Prime aged and premium pedigreed - good, better, and best - performance horses set to light up the arena lit up the market at Billings Livestock Commission’s three day sale event October 26-28.

They came from 20 states and three Canadian provinces to get them, and 547 individual buyers registered to purchase 1,199 head of horses. 90% of the horses offered, sold.

The top five horses averaged $16,400 and included gelded sons and daughters of the performance industry’s best - including the NCHA Sire of the Year, High Brow Cat, the leading sire of barrel horses for four years running - Dash Ta Fame, and cutting’s #3 leading sire, CD O’lena.

Throughout the top twenty sellers list the names in the game included Frenchman’s Guy, Smart Aristocrat, Smart Mate, Topsail Whiz, CD Lights, Dual Rey, and Peppy San Badger - from reining, roping, to cutting, and barrel horses, a stand up, quality driven market prevailed.

They‘ve won $5 million riding his offspring in 2006 alone, and Hip 432 “Too Good Cat“ a 2001 AQHA sorrel mare by High Brow Cat made tracks to the top of the high sellers list with a final bid of $27,000 selling to Eric Carson, Yucaipa, CA.

Offered by Susan Fullen, Meridian, ID the finished show mare had $2,500 in earnings and - “Too Good Cat” came bred for 2008 to one of the hottest young sires in the cutting horse industry - He’s A Peptospoonsful.

He’s the number one sire of money winning barrel horses for the past four consecutive years, and Dash Ta Fame sired the number two horse of the weekend, Hip 438 “TMF Crazy Legs” a 2002 APHA sorrel overo gelding brought to town by Chris Gibbons, Worland, WY.

The money winner and multiple average awards winner, originally trained by Lance Graves, sold to Jeff Wills, Quesnel, British Columbia for $17,000.

Billings Livestock was proud to welcome four-time National Finals Rodeo barrel racer Fallon Taylor, Corinth, TX who offered four head of barrel horses including Hip 357 “Black Hollybar” a 1992 AQHA black mare x Caps San Peppy.

Solid and consistent, the barrel and pole mare sold to Steve Hicks, Avondale, CO for $10,000.

Pat and Connie Fitzgerald, Pauli, OK, home of the $4 million dollar sire “Smart Mate” offered three yearling stud colts direct from their program.

Hip 377 “Mates Mr Mama” a 2006 sorrel with lots of roan hairs was out of a money-earning daughter of Doc Quixote. The sharp looking stud prospect was brought $10,000 selling to Morgan May, Woodland, UT.

Ponies upped the ante - the top five ponies, just ponies - averaged $2,100, and the top ten ponies brought $1,465. Nine out of the ten ponies were geldings.

He’d been living large with eight kids in Soap Lake, WA and Hip 353 “Frosty” a 92 grade roan quarter cross pony gelding had been a solid ranch pony his entire life.

Consigned by Mark McMillan, the do anything, go anywhere special guy sold to John English, Belen, NM for $2,500.

Page Brennan, Shepherd, MT brought Hip 461 “Crocket” a 96 grade bay pony gelding to town. The blue ribbon show winner brought $2,300 and sold to Lee Pedersen, Milestone, Saskatchewan.

Trained and offered by Double Eagle Cattle Co., Belfry, MT Hip 380 “Rowdy” was a true sale highlight, and the two-year-old male border collie dog knew his job and did it well.

Previewed both Friday and Saturday on cattle, the working cow dog would both head and heel, and brought $4,500 selling to Ryan Mantei, Colstrip, MT.

October sale averages reflect a solid ride horse market as the top five averaged $16,400, top ten brought $12,650; top 20 averaged $9,335 compared to $7,645 one-year-ago - that‘s $1,690 better; top 50 brought $6,317 compared to $4,954 in 2006; and the top 100 averaged $4,446, and increase of $870 per head over last year’s October figures.

Young horses, thin horses, and horses that need more experience continue to face lessened demand as a quality driven market continues to prevail in all classes and kinds of horses offered.

Driven by supply and demand, the loose horse market dipped as the effect of the closure of all U.S. Processing plants rippled through the market.

On the loose, the top five averaged $860 with the top selling loose horse bringing $1,300, the top ten averaged $767; top 20 came in at $641; top 50 on the loose brought $493, and the top 100 averaged $395.

Billings Livestock's next sale event is set for November 24-25 and will include a pre-sale preview of cutters, ride horses, and rope horses on Friday, November 23 at the HorsePalace Arena.

“Holiday Special” Catalog Sale headlines Saturday and Sunday’s schedule with loose horses selling Sunday, November 25 at 9 a.m.