Morris County is cowboy country, with several of the nation’s top cowboys and cowgirls.
Verification comes as six Council Grove area ranch horse riders have qualified for the prestigious Versatility Ranch Horse World Show.
Scott Bankes, Mark Hickey, Heidi Lange, Matt Lange Shawn Tiffany and Ransom Tiffany will be competing there June 12-17.
At the Lazy E Arena in Guthrie, Oklahoma, the inaugural event is sponsored by the American Quarter Horse Association. Actually, there will be four ranch-horse shows in the one major competition.
To be eligible for participation, the local exhibitors competed in qualifying events throughout the past year.
The Morris County entries have qualified in several different divisions of the competition. Among those categories are cutting, boxing, working cow horse, heading, heeling, tie-down roping, breakaway roping and ranch riding.
Ransom Tiffany, 11, will be the youngest local rider on his nine-year-old Quarter Horse mare Country Bay Whiz. He’s entered in the limited youth ranch riding class of the newly formed National Ranch and Stock Horse Alliance.
Alongside his dad, Shawn Tiffany, the young cowboy’s also entered in championship ranch riding and rookie ranch riding.