Featuring speed bred and performance horses, the “August Catalog Sale” kicked off with a WPRA/NWBRA approved barrel race Friday afternoon while Sunday’s “Montana Miniature and Pony” sale wrapped up the sale weekend.

Arena ready and ridden, four of the top five selling horses were geldings - coming complete with earnings or points, while the fifth - a mare - had produced two money earners. All were five years old or older.

With 625 head offered over the two-days, horses came and went across the globe - including 16 states and three Canadian provinces, from Washington to New Hampshire and from Manitoba to Texas.

Top guns showed their stuff each day in the pre-sale preview, including the saddle horses, cutting and rope horses.

It keeps on getting better as quality ran deep - the top fifty horses averaged $3,326 - an increase of $534 per head over August 2002, while - the top five averaged an incredible $2,960 over 2002 figures, averaging $7,040 per head.

The weekend’s top sale horse was made-to-order for high school or college rodeo competition, a do-it-all kind of guy, qualifying for the National High School Rodeo Finals four times in the goat tying, four times in the breakaway roping, three times in team roping, and twice in pole bending, and Hip 173 “Hand Ford Doc Bailey” a 94 AQHA Chestnut gelding by Allee Hand and out of a Doc’s Rickashay bred dam was offered by Chelsea Driedger, Virden, Manitoba.

Voted the 2002 Manitoba High School Rodeo Association “Girl’s Quarter Horse of the Year”, the honest competitor brought a final bid of $10,000 and sold to Barbara Barber, Manhattan, MT.

Earning the $100 cash bonus to the BLS Sale Horse that clocked the fastest time in the WPRA/NWBRA barrel race, Hip 128 “Dash For Music” a 98 AQHA Sorrel gelding sired by Motatin For Cash and out of a Super Tease/Jet Music bred mare had been started right and offered by Corlene Phillips, Rozet, WY.

Bringing $5,500, the headed-to -the-pay-window gelding sold to Jim Riggle, Woodenville, WA.

Billings Livestock was proud to welcome IPRA World Champion Team Roper, Bonny Holt, San Jacinto, CA who purchased Hip 126 “Freckled Ace” a 97 AQHA Sorrel gelding consigned by Steve and Audrey McLean, Dayton, WA.

Used branding calves, team penning, sorting, turning back, and in the mountains, the gelding had earned his general business diploma and was lightly started in the arena.

Sired by Ace O’Lena x Doc O’Lena, and out of a Colonel Freckles grandddaughter, the mega-gelding cost $5,600.

Experience and work ethic are sought after virtues, and he came spiffed up and riding better than many horses, and Hip 287 “Festus” a 91 Grade John Mule was a no-nonsense, do what it takes gentleman.

Ride or pack, sun-up to sun-down, broke to picket and hobble, the extra-nice mule was offered by Allen Lloyd, Round Mountain, Nevada and sold for $3,700 to Jake Clark, Powell, WY.

Young, plainer, less experienced horses, including weanlings and yearlings, were again the buy of the weekend, while traditional ranch geldings - the dependable, honest, and educated kind - propelled the market, with the older, seasoned geldings selling well throughout the two-days.

Sunday’s “Montana Miniature and Pony Sale” saw Hip 405 “Zorro” an 89 Quarter Pony gelding bring $3,900.

Roped on in the team roping preview, the all-around pony ran barrels, poles, heeled, and breakaway, too.

Bart Byrd, Douglas, WY purchased the well-exposed fellow for $3,900.

Mini’s, both AMHR and AMHA registered averaged $825 on the top five, with the top selling mini bringing $1,000.

A solid market from start to finish is reflected in the overall sale averages for the weekend - the top five averaged $7040; top ten brought $5,740; top 20 averaged $4,600; the top 50 came in at $3,326, while the top 100 head of horses sold averaged $2,424.

The heat was on in the loose horse trade - again - where the top selling horse offered “as is, where is, how is” pushed the market at $1,600, followed by $1,550, and $1,300.

With 215 offered on the loose, the top 20 averaged $1,133, while the top ten averaged $1,273, and the top 50 - that’s nearly 25% of the day’s loose offering - averaged $915, while the top 100 - nearly one-half - averaged $708.

Billings Livestock’s annual “Cow Country Classic” catalog sale is next on the BLS Sale agenda September 27 - 28.

Featuring “Rope Horses” and a special session of John Scott Ranch bred and branded horses.

All classes of horses will sell including mares, stallions, finished horses, prospects, and young stock. Cattle will be available to show the cutting horses, calf horses, and rope horses. Catalog deadline is September 5, with a supplement printed for later entries.

See it all at www.billingslivestock.com or contact Bill and Jann Parker, BLS Horse Sale Managers at 406-245-4151.