3-YEAR-OLD STALLIONS

HOMEGROWN SUCCESS.

BY LARRI JO STARKEY

Wayne Bell has a little saying he likes to use about his world champion 3-year-old stallion Acquisitions.

“I tell everybody he’s homegrown, hand-spanked, from back of the barn in Burleson, Texas,” Wayne said.

He and his wife, Jan, bred a Mr Conclusion mare to Cluition to create the 2003 sorrel, a horse with two world titles already to his name.

Ted Turner leads newly crowned world champion Acquisitions.

In 2005, the horse won amateur 2-year-old stallions under the lead of the Bells’ son-in-law, Larry Roberts. In 2006, he was Select world champion 3-year-old stallion with Wayne and reserve world champion amateur 3-year-old stallion with Larry. On November 18, he scored an open world title while led by Ted Turner.

“So we’ve won all three of the world championship (divisions) with him,” Wayne said.

“We’ve been in the business 40 years, and I can in all honesty say he’s the best horse I’ve ever had my hands on.”

Wayne likes just about everything about his Acquisitions’ conformation.

“This horse is pretty-headed, good-necked, short-backed, long-hipped,” Wayne said. “He’s got a long underside and is the best hocked horse that we’ve ever been around. He can just pitty-pat trot it off. He does not require any special shoeing. You can just put his foot down – just really, really a neat horse.”

 Wayne and Jan knew they wanted a special name for their horse, a single-word name. While discussing possibilities one day, “Acquisitions” came up.

“I thought, you know, he’ll acquire lots of things, so here we are,” Wayne said.

Wayne and Jan stood Acquisitions themselves last year, but this year plan to send him to Wayne Halvorson’s stallion station in Guthrie, Oklahoma. His first crop will be foaled in 2007, and Wayne will be holding the lead of some of those babies not long after.

“Just as quick as they hit the ground,” he said.