November 8-23, 2013, Oklahoma City

Amateur Performance Halter Geldings

One Hot Amigo wins another world championship, this time with Kyle Rampey.

by Larri Jo Starkey
The American Quarter Horse Journal

See that horse in the photo to the left?

You probably recognize him.

One Hot Amigo has been in the top three at two AQHA world championships so far this year, and on November 5, he made it a third by winning amateur performance halter geldings with Kyle Rampey of Edmond, Oklahoma, at the 2012 AQHA World Championship Show.

“It was my turn,” Kyle said minutes after accepting his gold trophy. “I was hoping it was last year, but it turned out to be this year.

“We started off by taking a little break this year. We didn’t show as much in an effort to get him a little bit more fit than we did last year – against my daughter’s wishes – but we ended up doing really well. My father-in-law (John Watts) was world champion at the Select World, and I couldn’t let him get one more buckle than me, so I had high hopes to win today and it paid off.”

Kyle was reserve world champion with “Amigo” in 2011, and the horse is a family favorite.

“We’ve had him three or four years,” Kyle said. “We got him from (Chester and Anne) Prince. We just love him to death. He can do everything. My daughter (Kaylee) was a finalist in hunter hack at the (2012 Built Ford Tough AQHYA World Championship Show) and also third in performance halter geldings. Next year, I won’t show him in performance halter. We’ll focus on jumping and riding.”

The Jim Norick coliseum at State Fair Park was filled with 31 horses November 4, but Kyle and Amigo placed first on four of the five judges’ cards.

“We took some time off and showed against some good horses this year, but some of these horses I haven’t seen until today,” Kyle said. “For me, there are always nerves that go with it. The lights are pretty bright out there this is only my second world championship show, so I’ve been very blessed to have done so well in two shows.”