November 8-23, 2013, Oklahoma City

Yearling Stallions

Homebred Secret Gunfighter wins for Donnie and Lisa King in yearling stallions at the AQHA World Championship Show.

by Larri Jo Starkey
The American Quarter Horse Journal

This isn’t Lisa King’s first time at the AQHA World Championship Show. It’s not even her first world championship.

But as she found out November 15, a world championship “is even sweeter when you breed them.”

AQHA Professional Horseman Buddy Laney of Cherryville, North Carolina, led Donnie and Lisa King’s homebred yearling stallion, Secret Gunfighter, to the world championship.

“I own the mama and the daddy, and it doesn’t get any better than that,” Lisa said. “I own Western Gunslinger, an N/N stallion I’m trying to make known as a stallion. I think he has done a very good job. (Secret Gunfighter) has siblings that have won in excess of $50,000 at the Breeders Halter Futurity and a couple that won at (the All American Quarter Horse) Congress.”

Secret Gunfighter is a 2011 chestnut stallion by Western Gunslinger and out of Top Secretina by The Top Secret. Western Gunslinger was world champion open yearling stallion in 2008, and Top Secretina earned four world championships. Lisa bought her two years ago and took her home to Crescent City, Florida.

“She’s just a great mare and a great individual,” she said. “Her bloodlines are clouded with champions. She’s just a great mare. I bought her at the Congress. She was in the makeup pen. The Wackers owned her at the time, and I approached them and asked them what they wanted for her. They priced her and she went home with me.”

Lisa and Donnie had high hopes for “Gunfighter” from the minute he hit the ground.

“He’s been a good colt all the way through,” she said. “He’s been a really solid colt. The hardest thing has been to keep up with his growing. He’s a March 17 colt, so he’s a junior colt, and as you can see, he’s a giant. Keeping him full has been a challenge.”

The Kings plan to defend his title next year.

“(He) is N/N,” Lisa said. “If somebody doesn’t buy him, we’re going to take him home and see what he builds.”

The Kings have sponsored several classes at this year’s World Show, and yearling stallions was one of those classes, so they were in the arena to present the awards when their stallion was called out as world champion.

“It was great,” Donnie said.

“It’s unbelievable,” Lisa added. “Beyond description.”

Lisa offered thanks to a long list of people who helped train her eye to become a successful breeder.

“I want to thank everybody who has helped me in this industry for years,” she said. “That would include Gene Parker, Ronnie Casper, Doug Tallent, all those guys, I’ve learned so much from them, and that’s what’s made me capable to look at one and believe I’ve got the right one, from their guidance over the years. All of them – and I apologize if I’ve left anybody out; I’m sure I have – all of the guys around here have been great to me.”