1967-Voice Of The Tennessee Walking Horse 1967 March Voice RS | Page 8

working hours and operates on the philosophy that you
work until you get the job done.
PROFESSIONALS ON PARADE
By DAVID L. HOWARD
As pointed out earlier, Bill was born into the world of
horses. He was born in Murfreesboro, Tennessee in 1928.
His father owned and operated a dairy farm in addition
to showing colts under halter and maintaining a band of
broodmares.
Bill and his younger brother Dudley started riding
before they could walk, to hear Bill tell the story. “I wa*
practically raised in the saddle and when I wasn’t there I
was helping take care of the dairy farm,” Bill reminisced.
As any farm boy can testify, it takes a lot of hard work
to keep up a farm, train colts, and look after a band of
brood mares.
Bill recalls the hard work but looks back on those days
with kind thoughts. The hard work and “farm boy disci­
pline” have been a big asset to Bill and he fully realizes
the contribution they have made.
BILL SLEDGE LOOKS TO THE FUTURE
Bill Sledge has his eye on the future! He is thinking
of big tilings in the horse business and it is easy to see
why. Bill has a brand new barn to work in, some of the
best stock in the country, and an excellent working rela­
tionship with Mr. Guy Whitener, Jr., owner of the Silo
Hill Stables where Bill works.
After spending two days with these two men it is easy
to see that they have an excellent working relationship that
is obviously based on. mutual ''admiration and respect.
’‘Bill makes the decisions about the horses,” Guy told me
recently. “We usually sit down and talk things over but
he makes his own decisions.”
Bill was quick to point out that he tried to keep Guy
well informed of all significant developments in the barn
in order to prevent any chance of a misunderstanding.
After talking with these two men and getting to know
them somewhat, it is difficult to put on paper the real
basis for their working relationship. It is something that
they both understand but the outsider has trouble picking
it. out. One thing for sure, it has worked superbly so far
and has all the qualities necessary for permanent success
in the horse business.
Bill Sledge has been at the Silo Hill Stables in New­
berry, South Carolina for only about six months, however,
he was raised in the horse worl