Dr. James Morgan has always been a contended in non pro competition, and despite a tough battle with cancer, he proved he still had what it takes to compete in the upper levels of competition during Friday’s Custom Made Dunit Non Pro Futurity.
On his horse Cowboys Ride Away, by Smart And Shiney out of Awhiz Called Wanda, Morgan posted a 217 to not only win the Prime Time Non Pro Championship, but also finish fifth in the Level 4, bringing his total earnings for the weekend to more than $3,000.
“I was diagnosed with cancer, it’s a cholangiocarcinoma. It’s a cancer of bile duct and I was operated on March 28,” Morgan explained. He added that his horse had a five-month vacation in the pasture while he was recovering. “That surgery kicked my butt and to tell you truth, I didn’t know if I would ever ride another horse. I tried riding about six weeks ago and I couldn’t do it until I put on one of those elastic braces around my middle.”
The thought of never competing again was hard, but he persevered. “My Lord and Savior came to my rescue because I never thought I’d compete again at this level. I know what it takes to be there, and the situation I was in was a long way from there,” he said. “I also give credit to my horse. The brain that horse has, and as easy as he is to be around … you can’t do what I just did on a normal horse. I don’t know of any horse that has missed five months of his three-year-old year and done this well. He’s a fantastic horse.”
Morgan also credited his wife for helping him push through the worst of the battle. “It took me six months to get over it, but my wife was so strong. She said, ‘I know you’re going to be able to do it,” he said.