The top five selling horses included a $124,000 money earning son of Grays Starlight, a solid-as-solid-gets head horse, an NRCHA World Champion, and two money earning daughters of High Brow Cat.
Quality was King – from promising prospects to arena ready campaigners, purple pedigreed mares to stand-out stallions, the weekend was a one-stop-shop that welcomed 659 head of horses and nearly 700 registered buyers.
Sale averages are comparable or better than one year ago and actually higher on the top 50 head by nearly a $1,000 bill. Top 10 averaged $15,150, top 20 brought $11,645, top 50 at $8,126, and the top 100 brought $5,798.
Pretty, polished, and ready-to-go, Hip 327 “Little Polo Joe” a 1999 AQHA Sorrel Stallion x Grays Starlight and out of Little Missy Lena came with $126,854 in earnings and 40 AQHA points.
Truly a showstopper, the stunning stallion showed outstanding in the preview and sold sound to show and breed.
Offered and ridden by Burke Sullivant, Gainesville, TX the special stallion was purchased by Linda Collins, Olathe, CO for a final bid of $36,000.
Billings Livestock was proud to offer three head consigned by the #1 NRCHA Lifetime Leading Owner and #1 NRCHA Lifetime Leading Non Pro Rider, Anne Reynolds, King Hill, ID including Hip 346 “Cash Us McClain” a 1997 AQHA Sorrel Stallion x Nu Cash and out of the famous mare Nancy McLain.
The $50,000 NRCHA money earning stallion was purchased by Don Harrington, Dillon, MT for $17,000.
Oh so pretty – Hip 284 “Susies Kitty” a 2005 AQHA Bay mare sired by High Brow Cat – Equi-Stats #1 Leading cutting sire, NCHA-AQHA leading Cutting Sire for Seven Consecutive Years, and the sire of offspring with earnings exceeding $43 million, and out of the Little Peppy daughter Glo Bonita Peppy, brought $12,500.
Shown by Steve Colclasure and consigned by Tim Dunn, the NCHA money earning mare sold to Tom Atwood, Orland, CA.
He bred him, raised him, and still owns his mother, and Harvey Lewis, Livingston, MT offered Hip 345 “MJ Dunit” a 2005 AQHA Buckskin Gelding x Hollywood Dun It and out of Catty N Classy x Taris Catalyst.
The one-owner gelding with NRHA earnings including wins at Energy City Open, Big Sky Reining Open Reserve Champ, and Yellowstone Slide Novice Horse Open Champion was shown by J.R. Winter, sold for $10,000 and moved to New York with Lauren and Cynthia Pfifer.
Hip 277 “NutinButTheTailLites” a 2005 AQHA Sorrel gelding x King Of The Lanes and out of Famous Irish Cream x Dash Ta Fame was the weekend’s top selling barrel horse.
Offered by Jill Miller, Lewistown, MT, the talented gelding brought $10,500 and sold to Tony Langdon, Aubrey, TX.
Possibly the biggest news of the weekend was in the loose horse pen where loose horses brought more per head than they have in three years – 50 cents per pound on a processing horse.
191 head were offered loose with the top 100 – over ½ of the horses offered as is, where is, how is – averaging $606.50 per head.
That compares with $408 on the top 100 just one month ago and $518 per head one year ago.
Loose averages include the top five at $1,365, top ten brought $1,162, top 20 at $947, top 50 averaged $738 and top 100 at $606.50.
Billings Livestock’s next sale event will be the “Spring Special Catalog Sale” March 26-27and will feature the annual “Outfitters, Guest, Dude Ranch and Trail Horse” offering in addition to a special session of “Roans Only”. All classes of horses will sell, in addition to a big selection of mules.
An indoor preview of the barrel horses, cutters, saddle horses, and rope horses is scheduled for Friday, March 25 at 1 p.m.
For more information, to consign or request a catalog, contact Bill and Jann Parker, Billings Livestock Commission Horse Sales at 406-245-4151 or see it all at www.billingslivestock.com