“Punchy” | Judge Cash x Skip N Cee A Star owned by Toni Eberlein
tHe Working Lines | Major Bonanza
By Larry Thornton
Many of the modern performance horse pedigrees we see today show a lot of linebreeding. Some intense linebreeding can show up in these pedigrees with the common ancestor or ancestors appearing multiple times. We do this linebreeding to preserve the blood of the outstanding stallions and mares that have contributed to the quarter horse. Thus, we are continuing the influence of these great horses to keep their contribution alive. This is the definition of linebreeding.
But linebreeding isn’t the end of the story. We must continually bring in bloodlines that complement the linebreeding we are doing. We call these bloodlines’ outcrosses. The strategic use of outcross blood on linebreeding is a key to the improvement of the breed. The outcross blood brings hybrid vigor into the pedigree. Hybrid vigor being the phenomenon that occurs when two unrelated horse are crossed to produce outstanding foals.
Major Bonanza was a 1972 sorrel stallion bred by Bill Moomey that brought it all together to be a successful halter horse, a successful performance horse and then a successful sire. He was sired by Coy’s Bonanza and out of Manana’s Rosa by Major’s Manana. Coy’s Bonanza was a stallion that was a timely outcross on the King P-234, Three Bars, Joe Reed P-3 and Old Sorrel bred mares that were very popular in the 1960’s.
A look at the pedigree of Major Bonanza will highlight a pedigree featuring an outcross on a double bred King P-234 mare. Before we are through our look at this stallion will give us a modern perspective on how the bloodlines of the past can serve as an outcross today.
The story of Major Bonanza begins the day after he was born when he was purchased by Andy and Carol Rees. We will begin with Carol and how they came to own Major Bonanza, “It was 1972 and we had called Bill Moomey who owned Coy’s Bonanza. You could not breed to Coy. If you wanted one of his foals you had to get on a list. We had spoken to Bill and he had told us about a few mares and he said to call him when foaling season first starts and he would tell us what had been born. So, we called him one day in early February 1972 and he had just had a colt born the night before out of the mare called Manana’s Rosa. He described the mare and her bloodlines, and we said we will take him. Andy flew back there about six weeks later and couldn’t have been happier.”
She added this about the timing of their call, “We had one of those feelings that morning, call it intuition or whatever. We decided to call him to see if he had had any foals and if he did we would take him.”
Andy told about how it worked on price, “There was no negotiating price for Bill’s foals. The fillies were $4,000 and that would be more like $15,000 today. The colts were $5,000 to $7,500 depending on the mare.”
Carol started their explanation of why they wanted a Coy’s Bonanza colt, “We had several friends that spoke about Coy’s Bonanza quite often. And we were looking to upgrade. We weren’t very old about, oh my gosh about 25, and that is pretty young, and we lived in Canada at the time.”
Andy then added this about why a halter horse, “Halter was our passion and at that time the Quincy Dan’s were pretty popular. We had a friend that had a Quincy Dan stud. But, we also had a friend that had purchased a Coy’s Bonanza horse and he didn’t keep it very long. He bought the horse had it on the road for a very short amount of time and he was offered a lot of money for it. I don’t know if the horse ever got home before he was sold. He was a horse named Junior Bonanza. This success inspired us, and we basically jumped in to do the halter and when we got Major home we started hauling him as a weanling and in his yearling year.”
The official AQHA show record doesn’t have any shows listed for Major Bonanza as a weanling. It does shows that Major Bonanza stood Reserve Grand Champion in his second show under Matlock Rose in April 1973. He earned his first Grand Championship under Johnny Lake in June 1973.
Andy recalled one show that stands out in their memories of those days and Major Bonanza’s second Grand Championship. “We showed him with Morgan Freeman the owner of Blondy’s Dude. He judged a lot. We are out there showing this colt and he walks around the horse and he comes up and says, ‘I don’t know who you are or what you do for a living, but this horse is either going to put you in the horse business or he is going to keep you in the horse business.’ That was a prophetic statement as he was a yearling and he had won almost every halter futurity in the Northwest and that was back in the day when there would be 50 in a class.” Freeman named Major Bonanza Grand Champion Stallion at Courtenay, Washington in July 1973. The AQHA records show that Major would pick up three more Reserve Championships as a yearling.
Andy continued, “We sent him to the Congress that year with Bill Edmundson and he placed sixth or seventh. Then Bill hauled him for a while and his knee was injured on the road. Broken bursa in the knee. We flew him from Chicago to Seattle and we took him to the University of California at Davis and they removed that enlargement in his knee and we went back on the road showing him all over the Northwest.”
The next step for Major was as a performance horse and Andy explained how they started his career in the arena, “The thoughts on what we were going to do as far as performing really didn’t come into play until he was a three-year-old. He was a classic horse in that he was allowed to grow up. We started him the way we used to start horses in that we didn’t put a lot of pressure on him as a young riding horse. The peak of his performance career was at six.”
Andy continued, “We had already ridden him some as we had sent him to a young trainer named Glen Cook. Glen had him about 90 days. And he calls us up and says, ‘This horse has more talent than I have, I’m not enough trainer for him. You need to find someone else because it would be a waste of time to leave him with me.’ This is probably the most honest statement I have ever had coming from a trainer.”
Then Bob Avila comes into the picture. Carol explained, “We met Bob Avila when Major was three and then as the friendship grew we decided to have Bob ride him at four.”
Andy continued about their relationship with the Avila family, “We knew Don Avila before we knew his son Bob. We were pretty good friends with Don and he was a mentor to us on how to build a breeding business. We met Bob and he was breaking out on his own and we decided to give him a shot. That was a great decision.”
Andy added, “Bob’s passion was cow horses and he had hauled for the honor roll title and had won the title. He did this prior to the World Show and so we decided to haul Major for the Honor Roll title as a cow horse.
The path to win the AQHA Working Cow Horse Honor Roll title gave them the High Point Stallion title and the Reserve High Point Horse title in 1977. Major would earn 31 working cow horse points in his career. He was Superior in Western Pleasure with 85 points. He earned points in Hunter Under Saddle with 15 points and six cutting points. He was shown one time in reining winning the class but no points. He earned a total of 137 performance points earning his ROM and with his 86 halter points gave him an AQHA Championship. He was an NCHA money earner as well.
The AQHA halter career of Major shows that he earned his Superior with his 86 halter points. He was shown in 79 shows at halter winning his class 73 times. He earned 49 Grand Championships and 19 Reserve Grand Championships.
When asked what role did showing at halter and his good looks have on the career of Major Bonanza, Andy responded, “Bob always said that Major was the horse that put pretty in the performance. Prior to that a lot of the great stock horses weren’t what you called pretty. Bob felt he was the catalyst that changed a lot of the performance horses that were out there because he put that look in them and a lot of people started breeding for that pretty look.”
THE PEDIGREE
Coy’s Bonanza was a noted halter horse in his own right with 154 points and the title of 1963 AQHA High Point Halter Stallion. He earned 45 Grand Championships with 25 Reserve Grand Championships. He then became an AQHA Champion with 7.5 performance points in reining and western pleasure. He also earned an AA rating on the track for his race ROM. He did return to the track to earn an AAA rating and did run a race in AAA time, but that race was never recognized. Coy’s Bonanza not only had the conformation, performance and speed to be a sire but the outcross blood as well.
Coy’s Bonanza - 1963 AQHA | High Point Halter Stallionl
Photo Courtesy Darol Dickinson sy The AQHA Hall of Fame and Museum.
Sparky Joann under saddle
Photo From Author’s Files
Coy’s Bonanza sired 228 foals with 145 performers. They earned 8,881 AQHA points with 74 performance ROM and 31 AQHA Championships. He sired 23 Superior halter horses and 23 Superior performance horses that earned 24 superior awards. He sired five sons that earned the AQHA High Point Halter Stallion title. They were Ricky Bonanza (1970); Beau Bonanza (1971); War Leo Bonanza (1972); Trouble Bonanza (1975) and Mister Bonanza (1976). His other high point winners include War Leo Bonanza as the 1972 High Point Under Saddle Stallion and Mi Bonanza the 1978 High Point Steer Roping Horse.
Coy’s Bonanza was sired by Jaguar a stallion bred by Lewis Blackwell Amarillo, Texas. He was owned by Ed Honnen of Quincy Farms in Denver when he sired Coy’s Bonanza. Jaguar was later owned by Sheepfield Farms in New Jersey.
Jaguar was an ROM racehorse with an AAA rating earning $6,701. He was a stakes placed runner with a second in the 1955 Pacific Coast QHA Derby and a third in the RMQHA Stallion Stakes. He was an AQHA Champion with 16 halter points. He was shown eight times with two Grand Championships.
A Thoroughbred named Custus Rastus was the sire of Jaguar. The race record for Custus Rastus shows one start going unplaced. It is reported that he broke his sesamoid bone forcing his retirement from racing. He was then sold to Lewis Blackwell. He was later owned by L. L. Tuck of Colorado.
Custus Rastus was sired by Requested and out of Slim Rosie by Tryster. Requested was a successful racehorse with stakes wins in races like the Flamingo Stakes, the East View Stakes and the Great American Stakes. He won $116,595. Slim Rosie was a stakes winner in the Crete Handicap. She was the dam of Slim a winner of $71,150 including a dead heat third in the 1953 Florida Derby.
Custus Rastus would bring his thoroughbred breeding into the mix to become a proven outcross sire on quarter mares. He sired 164 Quarter Horse foals with 59 racing ROM with a number of stakes horses including Bull Rastus winner of $49,430.
The Custus Rastus sire record for performance shows 17 arena ROM, 14 AQHA Champions and one Supreme Champion. The Supreme Champion was Milk River a stakes placed runner with seconds in the Colorado Derby and the White Sands Handicap. He was third in the RMQHA Futurity. He shows the versatility of this line with 26 halter, 18 western pleasure, 8 calf roping points, 2 western riding and 2 heeling points.
Major King was recognized early for his conformation just as Major Bonanza early in his life.
Photo Courtesy Author’s files
Jaguar the sire of Coy’s Bonanza
Photo Courtesy Author’s files
Custus Rastus was noted for his ability to sire good quarter horse conformation. His three AQHA Superior halter horses are an example of this ability to sire good conformation. They are Capital Gain (87.5), Custus Belle (190) and Net Profit (55). All three were AQHA Champions.
The dam of Jaguar was Mame Taylor a 1934 mare bred by Lou Kirk of New Mexico. She was a successful race mare but her total record is unknown. She became the dam of several noted horses. They include Hard Twist the 1946-47 AQHA Racing Champion Stallion and the 1951 AQHA Racing Co-Champion Stallion. Another noted foal out of Mame Taylor is Ricky Taylor an AAA rated AQHA Champion with 15 halter points.
Mame Taylor was sired by Jack Dempsey by Big Boy. Jack Dempsey was raced and used as a sire by Lou Kirk. The dam of Jack Dempsey was Oklahoma Queen by A. D. Reed by Peter McCue. Red Cloud was the dam of Mame Taylor. She was sired by Tex and out of Head Light by Day Light. Red Cloud and Head Light were both bred by Lou Kirk.
Sparky Joann the dam of Coy’s Bonanza was bred by Bill Coy of Wyoming. Sparky Joann was a show mare winning titles like the 1957 RMQHA Working Stakes and she was the Reserve Grand Champion halter mare at the 1957 Wyoming State Fair Quarter Horse Show. This show is where she earned her AQHA halter point and the only registered quarter horse show she was shown in at halter. She earned two AQHA reining points in one show winning her class.
Sparky Joann was sired by Little Joe The Wrangler a son of Joe Hancock. Joe Hancock was sired by John Wilkens by Peter McCue. Hepler’s Goldie was the dam of Little Joe The Wrangler. She was sired by Madder Music the Thoroughbred Remount stallion. This horse was the broodmare sire of the recent Working Lines topic Music Mount. Little Joe The Wrangler was bred by the Hepler Brothers of New Mexico.
The dam of Sparky Joann was Sparky a mare bred by J. Frank Norfleet of Texas. Sparky was sired by Spark Plug a son of Jack McCue by Peter McCue. This gives Spark Joann a 4 X 4 breeding pattern to Peter McCue. Spark Plug was out of Silver by Chickasha Bob. The dam of Sparky was Pearl by Jim Trammell by Barney Owens.
Sparky Joann was the dam of 11 foals with 9 performers. Her foals performed in the arena and on the track. She was the dam of four race starters with two ROM, one stake winner and one stake’s placed. The stakes winner was Joann Wig winner of the 1968 Meadowlark Downs Fall Futurity.
Sparky Joann was the dam of three performance ROM earning four ROM’s in the arena and five Superiors in performance and halter. The three ROM were Coy’s Bonanza and his sisters Jaguars Fancy and Jaguar’s Bonanza. Jaguars Fancy was Superior in youth and open western pleasure and Jaguar’s Bonanza was Superior in open halter and open western pleasure. A fourth
Jaguar/Sparky Joann foal was Coy’s Encore who earned four AQHA halter points.
Manana’s Rosa was a 1963 mare bred by Mike and Millie Leonard on their M & M Ranch of Milford, Texas. She was an AQHA Champion with 61 halter points and 19.5 performance points. She was Superior in halter with 33 wins in 39 shows earning 11 Grand Championships and 9 Reserve Grand Championships. Her performance points came in western pleasure.
Manana’s Rosa was the dam of 11 foals with 8 performers. They earned 357 AQHA points with one performance ROM, two Superior award winners and one AQHA Champion. Major Bonanza was the AQHA Champion.
Manana’s Rosa has an ownership record that is very interesting. She was owned at one time by Ted Kuck and Sons of Sheboygan, Wisconsin. When her first foal arrived in 1968 it was bred by Ted Kuck and Sons and owned by Francis Schanen of Crafton, Wisconsin. This colt by Coy’s Bonanza earned 16 halter and 6 performance points. The second foal was Commander Bonanza by Coy’s Bonanza. This gelding earned 17 open halter and 3 youth halter points. The next foal was Bobbi Bonanza and she was Superior in halter 57 open halter points, 2 open performance points and 31 youth halter points. They were both bred by Schanen.
Major Bonanza was the next foal and he was bred by Bill Moomey. The next two foals were Duke Bonanza and Spitfire Bonanza a full brother and sister to Major Bonanza. Duke Bonanza was unshown and Spitfire Bonanza was shown but earned no points. Both of these foals were bred by Moomey.
Shawnie Bonanza by Coy’s Bonanza was foaled in 1976 and he was bred by Schanen. Then in 1977 Manana’s Rosa was bred to Trouble Bonanza a son of Coy’s Bonanza. She produced Trouble Rosa an AQHA point earner with 1 halter point. She was bred by Moomey.
The last three foals she produced were Major Encounter, Jag On Scooter and Performing Art. They were all sired by Jag On Kip. The only point earner was Performing Art with one halter point.
Major’s Manana was the sire of Manana’s Rosa. He was bred by Mike and Millie Leonard. He was an AQHA Champion with 21 performance points in western pleasure (11), reining (6), cutting (1) and western riding (3). He earned 45 halter points with 7 Grand Championships and 12 Reserve Grand Championships.
The sire record for Major’s Manana shows that he sired 86-point earners that earned 1,695 AQHA points earning 34 performance ROM with five AQHA Champions in the open and youth divisions. He sired four Superior Award winners in halter and performance. He sired one AQHA Reserve World Champion in Junior Reining and that was Royal De King who was Superior in reining earning 56 AQHA halter and performance points.
Conformation shot of Major Bonanza
Don Shugart Photo Courtesy Andy and Carol Rees
Major’s Manana is the broodmare sire of 146 AQHA point earners that earned 7,456 points with 82 ROM, five AQHA Champions, three Superior halter horses, 25 Superior performance horses that earned 42 Superior Awards. The leading point earner is The Ultimate Zip with 1,331.5 points in the open, amateur, youth and novice divisions. This horse had earned seven Superior Awards in Amateur Western Horsemanship, Amateur Western Riding, Amateur Trail, Youth Trail (2), Youth Western Horsemanship and Open Trail. This horse is an AQHA Youth Performance Champion. The second leading point earner is Jeremiah Zippo with 1,18.5 AQHA points in the open, amateur, youth and novice divisions. He has Superiors in Amateur Trail, Youth Trail (2), Youth Western Horsemanship, Open Western Pleasure and Open Trail. The third leading point earner is Izzy Neat with 995 AQHA points. This gelding has five Superior Awards in Amateur Trail, Youth Western Riding, Youth Showmanship, Youth Trail and Open Trail. He is an AQHA Youth Performance Champion.
Major King was the foundation sire for the M & M Ranch. He was the sire of Major’s Manana who was the stallion selected to replace him as the senior sire on the ranch. Major King foaled in 1946 was bred by C. M. Albin of Comanche, Texas. He was sired by Royal King and out of Moon Harris. The Leonard’s bought Moon Harris when she was carrying Major King. C. M. Albin was Earl Albin’s father. Earl was the owner of Royal King.
Nelson Nye the novelist and quarter horse historian covered some of the history of Major King in his book THE COMPLETE QUARTER HORSE. Nye visited with Mike and Millie Leonard about their stallion. Major King was a summer baby and he went to his first show in October 1946 where he was third in his class. Moon Harris was first in what they called the racing division mare class. Many of the early quarter horse shows had racing and stock horse divisions. The stock horse divisions usually consisted of the “bull dog” type of quarter horse.
The Major King show record got better. They would attend 12 shows with Major King getting named Grand Champion Stallion four times as a weanling. He would qualify for the Champion of Champion at the Fort Worth Stock Show in 1947. This class brought 11 stallions together to be judged with one being named the “Champion of the Champions.” All of the stallions in this class had to have earned a Grand Championship in 1946 to qualify. The winner was Star Duster and Poco Bueno was in the beaten field. Major King was the only yearling to compete in this class.
Major King entered the performance arena in 1949 before the AQHA started awarding points. He performed mostly at shows like Fort Worth and Dallas and was never extensively
campaigned. He had a variety of riders. His performance record shows that he earned four AQHA Cutting points when he won one point at Dallas, Texas in 1951 and three points at Gladewater, Texas in 1952. He earned Certificate of Ability #89 in the NCHA.
Major King would sire 491 foals with 156 AQHA point earners earning 2,317.5 points with 48 ROM and 10 AQHA Champions. This includes two Superior halter horses and two Superior performance horses that earned four Superior Performance Awards. His leading point earners were Major’s Miss Chico with 391 points earning Superiors in Youth Western Horsemanship and Western Pleasure; Major Thunder with 129 points as the 1958 and 1959 AQHA high Point Tie-Down Roping and an AQHA Superior Halter Award and Major’s Maco with an AQHA Superior in cutting with 271 points and $16,844 in the NCHA with an NCHA Bronze Award.
Major King was sired by Royal King the great son of King P-234. King P-234 was sired by Zantanon by Little Joe. His dam was Jabalina by Strait Horse by Yellow Jacket. Royal King was out of Rocket Laning by Dolph. Dolph was sired by Cremo (Gregg Horse) by Yellow Jacket. The dam of Rocket Laning was Cricket by Coldy by Yellow Jacket. This makes Royal King linebred to Yellow Jacket with a breeding pattern of 4 X 4 X 4.
Moon Harris was foaled in 1937 and bred by Eustice Harris. She was used as a roping mare and then at halter. She won her class at Fort Worth in 1946. According to Millie Leonard as reported by Nye, Moon Harris was foaled in Kentucky and brought to Texas. She was sired by Billy The Kid M a son of Elmendorf a thoroughbred by Ballot. It Ballot is familiar to you, he is the great grandsire of Three Bars. Millie Leonard reported that the dam of Moon Harris was Millie Jerden a Thoroughbred mare. But her pedigree is unknown.
The dam of Major’s Manana was Little Rose a mare bred by Guy Troutman of New Mexico. She was the dam of 11 foals with six performers and six-point earners. The point earners earned 244.5 AQHA points with four ROM and three AQHA Champions. Her first AQHA Champion was Bay Punk by Scooter S. He was an NCHA money earner and bred by Charlie Black Jr of Ozona, Texas. Her other AQHA Champions were Major’s Manana and his full sister Major’s Marquay. This mare was Superior in halter with 58 points. She earned 65 performance points. Little Rose was the dam of two more Major King foals in Major Encino with three performance points and Majors’s Mia an ROM performer with 6.5 AQHA points. Her other point earner was Crockett King a son of King P-234 with three halter points.
Little Rose was sired by Tom Benear a son of Tommy Clegg and Dixie Beach by Beetch’s Yellow Jacket and she was out of Mayflower by Nail Driver. Tommy Benear was a full brother to Little Dixie Beach the dam of Paul A one of the first AQHA Champions. An added note: Bob Sutherland owned Paul A, Custus Belle, Cap-
ital Gain and Net Profit at one time. Mr. Sutherland was inducted into the AQHA Hall of Fame in 2018 for his work as an owner, breeder and promoter of the American Quarter Horse.
The dam of Little Rose was Rosa Baca a mare by Whiskaway II by Whiskaway P-16. Whiskaway was one of the early AQHA Stud Book foundation sires receiving the #16 in the Stud Book. Whiskaway was sired by A. D. Reed by Peter McCue. You will recall that Jack Dempsey was out of Oklahoma Queen by A. D. Reed by Peter McCue. Panda Baca was the dam of Rosa Baca. She was sired by Little Mike by Old Mike by Chickasha Bob. Chickasha Bob was the sire of Silver, the dam of Spark Plug in Coy’s Bonanza’s pedigree.
Mollie Anne was the dam of Manana’s Rosa. She was bred by A. C. Hillman of Texas. She was the dam of nine foals with three performers including her AQHA Champion Manana’s Rosa. This mare was sired by Cuellar by King P-234. Cuellar was out of Silver by Billy Cowey. The dam of Mollie Anne was SMS Mare whose pedigree is unknown.
Cuellar was the sire of 12 performance ROM with five AQHA Champions and three Superior halter horses. His AQHA Champions include Apache Quill, Brady Lady, Hill Queen, Vaquero King and Quincy Lee. Brady Lady and Hill Queen were two if his Superior Halter Horses. The daughters of Cuellar produced 39 ROM with six AQHA Champions, two Superior halter horses and four Superior Performance Award winners that won five Superiors. His daughter Little Red Alice was the dam of the great cutting mare Alice Star. Alice Star was an AQHA Champion, Superior Cutting Horse and an NCHA Hall of Fame member.
The pedigree of Manana’s Rosa is headlined with the double breeding to King P-234 with a breeding pattern of 4 X 3. This then is crossed back on Coy’s Bonanza to give us an outcross that helps put some hybrid vigor into the pedigree. Hybrid Vigor being the phenomenon that takes place when two unrelated individuals are crossed to produce a good foal or to improve the foals being produced. Thus, the outcrossing improves the foals being produced.
Next time we will continue with the sire record for Major Bonanza and how modern technology is playing a role in his legacy as a sire.
About the Author |
Larry Thornton is a Pedigree Analyst and freelance writer for Working Horse magazine, Speedhorse and Quarter Horse News. Thorton started his writing career in 1984 with his first article being printed in the Speed Horse Magazine. He was also an Agriculture Instructor for 37 years.
WiLLiaM to stan...tHe Weaver faMiLy story
By Sharee LaRue gan Tuttle
Aman’s got to have a code, a creed to live by,” according to John Wayne. The Weavers from Big Sandy, Montana, are just such a family.
The Weaver clan still carries on the prestigious birthright handed down to them from William and Phoebe Weaver who homesteaded in Montana in 1887. The infamous “A Standing X” brand was recorded one year later by William, a highly respected horse and cattleman that helped shape the Montana and Canadian horse racing community. Little did they know what their legacy would unfold to be.
The Weaver Quarter Horse ranch, at the base of Bears Paw Mountain, owned by Stan and Nancy Weaver, was originally bought by William’s son Elmer and his wife Vona May (Stan’s grand parents)
in 1925. As Elmer carried on his father’s work and morals, he quickly become known as an outstanding horse and cattleman himself, while he continued to buy up homesteads in the area.
In 1952 Elmer passed, leaving his sons, Roy, Howard, Earl and Art, the reins to his life’s work. He had made such a huge impact on the ranch and Montana’s agriculture heritage, that he was inducted into the Montana Cowboy Hall of Fame and Western Heritage in 2014.
Art and his wife Betty, Stan’s parents, took the lead in the growth of the Weaver name and brand. Even though Art was more of a cattleman than a horseman, he bought the Weaver’s first American Quarter Horse in 1959, a granddaughter of Poco Bueno, setting the wheels in motion to found what Weaver Quarter Horses has become today. He also continued the ritual, set before him, of property purchases and community leadership. He expanded Elmer’s 3,500 acers to 10,000 and was President of the local Stock Growers and a director of the Montana Stock Growers Association.
Stan, who remembers being horseback as a toddler with his dad leading Stan’s trusty mount behind him, bought his first registered quarter
1938 | Art, Roy, Howard
horse in 1971. Being as he was only about ten when he broke his first horse, it was a natural progression and the Weaver way.
The tradition continued after Art’s death in 1981, as estate management was turned over to Stan and Nancy, both Gonzaga University alumni. Again, as all that came before him, cattle, horses, farming, morals and true grit led to a life of progression and community service.
As the ranch increased to 15,000 acers, Stan and Nancy also set their sights on building one of the best band of Quarter Horses the industry has ever seen. It all started in the early 1980’s, with a mare named Stormy Dun Dee, who became the grand dam to the 2009 AQHA High Point Horse of the Year, Ima Tuf Missy. As they followed Weaver history, they had no way of knowing what that little mare had laid out for their future.
As we all know, you can’t have just one. The Weavers built a rock-solid foundation, just like the ground they are born on, of unsurpassed quality including bone, feet and conformation coupled with a trainable mind set. They then set out to prove the popular saying, “Build it and they will come.”
Research, and a listening ear directed at the best in the business, they launched into the competitive arena of cutting and reined cow horse classes. The collection of high quality Quarter Horses took its biggest upward turn when Weaver’s purchased Ima Bit of Heaven, a 1996 stallion by Smart Little Lena out of Peppys From Heaven by Peppy San Badger himself. The list of champion titles continued to roll in from every end of the arena spanning rodeo, reining, cutting, to the performance show pen and beyond, while still producing the best ranch horses money can buy.
So, what do you do with a rapidly growing herd of quality horses, you produce a production horse sale, and that is just what they did. The yearly anticipated Weaver Quarter Horse Production Sale launched in 1996 with buyers spanning the World. Not only can they be found in all 50 states, they shine in Canadian, South Africa, Australia, Germany, Mexico, Venezuela and Brazil.
1945 | Elmer, Earl, Howard, Roy, Art, and Vona
1962 | Art and Stan
1920 | William, Phoebe, Elmer, Vona and Roy.
tHe Weaver faMiLy
Stan Weaver Offices | Memberships
• AQHA First Vice President [2018|2019]
• AQHA National Director [starting in 2011]
• Rancher’s Heritage Council Chairman
• Studbook and Registration, Public Policy, and Hall of Fame Selection committees
• Foundation, Marketing and Ranching councils
• MT Quarter Horse Assoc. past President and Director Member of
Montana Cowboy Hall of Fame
Montana Land & Mineral Owners Association
National Cattleman’s Beef Association
Montana Stockgrowers
Montana Farm Bureau Federation
Nancy Weaver Offices
• Central Montana Medical Center Advisory Board
• Montana Cowboy Poetry Gathering and Western Music Rendezvous Chairwomen
• Western Heritage Center Board of Trustees
• Montana Reined Cowhorse Futurity Board of Trustees
• Montana Winter Fair Vice Chairman
Weaver Family Awards
1997 MT Quarter Horse Assoc. Ranch of the Year
2009 Leading Breeder of Performance Point Earners
2014 Montana State University Family Business of the Year - Weaver Cattle Co.
Weaver Progeny Highlights
2016 AQHA World Champion Amateur Heel Horse
2015 AQHA/PRCA Steer Roping Horse of the Year
2013 National Charro Champion Horse of Mexico
2012 AQHA Res. World Champion Senior Head Horse
2009 AQHA Leading Breeder of Performance Point Earners
2009 AQHA Res. World Champion Junior Head Horse
2009 AQHA High Point Horse of the Year
2009 NRCHA Futurity Amateur 3rd place horse
2004 International Buckskin Horse Association World Champion Cutting Horse
2004 Palomino Assoc. World Champion Head Horse
1916 | Elmer
tHe Weaver faMiLy story
Sires
Genuinely Busy
Tuf N Busy x Genuine Leigh Wright
Ima Tuf Lena
Tuf N Busy x Smart Bo Lena
Originally Smooth
A Smooth Guy x The Original Sin
Perkster
Dash For Perks x PC Miss Boon Wood
Smart Topaz
WR This Cats Smart x Paddys Topaz
Streakn N Moven
A Streak of Fling x Peppy Easy Move
Reference Sires
Cowboys Frenchman
Frenchmans Guy x Snippys Pumkin
Gems and Starlight
Grays Starlight x Gems Emerald
Ima Bit of Heaven
Smart Little Lena x Peppys From Heaven
Merada Ima Boonsmal
Peptoboonsmal x Merada Site
Poco Ima Doc
Poco Bueno 2 x Doc Tilly
Maternal Bloodlines
Blackburn
Bueno Chex
Cee Booger Red
Colonel Freckles
Doc Bar
Doc O’Dynamite
Doc’s Hickory
Driftwood
High Brow Cat
King
Poco Bueno
Reminic
Shining Spark
Smart Chic O’Lena
Tangy Classy Peppy
30 years of breeding success, producing over 1,600 AQHA registered foals, 2018 will not disappoint as 2017 sales reached nearly $250,000 with 87 prime cataloged horses. The sale will be held at the Expo Park in Great Falls, MT on Saturday, September 15th. Make sure to watch for the sale catalog at WeaverHorses.com in mid-August.
From William to Stan, the growth and reputation is tremendous. The now, 15,000 Bears Paw acreage provides for about 90 mares, 550 cows, and six stallions. With the addition of 80 percent return buyers that can enjoy the auction in person, or can watch and bid online, the family has climbed from a single livery stable to an empire in 130 years.
“Treat everybody fair,” words to live by, which were instilled in Stan by his mother, and “Any horse we raise, is one I’d ride on our ranch,” which is Stan’s promise to his buyers, is the reason that six generations of Weavers still ride the A Standing X brand today.
Stan Weaver
Mares WitH More | Lynx Bar Legacy
By Larry Thornton
When you look at the pedigrees of today’s performers you will see that the name Royal King is alive and well as an influence on the American Quarter Horse. Royal King was a 1943 son of King P-234 and the great mare Rocket Laning by Dolph. This great stallion became a topnotch performer earning titles like the 1953 NCHA Open Reserve World Championship and an AQHA Superior in cutting. He was the sire of over 590 foals and their success in the arena made him a leading sire of AQHA Register Of Merit qualifiers, performance contest winners and a maternal grandsire of AQHA Champions. His success led to his entry into the AQHA Hall of Fame and then in 2011 the AQHA presented him with a prestigious AQHA Historical Marker in the town square in Comanche, Texas further indicating his influence on the breed.
Randy and Sue Magers of Comanche, Texas have been the guardians of the Royal King legacy for many years. The family history of Randy and Sue runs deep in Quarter Horse history. Randy is the son
of Cliff Magers, a onetime owner of the great broodmare sire and AQHA Hall of Fame member Poco Tivio. Cliff sold Poco Tivio to Don Dodge and off he went to California where he made his contribution to the breed. Sue is the daughter of Earl Albin, the owner of Royal King. Earl and Jack Whiteside bought Royal King with Albin later buying Whiteside out and of course the rest is history.
Sue with Randy’s help has worked over the years to perpetuate her family interest in the blood of Royal King. A big part of their work to perpetuate this great bloodline is through Lynx Bar Legacy our Mare with More this time around. A review of the life of this mare and her foals show the influence of Royal King through the female side of the pedigree.
Sue sent me the following about how they came to be the breeders of Lynx Bar Legacy, “When dad had his dispersal sale in 1972, he had Royal Bar Legacy left because Mr. James E. Kemp had purchased her in a prior sale, and even though the papers had been transferred into his name, he never came to pick her up. Randy called Mr. Kemp and asked him if he would sell her or sign a
transfer. He said that he would just sign a transfer and that is how we came to own Royal Bar Legacy.”
Sue continued, “We bred Royal Bar Legacy to Doc’s Lynx and the result was Lynx Bar Legacy. We sold Lynx Bar Legacy in the 1981 Futurity Select Yearling Sale to Ping Gough.” She went on to be a successful cutting horse for Ping, who at the time was a novice Non-Pro Rider.
Ping Gaugh is a former college football player and businessman that has been around horses all his life. As a businessman he started an oil tanker trucking business. By the late 1970’s his business was growing, and he was working day and night to keep it going. So, horses were an occasional diversion. It was during this period he started gaining an interest in cutting horses.
Ping told this about how he came to own Lynx Bar Legacy, “I went into the NCHA Futurity sale when she was selling as yearling and I was still in the trucking business and busy. But I saw this mare in the sale ring and she was the prettiest thing I had ever seen. A real good friend of mine out of Salt Lake City named Paul
Royal King reportedly gave Lynx Bar Legacy her grit. Here he is showing some grit without a bridle. Photo courtesy Randy and Sue Magers
Mendenhall, who used to own Doc’s Mahogany and had Miz Royal Mahogany that won the Futurity one year was standing there. I said ‘What filly is that selling? He said that is a daughter of Lynx out of an own daughter of Royal King and they were just about to sell her. I said is she all right and he said, ‘Boy if you want to get in and get in right you get in right here.’ I raised my hand one time and they sold her to me.”
He added, “I gave $25,000 for her in 1981 and for a guy that never owned a horse the cost more than $700 or $800 that was a big step for me. But I just thought she was the cutest little thing and the Lynx’s were hot. I never dreamed I would own a horse out of an own daughter of Royal King.”
“I rode her a lot at first and then sent her to Larry Reeder” continued Ping about his relationship with Lynx Bar Legacy. “I was working a lot and I just kind of lost
I was just flying by the seat of my pants. I’m working a lot and I didn’t have a program and she just fell into my lap. Just think about it. How many times are you going to walk into a sale and raise your hand one time and come out with a horse that could be the best in the sale?”
“When I sold the trucking business in October 1983 I started riding her. I went to Jerry Don’s house and rode every day. We went to practice works and everywhere I went they were talking about this mare.”
“We took this mare to Dick Gaines’ one time at Byers. Jerry Don and Dick were friends and I worked her. At that time, I didn’t know if I was doing it right or wrong. I was just having fun.”
“Dick said to me, ‘Young man is this the first one you’ve had?’ I said I had partnered on a few. But this is the first one I had owned. He said, ‘You
turity for Ping and his cutting mare. Here is what happened; “I had shown a horse only 8 times when I took her to the Futurity. That shows you how little I knew. So, we go to the Futurity starting with the go-rounds and end up in the semi-finals. I placed fifth in the Semi-finals.”
He continued, “This mare was such a crowd pleaser, and everybody loved to watch this mare. She was real showy and real cowy. A lot of expression on a cow. Just fall down on the ground and shake. Real quick. Really quick. She was a small made mare at that time. Probably 14-1 but she worked strong and real low in the ground.”
“So, we go into the finals and I cut my first cow and we are winning the cutting. The crowd is going nuts. Well then on the second cow I hot quit and blow myself out of the cutting. Just plain old pilot error. But she was a crowd pleaser.”
Lynx Bar Legacy, ridden by Ping Gough, in action showing the style she was famous for.
Photo courtesy Randy & Sue Magers
“I could have sold her. At the Futurity I turned down $95,000 and that was a lot of money back then. I could have sold her, but I was having a good time showing this mare and everybody was telling me this is the kind of mare you needed to win.”
He continued to explain, “She was the kind of horse that people would come in from the concession stand to watch her. She was just so electric. So physical! I weighed about 225 back then and probably looked big on her but she carried me around like I didn’t weigh anything. She just never got in a position that physically she couldn’t handle.”
“I never did see Royal King, but everybody told me that is where the grit came from. She was so balanced. This mare would run hard and stop but never be out of balance. She was physical but real easy to ride because of that balance. She was real easy for me to sit on her.”
“I showed her at Bobby Shelton’s in Kerrville at the Five-Year Old Classic. There
leave and J. T. came over and said. ‘Ping, I hauled Mr Holey Sox for the world and everybody talks about how physical he was but I’m telling you right now I’ve seen all the best, but I have never seen one that could run wide open and stop as hard and do a 180 as hard and as clean as that mare right there.’ That told me I had something special.”
“Everybody liked to watch this mare work, even in the practice pen. Spencer Harden came up to me one time in Amarillo. I had marked a 222 or something like that and had won a go-round. He came over to me and said, ‘I watched you in the practice pen and felt sorry for you. I didn’t think you knew what you were doing. You didn’t do anything to that mare.’ I said that is the key to this mare.”
“We came out of that pen happy. I didn’t let her get away with anything. But you just go in there with a hackamore and you go over their stop her straight. Hold her. Let her wait and slow her down and she’s ready to go cut. You didn’t want to yank
“We grew up together. She taught me how to do it. She was the kind of mare that she was going to do her deal. If I blew us out of it, she was going to be right back trying her heart out the next time. It is too sad she wasn’t a bigger winner because of all my mistakes. It didn’t seem to matter that I could have a hot quit on a cow in the Futurity finals. It didn’t matter I just wanted to be at the next cutting because I knew I had a chance. I never minded paying an entry fee for that mare because she was so dynamic.”
“All the people that have been in cutting forever would pull up a chair in the front row to watch that mare. Because she just got down in the dirt and totted me around like an old fly on her back and it was a fun trip.”
“I played middle linebacker in college. I love the middle linebacker position and I have always felt that you had to have a special talent to play that position and if she was a football player, she would have been a middle linebacker. She was
Randy and Royal Boonsmal showing some grit of their own.
show record, “The story of her life is that she was a great mare that accomplished a lot but should have accomplished a lot more. I loved her, and I won a lot, but I wasn’t the top hand she deserved to truly show her ability as a cutting horse.”
When Ping retired her from the arena, she became a broodmare for him. But the breeding side of the industry wasn’t for Ping and this along with several other factors put this great mare in the Futurity sale again.
“In 1993, Ping put her in one of the sales at the Futurity and we bought her. She came back home and lived with us the rest of her life,” related Sue about how they got her back.
The produce record of Lynx Bar Legacy shows that she was the dam of 15 foals. This includes nine performers that earned $140,360.19 in the NCHA and/or 509 AQHA performance points. When we look at her foals we see that their offspring have made her the grandam of money win
isher in the 1991 Bonanza 5/6-Year-Old Non-Pro. He was fifth in the 1990 Augusta 4-Year-Old Open Futurity.
Genuine Legacy sired a limited number of foals that earned $320,466.72. His leading money winner is Commanders Legacy with earnings of $96,327.50. She was the Ozark Mountain Open Futurity Champion and a finals qualifier for the 1995 NCHA Non-Pro Futurity and the 1995 NCHA Open Futurity. She tied for fourth and fifth in the open. Commanders Legacy is the dam of Hard Eight BBQ winner of $93,659.05 including an NCHA Amateur Classic/Challenge Reserve Championship. The second leading money winner for Genuine Legacy is GL Cindy Ann Quixote the 2003 NCHA Finals $10,000 Amateur Reserve Champion.
The AQHA performers for Genuine Legacy include Ima Missie Legacy who earned 295 AQHA performance points with Superiors in Amateur and Open Ranch Sorting and Open Team Penning. GL Handle Bar Legacy is another AQHA
110 AQHA performance points in the open, amateur and youth divisions. She is the 2003 AQHA Reserve World Champion Team Penning Horse with an AQHA Superior in Team Penning.
Mariahs Legacy is the next foal and performer out of Lynx Bar Legacy. This Sons Doc mare is the earner of $19,926. Her biggest win was at the 1991 Abilene Western Open Futurity where she was the Champion. She was a 1991 PCCHA Open Futurity Finalist as well. Her produce record includes Nu Cash Legacy, a third-place finisher in the 2001 Nevada RCHA Stallion Stakes Snaffle Bit Open.
The third foal out of Lynx Bar Legacy is Lynx Bar Doc by Sons Doc. This unshown mare is the dam of Blessed Royally by Blessed Twice. This gelding has earned 41.5 AQHA performance points. He is a 2013 AQHA High Point Senior Tie-Down Roping top ten finisher and a top ten AQHA World Show finalist in the 2013 and 2014 Senior Tie-Down Roping.
Texas and Clay Lewis showing in performance halter at the world show.
Roan
Photo cour-
tesy Randy & Sue Magers
Style and he is the winner of $346,093 while winning events like the 2007 NCHA Classic/Challenge Non-Pro Championship. Merada Zest is a stallion out of Tabasco Lass. This stallion by Master Merada is an NRCHA money winner of $12,404.83. He was 2006 NRCHA Futurity Limited Open Hackamore Class Co-Reserve Champion. He is ROM in the AQHA and is a ninthplace finisher in the 2007 AQHA World Show Junior Working Cow Horse. He is ROM in the AQHA with 27.5 working points.
Tabasco Lad and Tabasco Miss are full brother and sister to Tabasco Lass and Genuine Legacy. Both of these horses are unshown. Tabasco Miss is the dam of 18 foals with 11 NCHA money winners that have earned $130,905. Hot N Smart with earnings of $99,203.52 is her leading money winner. He is by Smart Tipster.
Dual Legacy is the 1994 daughter of Lynx Bar Legacy sired by Dual Pep. This mare is unshown, but she is the dam of Jerries Dual Legacy by Smart Little Jerry that has won $200,937. Smart Leroy is a full brother to Jerries Dual Legacy that has won $42,741.92. The next money winner out of Dual Legacy is Sheza Taz Legacy by Pepto Taz. This horse won $42,705.85.
Royalena Legacy by Sonitalena and out of Lynx Bar Legacy is an NCHA money winner. This mare produced no foals. Her full sister is Sonitalena Legacy was the winner $23,183.33. She was the 2002 Kansas Cutting Horse Association 5 & 6-Year-Old Open Champion and the 2005 NCHA Area 8 $50,000 Amateur Co-Champion. She earned 22.5 AQHA points in the open and amateur divisions and she has been a World Show finalist five times. Sonitalena Legacy is the dam of Headin For Sues by Cats Headliner. This gelding has earned 170.5 AQHA Points with Superiors in Open Ranch Sorting and Team Penning. He was the 2012 AQHA High Point Team Penning Horse and the 2012 AQHA High Point Ranch Sorting Gelding.
Pepto Bar Legacy is the first of five foals sired by Peptoboonsmal, the 1995 NCHA Open Futurity Champion. Pepto Bar Legacy was the 2006 AQHA Select World Show Reserve World Champion with Randy in the saddle. He is another multiple AQHA World Show Qualifier that has qualified to a World Show four times. He has 24 AQHA performance points. His NCHA earnings stand at $25,240.91 earning the Certificate of Ability. His record includes the Wyoming Classic Open Co-Championship. This colt died before he could sire any foals.
The next Peptoboonsmal out of Lynx Bar Legacy is Royal Boonsmal. This 1998 red roan stallion is the winner of 38.5 AQHA Open and Amateur performance points. He is a threetime World Show qualifier in the open and the Select World Show. He earned $18,665 in the NCHA with a Certificate of Ability. He was a finalist in the Kansas Cutting Horse Associa-
Doc’s Lynx the sire of Lynx Bar Legacy was a good cross on Royal King mares.
Photo courtesy Author’s Files
tion Open Derby. He is the sire of only 17 performers that have earned over $67,000 in the arena. His leading earner is A Genuine Boonsmal with earnings of $52,206 with an NCHA Certificate of Ability and 24.5 AQHA points with a performance ROM in the open division. This mare is a four-time AQHA World Show qualifier.
Royally Boonsmal is the third Peptoboonsmal foal out of Lynx Bar Legacy. She was shown but has not earned any money or points. She is the dam of two foals that have been shown. They are That Sly Boonsmal winner of $10,477 earning an NCHA Certificate of Ability. The other performer is Little Cat O Boon the earners of 8 AQHA performance points as a qualifier for the 2017 AQHA World Show in Ranch Sorting. She was in the AQHA 2017 Top Ten High Point for Junior Ranch Sorting with fifth place finish.
Roan Texas is a 2000 stallion out of Lynx Bar Legacy and Peptoboonsmal. This stallion took a different route in the show pen. He earned his AQHA Performance Championship with three Superior Awards in the arena. The Superiors are in heeling, heading and tie-down roping. He was eighth in the AQHA World Show Senior Tie-Down Roping in 2007. He was a 2007 World Show Qualifier in performance halter stallions. He has earned 401 AQHA points.
Roan Texas was sold and went to Brazil. His AQHA sire record shows that he is the sire of two AQHA point earners. The leading point earner is LC On The Trinity an AQHA Champion with 15 halter points and 29.5 performance points with an open ROM. His 29.5 performance points came in tie-down roping (4), Heeling (9), ranch riding (8) and heading (8). He is ROM in halter having won five Grand Championships and 14 Reserve Grand Championships. He earned seven halter in the open division and eight in the performance horse stallions. He was shown in these events by 12 different exhibitors.
Blue Boon Rising is the final Peptoboonsmal and Lynx Bar Legacy foal. She is the winner of $25,961 earning her NCHA Certificate of Ability. She was the 2005 Kansas Cutting Horse Association Derby Champion and the 2007 NCHA Area 8 $50,000 Amateur Co-Champion. She earned 11 AQHA open and amateur performance points. She is the dam of one AQHA point earner in Blue Headlights with 7.5 AQHA Amateur points. This mare qualified for the AQHA World Show in 2016 in Amateur Tie-Down Roping Level 2, Amateur Breakaway Roping and Amateur Breakaway Roping Level 2.
The final foal out of Lynx Bar Legacy is Little Royal Scoot by Smart Lil Scoot. This gelding has 13 AQHA points and is a top ten finalist in the 2009 AQHA Youth World Championship Team Penning.
continued on page 69
#1089924 sor 1959 gr 1947
PEPTOBOONSMAL QUARTER HORSE SUGAR TOWNLEY LUCKY JIM b 1939 ch ro 1992 #0183512 sor 1943 R J CLARK MARE
QUARTER HORSE BOON BAR DOC BAR LIGHTNING BAR sor 1951 #3097910 b 1972 ch 14.2 1956 DANDY DOLL ch 1948
ROYAL BLUE BOON QUARTER HORSE TERESA TIVIO POCO TIVIO br 1947 bl ro 1980 #0892319 br 1954 SAYLORS LITTLE SUE blk 1943
QUARTER HORSE ROYAL TINCIE ROYAL KING KING b 14.3 1932 #1601972 rd ro 1965 sor 1943 ROCKET LANING sor 1937
BARS ch 15.3 1940 AQHA#4022271 ch 14.2 1956 sor 1951
P ch 1934
DOCS LYNX QUARTER HORSE DANDY DOLL TEXAS DANDY ch 1942 sor 14.3 1969 #0076136 ch 1948 BAR MAID F ch 1943
QUARTER HORSE JAMEEN TIVIO POCO TIVIO POCO BUENO br 15.0 1944 #0707678 b 1956 br 1947 SHEILWIN dun 1943
LYNX BAR LEGACY QUARTER HORSE JAMEEN JIMMIE REED sor 1942 ch 1980 #0060482 sor 1952 LADY COLONEL CLYDE sor 1942
QUARTER HORSE ROYAL KING KING ZANTANON ch 1917
AQHA# 1639899 sor 1943 b 14.3 1932 JABALINA br 1920
ROYAL BAR LEGACY QUARTER HORSE ROCKET LANING DOLPH sor 1966 #0002392 sor 1937 CRICKET BY COLDY
QUARTER HORSE BAR LEGACY E P BAR HUG THREE BARS ch 15.3 1940 AQHA-0726764 ch 1963 ch 1949 MANDY II buck 1943
QUARTER HORSE MY CLEMENTINE MY MAGICIAN br 1943
AQHA# 0269153 br 1951 WINNIE WINKLE E br 1946
By SeeYa [Bye Bye Biankus]
M
y name is SeeYa, a quarter horse mare, my human is Sharee, and we live in Oregon. Notice that I said, “My human.” Humans don’t own us, we own them. We own their time, their love, their care, their worries and we own a lot of their money.
I have been writing my column since 2004 and my main focus is to train humans. I will take you with me on the rodeo trail as a barrel racer. You would not believe the adventures I have in store for you. What is even more interesting, is the things that happen when I am home.
November 10, 2006
A few weeks ago Sharee decided that I needed to get out of the arena and go for a real ride. She doesn’t like to do this because she thinks that I could get hurt by some freak accident. She also decided to take us for a trail ride on a road somewhere so I would have less of a chance of getting hurt. Please tell me why Sharee thinks that would be a trail ride?
Tally, my six-year-old pasture mate, Patton, Sharee’s six year old son, Heather, a friend, and her five year old horse Lady, headed out on a not so big adventure according to me.
Patton rode me because I am the only bombproof horse in the bunch, while Sharee rode, “I should have been born a blond” Tally.
I had a lot of fun with Patton. He just set up there and let me do whatever I wanted. He was so excited about his first trail ride that he was just taking in the sites and letting me do the babysitting.
The funny part about the whole thing was the actions of Tally and Lady. They were in such a hurry to go see something, of course they had no clue as to what that something was, that they kept leaving me behind as I was just taking in the fresh air and doing my babysitting job very well.
On the trail ride Tally and Lady ran into three boogiemen. The first episode was more than one boogieman. The boogiemen were dressed like deer and came across the road and stopped in front of my “not so fearless leaders.” Lady just
stood there frozen and Tally looked back at me for some support in saving her from the boogies. I calmly took my time, walked past the deer and led my group of tippy toeing young’uns to safety.
Their second boogie was disguised as a wooden bridge. Lady was a trooper and went right across. Tally cautiously followed and kept looking back at me to see if I though this was a good idea. I told her, “Rule number one – quit looking at me and watch were you are going, “Rule number two – if Lady falls in or something grabs her, stop and run the opposite direction like a bat out of you know where.”
Boogie number three even had me somewhat concerned. Those two ding-dongs where stopped frozen in the middle of the road and they were pretty sure that their lives could possibly be over. I finally caught up with them, and since I couldn’t see what the problem was, I moved slowly, had my ears forward and walked up close to Tally’s side and peaked around her nose at the supposed boogie. You always want to do this when riding with young people just in case it is a real boogie, you can spin and run away and the boogie will get them instead.
I looked and what did I see? I saw a big wooden Halloween sign of a pumpkin and a black cat. I let out an annoyed sigh and led the two idiots to safety on the other side.
Until next time…bring your patience with you when teaching the young…See Ya.
November 24, 2006
This past weekend I competed in a rapid competition with almost 100 entries and only 0.236 tenths of a second separating the top six fastest time of the day. I was fortunate to place fifth.
The race was held in an indoor arena....my faorvite place to hit barrels! By Sharee’s calculations, I hit a barrel indoors 80% of the time. She decided to give it a chance and we had a heart to heart while warming up.
As you read above, I did leave them all standing! Yeah for me! I didn’t have much help from Sharee however.
She decided that we were going to leave them up no matter what. So she got out her little whip that fits on her finger and is made out of nylon rope and decided that she was going to spank me before each barrel to get me by them. I don’t mind the finger whip because she doesn’t hit me hard enough to “scatter flies,” according to her friends, but it does let me know that she means business and that I need to give just a little more at a certain spot in my pattern.
Here is the replay. Try not to laugh to hard, Sharee has heard it
all by now.
Since the last time I ran this paticular indoor arena, I take off too soon and I hit my hip on the bucking shoots and scared Sharee to death. This time she had my good friend, Jeff Stahl, stand on the corner and shove my hip over when I came around to insure my safety. After that is when things got interesting.
Sharee spanked me on the way to the first, I set down and started to turn and her butt didn’t come with me. So, she is now hanging out in mid air above me as I am making my turn and by the time I left the first barrel she found her way back into the saddle.
Because I caused her to get thrown up and over my neck, she got the finger whip caught in my reins. Both my reins and the whip are very flimsy so they intertwined.
On the way to the second barrel she kept the reins in her left had and grabbed my mane while she was looking down and untangling the whip. I was so on my own, but that is the way that I like it.
Coming out of the second, she finally had everything were it belonged and she spanked me into the third where I turned so hard that I almost hit it and Sharee screamed like a girl. Yes, I said that right, like a girl! By this time she started laughing out loud as we ran home. She wasn’t alone, because everyone else was also in stitches.
Until next time…try to hold on to your rider…SeeYa.
About the Author |
Bye Bye Biankus, AKA SeeYa, is an AQHA mare by The Sovereign (Ettabo) x Mzpath Biankus (Biankus). She had a 10 year barrel racing career. She has published two books “On the Road with SeeYa,” volume I and II, along with being published in several newspapers and magazines. SeeYa went to heaven in July of 2017 at the age of 26.
is your Horse ready to coMBat stress?
By Kelsey J. Nonella |Ph.D. |P.A.S. |Equine Nutritionist @ Horse Guard, Inc.
Ahorse endures many different kinds of stress when being hauled and used competitively. Oxidative stress is a big factor in high performance horses. Oxidative stress is when there are more free radicals than the body’s antioxidants can handle. These free radicals damage cells, and reduce muscle function and their ability to recover. Cases of extreme oxidative stress are exhibited through cramping or “tying-up”. Horses without adequate levels of selenium will have more muscle soreness from exercising and performing, compared to horses receiving adequate levels of selenium.
Selenium and vitamin E serves as antioxidants to remove free radicals from the body. Three mg of organic selenium supplementation is the most effective way to combat oxidative stress. Northwest horses are very susceptible to selenium deficiency due to extremely low levels of selenium in the soil. Organic selenium is safer and more bioavailable to your horse than inorganic selenium. Guarantee that your horse is receiving the correct amount of organic selenium from your supplement or grains by checking the label. Look under the ingredient list for selenium yeast, not sodium selenite (inorganic selenium). Be sure that selenium yeast is the only selenium source listed.
Vitamin E goes hand-in-hand with selenium to combat oxidative stress. This Vitamin is readily available in pastures; however, hay that is stored losses Vitamin E (due to oxidation). Studies show that after 6 months of storage hay will have lost up to 80% of its Vitamin E. As a new hay crop is not yet upon us, and most hay has been stored for at least 6 months, it is very important that horses are receiving Vitamin E supplementation to aid selenium in combating oxidative stress.
Copper and Zinc are also crucial in performance. Like selenium and vitamin E the two minerals serve as antioxidants. Deficiencies will inhibit your horse’s ability to perform at their highest level. Also, arthritis and tendon/ ligament problems can be exacerbated in horses that are deficient in copper and vitamin C.
High performance horses endure a lot of stress on their
joints. This can cause the onset of arthritis. If your horse needs joint support, like many performance horses, make sure to choose supplements that contain glucosamine, MSM, and hyaluronic acid. Start joint supplementation at least two month before competition.
IMMUNE STRESS
When a horse is hauled they are exposed to many new environments with new, potentially harmful, pathogens. In addition, the stress of hauling can further suppress the immune system. If their immune system isn’t at its best, they run the risk of being susceptible to disease. A healthy horse, provided proper that they are nervous travelers. Added prebiotics and probiotics, along with added fat and protein can help to support them better. Added fat can also help to reveal some of their nervousness.
READY FOR THE ROAD
Good nutrition is the basis to a healthy horse. Once a good, balanced diet is established it is important that the horse continually receives balanced supplement to ensure continued protection against the potentially harmful things they encounter. I completed my doctoral research on selenium in horses at West Texas A&M University. The results from my study revealed that horses fed hay, grown in the Northwest, for four months with no selenium supplementation were deficient after only 2 months. However, even more interesting was the fact that once starting three mg of selenium supplementation, the horses came close to but never reached adequate selenium levels in four months of supplementation. The deficiency left them more susceptible to the stresses they encountered. Therefore, especially in the northwest, it is crucial for continuous selenium supplementation.
After handling the diet, it is important to implement an exercise program catered to your horse and discipline. A good nutrition plan and exercise program will ensure that your horse is as ready as you are to perform at their highest level. Good luck in the upcoming season.
About the Author |
Kelsey J. Nonella, Ph.D. is an equine nutritionist who was riding horses before she could walk. Her love for horses drives her to help educate people on their horses’ needs in order to have happy, healthy horses.
Lynx Bar Legacy is the daughter of Doc’s Lynx by Doc Bar. Doc’s Lynx was the 1973 NCHA Open Derby Champion. He was a successful sire of horses that earned over $4.8 million. His foals include Rey Lynx winner of $532,284 and Lynx Melody, an NCHA Futurity Champion. His daughters have produced the winners of $7.4 million. Shania Cee out of Lynx Melody is an NCHA Open Futurity Champion and his leading money earner on the maternal grand sire list. She earned $408,633.
Doc’s Lynx is the product of the great Poco Tivio daughter Jameen Tivio that was mated with the great Doc Bar. The Poco Tivio daughters have earned over $1.4 million. The cross of Doc Bar and Poco Tivio has produced such noted sires as Doc’s Remedy, Doc’s Prescription, Doc’s Hotrodder and Doc’s Tom Thumb, all successful sires in the industry.
The dam of Lynx Bar Legacy is the mare Royal Bar Legacy. Royal Bar Legacy is a daughter of Royal King. Her dam is Bar Legacy by E P Bar Hug. E P Bar Hug was sired by Three Bars and out of Mandy II. He was an NCHA money earners and ROM in the AQHA with 10 cutting points.
E P Bar Hug was the sire of only 11-point earners that earned 310 points. They include Scar Hug an AQHA Superior Cutting Horse with 129 points. He earned $3,551 in the NCHA. The other big point earner was Barcarolell with 153 AQHA points and a Superior in Cutting with $11,673 in NCHA earnings.
The daughters of E P Bar Hug produced 22 arena performers that earned three ROM. The leading point earner was Leche Bar with 51 AQHA points with an ROM and $5,272 in the NCHA. The daughters of E P Bar Hug produced 17 racing ROM with one stakes winner and two stakes placed runners. The stakes winner was Alabama Flash winner of the 1974 Pompano Park Derby and the 1974 St Johns Derby. He earned $21,833,
The dam of Bar Legacy was My Clementine by My Magician and Winnie Winkle E. Bar Legacy is the dam of two AQHA point earners in Royal Legacy with two performance points and Royal Bar George with two youth performance points. Her third performer was Leo Royal Bar an NCHA money earner.
The Royal King blood has been a great cross on Doc’s Lynx with Lynx Melody serving as another example. Lynx Melody is sired by Doc’s Lynx and out of Trona by Leon Bars. The dam of Trona is Miss Royal Fleet by Royal King. The interesting part of all this is that the pedigrees of Lynx Melody and Lynx Bar Legacy have some interesting pedigree similarities. Lynx Melody is sired by Doc’s Lynx and out of a Royal King/Three Bars cross. Lynx Bar Legacy is sired by Doc’s Lynx and out of a Three Bars/Royal King cross.
Sue explained why they bred Lynx Bar Legacy to Peptoboonsmal, “We always loved Royal Blue Boon and when Peptoboonsmal came along, we really liked him. Well we were on our way home from the futurity, I told Randy, ‘I think we should breed Lynx Bar Legacy to Peptoboonsmal and we did.”
The mating of Peptoboonsmal gives us an interesting tie to Royal King—the tie we alluded to in the beginning of our look at Lynx Bar Legacy. The key to the mating of Lynx Bar Legacy to Pepto-
boonsmal is the presence of Royal King in the tail female family of both Peptoboonsmal and Lynx Bar Legacy.
Royal Blue Boon was the 1984 NCHA Super Stakes Co-Champion. She is the number one all-time leading dam of cutting horse money winners with earnings of over $2.6 million. Her foals read like a Who’s Who of cutting horses. They include Red White and Boon, $578,088; Bet Yer Blue Boons, $346,551; Autumn Boon, $258,185 and of course Peptoboonsmal.
The Royal King blood in Peptoboonsmal comes from the great mare Royal Tincie. Royal Tincie is the dam of Royal Blue Boon. This mare is sired by Royal King and out of Texas Dottie. Texas Dottie is sired by Royal Texas by Royal King. This gives Royal Tincie a 1 X 3 inbreeding pattern to Royal King. This gives the foals by Peptoboonsmal and Lynx Bar Legacy a 4 X 6 X 3 linebreeding pattern to Royal King. Thus, we have a mating of a stallion with the blood of Royal King in the tail female line and a mare with the blood of Royal King in the tail female line.
One of the interesting things we can learn from the story of Lynx Bar Legacy is the fact that sometimes show record isn’t a true indicator of just how good a horse can be. This mare was a favorite of the spectators and competitors as she was such a great athlete and it showed in her performances. They wanted to watch her perform no matter the score. The other fact that we can learn from this great mare’s story is that she is a great example of the influence of Royal King in the tail female line and how that carries down through her grandget just as we see Royal King throughout the industry. It was factors like these that make her one of our Mares With More.
