Spotlight on Our Member!

John and Elaine Finarty Chariton, Iowa

As I write this article, it is a couple weeks prior to Christmas. When asked to write this for the newsletter, I wondered how best to explain how Finarty Quarter Horses began, and to summarize more than 30 years of horses. It quickly became apparent that our family’s story and the history of its experience in the horse industry couldn’t be separated. Reflecting on the past made me realize that this story needed to be about two families, my own and that of the Skipper W horses. The two are so entwined that they are inseparable, and Skipper W horses have treated us well.

My family has raised and used horses for decades—pulling plows, bringing in hay, gathering cattle and now, for recreation. Dad (John) and Mom (Elaine) were both active in the horse industry before they met in 1966. Mom showed horses and Dad raised colts and fit young horses for sale. When they married in 1968, they began to focus on breeding the kind of horses that people could use as well as win with in the show ring.

Early on, the breeding program consisted of mares with foundation bloodlines and a stallion named Aces Wells, who was also foundation bred. As they learned more about the foundation lines, they began to acquire mares with Skipper W breeding and liked what they saw. From day one, one of the most important factors in the family breeding program was a calm disposition. They wanted to raise horses that were good to be around, and soon found that Skipper W horses fit their plans well. Mares were integral and only the best ones stayed on the farm. This commitment to raising horses with winning attitudes has long since been one of the things that visitors admire in Finarty-bred horses.

Mom and Dad acquired their first Skipper W-bred stallion, Shi King, in 1975. A son of Skip Shi and out of Poco Leola, he had the mindset they wanted and plenty of talent to go along with it. He earned Registers of Merit in both heading and heeling, and qualified for the AQHA World Show in 1980 in heeling. When they bred the foundation mares to him, the colts were winners in the show ring and true performers. He produced point earners in youth classes, open pleasure and reining as well as halter and pleasure futurity winners.

They purchased Skipper W mares from Leroy Webb and Jerry Boomhower in the early years and crossed them on Shi. The colts were performers and the fillies made great broodmares when crossed with the next stallion they acquired, Supreme Admiral. Supreme Admiral was a 1976 branded son of Skip’s Supreme by Skip’s Reward and out of a mare named Skip’s Romance by Skip Fare. They purchased him from Hank Wiescamp in late 1979 and the first foal crop arrived in 1981. Among the first foals was a bay stallion named Supreme Reward. He earned several halter and pleasure points while Mom and Dad owned him, then later won the All-American Quarter Horse Congress in Amateur Aged Stallions in 1989 and became an AQHA Champion. He, in turn, produced point earners that included the Wisconsin state champion halter mare and high point senior pleasure winner in Kansas. In that same 1981 foal crop, my mare, Sandi Bar Money, had a chestnut filly we named Supreme Sensation. She, too, earned AQHA points in halter and youth classes before being retired to the broodmare band.

Throughout the eighties and early nineties, Mom and Dad continued to focus on Skipper W horses and purchased such stallions as Silent Bid, a son of Skip’s Bid and out of String of Slippers. He crossed well on Supreme Admiral daughters and the resulting foals were great riding horses in addition to having eye appeal. That made for two very happy children, my brother, Johnny, and me.

I was horse crazy from the time I could walk, and always wanted to show horses. I could ride for hours at a time and spent most of my free time as a child either riding or memorizing pedigrees. I won my share of horse shows as a result. I truly can’t tell you how many halter classes I won with Supreme Sensation, her colts, and other mares out of Sandi Bar Money. My favorite class was horsemanship, though, and one of the highlights of my youth show career was winning the Iowa State Fair senior horsemanship title in 1988. There were more than 80 entries, and I won it on a filly we’d raised. I usually rode fillies, so they inevitably ended up in the broodmare bunch. I did ride one gelding when I was young, a bay named The Shi Scotchman. "Scotty" has done just about everything in the past 22 years. He was a 4-H project, calf roping and team roping mount, and also went to the National High School Rodeo Finals twice as a hazing horse. I won the title of Iowa Rodeo Cowboys Association Queen on him, and even qualified for the International Pro Rodeo Association’s queen contest. He has truly done it all and he has earned his retirement. Now he serves as my daughter’s horse when Josey visits Mom and Dad. When I have time these days, I still like to rope a little and ride colts.

My brother, on the other hand, showed little interest in showing horses. He had more natural talent than I ever had, but he chose to use it in the rodeo arena. He roped off of a mare named Supreme Katie, who was out of Supreme Admiral, and did well. His strongest event, though, was steer wrestling. He qualified for the NHSFR in 1993 on a paint gelding that was Skipper W bred, and even won the title of 1994 Iowa High School Rodeo Association Steer Wrestling Champion on him. He represented Iowa at the National High School Rodeo Finals in Gillette, Wyoming, both years. Today, Johnny rides for recreation and picks up a rope once in awhile. He has his own steel fabrication business that leaves him with little spare time. My parents have seven stallions that they currently use in their breeding program.

• JF Silent Money, a 1992 sorrel stallion and ranch horse competition winner, out of Silent Bid and Supreme Sensation.
• DW Jays Bright Bar, a 1989 bay stallion by Skip N Jay (AQHA Champion) by Skippa Stars Buck and out of a mare named Bright Flame (AAA) by Bright Bar.
• St. Sweep, a 1992 branded sorrel stallion by St. Silence and out of Stage Flash.
• Skippa Saul, a 1994 branded chestnut son of Skipa Select and Larks Mist.
• Cruse N Skip, a 1995 sorrel stallion by Skipa Cruse and Mexicali Fraulein.
• Silent Spanish Dreamer, a 1997 palomino stallion by St. Silent and Spanish Meia.
• Handy Sierra, a 2000 buckskin stallion by Bee My Sierra and Handy Pearl, raised by Leon Freeze. (His half sister, Sparkle Sierra, won the 2002 AQHYA World Championship, 2002 All-American Quarter Horse Congress, and 2002 AQHA World Championship in two-year-old mares.)

Throughout the past three decades, Mom and Dad have raised futurity winners, show winners, and point earners in youth, pleasure, reining, halter, poles and barrels. They have raised horses that have won rodeos, ranch horse competitions, and team penning competitions. There are always horses for sale, and visitors are welcome at all times. Theirs is a family operation, and you may share in it anytime.  Especially at Christmas, we tend to reflect on the blessings we’ve received and give thanks for the joys we’ve experienced. When I was young, I took for granted the blessings I had—the joy of horse ownership, being able to ride any horse I wanted, having good horses to ride, and being raised in a family that cared enough to raise good horses and good kids. Now that I’m a mother, I only want the best for my daughter, too. I know that I will do all I can to provide it, and her grandparents will do the same. May your families enjoy the holiday season and your Skipper W horses, too. Now if you’ll excuse me, my daughter wants to ride her horse and I need to help her get him saddled. 

--submitted by Bobbi Finarty-Davis