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Dave Rabe’s Cheys Cocamoe Joe is AHA’s 2024 Distance Horse of the Year
By Nina Bomar
Longtime endurance rider, PS Regional director, and friend to many, Marci Schmidt Cunningham, took it upon herself to nominate Dave Rabe and Cocamoe Joe for the Arabian Horse Association “Distance Horse of the Year Award”. It is no surprise that he and his horse emerged victorious!
This special award belongs to a deserving team that will appreciate and enjoy it for many years. It’s a great honor and tribute to Dave, a talented and enduring horseman, and his horse “Cocamoe Joe,” who knows how to get things done!
Dave's happiness soared when he found out, and immediately shared the news with Cocamoe Joe. I can say with certainty that their pride in receiving such an honorable recognition shines brightly.
Please enjoy the nomination letter I’ve shared below, which Marci passionately wrote and submitted to AHA. Thank you, Marci, for doing a great thing for our most accomplished endurance rider in AERC history and his perfect 10+ horse, Cocamoe Joe.
“Cheys Cocamoe Joe started his endurance career in 2011 during the Twenty Eleven Pony Express ride from St Joe MO to Virginia City NV over eight weeks. He was part of Australian Charlie Gauci’s string of horses that he brought to the ride. At the end of the ride, Charlie gave him to Dave Rabe because no one wanted to buy him since he had a reputation for being unruly. As of 2024 Dave Rabe has been riding AERC sanctioned endurance rides for close to 40 years and has over 78,000 miles. However, this write up is not about Dave Rabe, but Cheys Cocamoe Joe and what he has accomplished in his fourteen seasons of endurance, most notably his “Perfect 10” award.
“The AERC “Perfect 10” award is one of the most coveted awards that AERC offers and the most difficult to achieve. In 2023, Cheys Cocamoe Joe became a “Perfect 10” which means that he has competed for at least 10 years, with 10,000 miles, 10 first place finishes, and 10 best condition awards. Only ten equines have achieved this AERC award since its inception in 1997. There are thousands of horses that have competed in AERC endurance rides over the years but only a minute fraction has become “Perfect 10” recipients. It is hard to imagine riding a horse 10 plus years for 10,000 miles with 10 first place finishes and 10 best condition awards, and Cheys Cocamoe Joe is one of only ten horses with this accomplishment.
“Dave admires him for both his strength and determination. They often disagree on their speed and pacing, but Dave has done a great job conserving him and keeping him sound and healthy. Cheys Cocamoe Joe is always ready for the next ride, even after achieving the Perfect 10 award. One of their most memorable rides was the 2016 Shamrock ride where they were first place and Cheys Cocamoe Joe received Best Condition with a perfect vet score of 800 points.
“Out of 230 endurance ride starts, Cheys Cocamoe Joe has 222 completions, 15 first places, and 14 Best Condition awards over his career to date. He has completed 4 one hundred-mile rides, including the Tevis Cup in 2018 when Charlie Gauci flew back to the states from Australia to compete. Dave had promised Charlie that he could ride him in the Tevis Cup. Cheys Cocamoe Joe was ‘Top 5’ in the 2015, 2021, and 2024 AHA Region 2 Fifty Mile Endurance Championship Rides.
“From 2015 through 2023* Cheys Cocamoe Joe has placed in the year-end AERC West Region Middleweight division standings. He was first place in every year except for 2018 and 2019 where he placed second and third, respectively. In 2015, 2022, and 2023 he placed first overall in the West Region, one of the largest and most competitive AERC regions. Regional Points are based on horse/rider teams in each region earning the most weight division and overall points. In 2023 Dave and Cheys Cocamoe Joe received the AERC National Senior Mileage Championship Award completing 1,275 miles, besting the second-place horse by 305 miles.
“Cheys Cocamoe Joe turned nineteen in 2024 and is still competing in endurance with 11,500 miles to date, 410 of those miles are in 2024. With a 14-year career and still going strong, Cheys Cocamoe Joe will be competing for many years with Dave Rabe’s guidance and is a worthy recipient of the 2024 AHA Distance Horse of the Year Award.”
*There were no year-end awards in 2020 due to Covid.
Vonita Kay Bowers 1954-2024
Hornnailhaggardfh.com
Vonita Kay Bowers was born on February 25, 1954 to Gordon and Mary Cooper Tipping. She passed away on November 23, 2024, at the age of 70.
Vonita had a deep passion for horseback riding and was a dedicated equestrian. With 9,960 competition miles, she competed across North America as an Endurance rider for almost 40 years.
Vonita is preceded in death by her parents, Gordon and Mary Lois Tipping; loving husband, Dr. Michael L. Bowers; sisters, Geneva Murl Tipping, Janice Tipping Griffith; brothers, Jack Tipping, Donald Tipping; friend and companion, Joe Herron. Those left to cherish her memory are her sons, Aaron Bowers and wife, Britney, Matt Bowers and wife, Amanda; grandchildren, Haley Bowers, Piper Bowers, Lailah Bowers, Abigail Bowers, Michael R. Bowers; beloved nephew, Bill Bowers and wife, Stephanie; brother, Anthony Tipping; numerous nieces and nephews, friends, and extended family; as well as friend and companion, Russell Broussard.
The family would like to thank Chambers Hospice for their dedication and support during this difficult time. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested donations be made to the Prevent Cancer Foundation. https://preventcancer.org/donate/
A visitation will be held on Monday, November 25, 2024, from 5-7 PM in the chapel of Horn-Nail-Haggard Funeral Home. A funeral service will be held on Tuesday, November 26, 2024, at 10 AM in the chapel of Horn-Nail-Haggard Funeral Home. Interment will take place in Hughes Springs Cemetery.
To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of Vonita Kay Bowers please visit our Sympathy Store.
NW Endurance Rider Barb McGann Releases New Ebook
November 23 2024
All The Great Horses (And How They Enriched My Life Through The Years) is a new ebook release from Idaho Endurance rider Barb McGann. It joins the Endurance.net bookshelf as a keeper!
Seen through the eyes of a horse-crazy young 9-year-old girl, and now, a mature horse-crazy adult with a lifetime of equine wisdom, McGann shares with readers stories of some of the most memorable horses and riding adventures throughout her lifetime. From her first Quarter horse/Morgan mare Lil to her last horses Katie and Ellie, she recounts the accomplishments and personalities of these special horses that touched her heart and set the course(s) of her life.
As a young girl, McGann and her mom ran a riding stable in the red rock canyons of Utah, and besides the memorable horses they owned, taking German soldiers stationed at White Sands, NM, provided endless miles and memories and, in some cases, entertainment for both McGann and the German Dudes.
Once McGann discovered Endurance riding in the 1970s, the horse adventures took off in a whole new direction. Riding Arabians, Saddlebreds, Standardbreds, Quarter horses, and a Tennessee Walker over the decades, McGann’s escapades in and out of the saddle will surprise and delight anyone who has ever had - or wanted - a horse of their own.
Get it on Amazon here:
https://www.amazon.com/ALL-GREAT-HORSES-ENRICHED-THROUGH-ebook/dp/B0DNRVB3WW/ref=sr_1_1?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.vyCW7KuXTWqEWag3g5kmeg.Wi8l0A9-3yVnBOEeFoBLGLqHXTihBhnPMJXmn8bMU78&dib_tag=se&qid=1732465236&refinements=p_27%3ABARB+MCGANN&s=digital-text&sr=1-1&text=BARB+MCGANN
See the rest of Endurance.net’s bookshelf here:
http://www.endurance.net/Books/
Tom Bowling Passes Away
On 11/17/24, AERC lost a family member who fought a tough battle with Parkinson’s after a stroke several years ago.
For those who knew Tom Bowling, past AERC director for many years, 2000 mile XP rider, founder of Pioneer rides in 1982 as ride manager of historic 200 mile multi day Capitol to Capitol ride, Western States 50 and original manager of Camp Far West Endurance Rides, Nevada Endurance Driving Association founding member and member and friend of Nevada All State Trail Riders. Beloved friend to many, he changed the lives of many for the better.
Husband to Nadine for over 53 years and father to Wendy, Holly, Shawn Bowling, Tiffany and grandpa to Kaitlyn, Shelby, Brett, Nick, Jack, Ryder Bowling, Levi and great grandpa to Kaitlyn’s three boys and Shelby’s three girls and father in law to Aaron, Shane, Lisa, and Matt and a mentor to many.
He is missed dearly and for any who’d like to remember him you are welcome to attend a celebration of his life on Friday December 13 at 1pm in Newcastle, California.