Smart Little Lena: 1979-2010

When we heard about the passing of Smart Little Lena on Monday, I posted it, along with a wonderful video tribute, on Western Horse Review\’s Facebook page, and many people immediately responded with heartfelt comments.

At 31-years-of-age, it\’s unlikely the stallion, though reportedly in “good shape” at the time of the stroke which led to his euthanization, could have been much longer for this earth. Hence, the news came not as a shock, but instead, simply shared sadness among horsepeople, at the passing of a tremendous legend.

Indeed, has the performance horse world been altered through this legendary stallion and his progeny. Considered perhaps the broodmare sire of the century in the western horse world, it\’s hard to come up with many comparables. Or, to contemplate a western performance sport his bloodlines have not influenced.

I\’m grateful today, for the SLL blood in the pedigrees of the horses we own in this family. They have done us well.

Smart Little Lena was bred by Hanes Chatham and shown by the late Bill Freeman to a championship in the 1982 NCHA Futurity, followed by a win in the 1983 Super Stakes and a co-championship with Peppymint Twist in the 1983 NCHA Derby.

Following his competitive career, he spent most of his life at Manion Ranch, near Aubrey, Texas.

Be sure to view the touching video of Bill Freeman and Smart Little Lena on our Facebook Page.