Ep 181: Favorite Bloodlines for Performance Horses
On this episode, I'm answering your inbox questions about my favorite bloodlines for performance horses and my experiences in training each. While I cannot speak to every great set of bloodlines out there, I am sharing my experiences with the horses I have personally trained and the characteristics that I liked most about each.
I have been very fortunate to ride a wide variety of horses that have gone on to excel in barrel racing, roping, and other performance disciplines. I’d love to say that there is a black-and-white answer to the bloodlines that I prefer, but the truth is, each horse I’ve ridden is a unique animal. No two horses are created exactly the same. Of course, great bloodlines increase the likelihood of a horse being naturally gifted with talent in a given area or discipline; however, I have learned that even full siblings can often exhibit very different characteristics from one another. Genetics is very powerful, but at the same time, there are some things about it that make you scratch your head.
Regardless of their genetics, some horses tend to progress and mature at a faster rate than others. Some are naturally disposed to be very calm, cool and collected at an early age, while a full sibling to that horse may take an extra year or two to develop that same level of mental maturity.
In my training career, I have been in the business of starting colts, so I have only gotten to experience these horses for a few months of their lives. If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s to not judge a horse by those few months that I have them. Some horses that are extremely challenging to start as colts are the ones that go on to excel at an elite level later in life. A prime example of this is Dona Kay Rule’s High Valor. I had the privilege of starting Valor as a colt, and to say he was a handful is an understatement. However, he was an undeniably talented horse, even from a young age, and what Dona Kay has done with him in the later years of his life is a testament to this horse’s talent.
On the physical side of things, I believe that genetics does play a huge role in a horse’s conformation and their natural athletic tendencies. Some horses are more disposed to having natural cow sense, while others are naturally more gifted with speed. I grew up riding cow-bred horses, and in the later years of my career began riding more running-bred horses, so personally, this is my favorite cross - a cow-bred stallion with a running-bred mare, or vice versa. In today’s performance horse world, I believe a horse needs to have both the ability to accelerate quickly (a running-bred horse trait) and pick their feet up and get their bodies in the position to rate and stop (a cow-bred horse trait).
I’ve ridden a variety of bloodlines that have gone on to excel in a variety of disciplines, but one of the areas that I have had a lot of experience in in particular is the barrel futurity horses. In my experience, these are some of the sires that stood out to me as being very trainable and athletically-inclined:
When it comes to selecting a stallion, I think it is very important to find one that is both a performer and a producer. In my experience, that is a very elite category that not a lot of horses fall into. It’s a gift to find a stallion that you enjoy riding, and one that wins. Another factor to consider is the mare you cross these sires with. In my opinion, you cannot undervalue the mare and the characteristics she brings to her offspring.
It’s no question that genetics plays a big role in setting the foundation for a horse’s potential, but at the end of the day, it is still our job to treat each horse as an individual and develop that potential.
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