MURRAY FARM SALE PRODUCES MUCH-NEEDED BOOST FOR
Triple Threat Brings Record S43,000 At Auction
The 1965 Murray Farm Sale provided a much-needed " shot in the arm ” for the Walking Horse business . After a long wet winter , in which very little activity took place anywhere , the business needed something to crow about and the Spring edition of the famous sale provided the action .
Probably the most promoted and anticipated sale in years , this year ’ s Beech & Yokley spectacular attracted more horses than ever before and also attracted more top horses than anyone ever dreamed wouldbe auctioned . Highlight of the week ’ s activities was the sale of the fabulous Triple Threat . A drawing card to saj ' the least , the big bay - owned by C . E . CLEMENT . W . CLYDE ABERNATHY and J . E . SHERILL of Hickory , North Carolina when he made his second bid for World Championship Honors in the ' 64 Celebration - packed the big tent on the hill with an overflow crowd on Friday evening .
When the sale officially opened on Thursday morning , April 29 , it was anybody ’ s guess as to the tempo of the sale . It soon became apparent , however , that a trend was in the making when a lot of good horses sold at fair prices and very few " no sales ” were registered . One nicelooking horse brought a top bid of five hundred and twenty-five dollars and , when asked about it , the rider stated , " That ’ s exactly what 1 wanted for him .” This seemed to indicate the frame of mind of most buyers . They came here to move some fair stock to make room for better horses ... and it paid off .
WALKENS HORSE BUSINESS
In our opinion , this is a healthy sign for the business . A lot of people were able to purchase good horses at a fair price who otherwise would have gone home empty-handed . We now have a lot of good Walking Pleasure Horses , with good papers , located in other parts of the country to help spread the word about the versatile Tennessee Walking Horse .
This is not to say that there were no top horses to go through the sale . There were , in fact , more recognized top horses to change hands this year than ever before . To mention a few : Mi Tennessee Stud changed hands for $ 13,000 ; Lil ’ s Major brought $ 7,500 ; Merry Motion Maker reached S12,000 before going ; and Ebony ’ s Black Lady topped the Junior horse ■bracket with a top price of $ 10,000 . These are typical of the many excellent Tennessee Walking Horses that were sold during the three-day sale .
Speaking of Ebony ’ s Black Lady , she was the highlight of the week ’ s activities of Dr . RALPH . E . BANEY of Kansas City , Missouri , owner of the Red Bridge Stables and Midnight Secret . Dr . Baney purchased a total of $ 52,000 worth of Walking Horse stock during the three-day sale . He is currently concentrating on good brood stock , but decided that Ebony ’ s Black Lady would be a definite asset to the Red Bridge Stables as a show horse .
Dr . Baney broke another record when he bid an unprecedented $ 7,200 for a top brood mare safe in foal to Go Boy ’ s Shadow , maintaining that this mare and an outstanding foal will aid his growing breeding program tremendously .
An estimated 518 registered Tennessee Walking Horses went under the hammer during the three-day sale , but it was Triple Threat that the crowd came to see . This horse , who has become a legend in his own time , captured the spotlight when BUDDY BLACK , riding for his owners , brought the twice-Reserve World Champion into the tent . Dr . DEWITT OWENS gave a short report oh the excellent physical condition of the horse and , simultaneously , Buddy Black said , " Comeup ”... PETE YOK LEY hollered , " What am I bid ?”... and the ring attendant closest to the auctioneer ’ s stand yelled " TWENTY THOUSAND DOLLARS !” From here on , it was pandemonium ! The sale tempo finally reached forty-two thousand , five hundred dollars . It is reported that many had bid on the horse , including ROY and BONNIE DAVIS of Calhoun , Georgia ; Dr . RALPH E . BANEY of Kansas City , Missouri ; JOE TILLETT of Shelbyville ; and several others .
As the bidding stalled , Joe Tillett asked his twelve-year-old daughter JUDY to ride Triple Threat around the tent . This attractive young miss climbed aboard the big horse with all the confidence of a professional and made a perfect show of it . Pleased with what he had just seen , Mr . HANK SHEELY of Dallas , Texas moved up front and , with a little counsel from VIC THOMPSON , bid $ 43,000.00 for Triple Threat .
Mr . PETE YOKLEY and Mr . S . W . BEECH deserve the commendation of the entire Walking Horse public for the 1965 Murray Farm Sale . In our opinion they have contributed greatly to the stature of the breed and have done a great job ofbuilding up what was already an established annual event in the Walking Horse world . We believe that a lot of confidence was generated here this year and that the sale will have a material effect on the business throughout the year .
If you missed the Murray Farm Sale , be sure to put it on your list of " must ” activities for 1966 . Remember the annual " Sale of Showring Champions ” that will be held during the week of the Celebration at the new Beech-Yokley Sale property just east of the Celebration grounds . It will be a good place to shop for horses with confidence . Remember the words of Mr . Yokley , however : " To keep Tennessee green , you must bring money .”
12 VOICE of the Tennessee Walking Horse