Palomino quarter horse gelding tops Great American Ranch & Trail Horse Sale at $77K

With nearly 100 horses parading through the sales pen at the 2022 Great American Ranch & Trail Horse Sale, it would be hard to not find something you like. From 12-hand ponies to 17-hand Friesians, ranch-bred and trained quarter horses to loudly colored paints with impressive show records to draft crosses with miles of trails behind them, their resumes varied nearly as much as the medley of colors they came in.

And as much as we all know that color doesn’t make a good horse, we also know that buyers can’t resist a flashy horse. Make it a blue roan or a palomino and that’s the true icing on the cake.

For the past two years, the feathered feet of Gypsy Vanners stole the show. But this year, it was a palomino quarter horse named “Newt” that drew the highest bid. Heza Triple Peponita, a 2017 AQHA gelding consigned by Triple R Stables in Ohio, sold for $77,000. The winning bid came over the Internet, where the sale is live-streamed. Watch a video from the bidding.

Hip No. 50, Heza Triple Peponita, during the trail competition. He was the sale high-seller at $77,000.

The Great American Ranch & Trail Horse Sale is unique. It gives sellers a chance to show off their horses (or potentially broadcast any shortcomings in the horse’s training). Sale horses compete for cash and prizes. But potential buyers are winners, too, as they get the chance to watch the horses face unfamiliar obstacles in an unfamiliar, noisy environment.

At this year’s sale, many of the sale horses competed in either the trail horse competition, the ranch horse competition, or both — betting their horse’s training will shine through even in the difficult environment of an indoor coliseum.

Trail course obstacles include stepping over logs, crossing a bridge, weaving through tree branches, passing a campfire, ground tying while their rider disappears into an outhouse, and loading onto a trailer.

Ten finalists then return the next morning for a harder version of the course and perform a freestyle routine that shows off the horse’s unique abilities.

While the top-seller placed seventh, it was a North American Spotted Haflinger, Tigers Sweet Gentry, who quietly plodded through the course and with guns blazing in the finals came away with the championship. He later sold for $40,000. Reserve champion was Hip No. 25, TRS Loud Sensation, who sold for $25,000.

Tigers Sweet Gentry won the $2,000 Trail Horse Competition.

The ranch horse competition is held on Friday afternoon and includes completing a ranch horse pattern with stops, spins, and lead changes as well as boxing and penning a calf, before attempting to rope the calf.

This year, a flashy sorrel named Play Berry took home top honors. He later sold for $30,000.

Play Berry receives his prizes for the Ranch Horse competition win.

Trail Horse Top 5

Hip No. 76, Tigers Sweet Gentry, 2017 North American Spotted Haflinger, sold for $40,000
Hip No. 25, TRS Loud Sensation, 2010 APHA gelding, sold for $25,000
Hip No. 33, Southern Living, 2017 AQHA gelding, sold for $32,500
Hip No. 55, Ima Yella Skippa Kid, 2018 AQHA gelding, sold for $17,000
Hip No. 40, Wranglin in Rio, 2016 AQHA gelding, (no sale)

Sale high-sellers

Heza Triple Peponita, #50, (AQHA) $77,000
RW Shotgun Blue, #23, (AQHA) $45,000
(tie) Ollie, #35, (grade) $40,000
(tie) Rio Angelical 77, #36 (AQHA), $40,000
(tie) Tigers Sweet Gentry, #76, (Spotted Haflinger), $40,000
St James of Glen Grace, #18, (Gypsy Vanner), $38,000
Buckeyes Joe, #27, (Gypsy Vanner), $37,000
EQHR Blue Fire Boots, #58, (AQHA) $34,000
Southern Living, #33, (AQHA), $32,500
Tyson, #3, (grade pony), $30,000

Gypsy Vanners again take top bids at Great American Ranch and Trail Horse Sale

Tequila, a Gypsy Vanner-cross mare, was the high-seller and reserve champion of the trail horse competition.
*Photo by Rose Stinson Photography.*

If you’ve ever wondered if getting training for your horse is worth it, spending the day at The Great American Ranch and Trail Horse Sale at the Virginia Horse Center in Lexington is a showcase of just how much “broke” is worth in the market today. A well-trained, useful horse will always be wanted.

The sale, in its 20th year, prides itself in offering well-broke horses. There were about 80 horses and ponies of all breeds to choose from at this year’s sale, which took place April 8-10, 2021. More than a few horses saw prices well over $20,000, but it was a tobiano Gypsy Vanner-cross mare named Tequila and consigned by Buckeye Farms who inspired the highest bids. After plenty of back and forth between a couple of bidders participating by phone, she was sold for $72,000 to Alicia Stearman of California.

Stearman said in a Facebook post that she plans to use Tequila for “vaulting and circus camps for kids, Roman riding with another Buckeye Gypsy I bought back in December. We will be performing with kids with her.”

Watch video of Tequila’s sale.

The second-highest seller of the sale was also a Gypsy Vanner. RGR Shameless Adonis, consigned by Triple R Stables, brought $52,000 when the bidding was done on the stout 6-year-old black gelding.

Watch video of RGR Shameless Adonis’ sale.

RGR Shameless Adonis. *Photo by Rose Stinson Photography*

For the past couple years, Gypsy Vanners have been popular at the sale. The 2019 top-seller was a Gypsy Vanner named Congress Hill Moves Like Jagger. He sold for $45,000 that year. In 2018, the black Gypsy Vanner gelding GG Jonah was the top-seller at $40,000.

In 2020, the annual sale was canceled due to the pandemic. This year they returned with the traditional bidding by those in attendance, and by phone and added the ability to bid online as well where a live stream of the sale was available. Several horses were purchased through that online option.

While getting a chance to buy a great trail horse is at the center of the weekend, there’s more to the Great American Ranch and Trail Horse Sale then just an auction. Before the bidding ever begins, many of the horses take part in competitions reserved only for sale horses. The ranch horse competition involves performing a ranch horse pattern and cow work. This year’s winner, who took home a trophy saddle, buckle, and a $1,000 check, was Magnum Affair, a 6-year-old AQHA sorrel gelding. He later sold for $32,000.

The ranch reserve horse was RR Instant Feona. The 2015 quarter horse mare would sell for $17,000.

The trail horse competition begins Friday night before the sale with a preliminary run and is followed by a 10-horse finals on Saturday morning before the sale. It offers a unique opportunity to see the sale horses perform over unfamiliar obstacles that include large and small logs, a bridge, ground-tying while the rider uses an outhouse, a campsite complete with campfire, and loading into a horse trailer. This year the $1,000 win went to KM Best One Zippen, ridden by John Roberts. The 2014 sorrel quarter horse gelding would later sell for $27,000.

The trail horse reserve winner was the eventual high-seller, Tequila.

A special session for ponies started the sale, bringing from about $3,000 to up to $7,000. The first pony to ever qualify for the trail horse competition finals, a black and white leopard Appaloosa pony named Pongo, sold for $6,200.

While many of the horses in the first half of the sale were sold for $20,000 and up, don’t allow that to scare you off. There were plenty of horses, especially toward the last third of the sale, that tended to stay in the five figures.

Top sellers

$72,000 Lot No. 39: Tequila, 2016 Gypsy-cross mare
$52,000 Lot No. 42: RGR Shameless Adonis, 2015 Gypsy Vanner gelding
$40,000 Lot No. 22: SDR Comanches Echo, 2011 ApHC gelding, PHOTO
$32,000 Lot No. 31: Magnum Affair, 2015 Sorrel AQHA gelding
$31,000 Lot No. 28: Ciscos Last Cutter, 2016 AQHA Buckskin gelding
$30,000 Lot No. 12: Starlight Mobster, 2016 AQHA Palomino gelding WATCH
$30,000 Lot No. 20: Awesome Dry Texas, 2014 AQHA Palomino gelding
$30,000 Lot No. 45: Banjo, 2017 grade quarter horse cross
$29,000 Lot No. 21: Make Mine A Kiss, 2017 sorrel AQHA gelding
$29,000 Lot No. 41: Hez A Smart Tank, 2014 gray AQHA gelding, WATCH
$28,000 Lot No. 14: Playin in the Creek, 2011 sorrel AQHA mare
$27,000 Lot. No. 18: KM Best One Zippin, 2014 sorrel AQHA gelding WATCH
$27,000 Lot No. 49: Woodrow, 2011 sorrel Overo grade gelding, WATCH
$26,000 Lot No. 34: Chiefs Dashing Sabre, 2015 AQHA Buckskin gelding
$25,000 Lot No. 32: Mr. Illuminator Chex, 2017 grey AQHA gelding
$25,000 Lot No. 38: Plenty Blu Chukar Ma, 2015 Blue Roan AQHA gelding

See more photos, videos, and results at the Great American Ranch and Trail Horse Sale’s Facebook page.

Well-trained horses are wanted: Great American Ranch and Trail Horse Sale a spring hit

Blog-0249 — The Great American Ranch and Trail Horse Sale takes place each April at the Virginia Horse Center and along with the auction on Saturday, includes two competitions for sale horses.

As the weather warms and the sun starts to feel just a bit warmer, daydreams shift to the promise of another great season of trail riding and hours spent on a favorite horse climbing the Blue Ridge Mountains or cantering along a river at James River State Park.

Last weekend (April 13-14, 2018) in Virginia, both fabulous weather and plans for great trail rides converged at the Virginia Horse Center for the Great American Ranch and Trail Horse Sale as 120 horses, hundreds of buyers and even more spectators gathered for another sale.

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Unique to this sale are the competitions open only to consigned horses. The ranch horses go first on Friday afternoon in a class the requires them to perform an AQHA ranch horse pattern and then box and rope a cow. On Friday evening, another class of horses tackles a trail course that features obstacles such as logs, a bridge, brush, a campsite complete with campfire and a bear, an outhouse in which they must ground tie outside while the rider steps inside and a horse trailer that the horse hops inside. It also often includes a few surprises like a live animal. This year it included a goat along the trail. Horses may only enter one of the competitions.

After the Top 10 performers from Friday night came back for the Trail Horse finals on Saturday morning, Steve Meadows of Virginia and Ima Sweet Machine (Hip No. 10) took home the top prize in an especially strong group of finalists. Meadows’ 2008 black gelding then later sold in the sale for $30,000. The Reserve in the trail class went to John Roberts riding Marion G. Valerio’s AQHA gelding Get Your Shine On. He later sold for $11,700.

imasweetmachine — Steve Meadows and Ima Sweet Machine took home the big check in the Trail Horse competition.

untitled-0170 — Get Your Shine on and John Roberts (left) were the Reserve Champion in the Trail Horse competition.

HyRem — Tanner Keith and Hy Rem Cowboy took home the Ranch Horse title.

The ranch horse competition is in just its second year at the sale. The class showcases the working ranch horses and their ability to work cattle. In his first year consigning horses to the sale, Tanner Keith of Virginia had three of the Top 5 horses. Winning the class was Keith’s Hy Rem Cowboy, Hip No. 68. Later in the sale his price did not reach the reserve. Reserve champion was Keith’s RobPaulPayPeter, Hip No. 111. He later sold for $6,600.

While many years a champion for the competitions is also the high seller, this year it was pure beauty that took the sale by storm. Hip No. 45, GG Jonah, a gorgeous 2008 black Gypsy Vanner gelding consigned by Buckeye Acre Farm of Ohio stirred hearts all across the country before the sale. And it was a series of phone bids that sent his sale price to $40,000, topping this year’s sale. A video of the bidding can be found here.

Horses really are available at all budgets. Some prices came in at less than $2,000, many ranged between $3,000 – $8,000, and then top sellers brought more than $10,000. Some of 2018’s top sellers included:

Roan Hancock Gin (Hip No. 15), 2012 AQHA gelding, $33,000
A Pleasure Bar Time (Hip No. 116), 2008 APHA sorrel overo gelding, $31,000
FQHR Buddy Blue (Hip No. 49) 2011 AQHA blue roan gelding, $24,000
Dun Dun It Again (Hip No. 51) 2007 AQHA Buckskin gelding, $20,000
BJs Perty Charlie (Hip No. 31), 2008 AQHA grullo gelding, $19,500
Buckeye’s Breeze (Hip No. 60), 2013 Gypsy/QH cross gelding, $19,500
Buckeye’s Phantom (Hip No. 23), 2010 Andalusion/AQHA cross gelding, $18,500
The Principle Chip (Hip No. 87), 2004 ApHC Brown gelding, $16,000
Just Driftin Roan, (Hip No. 25), 2014 Bay Roan AQHA gelding, $14,000
You Can Call Me Darlin (Hip No. 21), 2011 Molly Mule, $12,500
FQHR Cortez (Hip No. 33) 2012 AQHA Dun gelding, $12,000

Live videos and photos from the sale are also available for viewing on the sale’s Facebook page. Watch the slideshow below for more photos from around the sale.

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The Great American Trail Horse Sale adds ranch horses to name, competition schedule

ranch005 — Ranch horse competition champion Stars Stripes N Spike boxing his cow.

The Virginia Horse Center recently hosted The Great American Ranch and Trail Horse Sale, drawing nearly 170 sale horses and hundreds of potential buyers together from April 7-8. While the weekend centers around the auction of well-broke trail and working horses, it is much more than just a horse sale. Many of the horses also vied for $1,000 Ranch Horse competition or the $2,000 Trail Horse competition the day before the sale.

LOOKING FOR HORSE SALE PHOTOS?

Click here to find a gallery of photos from the sale. We are still uploading photos from the weekend, so check back if you don’t see what you are looking for.

The trail horse competition includes eight obstacles, six of which the consignors know such as loading and unloading from a horse trailer or crossing a bridge, and two surprise elements. This year’s surprise included an adorable yet formidable donkey and the ringing of a hanging dinner bell. The course also included live chickens in a cage nearby a tent campsite, log crossings, an outhouse that required the horses to ground tie while their riders answered the call of nature and walking through brush.

All of the horses handled the course well, but only 10 could return the next morning for the trail finals. The finals included some of the same obstacles as the preliminary round, a few twists on the old obstacles, plus some new obstacles. And after each tackled the obstacles, they were given the opportunity to show off their horses in a freestyle routine that showcased the horses’ abilities. Some did reining spins and stops, illustrating their horses’ great handles, others jumped over logs, dragged barrels and spun flags and ropes over head.

In the end, a flashy 2013 sorrel APHA gelding, Doug Only Wishes, consigned by Marion G. Valerio and trained and ridden by John Roberts Performance Horses rose to the top of the 70 trail horse competitors and took home the winner’s paycheck.

SS Trail Champion 02.jpg — Doug Only Wishes won the Trail Horse Competition.

This year, the sale also included a ranch horse competition. Horses could be shown in either of the two competitions, but not both. The ranch horse class was meant to show the horses’ abilities at working with cattle and performing ranch-type tasks. One at a time, each horse completed a working pattern, then boxed a cow and then illustrated the ability to be used to rope the cow.

Topping the class of about 15 was Hip #18 Stars Stripes N Spike, a 2004 sorrel AQHA gelding consigned by Odel & Susan H. Grose of North Carolina. He later sold in the sale for $14,500, the No. 4 high-seller. The high-seller of the sale was Hip #10 Shiners Spinning Top, who was reserve champion in the Ranch Horse Competition. The 2010 gray AQHA gelding, consigned by Steve Meadows, sold for $25,000.

Gaited horses were showcased on Friday night as well in a “Gaited Horse Show Off” just prior to the start of the trail horse competition.

Besides all the competitions, horses for sale, and the general excitement surrounding the auction, the Coliseum’s concourse was packed with vendors and shoppers including booths from World Class Saddlery (who also sponsored the Ranch Horse Competition), Lucky B Trailers (who sponsored the Trail Horse Competition), Bar C Designs, Cats Tack, Cavalor Care Products, Fisher Tack, Hidden West Jewelry, In Stitches, Richard Toms and many more.

11 SaleHip24 002X — Incredibly Kool sold for $16,000.

Some other stars of the sale included Hip #56 Buckeye’s Lottery Diamond, a 2014 Gypsy Vanner/Haflinger cross tri-colored paint gelding, who sold for $20,000. He was consigned by Buckeye Acre Farm. Standing 14.3 hands high, he rode and drove.

Hip No. 24, Incredibly Kool, a 2013 sorrel gelding sold for $16,000. The proven show horse had more than 80 halter points and 30 grands and reserves.

Top 10 high-sellers:

Hip 10 – Shiners Spinning Top, $25,000
Hip 56 – Buckeye’s Lottery Diamond, $20,000
Hip 24 – Incredibly Kool, $16,000
Hip 18 – Stars Stripes N Spike, $14,500
Hip 88 – Marissa, $13,500
Hip 27 – Bo Jack BB King, $12,500
Hip 70 – Mr Montana Peppy, $11,200
Hip 46 – WR Missn Dash Jet, $11,000
Hip 36 – Home on the Range, $10,500
Hip 26 – Cowboys N Margaritas, $10,000

Prices were mixed throughout the day and went down to under $2,000. But many of the horses sold in the $4,000-$7,000 range. And several consignors didn’t get what they were looking for and “no sale” was announced at the close of the bidding. While some announcements of what the seller was looking for brought grumbles of disbelief from the crowd, at least one got what they were looking for and ended up with a sale afterall.

Next year’s sale and competitions will be April 13-14, 2018, at the Virginia Horse Center.

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