Doc O'Lena facts for kids
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| Breed | Quarter Horse |
|---|---|
| Discipline | Cutting |
| Sire | Doc Bar |
| Grandsire | Lightning Bar |
| Dam | Poco Lena |
| Maternal grandsire | Poco Bueno |
| Sex | Stallion |
| Foaled | 1967 |
| Country | United States |
| Color | Bay |
| Breeder | Dr. and Mrs. Stephen F. Jensen |
| Owner | Dr. and Mrs. Stephen F. Jensen |
| Honors | |
| Other awards | |
| 1970 NCHA Futurity Champion | |
| Honors | |
| American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame | |
Doc O'Lena (1967–1993) was a very famous Quarter Horse stallion. He was a champion cutting horse and also became a father to many other champion cutting horses.
Doc O'Lena is so famous that he was added to the American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame and the NCHA Hall of Fame. His mother, Poco Lena, is also in both Halls of Fame! In 1970, Doc O'Lena won the big NCHA Futurity competition. His full brother, Dry Doc, won the same title the very next year.
Doc O'Lena was also special because he was the first Futurity champion to have a child who also won the Futurity. His daughter, Lenaette, won in 1975. He also fathered Smart Little Lena, who was the first horse to win the amazing NCHA Triple Crown.
About Doc O'Lena
Doc O'Lena was born in 1967. His father was a famous horse named Doc Bar, and his mother was the legendary mare Poco Lena. It's pretty rare, but both of Doc O'Lena's parents are also in the American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame. Only one other horse has this honor!
Doc O'Lena was a bay color. This means he had a reddish-brown body with a black mane, tail, and lower legs. He had a small white star on his forehead. He also had a little white marking on his left back foot.
He was bred and owned by Dr. and Mrs. Stephen F. Jensen. They lived in Paicines, California.
His Amazing Career
The Jensens first hoped to sell Doc O'Lena when he was a yearling (a young horse about one year old). They wanted to sell him to Don Dodge, a famous cutting horse trainer. Don Dodge had trained Doc O'Lena's mother, Poco Lena, to win many awards.
But when Don Dodge saw Doc O'Lena, he thought the young horse was too small to be a cutting horse. So, he didn't buy him. The Jensens decided to keep Doc O'Lena and find another professional trainer for him.
They contacted Shorty Freeman, another top trainer. In 1968, Freeman was on his way to a big competition. He stopped by the Jensens' farm to see Doc O'Lena. Freeman wasn't worried about the horse's size. He agreed to train him.
Shorty Freeman later said that Doc O'Lena was an amazing horse. He even said, "I didn't train Doc O'Lena anyway, he trained himself." Freeman knew Doc O'Lena was special just a month after starting to work with him. He said Doc O'Lena was "just that good."
In April 1970, Adrian Berryhill joined Freeman. Together, they bought Doc O'Lena from the Jensens for $15,000. That same year, in December, Shorty Freeman rode Doc O'Lena to win the NCHA Futurity. They were the first team to win every part of the competition! They won $17,357 for their new owners. Doc O'Lena earned over $21,000 in his cutting career.
Breeding and Honors
Doc O'Lena became a very important father to many horses. He had 1,310 foals (baby horses). Many of his children became champions too!
- 321 of his children earned points from the AQHA.
- 87 earned special awards for their performance.
- 9 earned "Superior" performance awards.
- 4 were world champions.
- 6 were youth world champions.
- 4 were reserve world champions.
Some of Doc O'Lena's famous children include Doc Athena, Sugar Olena, Lenas Peppy, Smart Little Lena, and Todaysmyluckyday. His son, Montana Doc, is also in the NCHA Hall of Fame.
Doc O'Lena was the first horse to win the NCHA Futurity and then have one of his own children win it too. His daughter, Lenaette, won the Futurity in 1975. His son, Smart Little Lena, was the first horse to win the NCHA Triple Crown.
In 1978, Doc O'Lena was sold to a group of people for $2.1 million. This was a record amount of money for a cutting horse at that time!
Doc O'Lena was officially added to the American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame in 1997.
