Sent from  a man from Idaho who had bred a horse that won a division at Fort Worth, the email scolded me for not listing breeder information. We’d written about the horse, the rider and the progression of ownership – but nothing about the breeder. Why would we? QHN’s policy was to include information about the horse, rider and owner. That’s it. The man was pretty displeased about the whole deal.

At first I was defensive. But I promised we’d try to do better and moved on from there. But the man’s email stayed with me, and the more I thought about it, the more I realized he was right. Breeders start the process of creating a performance horse. They embrace the risk, invest the money and determine a horse’s early path. If not for the breeder, there wouldn’t be a horse to write about.

In 2011, QHN made the official move to include breeders in the event coverage. It’s been quite interesting to research where these horses originated. We’re glad to recognize the people who took the brave (and sometimes costly) step to breed a mare in order to present another performance horse possibility to the world.

The late Ken Jackson, a cutting enthusiast from Missouri, is one breeder who deserves mention in this issue. He took the risk to breed a horse, and I wish he were here to see the reward. Jackson had put together a nice group of cutting horses, and when his estate dispersed of those horses at the 2010 NCHA Futurity, Scott Gaddy stepped up to purchase the yearling colt High Brow Jackson (High Brow Cat x Money Talks Smart x Smart Mate). Gaddy paid $40,000.

Twelve months later, High Brow Jackson was back at Fort Worth. He had a year of training with Hayden Upton and turned out to be the bright highlight of the NCHA Futurity2-Year-Old Sale. Western Bloodstock reported the last bid on the horse at $330,000. To the surprise of many, however, the horse did not sell. Quarter Horse News asked Gaddy the question on everyone’s mind: Why?!

“It was the most difficult thing I’ve ever gone through, with horses anyway,” Gaddy said, explaining that the horse did not meet his $350,000 reserve. “I have a lot of close friends that know a lot more about the horse business than I do. I spent a lot of time in the weeks and months before the sale talking to people. Really, all the way up to the sale date I was really unsure what I was going to do. I’ve had a lot of $30,000 and $40,000 horses, but nothing like this.

“He’s the best 2-year-old I’ve ever seen. He’s sound, he’s built right, he’s bred right and looks the part. Hayden has done his part. When we bought the colt, we had no idea he was going to be that nice. You hope it happens, but it usually doesn’t.”

Does Gaddy regret his decision?

“No. In all things in life, including these deals, I try to not look back that way. I had some friends say, ‘You’ve got to be out of your mind!’ Then I’ve had other friends come to me and say, ‘You know what, the only way you can do this is to decide what he is worth to you and do you really want to keep the horse or do you really want to sell him?’ In the final analysis, when the reserve wasn’t met, in my mind I said, ‘You know what? I’m really comfortable keeping him.’ We’ll see what happens. Somebody could offer us a lot of money in the months ahead and that could change.”

Have there been offers on High Brow Jackson since the NCHA Futurity?

“We’ve had a lot of offers since the sale. I think we’re going to keep him. Every once in a while in your life you’ve got to roll the dice a little bit to keep things interesting. We’re going to go forward with him and figure it out.”

Gaddy is a partner in an insurance company in San Francisco, Calif., so he understands risk. Do the same rules of chance apply to horses?

“The hardest part is all the things that could happen. He could get hurt; he could become too much of a stud problem; he could stay healthy, get in the show pen and then draw bad or the cattle are bad. There are just so many variables that could go south on you. It really is a big risk and I see it as that. I kind of figured if you’re going to be in this and you enjoy it – that kind of comes with the territory. You can either get involved and do it or stay on the sidelines and watch. I’d rather be involved and take the risk.”