Page 79 - December 2015

Q: Give an interesting fact about your family.
A: I am thankful to have both parents still alive. They are both hard workers who take care of business, and family is the most important thing to both of them. My Dad taught me a lot of things, but one lesson I remember and still use
is on a horse trading deal. I was trying to buy a son of All American Futurity finalist Kents Boy Creek. I thought that would put me at the top of the South Georgia racing world. My Dad told me to go see Mr. Beasley and offer him a trade of my horse, Red Baron, and $400. He said to take the money out of my pocket and let him see it. He told me Mr. Beasley would say he couldn’t take that deal. He said for me to say okay and to thank him and to walk back to the car and don’t look back. My Dad said that about the time I reach for my car door, Mr. Beasley would say, “Since I know your grandpa, I will do the deal.” That’s exactly what happened. That was an excellent lesson. My Mom was tough. I remem- ber one time when I was little, some boy down the road kept trying to beat up on me. I walked in and told her about it, thinking I would get some sympathy. She said, “Well, go beat his butt and he won’t be doing that anymore.” I hadn’t thought of that, but it worked.
Q: Do you have a nickname and, if so, what is it and how did it come about? A: When I was in college and majoring in Animal Science, a roommate of mine started calling me “Mudcat” and it seemed as if every- body at UGA called me “Mudcat” after that.
Q: What is the strangest personality quirk you have ever seen in a horse? A: We turn our stallions out in large grassy pad- docks for several hours each day. So, many times when people come to see them they are outside in the paddocks. One of the stallions knew when people were looking, and if we didn’t go see him fast enough, he would rear up perpendicular
to the ground and stand there for a pretty long time to get attention. Once he knew you were coming to see him, he would come over to the fence and show off a little bit for the crowd. In Chinese medicine, he would be classified as a wood personality. He was good, he knew it, and he wanted everyone else to know it.
Q: If you were not in the horse racing business, what job would you like to have?
A: I think I would like to be a jet fighter pilot. Actually, I had a jet pilot let me fly in the cock- pit on a trip one time. It was nice and quiet, so a noncombat jet pilot job would be fun, too. I am a “CSI: Miami” and “Blue Bloods” fan also, so sometimes I think those guys have very interest- ing jobs. I understand that TV is much better than real life.
Q: What is your favorite thing about living where you live?
A: Well, today it is 60 degrees outside and beautiful at 9 a.m. The grass is still green and that is a pretty good deal compared to snow storms, tornadoes and frozen everything in other places. It does get hot here in the summer, but it’s really no hotter here than in a lot of other places in the summer, and we don’t have the bad winters. The horses like it.
Q: If you could vacation anywhere on the planet, where would it be & what would you do there?
A: I think I would like to go to Alaska and just see the sights. This summer, the family is going to Vancouver for a week, so we are getting closer.
Q: Do you have a favorite quote and, if so, what is it?
A: He who is last shall be first. It really has noth- ing to do with it, but I own part interest in a horse whose dam has the name “Last Shall be First”.
Q: If you could sit down and visit with anyone, past or present, who would it be?
A: Well, if you are going to get the opportunity to do something like that, you might as well go to the top, so my choice would be Jesus Christ. After all, He is the Man and the God, so if you have ques- tions to ask, He is the One to ask. Of course we can do that every day in prayer, but it would be great to see Him. Hopefully, we all get to do that one day. He happens to be the author of my favorite quote.
Q: What drink would your friends describe you as, and why?
A: I am not very exciting, so I would probably be milk. My wife says I get intense sometimes, so maybe add a shot of Mountain Dew on the side every now and then.
Q: Who’s your favorite athlete of all time, and why?
A: My favorite athlete of all time is not a very famous one except to me. He is a horse we bred and raised here and his name is Mr Speedwrench. When he was 3 months old, he got an infection
in his coffin bone. He couldn’t put his foot down because it was so painful. We did two surgeries on him and cut out a lot of his coffin bone. He stayed in a stall with his mother until he was 7 months old. We blocked him out every day so he could walk around and not get his leg contracted while his foot was healing. The other babies got weaned in August and he got weaned in October. I turned him out with them and he immediately was the leader. They all lined up and he touched their noses and then they all followed him. He was
the leader with no socialization for four months. When he went to Hialeah to race the day before the FQHRA Stallion Stakes Futurity trials, he got out of his stall by laying down and scooting
under the gate. He ran up to the track and when he came back, he went down a shed row and hit the guide wires holding up the barn and flipped over. That night he could hardly move. His chest was the size of a soccer ball. Brad Bolen was his trainer. Brad did a super job as he iced his chest for most of the next day. I was there and we decided to let Mr Speedwrench decide if he wanted to
run. About 4 o’clock, you could tell he was feeling better. He set the fastest qualifying time and no, he didn’t get any special sauce from the vet owner. He ran on that same heart that got him through the infected coffin bone. His chest ended up abscessing, but he still came in third in the finals despite that and the horse next to him rode him for about 200 yards. He was in ninth place at 200 yards. When the other horse got off of him, Mr Speedwrench came like the others were standing still and narrowly missed winning. He is now a cowhorse and is also in barrel horse training. In his first barrel horse competition, he was in the top 10 out of 175 head. He is a little horse with a big heart. He doesn’t know the meaning of quit. He is very sound of mind and body.
Q: If you were making a movie about yourself, who would you cast to play you, and why?
A: Well after a long day of riding into town and setting things straight, you need to be able to go home and sweep the little woman off her feet. I can’t sing at all, but since this is a movie and I get to choose, then I would cast gentle- man George Strait in my spot. Might as well aim high and make it look good, right?
Q: What’s one thing you don’t like about Quarter Horse racing?
A: We need to somehow get AQHA racing to
be a sport that people follow like NASCAR or something along that line. This is the now gen- eration and people want results instantaneously. Why not fill that desire with the world’s fastest athlete? If people will watch cars go in circles for hours and advertisers will pay to be associated with those cars, surely some talented person in the Quarter Horse racing world can make a success- ful pitch to a sponsor and get that train moving down the track. We have hooked our wagon to slot machines and, while many state laws require racing and slots to go together, it is always good to be developing another avenue for growth. Instead of asking “how are the slots doing”, we need to be asking “how are the horses doing”?
Q: What’s one thing you like about Quarter Horse racing?
A: I love trying to breed the ultimate 440 yard racing American Quarter Horse. We breed for the whole package, which not only includes speed, but soundness, conformation, trainabil- ity, and family. It takes the whole package to have a repeatable, successful competitor.
SPEEDHORSE, December 2015 77
THE LIGHTER SIDE