( Continued from Page 28 ) Walking Horse . We saw many horses and riders , both professionals and amateurs , that could get along well in competition anywhere in the country , including Tennessee .
Following a pattern that has been established by the State , the officials of this show held pre-show inspections of all horses prior to each class . Hoi ' ses were led to a practice ring , checked by a vet and then booted . It took tine veterinarians a while to catch on to the routine of “ what they were looking for .” One vet , trying to do his job according to the rule book , eliminated a couple of two-yearolds which , in our opinion , were in excellent shape for competition . As a result the other trainers decided not to show and only one horse was in the class . The situation was handled well by management and everything finally worked out with no hard feelings . There were only a few horses that were not permitted to show and , all things considered , the pre-show check worked out well .
In our opinion the pre-show check routine may be a good idea provided that the people doing the checking are oriented to the show horse world and especially the Tennessee Walking Horse .
As we made our way through the barn area each day we . could not help but be impressed with the pride that these West Coast Walking Horse lovers take in their stock , their tack and everything that has to do with their horse activity . This is a good sign and we cannot see anything but growth for the breed in this part of the country . x^nother highlight of the three-day show was a cocktail party and exhibitors ’ buffet held Friday afternoon in the beautiful club house atop the grandstand of the race track . We tried to get them to open the Pari-mutuel windows so we could bet on the Big Stake , but for some reason they insisted that this wouldn ’ t work .
Speaking of betting . . . we would be willing to bet that the breed on the West Coast is on the verge of great expansion . As a pleasure horse , a utility mount and a show horse , the Tennessee Walking Horse is serving the West Coast well . It ’ s just a hunch , but don ’ t be too surprised if we see a strong delegation from the far west at the National Celebration in the fall . There is a lot of talk out here about the prospects and we think they may just have some horses that would do well .
WEST COAST
Centour Stables
Big things are happening in Ontario , California , and trainers Owen Daniel and Mercedes Murphy are doing a fine job with the horses at Centaur Stables . One of the
feature attractions is the NEW BLACK ANGEL , a sixyear-old black mare that is doing a lot of winning for
Sally Ford . Sally , who rides out of Centaur Stables , is the daughter of Dr . T . F . Ford , who takes pride in their string of horses . They show their horses under the benner of “ Ford ’ s Walkers ” and are doing quite well , Sally
won 13 ribbons with her horse last year in Park Pleasure classes and this year has graduated to Juvenile and Amateur competition .
Other horses at Centaur Stables that are owned by the Fords are SFIADOW ’ S KING , a fine stallion by GO BOY ’ S SHADOW and out of a GO BOY mare , now standing at stud at Centaur ; HIGH NOTE E , a fouryear-old chestnut stallion that they purchased at Harlinsdale Farms and showed for the first time at Pomona ; MACK K ’ S MINISTER , a fine pleasure horse ; and ROBIN ’ S EASTER , an eight-year-old MIDNIGHT SUN mare , in addition to 18 other horses .
Centaur Stables has many other fine horses and wc will have a report on them later .
Blue Dude Stables
Gladys and Sam Dilles of Calabasas , California , are getting into the Walking Horse business right . Gladys , who had show dogs for many years , decided to get into this business several years ago . She has slowly been outlining a program that included a new stable , ( see photo ) and a string of fine horses . They got started right by going to Tennessee to get five yearlings and by breeding some fine mares to the best cross offered on the West Coast . At present they have COTTON QUEEN ’ S GO GIRL , a four-year-old chestnut mare ; SUN ’ S DUSTY
ROSE , a four-year-old mare by SUN DUST ; and two MERRY GO BOY brood mares . One of their mares is
in foal to STATELY AGAIN and another just had a fine black stud colt by MIDNIGHT GLORY B . They also have two yearling colts by DOUGH BOY and one yearling filly by WONDER BOY .
With the caliber of stock they have and the fine new stable , we should be hearing a lot about the BLUE DUDE STABLES .
Belhaven Stables
We had a long talk with Mrs . Leon Durham at Pomona and she gave us the story on Belhaven Stables in Chino , California . Trainer Red Henson , who is working out of a new stable owned by Mr . and Mrs . Thomas Hobson , has a string of good stock working . Red has only been at Belhaven for two months and already they can see some progress .
The Durhams have five horses in training including STATELY BRANTLEY BOY , a five-year-old black stud that they are standing . He is also a fine Amateur and Stake horse . Kris Durham , a twenty-year-old premed student , rides him as well as SUN ’ S MISS ROBIN . MIDNIGHT DOLLY B , a five-year-old black mare and GO BOY ’ S STORM TROOPER are also in training . Darlene Durham , sixteen years old , is now working with
MY GOLDEN SUN , an eight-year-old gelding .
Ford ’ s Walkers also have several horses in training here , including 3 O ’ CLOCK SFIADOW , a three-year-old
mare ; SUN ’ S WALKING GEANIE , a two-year-old sorrel filly ; SUN ’ S PROMENADER , a two-year-old bay
stallion ; SHADOW ’ S GIRL FRIDAY , a black weanling filly ; and STAR OF SAN ISIDRO , a six-year-old black mare .
Mr . and Mrs . Hobson are proud of DAWN OF THUNDER , a two-year-old sorrel filly ; STATELY ’ S
LITTLE MAN , a black yearling stud ; and MERRY DARE , a fine red roan filly . They hope to see some of their stock going strong soon .
Mr . and Mrs . Bill Myers of Pauma Valley have an orchid roan two-year-old filly named SCARLET O ’ HARA . They have great plans for her also .
Evergreen Ranch
One of the most well-established Walking Horse Stables on the West Coast is the Evergreen Ranch of Dr . and Mrs . Carl Bishop . Their trainer Bob Campbell
32 VOICE of the Tennessee Walking Horse