Skipper, Skipper Everywhere

With the passing of Broadway Express at age thirty, the pacing stallions devoid of Meadow Skipper blood are just about extinct. Towners Big Guy is twenty-nine-years-old and his daddy, Big Towner, passed nine years ago. Some of the latter’s premier offspring that had no Skipper in them were: Walton Hanover, Sandman Hanover, Lustra’s Big Guy, Apache Circle (and his son, Apaches Fame), and Towners Image, the dam of Riggins and Townslight Hanover. They put up a good fight, but the odds they faced were insurmountable.

Matts Scooter, who was retired from stud duty in the spring of 2011, had no Skipper on top and served admirably as an outcross stallion. Those with Skipper on the bottom but not on top include:

McArdle

In The Pocket

Christian Cullen

Sportsmaster

Dontgetinmyway

Thirteen-year-old McArdle, the stallion charged with keeping Bret alive on top, has been fighting for a piece of the SS action in Pennsylvania of late. He was just relocated to Ohio at a reduced fee of $3,500….. Sportsmaster is twenty-three-years-old and standing in Illinois……. Twenty-five-year-old In The Pocket is retired Down Under, I believe….. His eighteen-year-old son, Christian Cullen, stands Down Under, although he has carved out a presence in NA in recent years. And twenty-year-old Dontgetinmyway, a son of Abercrombie, stands in Indiana for $2,000.

Those with Skipper on top but not on the bottom are:

Camluck

Cambest

Real Artist

Cole Muffler

Rustler Hanover

Camluck is still a popular stallion in Ontario, and has made his mark this year with Michaels Power. He’s twenty-five-years-old….. Twenty-four-year-old Cambest stands in Kentucky for $3,500. …..Seventeen-year-old Real Artist, the sire of Soutwind Lynx, Ginger And Fred, Kikikatie and Dali, stands in Pennsylvania for $5,000….Cole Muffler passed in the spring of 2010……Seventeen-year-old Rustler Hanover stands in Delaware.

Gene Abbe was thirty-years-old when his greatest son, Big Towner, was born in 1974. This is very unusual. Skipper was seven when MHF was born and eight when Albatross came along. In turn, MHF was twelve when Cam Fella was delivered and Albatross was nine when Niatross popped out. Niatross was only five when his son Nihilator came along, just as Tyler B was five for Dragon’s Lair, Happy Motoring five for OTRA, No Nukes five for Jate Lobell, Mach Three six for SBSW and Oil Burner six when No Nukes was foaled. Western Ideal was seven when Rocknroll made the scene.

Big Towner brought only $5,700 as a yearling at the Ohio Tattersalls Sale. As a three-year-old he tried to kill himself by beating his head against the wall of his stall due to an internal blockage, but he was saved from himself and a few months later won the $229,000 Monticello Classic.

Despite his speed and tenacity on the racetrack folks referred to him as “Simpson’s Folly” when he was retired to stud duty at Hanover. As a son of Gene Abbe, he was very far from fashionable. But as was his custom, he proved the nay sayers wrong.

Big Towner has always been celebrated for his prowess as a broodmare sire, and to go into that in a little more detail here are a few of his better known broodmare credits:

Anndrovette (Riverboat King), winner of the BC Mare over the weekend.

Big Jim (Western Ideal)

Covert Action (General Star)

Darlin’s Delight (Bettor’s Delight)

World Order (Nihilator), dam of Worldly Beauty as well as Worldly Treasure—the dam of Captaintreacherous

Countryview Miss (Camluck), dam of Western Graduate and Parlee Beach

Goliath Bayama (Abercrombie)

Always A Virgin (Western Ideal)

Whosurboy (Artsplace)

Real Artist (Artsplace)

Leader Bayama (Artsplace), sire of Rebeka Bayama

Northern Luck (Camluck)

Voelz Hanover (Astreos)

Allamerican Nadia (Dragon’s Lair), dam of Apprentice Hanover

Razzle Dazzle (Real Desire)

Jet Laag (Laaag)

Perfect Profile (Nihilator)

Always Cam (Western Hanover)

All Over The Place (Artsplace)

Pacific Fella (Cam Fella)

Mary Mattgalane (Matts Scooter), dam of Meirs Hanover

Cheyenne Rei (Western Hanover)

Daylon Trooper (Camluck)

Stunning Beauty (Camluck), dam of Swinging Beauty