has been with them for seventeen years and has produced some of the best stock on the coast. MIDNIGHT MERRY BOY, a six-year-old stallion, is their breed stud and he has some fine colts on the grounds. Dr. Bishop is riding MIDNIGHT GLORY B by OLD GLORY JR., that has been Amateur Champion of the Pacific Coast Walking Horse Association. Mrs. Florence Bishop, one of most delightful people we met in California, is showing PURE GOLD this year. He is a five-year-old sorrel gelding. They also have GO BOY’ S MINX, a sevenyear-old marc that was Futurity Champion and West Coast Junior Champion. GOLD ' BOOTS FANTASY, a three-year-old sorrel mare, and LADY’ S SHADOW BOY, a three-year-old gelding, are doing well, as is GOLD BOOTS FI, a double-bred WILSON ALLAN horse by GOLD BOND. Evergreen Ranch is involved in almost every phase of activity on the West Coast including breeding and showing. They also have some fine stock for sale and recently sold MIDNIGHT MERRY BOY JR., a fine five-year-old stud.
Blue Mountain Ranch
( Editors Note: The following newsletter was sent to us recently by Jim and Diana Babb: Thanks for this West Coast information).
After all the rubbing, picking, scratching, figure eights and so forth. MY SECRET SUN was judged the
winner of the Junior Class at Indio, Diana showing as usual.
Some of the walkers that impressed us at Indio were SHADOW’ S DREAMTIME G., SUNBEAM PRO DUCER, THE NEW BLACK ANGEL, and STATELY BRANTLY BOY, to name a few.
With the Walking classes so well-filled and obviously the most popular with the spectators, we believe it will not be too long before they are given the same consideration by show management as are the other breeds.
California is about the last state that does not employ separate, judges for the Walking division at their major shows. We feel, as do most exhibitors, that the Walking classes are becoming too large and competitive to expect a saddle horse judge to do justice in our division. However, at the few shows we have attended in California, the judging has been commendable considering the interference from other sources.
We owe a lot of our success on the West Coast to one of the best farriers we have had the privilege to work with in any locality. Mr. Reuel Darling, Fresno, California, is truly an artist at his trade.
Since being on the West Coast, we have seen no evidence of horses being sore from blistering. However, there are quite a few that have old scars. These old scars frequently get boot rubs in the ring which is considered to be sore. These are, of course, disqualified under AHSA rules.
Everett Agee has leased SUN’ S DUKE OF DIXIE from Bob Womble, Chicago, Illinois. DUKE will stand the season at Blue Ridge Ranch, Clovis, California. He is a full brother to SPIRIT OF MIDNIGHT. Both of these stallions have some outstanding colts in Tennessee. Central California was in need of a top breeding horse.
It was a wise move for Mr. Agee to secure this MID NIGHT SUN breeding.
Here at Blue Mountain Ranch, wc have three colts already on the ground by SOUVENIR’ S KING, a World’ s Champion himself. He is a line-bred GO BOY. The mare’ s pedigrees, here at the ranch, read like Who’ s
34
Who in Walking Horse Circles. They are own daughters of GO BOY, MACK K, MIDNIGHT SUN, SETTING SUN, BLUE NAMRON, ROAN ALLEN AGAIN, GO BOY’ S CAPTAIN, and other nationally known sires. One prominent Tennessee breeder remarked,“ Why, y’ ll have better breeding than we have in Tennessee.” We have two-year-olds, yearlings and weanlings for sale out of
this breeding. J. D. Landers, Rio Linda, just selected two two-yearold geldings, by SOUVENIR’ S KING, to finish for some of his customers. J. D. and Jimmy are working a barn full, some pretty tasty stock there at Jo-El, too.
Walking Horses in Texas
fairw * 1 r / BT < IWML., y /
JOHN DENSON 3117 Fondren Dallas. Texas
It was my pleasure to visit with Bud and Mina Seaton recently. Bud is the head trainer at Mr. Frank Mason’ s thirty-five acre farm and stable near Grapevine, Texas. In my opinion, this is probably one of the finest stables in the country, if not the finest.
Naturally the center of activity is the barn, which contains twenty-five stalls constructed of metal pipe and chain-link fence. The outside walls of the barn are all metal and are built so that during warm weather the sides can be raised to allow maximum ventilation. Since Bud has moved to Blue Bonnet Stables, he and Mr. Mason have installed a metal shop that Bud uses when he shoes the horses. A sprinkler system is used to control the dust in the hallway of the barn in the arena.
Of course, it is the horses that make a stable a good one— and Bud and assistant trainer Eddie Milligan are working some of the best in the nation. Although Bud and Eddie have only been to three shows since last year’ s Celebration, they have compiled an outstanding show record. Bud has been showing one of the finest black stallions in the nation. Since January COUNT NOBLE, with Bud up, has won both the Stud and Gelding class and the big stake at both Fort Worth and Tyler. With this record, COUNT NOBLE is leading in points for the High Point Stallion of Texas award. This fine black stallion is owned by Hank Sheely of Dallas.
One of the best three-year-old stallions out this year is EBONY’ S SENATOR, owned by Mason and Seaton. This is a great horse, as was proven by his Tyler Horse Show win. Since the Tyler Horse Show has more and better Walking Horses than any of its size in the Southwest, this win was considered a real victory. The“ Old Trooper,” as Bud and Eddie call ROYAL SUN DUST, is one of the best geldings ever to come out of the Southwest. ROYAL has been shown three times since the Celebration with blues in the following classes: Gelding class at Jackson, Mississippi, Amateur Class at Fort Worth, and the Ladies’ Class at Tyler. Susan Sheely did a wonderful job of showing her horse at Fort Worth and Tyler— and this pair will be one to watch.
Ask anyone to name a horse that Bud Seaton has shown and nine out of ten will reply“ GO BOY’ S CHAT TERBOX.” Bud tied Reserve World Grand Champion on Shirley Sharpe’ s beautiful blood bay.
VOICE of the Tennessee Walking Horse
i