Jewel's Leo Bars
Jewel's Leo Bars | |
---|---|
Sorrel | |
Breeder | A.L Smith |
Other awards | |
Sire of three champion/co-champions in the 1976 NCHA Futurity Champion | |
Honors | |
Sire of two stallions inducted into the American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame |
Jewel's Leo Bars (1962–1978), commonly known as "Freckles", was a sorrel
Background
The breeder of Jewel's Leo Bars was A.L. Smith of Perry, OK.
Billy Bush was manager of the racing operation for Harris, and was also the first to nickname the young stallion "Freckles" because of all the sorrel spots on his blaze and stockings. Bush started Freckles under saddle as a 2-year-old before sending him to racehorse trainer,
With his ties to the cutting horse industry, Flynt focused on seeing if Freckles could be a cutting horse. He contacted Buster Welch, a legendary horse trainer in the discipline. Shorty Freeman, who rode Doc O'Lena to win the 1970 NCHA World Championship Futurity, Open Division, was also recruited along with Welch to train and show Freckles.[1]: 107
“He was green broke when we got him. He was a pretty sucker, though, and just a real smooth working horse.”
~Buster Welch[3]
Show career
As a 4-year-old, with limited showing under trainers Welch, Freeman, and John Carter, Freckles won the cutting competition at the 1966
Ultimately Freckles earned his AQHA Register of Merit with 25 points in Cutting. He also earned 3 Halter Stallion points. In NCHA competition, he was awarded the Certificate of Ability with recorded lifetime NCHA earnings of $6,037.24.[1]: 108
Foundation breeding stallion
The number of mares Freckles bred was limited in the beginning, and his stud book was closed to outside mares. Nonetheless, Jay Freckles, a 1970 stallion sired by Freckles, won the 1973 NCHA Futurity Champion Stallion, finishing 4th overall.[1]: 111 That year, Flynt's ranch manager, Terry Riddle, started cutting horse training for three 2-year-olds sired by Freckles: Freckles Playboy, Colonel Freckles, and Mia Freckles. Riddle's goal was to show them in the December 1976 NCHA Futurity, the premier cutting horse competition for 3-year-olds.[5]
In 1973, there were only 9 foals total sired by Freckles, and 376 entries in the 1976 NCHA Futurity. The three entries sired by Freckles comprised one-third of his 1973 crop, and had garnered substantial attention in the go-rounds and Futurity finals. That year, Colonel Freckles was the NCHA Futurity Open Champion, ridden by Olan Hightower and owned by Bob McCloud; Freckles Playboy, ridden by Terry Riddle, and Doc's Becky, ridden by Bill Freeman, were Co-Reserve Open Champions. The Non-Pro Futurity Champion was Mia Freckles, ridden by
"As soon as I started breaking Freckles Playboy, he showed me he was special," Riddle said. "He was quick and a big stopper. In fact, when I first started driving him, he stopped hard and moved low, and it was all natural."
~Terry Riddle[1]: 111
Freckles sired a number of champion progeny, who in turn provided him champion grand-get. A leading example was his son Freckles Playboy, listed as one of the Top Fifteen Leading NCHA Super Stakes Sires in 2021 with combined earnings of $2,324,488.00 across all divisions.[6]
Influence of genetics
Building a bloodline group of genetically superior horses that breed true requires breeders to research pedigrees back for many generations to foundation sires and dams. This helps create consistency by obtaining progeny information and individual performance records, but it also requires the breeder to skillfully match complimentary crosses based on their research.[7][8]
“But it wasn't long before Flynt, and the entire cutting industry, realized that Freckles' worth was as a cutting horse sire and the "magic cross" was Freckles crossed on daughters of Rey Jay.”
~Glory Ann Kurtz, Western Horseman, Legends–Volume 6 [1]: 108
Jewel's Leo Bars success at stud was an example of these principles at work.
The principles of this type of selective breeding for success in specific disciplines were noted in a 2013 genomic study that found the Quarter Horse breed is "subdivided into different lines according to skills resulting from distinct selection objectives" and noted "a close relationship between physical characteristics and the function for which the animal is used." For cutting horses, those skills include, but are not limited to, athletic ability and trainability.[11][12]
Registration and pedigree
AQHA registration #0206037, 1962 sorrel stallion, breeder A.L. Smith of Perry, Oklahoma.
Midway | |||||||||||||||||||
Percentage | |||||||||||||||||||
Gossip Avenue | |||||||||||||||||||
Three Bars | |||||||||||||||||||
Luke McLuke | |||||||||||||||||||
Myrtle Dee | |||||||||||||||||||
Civil Maid | |||||||||||||||||||
Sugar Bars | |||||||||||||||||||
Captains Courageous | |||||||||||||||||||
Rey | |||||||||||||||||||
Goldie | |||||||||||||||||||
Frontera Sugar | |||||||||||||||||||
Ben Hur | |||||||||||||||||||
Mare by Ben Hur | |||||||||||||||||||
Joe Reed | |||||||||||||||||||
Jewel's Leo Bars | |||||||||||||||||||
Nellene | |||||||||||||||||||
Joe Reed II | |||||||||||||||||||
Joe Reed | |||||||||||||||||||
Leo | |||||||||||||||||||
Fanny Ashwell | |||||||||||||||||||
Little Fanny | |||||||||||||||||||
Call Shot | |||||||||||||||||||
Leo Pan | |||||||||||||||||||
Handy Cup | |||||||||||||||||||
Handy Shot | |||||||||||||||||||
Little Joe | |||||||||||||||||||
Panchita | |||||||||||||||||||
Mare by Little Joe | |||||||||||||||||||
References
- ^ OCLC 57597624.
- ^ a b "In the Past: Marion Flynt". Quarter Horse News. September 21, 2015. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- OCLC 60791777.
- ^ "NCHA 2020 Yearbook" (PDF). Retrieved October 7, 2022.
- ^ Montag, Molly (November 17, 2021). "Top 15: NCHA Futurity All-Time Leaders". Quarter Horse News. Retrieved October 8, 2022.
- ^ Montag, Molly (April 7, 2021). "Top 15: Leading NCHA Super Stakes Open, Non-Pro & Amateur Sires". Quarter Horse News. Retrieved October 3, 2022.
- PMC 4327934.
- ^ Scholle, Sally (December 30, 2020). "Genetic influences behind today's Quarter Horses". TSLN.com. Retrieved October 8, 2022.
- ^ Caudill, Andrea (February 28, 2022). "The Doc Bar Influence". AQHA. Retrieved October 3, 2022.
- ^ Dennison, Jennifer; Hecox, Ross (October 2007). "Top Ten Ranch Horse Bloodlines" (PDF). Western Horseman. Retrieved October 3, 2022.
- ISSN 0737-0806.
- PMC 7023322.
- ^ "Jewels Leo Bars Quarter Horse". All Breed Pedigree. Retrieved October 17, 2019.
- ^ "Jewels Leo Bars". SporthorseData. April 24, 2018. Retrieved October 5, 2022.