Scamper (horse) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Scamper

Charmayne James and Scamper in their famous 1985 bridleless win
Breed	American Quarter Horse
Discipline	Barrel racing
Sire	Gills Sunny Boy
Grandsire	Sonny Gill
Dam	Draper's Jay
Maternal grandsire	Headed West
Sex	Gelding
Foaled	1977
Country	United States
Color	Bay
Breeder	Walter Merrick
Honors
Honors
1992 AQHA Silver Spur Award 1996 Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame
Last updated on: April 30, 2017.

Gills Bay Boy (1977 – July 4, 2012), known as "Scamper", was a famous horse in barrel racing. He is even in the ProRodeo Hall of Fame! His owner, Charmayne James, rode Scamper from 1984 to 1993. They won many championships together. They won the Women's Professional Rodeo Association (WPRA) World Championship for ten years in a row! Scamper also received the American Quarter Horse Association Silver Spur Award in 1992.

After he stopped competing in 1993, Scamper was cloned six years later. The clone was named "Clayton." Scamper passed away on July 4, 2012, when he was 35 years old.

Scamper's Early Life

Scamper was a bay American Quarter Horse. He was a gelding, which means he was a male horse that could not have babies. He was born in 1977 and his official name was Gills Bay Boy. Walter "Buddy" Draper raised Scamper in Wetmore, Colorado.

Scamper was a bit wild when he was young. He even bucked Buddy off! So, Buddy sent him to an auction. Scamper was sold a few times before he ended up at the James family's farm in Clayton, New Mexico. Charmayne's father bought him for $1,100. A cowboy named Ron Holland helped train Scamper to be calm. Scamper was very good at sorting cattle because he was so quick.

Charmayne, who was 12 years old, needed a new barrel racing horse. Her old horse, Bardo, had broken his leg. Her father told her about the little horse he had. He warned her that Scamper was "cold backed," meaning he might buck when he first started running. But Charmayne took Scamper and loped him (a slow gallop). He bucked a little, and she just laughed. She felt like he wouldn't hurt her.

When she first tried him on the barrel pattern, he was amazing! Her father watched and said, "He sure wants to scamper around those barrels." That's how he got his famous nickname! Scamper was 4 years old when he started barrel racing. Just a few weeks later, Charmayne and Scamper won their first small competition.

Scamper's Rodeo Career

In professional rodeo, barrel racing is the only event for women. It's a timed event where a horse and rider race around three barrels in a cloverleaf pattern. The goal is to be as fast as possible without knocking over a barrel. If you knock one over, you get a five-second penalty! Winning times are usually between 13 and 15 seconds.

To become a professional barrel racer, a person needs to earn a certain amount of money at official rodeos. In 1983, Charmayne earned enough money to become a professional WPRA card holder after winning a competition in Dodge City, Kansas.

Charmayne believed Scamper was at his very best around 1986–87. She said, "he dominated" during those years.

First Big Wins

In 1984, Charmayne was 14 years old, and Scamper was 7. They were both new to the professional rodeo world. Charmayne didn't have much money from her winnings yet. Her father said she needed to start earning enough to support herself, or she would have to stop rodeo.

She found her stride at the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo. Other racers sometimes tried to make her feel bad, but that night, she was determined. Scamper ran his best race, and they won! Charmayne said, "I knew how he was going to run every day. He knew he was loved, but he wasn't spoiled. He knew he had a purpose." In 1984, Charmayne and Scamper won their first WPRA World Championship and their first National Finals Rodeo (NFR) title.

The Bridleless Run

In 1985, Scamper and Charmayne won the WPRA World Championship again. They also made it to the NFR. This was the year of a very famous moment! During the 7th round, on a "Friday the 13th," Scamper's bridle fell off! A bridle is the part of the horse's tack that goes on its head and holds the bit in its mouth.

Charmayne later explained that Scamper had hit a concrete wall with his head, which loosened a screw on the bridle. It fell off while they were running! Since Scamper had already started, Charmayne couldn't stop him. So, they finished the pattern without the bridle!

A photographer named Kenneth Springer saw it happen. He said Charmayne focused on keeping the bit in Scamper's mouth. When it finally came out, she kept going for the win. Most people would have tried to stop, but she went for it! They won that round. In 1986, they won the "average," which means they had the best total score over all the rounds.

What Made Scamper Special

Charmayne often talked about what made Scamper so amazing:

• He had incredible speed and could turn very quickly.
• He was smooth, but he could make up for mistakes. For example, if he went a little too far past the first barrel, he could still win the rodeo by a lot!
• He had the perfect mix of being a "ratey" horse (one that slows down for turns) and a "free runner" (one that runs all out).
• Even when he ran super fast, he always turned well. Charmayne never had to worry if he would work or not.
• He was great in big arenas and on tough ground, which made him perfect for major rodeos.

The Final Championships

During Scamper's career, there were other great barrel horses. But Scamper always managed to win because he was so consistent. In 1989, at the start of the NFR, Scamper had a cut on his coronet band (the area just above the hoof). This made it hard for him to train normally.

It took Scamper a few rounds to warm up. The rodeo announcer, Bob Tallman, told Charmayne, "Well darlin’, we all knew this day would come," meaning their winning streak might end. But Charmayne thought, "No, it hasn’t ended yet." Even though everyone thought they were out, they tried their hardest and won the championship that year!

In 1993, Charmayne and Scamper qualified for the NFR again. They were aiming for their 10th WPRA World Championship. Charmayne felt a lot of pressure. She wanted Scamper to retire undefeated and still at his best. After the NFR, she felt a huge sense of relief that they had done it.

Scamper's Retirement

Scamper helped Charmayne become the first cowgirl to earn over $1 million in 1990. Together, they won the WPRA World Championship every year from 1984 to 1993. That's a record 10 straight championships! They also won many NFR World Championships.

Scamper started to retire from competition in 1993, and fully retired a few years later. He did compete at one of his favorite rodeos, Rodeo Houston, in March 1996, where he won $8,000. Scamper passed away on July 4, 2012, at 35 years old. He was buried at Charmayne's ranch in Boerne, Texas.

Scamper was honored in 1992 with the AQHA Silver Spur Award. This award is given to Quarter Horses that bring special attention to their breed. In 1996, Scamper became the first barrel horse to be put into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Awards and Honors

Awards

Source

Honors

• 2011 Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame
• 1998 Ellensburg Rodeo Hall of Fame
• 1996 ProRodeo Hall of Fame
• 1992 AQHA Silver Spur Award
• WPRA’s Horse With the Most Heart in 1986, 1988–93

Source

Scamper's Clone: Clayton

Because Scamper was a gelding (meaning he couldn't have babies), Charmayne decided to clone him. She spent about six years researching cloning before making her choice. She picked a company called ViaGen, which is based in Austin, Texas. They charged $150,000 for the procedure.

Scamper's clone, named Clayton, was born in 2006. Clayton is a stallion (a male horse that can have babies) and is now used for breeding. However, the AQHA does not register cloned animals. This means Clayton and his offspring cannot be officially registered with the AQHA. But horses don't need to be registered to compete in barrel racing or other rodeo events!