A Horse With Heart


As a trainer, there are certain horses that leave a mark on your life, horses that have that special something called greatness. As a competitor in the Northwest for the past 10 years, I have been fortunate enough to watch a horse like this throughout his career.

Lenas Smokum Oak, “Wally,” was born in April, 1996, to Jerry and Shirley McAnn. By Lenas Wright On and out of Surely Smokum Oak, a daughter of Smokum Oak, Wally had the breeding to be a serious cowhorse. Unfortunately as a 2- and 3-year-old, he bounced around between training barns.

He was quirky and a challenge to train. No one disputed his potential talent, but he was tough to get around. Bert and Carla Moffit purchased Wally as a 4-year-old, and the horse ended up in training with Jim Spence. This was the partnership that would give Wally the chance to show the talent he had been hiding.

Jim is known for his ability down the fence and he owes a lot of that to reputation to Wally. Wally isn’t just known as a cowhorse though; he is a triple threat, excelling in reining and cutting competition. In 2004, Spence and Wally competed in the AQHA World Championship Show and finished top 10 in the AQHA Senior Working Cowhorse. He has NRCHA, NRHA, and AQHA points and money earnings and has AQHA points in cutting, reining and working cowhorse in both the Amateur (Non Pro) and Open divisions.

When Bert and Spence were asked what sets Wally apart from other horses, they answered, simply; “Heart.” You never feel like you don’t have enough horse going down the fence. A trip down the fence on Wally is nothing but fun (and maybe a little bit of terror). Spence said that Wally is one of the best horses he has had the honor to train and show.

Bert was training a new gelding and it was time for Wally to move on and share his talent, ending up in the hands of a non-pro. The owner was a prominent breeder that soon fell on hard times, and many of his horses - including Wally - began to starve. When Tana Hansen, a client of trainer Mike Helsen’s, heard of his misfortune, she purchased Wally and a couple other horses and began nursing the emaciated animals back to health.

Wally, says Tana, was a determined horse. After gaining weight, all it took to get him back in the show pen was improving his condition and legging him back up. I was there when Tana showed Wally in her first time down the fence in Eugene, Ore., at the NWRCHA Show. It was like he had never missed a show.

There wasn’t a dry eye among us as Wally took Tana for the ride of her life. At that moment I remember thinking that this is what it’s all about. Great horses and great moments.

Tana says that when she got Wally, Spence told her that he picks his human. If you are his human, he will lay down everything he has for you. Wally proved this in July at the NWRCHA Summer Showdown when Jim Spence tacked Wally up for a reunion trip down the fence in the Fence Challenge. The crowd went wild as Spence and Wally handled an extremely tough cow, marking a 74 and winning the Fence Challenge.

Tana said one of the best moments of her horse career was when Spence stepped off Wally, handed her the reins and said that Wally felt like the last day Spence had showed him. She is so thankful to have the opportunity to have a horse as special as Wally. He is a part of the family. He is a part of Northwest cowhorse history and his story is not over. He has touched the lives of many cowhorse people in the Northwest.

Bert says, “I can only hope to own another horse again that is nearly as talented as Wally.”
NWHS    

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