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Andrea Fappani grew up in a world that takes more than a passing interest in the arts, in fashion and in fast cars. However, the traditional Italian interests didn't turn Andrea's head from his passion for horses. And not even the acceptable dressage or jumping horses, but the all-American dream of riding western. And so his family took up the dream and Andrea was showing reining horses at the ripe old age of nine! He remained a Non-Pro through his teen years, winning the Reserve Championship title at the Italian Reining Futurity twice, and Championships at both the Derby and Maturity level.
After completing high school, Andrea wished to live his dream of coming to the Unites States and working with the 'masters' of the reining trade. He moved to Arizona and took up an apprenticeship with two of the acknowledged ‘masters,' John Slack and Todd Bergen. His father provided the first show horses, making it possible for Andrea to jump start his reputation in this country with a Non-Pro Championship at the West Coast Spectacular on one of the family's show horses. Just a month later this rising star traveled to Oklahoma City where he took on the NRHA Futurity challenge and came away with the Limited Non-Pro Championship and a fourth place finish in the Non-Pro Futurity. It was an impressive start.
According to Italian law, Andrea owed some time to the military. He went back to Italy and fulfilled his service duties in less than a year. He returned to the US and moved directly to Medford, Oregon where Todd Bergen had set up his training stables. The apprenticeship continued, and Andrea Fappani continued to draw attention. In 2000 he won the NRHA Intermediate Open Futurity, followed it up in 2001 with every reining trainer's dream...the Open Championship. He is the youngest rider ever to win the NRHA Open Championship and the first European to do so. He followed that with finalist placing at both the National Reining Breeder's Classic and the NRHA Derby before making the decision to go out on his own. His reputation was made, and it was time to move on.
In the spring of 2002 Andrea was welcoming clients at his facility in Temecula, California, where he concentrates on molding the minds and talents of young futurity and derby hopefuls. In 2003, with that first set of hopefuls ready to hit the show pen, Andrea proved his dream come true. He was an NRHA Derby finalist, won the West Coast Spectacular for the third year in a row and topped it off with placing Reserve and third at the NRHA Futurity. In fact, all three of the Fappani entries made the finals. Andrea, now a father of son Luca, was back with the same goals in 2004. He earned NRHA's prestigious Derby Reserve Champion title and took home the West Coast Spectacular Champion title for the forth year in a row and had three NRHA Futurity Finalists.
Andrea continued his winning streak in 2005 as the NRBC Open Derby Reserve champion. He also won the Open Derbies at the Reining By The Bay and the MEC Spectacular. Andrea was #2 in the Top 20 Professionals of 2005. To top off his year in 2005, Andrea was the NRHA Futurity Reserve Champion aboard Big Chex To Cash.
Andrea kept it up again in 2006 with another #2 NRHA Top 20 Professionals and placing in the NRHA Futurity, Derby and NRBC top ten. He also became the first European rider to break into the million dollar riders club. Most recently, Andrea was crowned the 2007 NRBC Open Champion aboard Custom Legend.
Fappani Performance Horses has moved to a new state of the art training facility in San Marcos, CA. Andrea is now selling his series of VHA and DVD teaching videos on his website as well as his line of custom bits.
