Texas Hero becomes Paint racing’s first $3 million sire

FORT WORTH, TEXAS—American Paint Horse Texas Hero has continued the Paint racing trend of shattering records over the past year as he recently became the first $3 million Paint racing sire.

World Champion Paint racehore Texas Hero recently earned his mark as the first $3 million Paint racing sire. Courtesy APHA © 2008. Hirez TIFF (10.2 mb) Hirez JPEG (2.10 mb)

Texas Hero		Raise A Jet		Easy Jet Too		Easy Jet
						Indian Music
				Kallista		Raise Your Glass
						Light Foot Lass
		Breakaway Baby		Dash For Cash		Rocket Wrangler
						Find A Buyer
				Larking Kit		Lanolark
						She Kitty

Prior to the new record Texas Hero, owned by Buddy and Ann Albin of Denton, Texas, was in an elite group, being one of only two Paint racing sires with foal earnings over $2 million. Judys Lineage trails closely with $2,994,517.74 in foal earnings.

When looking at Texas Hero’s statistics, it is easy to see that the two-time World Champion and Champion racehorse really is a “hero” among Paint racing. Since his first foal crop in 1996, Texas Hero has sired 360 foals with 259 track starters, earning the 17-year-old bay tobiano stallion 3,055,109.26 in sire earnings. Texas Hero foals have earned 328 wins, 44 of which were stakes races, along with multiple World Champion and Champion titles. The record-setting stallion is also a very strong broodmare sire of Champions.

Sired by Raise A Jet and out of Breakaway Baby, Texas Hero was well-known on the track long before he went to the breeding shed. Bred by leading lifetime Paint racing breeder Herbert Graham of Gardendale, Texas, expectations were high and Texas Hero proved his worth. In only two seasons on the track, the stallion won 18 of his 22 starts, earning a speed index of 101 and $100,402 in lifetime earnings.

More about Paint Horse racing
Horse racing has long been one of America’s favorite spectator sports. With the recent growth of the Paint Horse breed, it’s no wonder that Paints have become one of the hottest tickets in the horse racing industry.

Since 1966, when APHA officially recognized the sport, Paint racing has made major strides forward. In that inaugural year, 17 starters ran for $1,290 in just two states—Texas and Oklahoma. In 2007, more than 600 starters competed in more than 700 APHA-recognized races for record purses totaling more than $5 million.

A total of 18 states now feature Paint racing, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. Paint Horses also race in Canada.

“Paint Racing continues to be an opportunity for breeders, owners and trainers to take a serious look at,” said APHA Executive Director Lex Smurthwaite. “The amount of purse money available and the average earning per Paint starter is creating new interest in the Paint racing industry.”

For more information on Paint Horse racing, contact APHA’s racing
department at (817) 222-6444, email racing@apha.com, or visit
paintracing.com.