History of Paint Racing

2010: "A time to say goodbye and look to the future for Paint Racing"

The 2010 racing season got off to a slow start with a snow delay for the second week of racing at Remington Park. As a result, the R-G1 Oklahoma Paint Futurity and G1 Graham Paint and Appaloosa Derby were rescheduled for March 27. Rio Rojo Jessie took the win in the Oklahoma Futurity and Cutrock won the Graham Derby to officially start the racing season.

Judys Lineage raised the ceiling on offspring earnings in 2010 with over $4 million and many more foals coming up the ranks. World Champion racehorse Royal Quick Flash joined Texas Hero as a $3 million dollar sire.

After standing for 15 years at stud, Texas Hero was retired in June 2010 by owner Buddy Albin. The Texas-bred stallion was returned to original owners/breeders Herbert and Ginger Graham. Texas Hero’s final foal crop will be born in 2011. A fitting tribute to this outstanding sire was published in the November/December 2010 issue of the Paint Horse Racing magazine.

World Champion Treasured Too passed away in January 2010 from an apparent heart attack. He was a World Champion, three-time Champion and #6 lifetime leading sire. Current owners Larry and Linda Browning laid the gelding?? to rest at their Seven Sundays Ranch in Georgia.

Girls Got Grip won the G1 Graham Futurity earning $97,743 on May 29 and Chicks Lacerta won an allowance race earning $11,730 on May 30. These finishes pushed their dams Got A Grip and Treasured Chick respectively to the $500,000 in earnings milestone.

In Canada, the feud between two top racehorses—Pemberton and Cristole—continued. In 2010, Pemberton had seven starts, five of those were stakes with one win and one third. Cristole had six starts—five were stakes with one win, three seconds and one third. They faced each other in six races, each winning one while the races remained close between them. These two runners have been dueling down the track since their first races in Oklahoma—the 2007 Pot O’ Gold Futurity trials. They have nearly identical race careers.

In 2010, the first Canadian/International Champion Race Horse Award was given to Paint Me A Bono. The 3-year-old gelding has raced in Michigan, Oklahoma and Ontario, Canada. Owned by Ivy Lane Racing in Stouffville, Ontario, Canada, Paint Me A Bono was bred by Theresa and Alan Reese of Orange, California.

"The 2010 World Champions were unique because they not only raced against one set of horses, they traveled the country and sought out the best to race against," said APHA Director of Racing Karen Utecht. "They demonstrated their toughness to all comers."

The 2010 World Champion Regular Registry Race Horse award was given to Michigan-bred I Do One Two Three. The flashy gelding dominated the scene in Texas, Oklahoma and Michigan. Owned by T-Bill Stables of Clare, Michigan, this 3-year-old won the Grade 3 Lorelei Derby, finished fourth in the Grade 1 Graham Derby, fourth in the Grade 1 PSBA Derby and fifth in the Grade 3 TPHBA Derby. His lifetime earnings are $74,375 with a top speed index of 102.

The 2010 World Champion Solid–Paint Bred Race Horse award went to Rio Rojo Jessie. The 2-year-old filly is owned and was bred by Donald Kelly of Natchitoches, Louisiana. She won the Grade 1 Oklahoma Paint Futurity and the R-Grade 1 Speedhorse Futurity. She has earned $94,153 with a top speed index of 96. No doubt the expectations will be high for her 3-year-old racing year.

Texas racing has faced the adversity of the economy along with many other states, but this year Equine Piroplasmosis, a tick-borne protozoal infection, has added to the complexity of racing. The Texas Racing Commission announced in February 2010 that Manor Downs would be the first track in Texas to implement new entrance requirements to prevent the infection. Sam Houston Race Park and Lone Star Park also followed suit.

The Paint Horse Racing magazine continues to make great strides with continuing racing coverage and industry news, along with barrel racing information. This magazine is the pulse of the Paint racing industry.

Paint racing finishes the year with 509 starters, 195 of which were 2-year-olds, $4.1 million in purse money with the G 1 Graham Paint and Appaloosa Futurity offering the largest purse of $257,208. The top earning Paint Horse for 2010 was Girls Got Grip, winner of the G1 Graham Futurity, with lifetime earnings of $111,624 in six starts.