1969 Voice Of The Tennessee Walking Horse 1969 July Voice RS | Page 38

the Internal Revenue Service wanted to know what
happened to the other $10,000.00. We finally con­
vinced them that the report in the paper was wrong.”
Mr. Turner owned MERRY GO BOY when he won
the big stake at the Celebration in both 1947 and
1948. After his final victory, he decided to carry the
"champ” to his farm in Broadway, Virginia. The
story goes that he had a beautiful stall prepared for
the arrival of MERRY GO BOY, and had a big plate-
glass window put in it so people could easily see him.
Shortly after his arrival, MERRY GO BOY rolled
over in his stall and rammed his leg through the
glass, injuring himself severely. His recovery was
slow’ and, on the advice of a nationally-famous veter­
inarian, he was turned out. It is reported that his
reproductive capacity was reduced considerably dur­
ing this period.
The following spring, MERRY GO BOY was moved
back to Middle Tennessee to stand at stud at the
farm of Mr. J. French Brantley in Wartrace. By this
time, Mr. Turner had reportedly made up his mind
that GO BOY would never make a breeding horse,
but Mr. Brantley, falling back on his years of experi­
ence in the Walking Horse business, handled him
gently, breeding him wisely and sparingly the first
year. 'He recalls that they bred twenty-two choice
mares in 1949, when GO BOY was a six-year-old, and
got twenty of them in foal. Mr. Brantley recently
pointed out that "he was lame in his ankle when we
got him and we let him run out most of the time.”
This was the beginning of an illustrious career for
MERRY GO BOY as a major breeding horse. In 1952,
GO BOY’S SHADOW was foaled and, with the original
mentor in the saddle, he became the first World’s
Grand Champion to be sired by GO BOY. Winston
rode SHADOW to even greater acclaim than he had
his sire and laid the foundation for Walking Horse
trainers for years. Everyone tried to emulate Winston
in the saddle. They copied his training techniques as
best they could and everyone dreamed of owning a
GO BOY colt. Little by little, trainers mastered the
time-consuming trick of "making” a show horse that
was a little bit trotty as opposed to the customary
pacy trait. Since that time MERRY GO BOY colts
have won almost every title available in the Walking
Horse world. His latest claims to fame are the 1967
World’s Grand Champion, GO BOY’S SUN DUST, and
the 1968 World’s Grand Champion, GO BOY’S ROY­
AL HEIR.
In 1954 MERRY GO BOY moved to the S. W. Beech
Stables in Belfast, Tennessee to stand at stud. Mr.
Beech purchased one-half of the horse from Mr. Tur­
ner in that year. After several successful years at
stud, he was purchased completely by Mr. Beech.
The sale price of MERRY GO BOY at that time is not
known; however, based on his productive capacity and
the prices that had been paid for parts of him in the
past, it is reasonable to assume that he is perhaps
the most expensive stallion in the business, bar none.
While the property of the S. W. Beech Stables,
MERRY GO BOY has added yet another title to his
long list of victories. He won the Get-Of-Sire Class
at the Celebration in 1967 in what is reported to be
his last trip under the bright lights.
Since his final showring victory in 1967, MERRY GO
BOY remained at the Beech Stables in Belfast, Ten­
nessee. Despite every effort to care for him, time took
its toll and the great horse had to be put to sleep. We
can only ponder the feelings of the many people who
38
were connected with this horse during his twenty-six-
vear lifespan. To the Beech family and the many
others whose own activity centered around MERRY
GO BOY, we extend a heartfelt note of sympathy.
JUDGES FOR 1969 CELEBRATION ANNOUNCED
WALKING DIVISION:
Steve Hill..................................
Richard Mary...........................
BREEDERS’ DIVISION — COLTS
Joe Urquhart.............................
SADDLE. FINE HARNESS AND ROADSTER DIVISION
Lee Shipman, Barlite Farms.
EQUITATION
Complete story in August issue of the VOICE. Don’t miss it!
•
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Voice of the Tennessee Walking Horse