Joseph Bentz was invited to compete at the 2025 Road to the Horse Wild Card Challenge held March 27–28 in Lexington, Kentucky. The Wild Card Challenge showcased four colt starters—each given just three hours to build trust, communication, and performance with a three-year-old filly over the course of two days. Road to the Horse, founded in 2003, is the “World Championship of Colt Starting”, designed to highlight horsemanship rooted in trust, feel, and timing. The Wild Card Challenge functions as a proving ground, with the winner advancing to the Championship Competition the same weekend. Rounds 1 & 2 were on Thursday, March 27 and the Wild Card Finals were on Friday, March 28.

Unlike the longer-format Championship, the Wild Card Challenge is a condensed two-day event. Judging at Road to the Horse focuses on the horseman’s ability to build a solid, trust-based foundation with the colt across multiple categories—from initial haltering and groundwork to saddling, riding, and overall communication. Scores reflect not only technical progress but also the clinician’s feel, timing, demeanor, rule-following and ability to read and respond to the colt’s individual needs. Scores for each criterion are judged from 0-5 in half-point increments. Scores are cumulative across all rounds, and the high and low score are discarded for each round. The competitors have just over 3 hours in total to be able to showcase their abilities and make substantial progress with their fillies.

Joseph Bentz’s Journey with PLAYGIRL N CD

Representing a deep ranching tradition from Juntura, Oregon, Joseph Bentz arrived in Lexington with mentorship from National Reined Cow Horse Association Open Snaffle Bit Futurity Champion and Road to the Horse World Champion Nick Dowers, who served as his Pen Wrangler. Joseph selected Colt #1: PLAYGIRL N CD—a filly by NASTY CD out of TRR MS PEP PLAYBOY by PEPCID. In Round 1, Joseph went in with a plan to rope his filly but was able to get her caught just by halter within minutes. He then wentto work, getting to know her and preparing her to saddle in a calm, methodical way. By Round 2, Joseph was ready to ride. With guidance from Dowers, he carefully navigated the filly’s “stickiness”—moments of hesitation or resistance—and made a first ride. He stayed focused on leaving her in a good frame of mind, ensuring each small success laid the foundation for the next. The Final Round was the culmination of his efforts. Competitors had 20 minutes in the round pen followed by 15 minutes rail work in the arena, where they were judged on a sequence of controlled, “declared” maneuvers: walk, trot, lope, stop, turns, mount/dismount, and an optional bonus challenge— crossing a white tarp. "Wild Card competitor Joseph Bentz built a strong foundation with his talented filly, showcasing the impressive depth of talent in this year’s Wild Card lineup." — Road to the Horse