Show the broke horse
A traditional reining run: circles, turns, and stops that prove the horse is soft, willing, and handling on a working cowboy's rein.
13181 Hwy 177
Byars, OK 74831
Office: (580) 301-6969
8am to 4:30pm CST
Presented By
Cowboy Heritage Ranch Challenge
$30,000 • Ten Ranches • August 14
Ten cowboys, one from each of ten legendary heritage ranches, ride a traditional reining and cow work run and stop a steer, the working cowboy's craft under the Friday night lights.
$30,000On The Line
10Heritage Ranches
3Reining • Cow Work • Roping
Aug 14Friday • 6:45 PM
The Format
Ten ranches send their best cowboy.
The Cowboy Heritage Ranch Challenge presented by Markel brings ten cowboys, one per ranch, from some of the most storied heritage ranches in North America to the 2026 Run For A Million.
These are working cowboys on ranch horses, not show-pen specialists. Each competes a traditional reining and cow work run, then stops a steer, with $30,000 on the line and a ranch's name on every ride.
The Cowboy Heritage Ranch Challenge runs Friday night at 6:45 PM, in a stacked slate that opens with the Breakaway Roping Showcase presented by Shorty's Caboy Hattery at 6:00 PM and the Youth Cow Horse Challenge Cow Work at 6:30 PM, before the Cow Horse Challenge Cow Work closes the night at 7:00 PM.
The Ranches
Ten brands, ten cowboys
One rider carries each ranch's name into the pen.
10 Heritage Ranches • One Cowboy Each6666
6666 Ranch
Guthrie, Texas
LT
Las Tunas Ranch
Chihuahua, Mexico
ORO
O RO Ranch
Prescott, Arizona
PF
Pitchfork Ranch
Guthrie, Texas
RAB
R.A. Brown Ranch
Throckmorton, Texas
SS
Silver Spur Ranches
SR
Singleton Ranches
Lamy, New Mexico
TRR
Tongue River Ranch
Paducah, Texas
WH
Wagonhound Ranch
Douglas, Wyoming
XIT
XIT Ranch
Channing, Texas
The Run
Three jobs, one run
Everything in this class comes straight off the ranch. The reining shows the broke horse, the cow work shows the cow horse, and the steer stop shows the rope, the same jobs a ranch horse does at daylight, done under an arena's lights.
These are working cowboys, riding for the brand.
Show the cow horse
A single cow enters the pen and the horse goes to work, holding and handling it the way ranch horses read cattle every day.
Show the rope
The cowboy ropes a steer and brings it to a stop, the finishing job that separates a ranch hand's run from a show pen pattern.
Names like the 6666, the Pitchfork, and the XIT have been running cattle for more than a century. On Friday night their cowboys ride for the brand at The Run For A Million.
Friday • August 14 • 6:45 PM
Ten ranches. One cowboy each. The brand rides Friday night.
Every run streams live from South Point Arena.
Presented By