WPRA NEWS

Gunderson Gaining Notoriety as Top Futurity Trainer with Third World Title

By Kristen M. White

Three futurity world championships. Three different horses, from three owners. Clearly Heidi Gunderson is onto something.

She took home the 2024 Futurity World Champion title aboard Lucky Blaze (Holly), owned by Shannon Kulseth. Gunderson also won the title in 2023 and 2021. She said she feels blessed to have had such luck and chalked a lot of it up to trust.

            “All three of the horses were good from day one, and they didn’t change hands and the owners trusted us in every decision that we made for them,” Gunderson said. Her husband, Mark, starts the horses and within a couple of months can usually tell if it’s a ride that she might find success on.

            “He’ll tell me ‘You’re going to like this horse, the way it moves its feet,’ or whatever,” she said. “He can tell right away if they’re trainable. And Lucky Blaze, she came to us from my friend Shannon who bought her as a yearling, and she’s never left us.

            “Shannon trusts that we’re a team and trusts everything we do. My husband started her and it’s just so awesome to ride for people who trust you, knowing that we’re doing what is best for the horse.”

            Gunderson said she had to take her time with Holly, as she wasn’t the easiest to start, but she showed consistency and, in the end, she knew the horse would be a good one. The original plan was to futurity her as a 4-year-old – they even had her paid into the BFA – but then decided to hold her back a year and it paid off.

            “She was so consistent this year,” Gunderson said. “She went out and made good runs and didn’t hit barrels and got in a lot of averages. I don’t think she could have done that as a 4-year-old. As a 5-year-old, I felt like I was riding a broke horse.”

            She entered Holly in her first futurity in April where she placed in the 1D, and from there, Gunderson continually gained confidence in the horse. She said she knew she could send her down the alley to turn three barrels well, and when the summer hit they had reached a good stride.

            “I think really, I wanted to win this for Shannon,” Gunderson said. “Seeing her face, how happy she was with the win. Of course I’m happy to win a third championship, and on three different horses, this has really given me more confidence as a trainer too. It’s so self-satisfying, all the time we’ve put in and what I’ve worked for since I was a girl. These are my dreams I’ve had my whole life coming true and I’m thankful for God bringing these people and horses to us.”

            Gunderson is an online teacher, but says she’s been considering whether to join Mark full-time training horses. Holly’s victory has been a big push into seriously considering the change.

            Kulseth plans to use Holly in the breeding operation she’s building, Gunderson said, and Gunderson may do some rodeos aboard Holly. She’s also riding some new horses for Kulseth, so who knows – maybe there’s yet another futurity championship in her future.