Reeder said. “After I bought her
he came up to me and offered me
$40,000 profit.”
He declined the offer.
A few months later Larry Hall saw
Royal Blue Boon and wanted to buy
her.
“We had to find a way to raise the
money, which wasn’t easy,” Elaine
said.
Royal Blue Boon was not the
first cutting horse the Halls had
purchased. After Larry had spent
a year studying cutting horse
bloodlines he purchased Docalady
and Doc Hickorys Gal, both Doc Bar
granddaughters, and Boons Sierra,
another daughter of Boon Bar.
Royal Blue Boon changed Elaine’s
life and she changed Larry’s too.
Regal Victory
Royal Blue Boon, Elaine was in awe
of the filly and loved cheering her
on as she competed, but the strong
connection between the blue filly
and Elaine didn’t form until she was
bred.
“That’s when I truly developed a
relationship with her,” Elaine said.
Shortly after the Masters the Halls
decided it was time to breed Royal
Blue Boon and use embryo transfer,
something that was relatively new for
horses.
“With a mare of that caliber you
really had to embryo transfer them,”
Elaine said. “Whenever we would
put an embryo transfer baby of Royal
Blue Boon, they would be the highest
selling ones, and they weren’t even
registered. That spoke highly of Royal
Blue Boon.”
They took Royal Blue Boon to
the King Ranch to be bred to Little
Peppy. From there the company
called Em Tran took over. They
transferred her fertilized eggs to two
recipient mares. Royal Blue Boon
returned to her job of competing.
Competing had taken on a new
tone. Larry had decided he was ready
to take on the training responsibility
and show in the open category.
The two mares that nobody had
ever heard of carried Royal Blue
Boon’s offspring and grazed and
lazed at the Hall’s Weatherford farm.
Meanwhile, Larry showed Royal Blue
Boon at the Masters, and then won at
the San Antonio Livestock Exposition
Quarter Horse Show as well as the
Bonanza Cutting in Abilene. During
that time, she hit the $380,000 mark
in lifetime earnings.
By the spring of 1987, Elaine
was in her element with Royal Blue
Boon’s daughters, both red roans,
romping in her pasture. The first,
by Peppy San Badger, she named
Peppys From Heaven. The second,
by Smart Little Lena, couldn’t be
registered because at that time the
NCHA rules prohibited registering
more than one foal from a single
mare. Despite having different sires,
the fillies both manifested a number
of qualities apparent in their dame.
When the Hall’s son, Jay, turned
16 he began showing in the amateur
Baby Blues
Throughout the show career of
DECEMBER 2015 PA R K E R C O U N T Y T O D AY
Royal Blue Boon’s ownership
had changed but little else did. The
rigorous training and conditioning
of the filly at the hands of Larry
Reeder continued. She was making
her debut at the 1983 NCHA World
Championship Futurity.
When the day came, Royal Blue
Boon was ready.
“The crowd loved her,” Reeder
said. “She was different from any
other horse, her color was one
thing— that blue roan color. All
of the sudden everybody wanted a
horse with that blue roan color. They
all wanted babies out of her.”
The crowd was crazed as the
blue filly pinned her ears back
and outsmarted the cattle with a
determination that won hearts.
“She was a great horse,” Reeder
said. “Most people go through their
whole lives never once riding a great
horse. I’ve gotten to ride a couple of
them. She was one of them.”
When the dust cleared from the
coliseum arena the championship
title belonged to Docs Okie Quixote.
Royal Blue Boon came in eighth,
drawing a check of more than
$39,000, but she had drawn the
respect and attention of the cutting
horse industry.
Only weeks later, Reeder rode
Royal Blue Boon to capture the
Atlantic Cutting Horse Association’s
Augusta Futurity. The usually pokerfaced Reeder tossed his Stetson in the
air as spectators cheered wildly for
the blue filly. She captured the hearts
of the Georgia crowd. This time she
earned $53,808. The Halls framed a
copy of the check to embellish the
wall behind Larry’s desk. Soon it was
complimented by an accompanying
wall hanging displaying a $28,000
check from her co-championship
of the Abilene Bonanza Cutting
Championship.
In April 1984 she faced Docs
Okie Quixote again in the NCHA
Super Stakes, but things were
different this time. Reeder and
Royal Blue Boon won the title
of Co-Reserve Champion and
took home a check of more than
$111,000. Yet another framed check
went up on Larry’s wall.
“From the time she started
showing s he captured the audience,”
Elaine said. “It was to the point that
you couldn’t wait for the next time
she would show. She was just so
different and so spectacular. It’s hard
to believe she was really mine. It was
such a blessing.”
In the mid-80s Cutting Horse
competitions took on an element of
glamour not seen in the ’60s or ’70s.
“The excitement of going to
a show and cheering for her was
exciting,” Elaine said. “I remember
going to the Masters with her. They
held the Masters three or four years in
a row. They would have a briefcase
containing $100,000. The winner
got that. I’ll never forget the way we
were treated and the fun we had.”
While Royal Blue Boon competed
in the Masters finals Elaine cheered
until she thought she’d have a heart
attack. With Larry Reeder in the
saddle, Royal Blue Boon marked a
225.
“We thought we had won it,”
Elaine said. “We were getting ready
to count the cash in that briefcase.”
Then Freddy McGee told Reeder,
“I’m going to beat your a__.” He was
on his way into the arena. To Elaine’s
amazement, McGee marked a 227.
The briefcase was his.
Royal Blue Boon took second
place and the $35,000 that went with
it.
“But, it was the most fun cutting
event ever,” Elaine said.
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