Page 37 - 22 June 2012

His Two Great Loves
At age 93, breeder/owner Carl Alleman has created a legacy of loving family ties and successful racehorses. by Diane Rice
For generations, Carl Alleman’s home has been a revolving door for his children, who range in age from 70 all the way down to just 3 years
old. Two were born to him. Three he adopted. And more than a dozen have joined the family through foster care. In fact, he and his wife, Raney, who have been married for 20 years, presently care for five kids ages 6 and under.
Carl’s family also includes the horses he’s raised and raced—among them, the great sire Beda Cheng, now age 29.
As testament to the bonds they’ve built and the ties that bind them, at least one of Carl and Raney’s former foster kids visits pretty much every weekend, and Beda Cheng has a home for life at their Allsprint Ranch in Selma, Oregon.
CHEAPER THAN RACE CARS
Prior to breeding and racing Quarter Horses, Carl owned aluminum and brass foundries in Redondo Beach, California, which among other products, produced auto engine parts. He was also involved in midget, sprint and Indy car racing with his son, Smokey Alleman, who built all of the cars they raced. Still an auto fabricator, Smokey has refurbished more than 20 racecars for famed racecar driver Parnelli Jones’ museum.
“We were racing cars originally and then Parnelli’s brother, Paul, quit racing cars and started training at Los Alamitos,” Carl said. “About 1967, Paul said to me, ‘Carl, you ought to get yourself a Quarter Horse. I’m not going to tell you you’re going to make any
money with it, but you won’t spend as much as you would on the cars.’”
For a few years, Carl continued to race cars as well as horses, finishing the car-racing season second on the West Coast one year and fourth the next.
“Paul had me buy a horse called Chi Cheng,” Carl said. The 3-year-old mare was named for the 1968 Chinese Olympic track and field medalist and although the horse didn’t do much on the track—one win in 18 starts—she proved her worth as a broodmare.
Bred to the AQHA Hall of Fame sire Beduino TB, Chi Cheng produced four graded stakes winners including the 1979 mare Chieno. Chieno earned a register of merit in ’81, won the Miss California Handicap at Los
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