The NRCHA (National Reined Cow Horse Association) annually bestows a very prestigious award that recognizes one of their members that works tirelessly to promote the association and strives to retain traditional reined cow horse methods. This year’s Vaquero Award recipient is Farmington, California, cowgirl Debby Sanguinetti. Her parents, the late Dr. John Britton and Connie Britton, were instrumental in the conception of the famed Pioneer Equine Hospital in Oakdale, Calif. She was born to be a cowgirl in and out of the arena.  Congratulations Debby!
Debby Sanguinetti: “I was fortunate to be born in Oakdale, California, the Cowboy Capital of the World. My childhood was spent with some of the best rodeo cowboys in the world. I remember one morning when my sister Susan and I were getting ready for school and Sonny Tureman (three time world champion bareback rider) dropped by for coffee with my parents. Mom was braiding our hair and tried to get us to take our One-A-Day vitamins. We were giving her a hard time when Sonny reached over, grabbed the bottle and immediately swallowed two of the pills. From that day forward, our parents had trouble getting us to only take one!  My mother told us years later that she never realized that a bronc rider would become the idol of her two daughters.
I began showing bridle horses in my teens. My sister was showing rail horses (pleasure and equitation). When I turned 16, I was given the keys to the Chevy. I hooked it up to the two-horse Miley trailer we borrowed from Bob Cook and was told by our parents to haul our own horses to the shows. We often came home excited about winning at the horse shows and couldn’t wait to spread the good news.
“Louie Zabala was a great family friend and expert horseman who lived just down the road. He gave me many tips on how to train my stock horses and took special interest when I began purchasing colts from his brother-in-law Harold Chapin from Winnemucca, Nev. When we came home from the shows, I remember Louie would ask “what did you girls win?” I was so proud to announce that I got a ribbon for my endeavors competing against other juniors with trainers present and high dollar horses. “You can’t eat ribbon soup, can you?” he’d laughingly tell me. From that day forward we would jackpot in the open stock horse classes so we wouldn’t have to eat “ribbon soup” anymore. He inspired us to show above our expectations and excel.
“I learned how to throw a heel loop from Vince Shambo and play cards from Ace Berry. It just doesn’t get any better as I was able to win the 2009 National Western Stock Show Versatility Ranch Horse Classic in Denver beating all the Colorado and Texas cowboys. Versatility classes included roping as well as reining pattern and cow work. I was certainly proud to represent Oakdale!
“My mother told me early on in my horse show career that the best horsemen were the ones showing stock horses. When I was in high school I had a champion steer at our county fair and after I sold him I was able to buy an older Frank Rue stock horse that taught me a lot. Since then I have owned over 50 reined cow horses. Almost all of them also learned to rope cattle. I have had six horses receive the premier award NRCHA has for a horse-Supreme Champion. There are so many members in the association these days I can brag that my NRCHA number is #113. Receiving the NRCHA Vaquero award is so special  to me as is striving to retain traditional reined cowhorse methods.”

Debby Sanguinetti along with her sister Susan Buckman, riding Goose at one of the early 1960’s Oakdale 10 Steer Ropings.