Article and Photo by Kenneth Springer, originally published in the August 2006 issue of BHN.
It was no secret that an air of excitement surrounded the event when Sherry Cervi’s name appeared on the “add-on sheet” with five horses for Race 1, Race 2 and Race 3. The two-time WPRA world champion and 10- time NFR qualifier’s name is consistently mentioned with Charmayne James, Martha Josey and Kristie Peterson when NBHA champions are asked to name the barrel racers they admire most. Cervi didn’t let down her fans, placing on three of the five horses she ran and earning a total of $4,685 during the weekend. She topped Race 2 aboard PC Frenchmans Hayday (“Dinero”). Sired by Sun Frost and out of Caseys Charm, Dinero is a full brother to Kristie Peterson’s three-time WPRA world champion barrel horse French Flash Hawk (“Bozo”).
Read “Throwback: World Champion Kristie Peterson and ‘Bozo'” here
“He ran really hard and was snappy in his turns,” said Cervi of her left-turn-first stallion. “I tipped the third barrel, but thank goodness it didn’t fall over. It was one of his best runs, and I was really proud of him.”
Purchased as a 3-year-old by Cervi’s father, Mel Potter, the palomino stallion’s primary purpose has been as a key part of Potter’s breeding program.
“My dad takes a lot of pride in his breeding program, and it pleases me when I can win something big like this because it helps us build my horse’s reputation as a barrel horse,” said Cervi. “I’ve placed on him at several big rodeos, such as Pendleton [Ore.] and the NFR, but he’s had more exposure as a heel horse, in which he’s probably won more than $70,000 and was the third place American Quarter Horse Association Heeling Horse of the Year last year in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association. I want to finish his barrel racing career, and I plan to run him more this year than in the past. I’ve never stayed on him to make run after run, and that’s the only way you can get a barrel horse finished out and solid.”
Read “Warm-Up and Cool Down With Vickie Solmonsen” here
Just like Vickie Solmonsen, Cervi was using the John Deere Western World NBHA Super Show as a warm-up for the following week’s competition in Reno.
“I’d never been to a major NBHA show,” admitted Cervi. “I was glad I could make this one, because it was run first class and the ground was awesome. I wish rodeo ground was like this. It’s been a fun show, and the South Coast facility is awesome.”
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