What is The Western Thoroughbred?
The Western Thoroughbred is a page dedicated to showcasing OTTBs that compete in western sports. There are active page promoters from around the world!
Be sure to check them out on Facebook & Instagram! Founder, Katelin Bradley, keeps the education going 365 days a year!
Be sure to check them out on Facebook & Instagram! Founder, Katelin Bradley, keeps the education going 365 days a year!
New OTTBwestern apparel is available NOW! 🏇
Follow the link below to shop t-shirts, tanks, sweats, mugs, and more! Each design is available in a multitude of colors and sizes. All proceeds from sales will help sponsor prizes for the western competitors at the Retired Racehorse Project Thoroughbred Makeover! 🏇
https://teespring.com/…/ottb-wes…/collection/All%20Products
Follow the link below to shop t-shirts, tanks, sweats, mugs, and more! Each design is available in a multitude of colors and sizes. All proceeds from sales will help sponsor prizes for the western competitors at the Retired Racehorse Project Thoroughbred Makeover! 🏇
https://teespring.com/…/ottb-wes…/collection/All%20Products
OTTB Western Features - courtesy of The Western Thoroughbred
In 1945, a bay named Piggin Sting won the title of Champion Quarter Running Stallion and he also won the Stallion Cow Horse Class at the Tucson Livestock Show. His speed and versatility were unrivaled. He was the embodiment of the perfect quarter horse, yet Piggin String was not a Quarter Horse. He was a Thoroughbred. Piggin String’s story is not unusual. Several Thoroughbreds were stars on the track and in the arena, but sadly their accomplishments have been forgotten. The following is a reminder of their historical influence on the western industry.
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The Thoroughbred is the result of a selective breeding program that began at the turn of the 17th century. Stallions imported from the Mediterranean Middle East were crossed with strong English mares. The excellence of these horses was tested on the race track and became a popular sporting event in Europe. As horse racing proliferated in North America, colonists sought to make the sport their own. Thrilling quarter-mile races were held as early as 1674 in Virginia. To meet the demand of these short races, some breeding programs shifted to produce a type of Thoroughbred that was suitable for sprinting. Like the sprinters of today, they were muscular, compact, and athletic.
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Over 250 years after the first quarter-mile races in Virginia, the American Quarter Horse Association was established. According to the AQHA, the founding members of the organization sought to preserve the bloodlines of the “Steel Dust Horses,” named for a fabled stallion that could drive Texas Longhorns through any terrain and run a quarter-mile faster than any breed. Ironically, Steel Dust was sired by the Thoroughbred stallion Harry Bluff. His dam was a relatively unknown Kentucky mare, and it has been speculated that Steel Dust may have been entirely Thoroughbred. Understandably, at the time of the AQHA’s formation it was unclear what constituted a “quarter horse” and controversies arose regarding registration. Racing interests formed the American Quarter Racing Association and additional stakeholders formed the National Quarter Horse Breeders Association. Both registries accepted Thoroughbreds, because original quarter horses were Thoroughbred sprinters. Eventually, interest groups resolved their differences. In 1949, the AQHA absorbed the AQRA and NQHBA and moved the records of both organizations to its headquarters in Amarillo, Texas. The AQHA therefore granted certificates to Thoroughbreds that had been enrolled in the other associations.
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Furthermore, the first twenty horses registered with the AQHA are designated as foundation sires. All are descended from Thoroughbreds. Of the first twenty, Rialto, Chief, Colonel, Sheik, Whiskaway, and Little Richard have Thoroughbred grandparents, and Joe Reed and Oklahoma Star have Thoroughbred parents. The AQHA Hall of Fame has inducted several full-blooded Thoroughbreds, including Azure Te, Beduino, Depth Charge, Three Bars, and Top Deck. Additionally, Thoroughbreds such as Custus Rastus, Jackstraw, and Vandy often bested their Quarter Horse peers on the track and in the arena, and so did their offspring. It is fairly easy for Thoroughbred-Quarter Horse crosses, which are initially assigned Appendix Certificates, to earn full AQHA status. The only “quarter horse” thing about some AQHA racehorses is their papers.
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In conclusion, Piggin String, and other full and half Thoroughbreds often embodied the epitome of what was considered to be a “quarter horse.” That should not be surprising as the characteristics that define the ideal performance horse - balance, speed, agility, and cunning - are hallmarks of the Thoroughbred. Not only did they lay foundation for the modern Quarter Horse, they are still influential today. Under no circumstances should their capability be underestimated.
🏇
Photo Credit: Gate to Great/Horse Creek Thoroughbreds 🏇
#OTTBwestern #OTTB
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The Thoroughbred is the result of a selective breeding program that began at the turn of the 17th century. Stallions imported from the Mediterranean Middle East were crossed with strong English mares. The excellence of these horses was tested on the race track and became a popular sporting event in Europe. As horse racing proliferated in North America, colonists sought to make the sport their own. Thrilling quarter-mile races were held as early as 1674 in Virginia. To meet the demand of these short races, some breeding programs shifted to produce a type of Thoroughbred that was suitable for sprinting. Like the sprinters of today, they were muscular, compact, and athletic.
🏇
Over 250 years after the first quarter-mile races in Virginia, the American Quarter Horse Association was established. According to the AQHA, the founding members of the organization sought to preserve the bloodlines of the “Steel Dust Horses,” named for a fabled stallion that could drive Texas Longhorns through any terrain and run a quarter-mile faster than any breed. Ironically, Steel Dust was sired by the Thoroughbred stallion Harry Bluff. His dam was a relatively unknown Kentucky mare, and it has been speculated that Steel Dust may have been entirely Thoroughbred. Understandably, at the time of the AQHA’s formation it was unclear what constituted a “quarter horse” and controversies arose regarding registration. Racing interests formed the American Quarter Racing Association and additional stakeholders formed the National Quarter Horse Breeders Association. Both registries accepted Thoroughbreds, because original quarter horses were Thoroughbred sprinters. Eventually, interest groups resolved their differences. In 1949, the AQHA absorbed the AQRA and NQHBA and moved the records of both organizations to its headquarters in Amarillo, Texas. The AQHA therefore granted certificates to Thoroughbreds that had been enrolled in the other associations.
🏇
Furthermore, the first twenty horses registered with the AQHA are designated as foundation sires. All are descended from Thoroughbreds. Of the first twenty, Rialto, Chief, Colonel, Sheik, Whiskaway, and Little Richard have Thoroughbred grandparents, and Joe Reed and Oklahoma Star have Thoroughbred parents. The AQHA Hall of Fame has inducted several full-blooded Thoroughbreds, including Azure Te, Beduino, Depth Charge, Three Bars, and Top Deck. Additionally, Thoroughbreds such as Custus Rastus, Jackstraw, and Vandy often bested their Quarter Horse peers on the track and in the arena, and so did their offspring. It is fairly easy for Thoroughbred-Quarter Horse crosses, which are initially assigned Appendix Certificates, to earn full AQHA status. The only “quarter horse” thing about some AQHA racehorses is their papers.
🏇
In conclusion, Piggin String, and other full and half Thoroughbreds often embodied the epitome of what was considered to be a “quarter horse.” That should not be surprising as the characteristics that define the ideal performance horse - balance, speed, agility, and cunning - are hallmarks of the Thoroughbred. Not only did they lay foundation for the modern Quarter Horse, they are still influential today. Under no circumstances should their capability be underestimated.
🏇
Photo Credit: Gate to Great/Horse Creek Thoroughbreds 🏇
#OTTBwestern #OTTB
Everyone meet OTTBwestern Ambassador Hannah Pantze of Minnesota and her OTTB gelding Yeomansescape!
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“My name is Hannah Pantze and I barrel race with my OTTB, Rio! He’s coming 6 years old and we are going on our 3rd season together.
“I didn’t grow up on a farm, or around people that rode horses at all. My late start is a bit different than the typical one, but that has made this process worth it. I started taking lessons at the age of 13, bought my first quarter horse at the age of 15 and started off trail riding. Eventually I started at some fun shows, and I didn’t stop there.
“Now I eat, sleep, breathe horses. It wasn’t until 2 years ago I decided to sell my barrel horse and train my first colt. I ended up at the track Canterbury Park, saying YES to my first racehorse, Rio.
“I was scared, all the perceptions of Thoroughbreds I heard were running though my head.. it ended up being one of the best decisions I have ever made. He is willing to try anything and he keeps me calm under pressure. We have competed in speed events, western pleasure and barrel racing and refuse to stop there.
“A couple things I’ve learned over the years...
1. A bad day of riding is still better than not riding at all
2. If you do not succeed, choose a different way to get to your goal, but don’t change your goal
3. Thoroughbreds have forever changed the equestrian game 😉”
#OTTBwestern #Yeomansescape #OTTB
🏇
“My name is Hannah Pantze and I barrel race with my OTTB, Rio! He’s coming 6 years old and we are going on our 3rd season together.
“I didn’t grow up on a farm, or around people that rode horses at all. My late start is a bit different than the typical one, but that has made this process worth it. I started taking lessons at the age of 13, bought my first quarter horse at the age of 15 and started off trail riding. Eventually I started at some fun shows, and I didn’t stop there.
“Now I eat, sleep, breathe horses. It wasn’t until 2 years ago I decided to sell my barrel horse and train my first colt. I ended up at the track Canterbury Park, saying YES to my first racehorse, Rio.
“I was scared, all the perceptions of Thoroughbreds I heard were running though my head.. it ended up being one of the best decisions I have ever made. He is willing to try anything and he keeps me calm under pressure. We have competed in speed events, western pleasure and barrel racing and refuse to stop there.
“A couple things I’ve learned over the years...
1. A bad day of riding is still better than not riding at all
2. If you do not succeed, choose a different way to get to your goal, but don’t change your goal
3. Thoroughbreds have forever changed the equestrian game 😉”
#OTTBwestern #Yeomansescape #OTTB