the first barrel racing earnings in QData’s database for the 2018 gelding, but he has $22,632 on the books in lifetime earnings thanks to his time on the racetrack as a two-year-old. The 2018 gelding earned one race win, four seconds and one third during his outs.
Check out lifetime earnings across multiple disciplines, stallion progeny reports and more at QData.
JJ’s owners put him in The Heritage Place Sale as a 3-year-old, and North Carolina’s Leslie Willis couldn’t pass up an opportunity at a prime Furyofthewind son. Due to health concerns, Willis held JJ to be on track for 5-year-old futurities, but decided he would excel better in a more focused program. One of his potential buyers was Hurst herself, but after she passed on him, Willis sold JJ to Jamie Neven, also a North Carolina resident.
“It made such a difference for him to be put in that one-on-one atmosphere,” Willis said. “I’m tickled for Jamie and Ivy, and I’m so glad he made the horse we knew he could make! They’ve done a great job with him.”
Neven’s busy career took time away from JJ, and she called upon Hurst to help season the gelding and get him on track.
“As soon as he got here, I regretted not buying him,” Hurst, of said. “He’s a special horse—a top 1% horse. He knows he’s special and just has this charisma about him.”
Hurst took the gelding to some smaller jackpots and rodeos, then it was time for the Ruby Buckle, just an hour-and-a-half drive from Hurst’s home in Springer, Oklahoma.
“I was a different kind of nervous for this,” Hurst said. “Bringing him to the big stage and showing everybody what I knew I had—I’ve never had one here that I was confident I could win it on.”
Hurst is excited for the second round of the futurity on April 26, and noted that she isn’t planning on putting the safety on now.
Stay tuned for day two results and more from Ruby Buckle at BRM.
Wondering what happened in the Ruby Buckle Breakaway? Our friends at The Breakaway Roping Journal have you covered.
Ruby Buckle Futurity 2023 Results
1D Top 5
| Horse | Rider | Time | Owner Earnings | Stallion Earnings | Breeder Earnings | |
| 1 | JJ Flyinginthewind | Ivy Hurst | 16.906 | $8,000 | $1,000 | $1,000 |
| 2 | JL Gun Totin Charm | Brandon Cullins | 16.988 | $5,600 | $700 | $700 |
| 3 | Slingin Firewater | Tyler Rivette | 17.008 | $4,400 | $550 | $550 |
| 4 | Tres Chasin Babe PZ | Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi | 17.032 | $3,800 | $475 | $475 |
| 5 | Ticket Ta Heaven | Cassie Ambrose | 17.084 | $2,800 | $350 | $350 |
2D Top 5
| Horse | Rider | Time | Owner Earnings | Stallion Earnings | Breeder Earnings | |
| 1 | Designer Red Bottoms | Kelsey Treharne | 17.659 | $4,800 | $600 | $600 |
| 2 | Mias Famous N Heaven | Dustin Angelle | 17.664 | $3,200 | $400 | $400 |
| 3 | Raining From Heaven | Dustin Angelle | 17.668 | $2,080 | $260 | $260 |
| 4 | Stinsons Flyin Hawk | Chloe Gray | 17.67 | $1,600 | $200 | $200 |
| 5/6 | EasyFrostie | Patrick Bailey | 17.675 | $1,120 | $140 | $140 |
| 5/6 | JKArecklessfrenchman | Tyler Crosby | 17.675 | $1,120 | $140 | $140 |
