As the futurity season begins, excitement builds in the pleasure horse industry to watch up-and-coming stars make their arena debuts. The youngest talents can be seen in the Longe Line classes where yearlings show off their promise of later potential. So, when did the first Longe Line classes start and who came up with the idea in the first place? In the first section of our in depth, four part series, Longe Line exhibitors, trainers, owners and judges take a look back to the beginning of the class, how it has evolved over time and the direction it seems to be taking.

It wasn’t long after the formation of the National Snaffle Bit Association in 1983 that an idea to showcase yearlings in a performance setting started floating around.

“Back to just before 1990, I began to think there might be a place in the horse industry for a class for yearlings on a longe line designed to demonstrate pleasure potential,” says American Quarter Horse Association Professional Horseman, Gord Wadds of Ovid, Michigan. ” My idea didn’t get much further than that until June of 1990 when I learned in a conversation with Tom Powers that he was planning to introduce just such a class at his Triple Challenge Futurity in Tampa that December.”

Powers, however, initially envisioned the horses being presented in a round pen instead of on a longe line.

“When I thought of the class, I envisioned that they would free longe in a round pen made of pipe gates,” Powers says. ” I thought that this class would be good for the trainers to put another horse in their trailer. It would make possible the viewing of yearlings without traveling to each farm. I thought the one that I would buy first should be the winner. No one else wanted anything to do with it at that time.”

Determined to put his idea out there to the industry, Powers held the very first Longe Line class in December of 1990 at the winter show of his Triple Challenge Futurity held in Tampa, Florida.

“There is a funny story related to that first class,” Powers says. ” Shorty Parks and Gary Trubee were the judges. I thought the judges should stand in the middle of the circle with the exhibitor. I thought they would see better from that position. Shorty had the flu and after watching about five runs he ran to the side of the pen to throw up! After that, I decided that the judges would do just as well standing or sitting on the side eliminating the dizziness. Rodney Miller was the winner. There were about 12 or so that showed. I was very pleased that someone would actually try it! I think we used a two-minute clock.”

Wadds recalls the class well and was hooked from the start.

“An amusing and historic note that my good friend, Gary Trubee, shared with me was that when he and Shorty Parks judged that first Longe Line class, they followed the suggestion to judge it from the center of the circle,” Wadds says. ” As the first horse began, Gary turned to Shorty and said, ‘I don’t believe this is going to work!’ Since then, the class has, of course, been judged from outside the circle. I feel this was an introduction to a class that has virtually created a showcase to promote and market yearling prospects a year earlier than the previous 2-year-old debut.”

Gary Trubee of Fredericktown, Ohio confirms judging the first Longe Line class. He remembers trying to judge the horses from the center of the circle, which he admits, did not turn out so well.

“We did not have any scale to judge the horses on,” Trubee says. “Back in those days, when we wanted to sell a horse we would put it on a scale of one to 10 at the jog and at the lope and that is the way we judged the first class. I do not remember if we judged the horse’s conformation or not.”

After that initial class, Longe Line classes started gaining popularity and started popping up at all the major NSBA futurities. Longtime successful Longe Line exhibitor, Stanley Scott of Ocala, Florida recalls his initial response to the class.

“We were already trying to raise horses with movement, mind and correct conformation for the modern futurity horse of today,” Scott says. “Years ago when the Longe Line first began I thought it would be a great way to promote our studs and mares showing their offspring at an early age before we started riding them. I enjoyed seeing movement of young horses that had all different breeding. I think this class has helped promote the industry for the prospect futurity horse.”

Wadds says over the years he has earned over $100,000 in Longe Line competition alone starting back in the early days of the class.

“My first longe liner was in 1992 with a great filly, Eyed Star Anywhere,” Wadds says. ” This gorgeous black daughter of Lord Sonny and Petite Lady won the Tom Powers Longe Line and was the 1992 NSBA High Point Champion. It is important to note the value of the Longe Line foundation was evident as Star went on to win multiple major 2-year-old Western Pleasure classes and the trophy saddle for the champion graduate 3-year-old in the prestigious Michigan Futurity. She earned her Superior in Western Pleasure as a 3-year-old.”

Longtime Non-Pro exhibitor Lynn Campbell of Pittsboro, Indiana first remembers learning about a Longe Line class back when Tom Powers had his first event. She recalls several of her horse trainer friends being involved from the beginning, but it wasn’t until 1997 that she decided to buy a prospect.

“Because of professional career time commitments that kept me from AQHA showing, I bought a yearling Zipped N Barred filly in the fall of 1997 to give it a whirl,” Campbell says. “Having just moved to Indiana for my work, having a horse allowed me to meet some great people in Indiana who quickly became great friends. I was thrilled that I could compete at a national level with the quality of horses that would let me be away four to five times a year for the futurities.”

Through help from friend Mary Johnston, Campbell found it really fun to watch the changes her youngsters made.

“Having one at home let me putz with them all along and then with steps get them prepped to go to the horse shows,”Campbell says. “Mary and I spent a lot of time on the phone together from November to May that first year! And every time I would go to Iowa for work, I always built in a travel day on the front or back end so I could go to her barn and watch and learn.”

Campbell showed for the first time in the Longe Line at the Indiana Pleasure Jubilee Show in 1998.

“Ken McDavitt let me haul over with him and I still remember I was so scared to go because I knew there were going to be people there that had clearly more experience than me,” Campbell says. “Ken, JR Reichert and Mary Johnston really helped me get by that fear and SunDee and I were third in the Non-Pro. Shorty Parks was one of the pioneers of showing a longe liner and he was one of the judges. I was so thrilled that he liked my filly and as years went on, Shorty and I became friends and have always continued to talk shop about yearlings.”

Back in those days, Campbell recalls Longe Line being a popular class that was a kind of club especially for the Non-Pros in the Midwestern states. She exhibited her yearlings at shows like The Whistle Stop Futurity in Ohio, The Indiana Jubilee, the Southern Belle Invitation, Just for Pleasure and the Quarter Horse Congress. When NSBA added its Breeders Championship Futurity (BCF) classes, she also showed her yearlings there as well.

“I had some really great trainers show my colts in the Open along the way and each of them had tips for showing that I absorbed like a sponge,” Campbell says. ” JR Reichert, Russell Thompson, Gil Galyean, Kathy Kennedy and Robin Gollehon were and still continue to encourage and help me to get them ready and come participate.”

Robin Gollehon of Versailles, Kentucky has been training Western Pleasure horses since the 1970s. She has amassed over 80 World and National Appaloosa Horse Club Championships and winners at all the major NSBA futurities and the Quarter Horse Congress. Gollehon was immediately drawn to showing in the Longe Line class and started participating in it the very first year it was offered at the ApHC World Show where she first showed in it.

“I don’t remember what year it was introduced, but I participated that very first year,” Gollehon says. ” We didn’t have a yearling to show so we went out and bought one. She had the right conformation and was a pretty mover but as it turned out, wasn’t the best minded. During my go the announcer was telling the audience what to look for both good and bad. He said ear pinning and tail swishing is to be counted down and that’s exactly what my filly was doing!

It was as if there was a big red arrow above her with the caption reading, ‘Not like this one!’ I still placed eighth out of 25 or more but it was a good lesson.”

Showing in the Longe Line was a natural add on to Gollehon’s business as she had already been showing Western Pleasure horses for many years. She was able to showcase the yearlings that she was raising at the farm.

“I’m a very detailed person so I liked that about the class. Anyone can teach a horse to longe but there’s an art to doing it for show. I really like that fine tuned communication between horse and handler.”

Gollehon has seen many changes through the years since she started showing in the class.

“Years ago we used to line up head to tail like a Halter class after the longing portion of the class,” Gollehon says. “Conformation didn’t seem to be as important and it was almost like a tie breaker. Now conformation is much more important and is the judge’s first impression. The various state futurities have nice purses usually without big entry fees but it’s not always about the money. Sometimes the title or the win picture is worth more. Every breed has their own prestigious titles. The Quarter Horse Congress is the biggest.”

Evolution of Events: Although the Yearling Longe Line class has never been approved by the AQHA Show Committee, it has been offered at other breed association shows, the Palomino, Appaloosa and Paint World Shows and numerous NSBA futurities through the years.

“I have not been deeply involved in those conversations when they’ve come up at convention, but I do know Longe Line has just never made it past the show and professional horsemen committee,” says Executive Director, Competition and Breed Integrity Tom Persechino. “Members can always submit for Longe Line classes, which we encourage them to do, and come and speak on behalf of their adoption.”

A real indicator that the class had really hit the mainstream was when it was first introduced at the Quarter Horse Congress in 1998 where it was offered in both Open and Non-Pro divisions. There were 21 in the open class and 20 in the Non-Pro. Zipped Lightly, owned by Mary Johnston won both classes, Mary showed her in the Non-Pro and JR Reichert was at the end of the line in the Open.

The Quarter Horse Congress offered Western Longe Line class from 1998 through 2000. By 2000, the class had grown tremendously in popularity and had a big turnout with over 50 exhibitors and in both the Non-Pro and Open divisions shown and over 80 in both divisions officially entered.

In 2001 and 2002, the NSBA held its BCF Open and Non-Pro Western and Hunter Longe Line at the Congress. In 2003, the Congress picked the futurity back up offering only an open division of the Western and Hunter Longe Line classes through 2012. In 2013, the Congress added back the Non-Pro division of both the Western and Hunter Longe Line class. According to Rhonda Harter, Show and Futurity Secretary for the Quarter Horse Congress, the Open Western Longe Line last year had 30 entries and 28 entries in the Non-Pro Western Longe Line class. There were also 19 entries in the Open Hunter Longe Line class and 16 entries in the Non-Pro Hunter Longe Line class.

“We thought the industry supported adding the non-pro division back to the Longe Line class. After having many requests to add this division in, the idea was sent to the Tri-Chairman who approved the request for last year’s show,” says Chris Cecil-Darnell, OQHA President. “We also had many requests from industry breeders to add the Southern Belle Breeders to the Longe Line class which was added last year as well.”

For non-pro exhibitors like Campbell, adding the Non-Pro division back to the Longe Line at the Quarter Horse Congress was very encouraging that the class may be gaining popularity again.

“I think for awhile we all got caught up in the money to be won rather than showing off our young stock. And with the better breeding programs and quality of colts now, it has been tougher to compete because it seems that when the same colts start the year winning the judges tend to stick with that throughout,” Campbell says. “I think if show managements could ease the classes closer to the weekend time frames we may bring some folks back to the Longe Line. Having the Quarter Horse Congress add back a Non-Pro class in addition to the open was a huge win for the event, encouraging us to come back to play.”

Powers recalls at some of the biggest Longe Line classes held at his futurity back around 2000 had over 40 horses.

“I am happy that it has been successful but never imagined it to be as it is today,” Powers says. “I have been amazed that it is now a specialty class requiring special trainers, blocked and false tails etc. On the other hand, I respect those that have made it an art form and specialize in this class only.”

As a long-time AQHA and NSBA judge and now the judge’s monitor for NSBA, Trubee has seen many changes in the Longe Line class as well. “I have seen the class change dramatically over the years,” Trubee says. ” It was first a class used as a talent search where people would look for prospects. I think now with better people who have gotten very serious about the class, the broker horses usually do the best but I still view it as a talent search class.”

Powers attributes a decline in interest in the class over the last several years because of two main reasons.

“There were not nearly as many mares bred in the last three years. Perhaps more importantly when the class started everybody thought they could do it as well as the next guy,” Powers says. “Now it is apparent that name trainers are necessary. Even the Non-Pro classes are dominated by a few. This is by no means a criticism but it scares people away. They don’t feel they can compete.”

Yet, he has high hopes that interest in the class may return. “I hope to offer a Limited Non-Pro Longe Line at my futurity in the future,” Powers says. “Hopefully, this will encourage those that are reluctant to show.”