Preston Kent and SH Cool Dude – 2012 Scottsdale Half Arabian Reining Futurity Reserve Champion

SH Smoke N Sparks (Shiners Bright Spark x Vannalou) and Nathan Kent – 2016 Scottsdale Level 1 Half Arabian Reining Futurity Reserve Champions. SH Rockin Reminic (Reminics Bullseye x Noble Duchess) and Preston Kent – 2016 Scottsdale Level 1 Half Arabian Reining Futurity Champions.

Preston has been involved with Arabians and half-Arabians his entire life. His father has been breeding, raising, training, and selling working western Arabians and half-Arabians for over 30 years. Dave Kent’s goal has always been to produce quiet, good-minded horses with a ton of athletic ability. His breeding farm, Sage Hill Arabians, is located in Malad, Idaho.

Reining in the Arabian world has grown significantly just in the past ten years. It is also the fastest-growing discipline in the Arabian show scene. Much of the recent growth in Arabian and half-Arabian reining is due to the large amount of money that can be won at the Scottsdale Arabian Horse Show in the reining futurities. The wonderful thing about the Arabian and half-Arabian reining futurity is that both four- and five-year-old horses are eligible to compete in it.

Andrea Fappani, an NRHA $4 million dollar rider, said this about Arabian reining, “I thought the ARBC was a great addition to the show… It brought in people we usually don’t see and opened up people’s eyes that there is good money to be won and that there are good breeders who are putting a lot of effort into breeding Arabian Reiners. I think there will be more and more people looking for them. When I won the NRHA Open Futurity Finals on RR Star in 2001, he was the first Paint to achieve that. Maybe we’ll one day we’ll see a half Arabian win it.”

To give you an idea about the amount of money that can be won at the Scottsdale show, take a look at what was paid out in 2013. The half-Arabian reining futurity champion was awarded $30,000 and the purebred Arabian reining futurity champion received $18,000. The Scottsdale futurities also pay out the top ten places. The total paid out amount for the purebred Arabian reining futurity was $46,000, and the total for the half-Arabian reining futurity was $74,000.

Although the sport of Arabian reining is growing, it is still relatively small when comparing it to NRHA reining shows. In other words, there is less competition but still a significant purse to be won. Preston is committed to helping the growth of the Arabian and half-Arabian reining.

Preston offers a unique opportunity because of his involvement with his dad’s breeding program. If you are interested in Arabian reining, Preston would be happy to talk to you about purchasing a well-bred horse, training it in preparation to show, and showing it at Scottsdale or one of the many other Arabian or reining shows available.

Jessica Bein, a well-respected Arabian and half-Arabian trainer, has said that Sage Hill Arabians is “a well thought-out breeding program consistently turning out outstanding athletes. To top off the great horses, the entire Kent family are knowledgeable and hospitable. Every horse we have purchased has been a good experience. I highly recommend buying from Sage Hill Arabians.”

Read more about Arabian reining on the NRHA site here.

Read more about the history of Arabian reining futurities here.

Read what the Quarter Horse News has to say about Arabian reining here.