Poco Pine (1954–1974) was an
American Quarter Horse
The American Quarter Horse, or Quarter Horse, is an American breed of horse that excels at sprinting short distances. Its name is derived from its ability to outrun other horse breeds in races of a quarter mile or less; some have been clocked at s ...
stallion
A stallion is a male horse that has not been gelded (castrated).
Stallions follow the conformation and phenotype of their breed, but within that standard, the presence of hormones such as testosterone may give stallions a thicker, "cresty" nec ...
and
breeding stallion
Breeding is sexual reproduction that produces offspring, usually animals or plants. It can only occur between a male and a female animal or plant.
Breeding may refer to:
* Animal husbandry, through selected specimens such as dogs, horses, and rab ...
. He earned 50 Grand Championships in his
showing career and after his death was inducted into the
American Quarter Horse Association
The American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA), based in Amarillo, Texas, is an international organization dedicated to the preservation, improvement and record-keeping of the American Quarter Horse. The association sanctions many competitive even ...
's (or AQHA)
AQHA Hall of Fame The American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame and Museum was created by the American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA), based in Amarillo, Texas. Ground breaking construction of the Hall of Fame Museum began in 1989. The distinction is earned by people and ...
in 2010. Two of his descendants have also been inducted into the AQHA Hall of Fame. 37 of his offspring earned an
AQHA Championship during their own showing careers.
Life
Poco Pine was a 1954
bay stallion
A stallion is a male horse that has not been gelded (castrated).
Stallions follow the conformation and phenotype of their breed, but within that standard, the presence of hormones such as testosterone may give stallions a thicker, "cresty" nec ...
, sired by
Poco Bueno __NOTOC__
Poco Bueno was a brown American Quarter Horse stallion foaled April 10, 1944.Simmons ''Legends'' p. 31-37 He was sired by King P-234 and out of the mare Miss Taylor who was by Old Poco Bueno. Poco Bueno was named for his maternal grands ...
, and out of Pretty Rosalie, a daughter of Pretty Boy.
[Pitzer ''Most Influential Quarter Horse Sires'' pp. 99–100] As a
foal
A foal is an equine up to one year old; this term is used mainly for horses, but can be used for donkeys. More specific terms are colt for a male foal and filly for a female foal, and are used until the horse is three or four. When the foal i ...
, he was bought at
E. Paul Waggoner
Edward Paul Waggoner (April 9, 1889–March 3, 1967), born in Decatur, Texas, was an American rancher, and one of the three original heirs to the W.T. Waggoner Estate in North Texas. After forming the estate, Tom Waggoner appointed his three ...
's 1954
Waggoner Ranch
The Waggoner Ranch is a historic north Texas ranch located 13 miles south of Vernon, Texas. The land was used primarily to raise crops, beef cattle and horses as well as for oil production. It was notable for being the largest ranch within one fen ...
sale by Paul Curtner. Curtner had originally intended to purchase a daughter of Blackburn and a filly by Poco Bueno, but instead ended up purchasing two different horses – a mare by Pretty Boy (Pretty Rosalie) and a colt by Poco Bueno (Poco Pine). While still at the sale, Curtner was approached by two employees of Waggoner's, both informing Curtner that in their opinion, he'd bought the best mare in the sale. One of the employees, Pine Johnson, Waggoner's trainer, also felt that the colt was the best Poco Bueno colt he'd ever seen. Because of Johnson's praise for the colt, Curtner decided to register the foal as Poco Pine.
[Holmes "Poco Pine" ''Legends 3'' pp. 112–115]
Show career
Poco Pine was shown about five times as a
weanling
A weanling is an animal that has just been weaned. The term is usually used to refer to a type of young horse, a foal that has been weaned, usually between six months and a year. Once it is a year old, the horse is referred to as a yearling.
The ...
, winning all the
halter
A halter or headcollar is headgear that is used to lead or tie up livestock and, occasionally, other animals; it fits behind the ears (behind the poll), and around the muzzle. To handle the animal, usually a lead rope is attached. On smaller ...
classes he was shown in. Curtner, however, felt that he was slow to develop and therefore didn't show him as a
yearling
Yearling may refer to:
*Yearling (horse), a horse between one and two years old
*''The Yearling
''The Yearling'' is a novel by American writer Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, published in March 1938. It was the main selection of the Book of the Mo ...
or as a two-year-old. By 1957 Curtner felt that Poco Pine was once again ready to perform, and took him to a show in Fort Worth, Texas. Although Poco Pine won his class, Curtner was sure the horse wouldn't win either Grand Champion or Reserve Grand Champion, and ended up betting
B. F. Phillips and Billy Bush that Poco Pine would not win the championship or reserve. Poco Pine won the Championship, which meant that Curtner lost money on his horse winning.
[Holmes "Poco Pine" ''Legends 3'' pp. 114–116]
Curtner's goal with Poco Pine's halter career was to have the stallion win 50 Grand Championships, a goal the stallion accomplished on October 27, 1960, when he was six years old. Curtner then retired the horse from halter showing. While Poco Pine was showing at halter, he was also showing in
cutting
Cutting is the separation or opening of a physical object, into two or more portions, through the application of an acutely directed force.
Implements commonly used for wikt:cut, cutting are the knife and saw, or in medicine and science the scal ...
competitions and standing at stud to a large book of mares. In 1958, for example, he bred 80 mares at a stud fee of $800 () as well as showing both halter and cutting.
[ In August 1960, Poco Pine earned enough performance points to qualify for an AQHA Championship and was retired from performance showing.][Holmes "Poco Pine" ''Legends 3'' pp. 116–118] In total, Poco Pine earned 135 AQHA Halter points and 17 AQHA Performance points.[ Poco Pine was trained by Doyle Taylor, Curtner's employee and head horse trainer
Curtner had two opportunities to sell Poco Pine during his showing career—the first time for $40,000 (), the second for $100,000 () —but both times he turned the offers down.][Holmes "Poco Pine" ''Legends 3'' pp. 119–120]
Breeding career
Poco Pine's foals earned $14,794 in