DIAMOND N QUARTER HORSES

Smart Little Lena was born in July, 1979 by the great Doc O'Lena and Smart Peppy, a daughter of Peppy San. He was bred by Hanes Chatham, Pilot Point, Texas, who owned his dam.

Smart Little Lena was started under saddle 25 months later by Chatham, who intended to consign the colt to one of the upcoming Futurity sales. Chatham then sent Smart Little Lena to neighbor Freeman for finishing. Freeman was astounded at what he saw when he put the colt on cattle, which confirmed Chatham's gut feeling about Smart Little Lena. The horse had such phenomenal talent that both believed he was fully capable of winning the Futurity the next year.

Chatham, now fully realizing what he had, withdrew the horse from the sale and went forward with plans to have Freeman show him at the Futurity. Freeman wanted to own the colt, but he lacked the funds to buy him, even at the half interest Chatham was willing to sell. He scraped up the money to buy his half interest by selling all of his cattle that the bank actually owned and sold syndication shares before the Futurity. With the money Freeman made, he repaid the bank and together, he and Smart Little Lena rode into cutting history.

The stallion and Bill Freeman shown at the futurities. They swept both go-rounds of the 782-horse 1982 Futurity, came in second in the semi-finals by one point and then won the finals with a 225, then the highest score in the history of the event. The win was worth $264,085. He went on to capture the 1983 Super Stakes and tie for the 1983 Derby title, making him the first NCHA triple crown winner. He was retired to stud less than a year later with $743,275 in earnings, making him second on the list of all-time money earning horses.

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Once Futurities were finished Freeman and Chatham next wondered if Smart Little Lena could pass on his cow-smart sensibility, his great attitude and his athleticism to his offspring. That question was answered during the 1987 Futurity, when his first foal crop reached Futurity age. Smart Date, a filly by Smart Little Lena and out of Trip Date Bar, promptly won the Futurity with a 225. A total of 23 Smart Little Lena offspring competed in the Open that year, with six making the semifinals and three advancing to the finals. In the Non-Pro, 12 competed, with four making the semifinals and two the finals.

Smart Little Lena had 17 semifinalists in the three divisions of the 1999 NCHA Futurity led the '99 Futurity sales when 89 horses, or 84 percent of the 106 consigned, brought a leading gross of $2,553,100 for an average of $28,687.

Smart Little Lena is currently standing stallion and managed by the Smart Little Lena Syndicate.

(Information from Smart Little Lena Website and other website pages.)