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here are not many halter trainers who can boast of riding in their first show at the age of six, or that they won their first Scottsdale championship as a ten-years-old and under exhibitor, but that’s just what Gary McDonald did, winning his first championship with Jaske-Tu. One of ten children, Gary McDonald grew up loving Arabians as his parents loved them. “My brothers and sisters showed as well, but once they reached the teenage years, they either exceeded 6´5˝ tall and went on to basketball careers, or lost interest. Everyone told me that soon I would be too tall to effectively show Arabians. I made up my mind right then it didn’t matter what happened, I would be around the horses in any capacity possible: As a breeder, owner, photographer, judge … but secretly I was praying that I wouldn’t become as tall as my siblings. I know it was those prayers being answered that stopped me at 6´3˝! The height made me easy to spot in a crowd but still be effective in the showring.” As a youngster Gary worked at Vickey Bowman’s Silver Lane Training Stables, where she taught him to ride and then allowed him to work to pay for his trips to shows with her. “Vickey taught me to take responsibility for my own actions,” Gary says. “Every summer I traveled to Scottsdale and lived with my
Opening page: Gary McDonald and t h e s t a l l i o n A d o n i i s ( B a s ke A f i re x Coladina), owned by The Adoniis G ro u p a n d s t a n d i n g a t M c D o n a l d Arabians, Scottsdale, Arizona. Right: Gar y and Holly McDonald.
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sister Carolyn (the only other member of our family with the Arabian addiction), who is a performance trainer in Scottsdale. I learned from her, and met and learned from all the great trainers who resided in Scottsdale during the ’80s. There was an atmosphere unlike any other in the world. Every time I went behind the scenes at Karho, Tom Chauncey Arabians, Lasma, Sandspur, and others, and saw the legendary breeding stallions like *Asadd, *Muscat, *Nariadni, Kaborr, and *Bask, to name a few; every time I attended a Scottsdale show and watched 100 colts or fillies bounce into the arena to compete, I knew this was where I wanted to be. I loved halter … but my sister made sure I was well rounded and I competed in English pleasure, western pleasure, hunter pleasure, reining and so on, but I always craved the halter arena. My father has always owned some elite breeding stallions, which gave me the opportunity to experiment with his foals to develop my own style of presentation. Without these incredible opportunities, I would never have been able to live my dream.” Holly, Gary’s wife, had no experience with horses until she met and fell in love with Gary. “When Gary and I decided to get married, he told me about his love for the Arabian and his desire to make them his career. This was not my idea of a career. Come on — Arabian horses? Get real! There is no security in the horse business I kept telling him. I grew up in Paradise Valley and heard all about the horses and the so-called ‘Arabian Horse Market’ of the ’80s. So I told him if he wanted to marry me, he would have
to go to school and get a real job like real men do. I wanted a family and I knew the Arabians would limit that. Gary is extremely smart and incredible with people and numbers. The IRS offered him a job when he was a senior in high school so I figured he could strive for a degree in accounting. So he did, and in doing so he had to take some psychology classes which he became very interested in, especially genetic psychology. “When he was close to finishing college, Gary decided he needed to sell the straight Spanish mare Maleia (*GG Habanero x Abha Insolita) who he bred nine years earlier, to pay off some school loans. He talked with me and of course I was all for selling her and paying off those loans. What did we need a mare for? Since he was still in school he taught me to longe, bathe, and groom her. I was so willing only because my eyes were set on the end prize — her being sold! “What a sight thinking back on it! I was horrible and Maleia was so patient and loving to me. But of course I didn’t realize it at the time. To make a long story short, she ended up not only selling for the exact amount of his school loan debt, an answer to our prayer, but ended up U.S. National Reserve Champion Mare AOTH, with Gary’s father Ross. Gary was hoping I would have developed some interest in working with Arabians but … nope! At the time, he was working for a large real estate development company in Scottsdale and was trying to be happy about it, but he was doing it for me. He soon talked me into breeding his prized mare, who he purchased from Marieta Salas when he was 12 with the help of his parents. This was hard because we had just sold a horse, only to breed another? I finally agreed and we bred Abha Insolita to Psymadre and the resulting filly was the beautiful MC Psynammon and I was in love! Since Gary was working he told me I needed to work with her and get to know her. He also taught me how
To p : G a r y a n d H o l l y a t t h e B r i t i s h N a t i o n a l s , w h e re G a r y s h o we d t h e N a t i o n a l Ju n i o r C h a m p i o n C o l t P s y n d e r m a n f o r o w n e r C o l i n M a c Ke n z i e . Bottom: Gar y as a teengager showing Gam Malik (Marst x Gamuria) in Santa Barbara in 1988.
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to halter train her for ‘fun.’ He kept saying over and over, ‘If you don’t like it, I’ll never ask you to do it again!’ And then one day he said, ‘There is a little local show coming up that you should show her at and if you don’t like it, I’ll never ask you to show again!’ This took persistence but I finally relented and agreed to show Psynammon. Living around Gary and his ‘psychology brain’ makes it hard to resist anything he asks of me. This little local horse show ended up being the Scottsdale Arabian Horse Show in February with 56 fillies in my class. To my stunned disbelief, we were the unanimous winners of the class and then went
To p l e f t : T h e M c D o n a l d s ’s d a u g h t e r s C a m i l l e a n d A l l ey n a g i g g l i n g o n t h e l aw n . R i g h t : Wa r G a m e s a n d d a u g h t e r M a d y s o n s h a re a t e n d e r m o m e n t s o o n a f t e r h i s “ d e l i ve r y b y S a n t a C l a u s .” A t 2 6 ye a r s o l d , h e a m a z e s eve r yo n e b y c o n s i s t e n t l y w i n n i n g a t Yo u t h N a t i o n a l s . B o t t o m l e f t : P u m p k i n t h e p o ny a n d C a m i l l e .
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on to the Junior Championship Filly AOTH class and we won that! Sadly Psynammon sold as we walked out the gate, but the sale enabled us to start McDonald’s Arabians. It was from this invaluable experience that I learned to have faith in the Lord and total trust in my husband, to acknowledge his dreams — and in the process learned that I truly love the Arabian horse!” “Today I show in-hand AAOTH classes and all our kids show, too. Madyson, 13, rides in all disciplines; Kenneth, 11, shows in-hand classes JTH and open; Alleyna, 8, shows in the in-hand classes; and Camille, 7, shows in the in-hand classes and is taking riding lessons, hoping to compete soon. My brightest moments are watching my kids show. My perfect day is having Gary let me sleep in only to awaken to the smell of pancakes, eggs, and bacon cooking. Later, moving to the patio while chatting with friends, the one next to the turnout where the foals are loose and playing with each other; hearing the kids playing basketball on the court in the backyard, giggling with each other. Later, lighting a fire in one of the many fire pits on the ranch as the amazing Arizona sunset breaks through
the vast open sky, roasting hot dogs and s’mores, sipping hot chocolate, and watching the kids’ horror-filled faces as Gary tells them scary stories, which usually ends up with them all sleeping upstairs with us … my perfect day, and luckily for me there are many.” As Gary says, “I feel very blessed to be in a business in which I can choose who I want to work with. My guiding principles are those I learned in my youth: Squarely face a situation, be bold enough to tell the truth, and accept responsibility for my actions. Because I am taller than most, I always try to conduct myself in a manner that reflects my values. People are watching and I have to set examples. After all, I am a father, husband, son, brother, friend, as well as trainer, agent, owner, and breeder. It is my way of ensuring the happiness of my family, friends, and owners. With so much responsibility I don’t need to be the biggest mover and shaker … just the person who sets the example, and by doing the right things, ensures the happiness of us all.”
L e f t : G a r y s h a re s a q u i e t m o m e n t w i t h E l l a N o u r a , 2 0 0 8 f i l l y b y * E l N a b i l a B ( Ku b i n e c x E l f L ay l a Wa l ay l a B ) a n d o u t o f t h e P a d ro n s P s y c h e d a u g h t e r C P s y l e a h a . R i g h t : T h e M c D o n a l d s ’s s o n Ke n ny h a s b e e n a s t a r i n t h e h a l t e r a re n a . H e re h e i s w i t h S H A A a i s f a ( A m i r S h a m e z x Ko h l e e n a ) , o w n e d b y T i m o t hy M a n r i n g , w h o w a s E g y p t i a n E ve n t R e s e r ve C h a m p i o n Ye a r l i n g F i l l y. 5 6 MCDONALD 6 WORLD