Horse & Rider

We'd Love to Own: 2011 Quarter Horse stallion Wranglered.

- … Nichole Chirico

Details: 2011 AQHA stallion by Starlights Wrangler and out of Snow White Dun It, by Hollywood Dun It.

Barn name: Toy.

Owned by: Dell and Terri Hendricks of Tioga, Texas.

Fun ride: “Toy got his name because he’s so much fun to ride, it’s like playing with a toy,” Dell says. “He’s extremely adaptable and an incredible athlete; even when he’s not fully paying attention, he’s four times better than most horses.”

Special start: Dell knew from the beginning Toy was a great horse. “I raised him, and then one of my customers bought him in the Legacy Sale,” Dell shares. “But come his 3-year- old year, she had to sell Toy. I talked it over with my wife, Terri, and we decided he was too good of a horse to lose, so we purchased him.”

Superhorse talent: “We missed showing him in the 2014 NRHA Futurity because of an injury, and once I was riding him again he lacked the confidence to run down the pen,” Dell explains. “So I started roping on him for fun, and he took to it immediatel­y. Rick Rosaschi (a Western performanc­e trainer, pictured here with Toy) came over, saw me rope on him, and immediatel­y said he was taking Toy home so we could turn him into an AQHA Superhorse contender for 2017.”

In the family: Toy’s Superhorse journey starts with his bloodlines. His dam is out of a well-known mare named Sweet And Innocent, which was owned by AQHA Hall of Famer Jack Kyle, and won the 1982 AQHA Superhorse title with his daughter Jackie. “It’s really special to me to have a horse like Toy that’s related to one of Jack Kyle’s mares.”

Team effort: Toy’s team comprises of four riders. He competes in reining with Dell, roping with Rick Rosaschi, reined cow horse and ranch riding with Luke Jones, and performanc­e halter and roping with Larry Darnell.

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