Bert (1934—1956) was one of the most influential sires in the early years of the

American Quarter Horse Association The American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA), based in Amarillo, Texas, United States, is an international organization dedicated to the preservation, improvement and record-keeping of the American Quarter Horse. The association sanctions many ...

(AQHA).Simmons ''Legends'' p. 115-116 He was posthumously inducted into the

AQHA Hall of Fame The American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame and Museum was created by the American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA), based in Amarillo, Texas. Ground breaking construction of the Hall of Fame Museum began in 1989. The distinction is earned by people and ...

Background and early life

Foaled on March 24, 1934Nye ''Outstanding Modern Quarter Horse Sires'' p. 144-148 in

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa ( ) is the List of municipalities in Oklahoma, second-most-populous city in the U.S. state, state of Oklahoma, after Oklahoma City, and the List of United States cities by population, 48th-most-populous city in the United States. The po ...

, Bert was registered as number 227 with the AQHA.American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA) ''Official Stud Book'' p. 86 His registration entry gives his breeder as Bert Benear of

and his color as brown. His sire, Tommy Clegg was a descendant of Peter McCue while his dam, Mayflower, was descended from both Yellow Jacket and Yellow Wolf. Lady Coolidge was a

dun Dun most commonly refers to: *Dun gene, which produces a brownish-gray color (dun) in horses and other Equidae * Dun (fortification), an ancient or medieval fort Dun or DUN may also refer to: Places Scotland * Dun, Angus, a civil parish in ...

mare foaled in 1928, bred by Mike Beetch of

Lawton, Oklahoma Lawton is a city in and the county seat of Comanche County, Oklahoma, Comanche County, in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Located in western Oklahoma, approximately southwest of Oklahoma City, it is the principal city of the Lawton metropolitan ar ...

. Her dam was a

match racing A match race is a race between two competitors, going head-to-head. In sailing, sailboat racing it is differentiated from a fleet racing, fleet race, which almost always involves three or more competitors competing against each other, and team rac ...

mare with a time of eleven seconds for the 220 yards. Bert's sire was used on the Benear ranch as a cowhorse before he was sold to Howard Martin. Bert was bought as a colt by Bob Weimer of Council Hill, Oklahoma who named his new purchase after the colt's breeder. Bert was broken as a three-year-old, but before he could start on a riding career, he injured himself in barbed wire, almost cutting his right front foot off. After a recovery lasting months, Bert was sound, but his owner did not feel that it was safe to work him hard, as the colt had been purchased mainly as a breeding stallion prospect. In his prime, he stood high and weighed close to 1150 pounds. Weimer claimed that he could "turn him out in the morning with the mares and drive out in the pasture in the evening with the pick-up and he will come to me as quick as I call him."

Stud record and honors

Bert sired

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its bas ...

roping Team roping also known as heading and heeling is a rodeo event that features a steer (typically a Corriente) and two mounted riders. The first roper is referred to as the "header", the person who ropes the front of the steer, usually around t ...

horses, and all around ranch horses. He was the sire of eleven race starters, all of whom earned an AQHA Race Register of Merit.Wagoner ''Quarter Racing Digest'' p. 95-96 His foal who earned the most money on the racetrack was V's Bert, who earned $2777 from forty-eight starts with five wins, twelve seconds and five thirds in six years of racing. He sired four AQHA Champions, as well as Superior Halter horses and Superior Performance horses. His daughter Jeanne's Patsy was the 1955 AQHA High Point Roping horse.Nye ''The Complete Book of the Quarter Horse'' p. 77 His granddaughter Baby Doll Combs was a noted rodeo bulldogging mare known as "Baby Doll" who was inducted into the

ProRodeo Hall of Fame The ProRodeo Hall of Fame and Museum of the American Cowboy was opened in August 1979 as a museum designed to "preserve the legacy of the cowboy contests, the heritage and culture of those original competitions, and the champions of the past, p ...

in 1979. Bert died in May 1956. Bert was inducted into the

in 2007.

Pedigree

References

Additional sources

* * * * * *

External links

Bert at Quarter Horse Directory

Bert at Quarter Horse Legends
{{short description, Quarter horse stallion and sire American Quarter Horse sires 1934 animal births 1956 animal deaths AQHA Hall of Fame (horses)