JUDY’ S JOTTINGS
This time of year is perfect for a brisk ride over the country roads on your favorite pleasure horse. The horses feel fresh and ready to go on a cold day and the rider enjoys a good run as much as the horses. We have been riding more lately because our Greenhill community now has a riding club. These riding clubs have been started in most of the small towns and communities in this area. They ride every’ Sunday afternoon. The meetings are held once or twice a month for business and plans for the construction of the show ring for the scheduled shows and for trail rides. There are riding clubs in Waynesboro, St. Joseph and Loretta, Tennessee and Florence, Greenhill and Lexington, Alabama. There are approximately 75 families in the membership of the Greenhill riding club and most do not yet own a horse.
These people are interested in Walking Horses but think they are out of price range. Actually they know very little about the Walking Horse as a pleasure horse and are surprised that Bill can ride a registered Walking stallion with me riding a mare on the trail rides. We buy, sell and trade pleasure horses as well as our registered mares and colts and good reasonably priced horses are hard to find. The Walking Horse business has a ready market in these riding clubs and I hope we can get these prospective horse owners to ride a Walking Horse today and own one tomorrow.
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Back to the show horse phase of our Walking Horse world for a few words. George Witt has the first step on the way to the top at the Celebration stake for 1965. DUSTY’ S BEST CHANCE, the chestnut stallion he rode to 3rd place in the rough 3 year old stake at the Celebration, has taken the Southern Championship trophy and blue ribbon in the Junior stake at Montgomery. DUSTY had been undefeated in the show season and should continue next year to walk off with the blue ribbons. George also has a roan mare for William Crawford that should be ready for the show ring by spring. She is a full sister to SPUR’ S BIG GLORY and has a lot of promise in her way of going. Three filly colts by MIDNIGHT SUN, SUN’ S BIG SHOT and SPUR’ S TOPPER are being worked for the 2 year old classes next spring. Work at the George Witt Stables will really begin in earnest after the first of the year.
The Montgomery Show was this year the most for news and great horses. CARBON COPY retired from the show ring for the surprise of the year after a $ 125,000 sale price. GO BOY’ S SUN DUST took away the blue ribbon and defeated everything in the stallion class and was ready to walk away with the Southern Championship, but for an accident. The horse stepped on a nail in coming out of his stall and it was a deep wound. GO BOY’ S SUN DUST was not able to come Sack in the stake class on Saturday night. The Southern Championship would have put him at the front door at the Celebration next year, but they can’ t take away his stallion victory and remember he is still the one that would have been the Champion but for an unfortunate accident.
Look out for these Alabama horses next year with DUSTY’ S BEST CHANCE ridden by George Witt of Athens, Alabama and GO BOY’ S SUN DUST with Bud Dunn of Florence, Alabama riding. That SUN DUST and MERRY GO BOY CROSS would seem pretty potent with these two horses as examples. DUSTY is by SUN DUST out of a GO BOY mare and, as noted by the name, the black stallion is by GO BOY out of a SUN DUST mare. Dr. Henry, owner of GO BOY’ S SUN DUST( actually owned by Janis Henry), also has another great show horse in SUN DUST PERFECTION. Those that have seen both horses have a hard time deciding which they think is the best and to have them both in the show ring at the same time would be a sight to see. We have the first colt by SUN DUST PERFECTION and this black filly shows promise of being much like her sire. We have wished for such a show prospect and this colt may be it. But if wishes were horses all men would ride— right?
Lloyd Moore of Florence has put in training the first colt by EVEN ING SUN S. and his progress is outstanding to say the least. The colt will be shown as SOCIETY SUN and it looks like he will be one of the first colts ready for the two year old classes and is a real walking colt. This chestnut colt won a blue ribbon in the first colt class he entered last year.
M. L. Magnusson had his Gold Star Sale in the sale pavilion at the Old Milky Way Farm on December 11th and 12th. It was a good place to sit in comfort in elevated seats and see the horses work in the long hall of the sale barn. Magnusson sold some of his mares, show horses and colts and also had a little of everything else. Included in the sale were gaited ponies pleasure horses, Shetland ponies and a Belgian colt. He plans another sale for the spring and you can consign or get on the mailing list by writing to M. L. Magnusson, P. O. Box 102, Pulaski, Tennessee. The weather was rough for the sale but prices went about right for what they were selling. Several good show horses sold around $ 5,- 000 and the full brother to EBONY MASTERPIECE was entered and had active bidding. Magnusson is moving his horse business to Pulaski and plans other sales. We bought one mare at this sale but
always enjoy attending the sales even if we don’ t buy or sell anything.
By Judy Byers Killen, Alabama