At the center of the performance horse breeding program that Betty Carr has been meticulously assembling for over three decades now, is a single premise – always improve the herd.

It was born in her. It’s how she was raised.

As the daughter of a dairy farmer growing up in Bremen, Indiana, Betty was showing cattle before she was old enough to go to school.

“It all goes back to my dad and his registered dairy cattle,” she said. “He was a very good herdsman and he always stressed the importance of qualities like conformation and temperament.

Iron Lion Zion, a 2019 stallion by Hubba Hubba Huntin and out of Betty’s former show partner, These Irons R Ready, is a product of that commitment to excellence.

Trained and shown by Judy Zeitler, Zion has been making waves in Hunter Under Saddle circles, earning a Reserve Championship in the 2-Year-Old Open Hunter Under Saddle at the 2021 Quarter Horse Congress and winning the 3-Year-Old Open Hunter Under Saddle at the Fun In The Sun Circuit in Venice, Florida in January.

“He has a great trot and really points his toe,” Judy said. “His color, size and movement help set him apart from other Hunter Under Saddle contenders. He’s the total package.”

Zion comes from a long line of successful Hunter Under Saddle show contenders owned by the Carrs – including his maternal grand dam Ready To Dance – that is best described as royalty. But the Carrs are also breeding and promoting foals that are just as successful in the Western Pleasure arena, like 2018 Congress 2-Year-Old Coughlin Limited Western Pleasure Champion Hez Rainy Made, sired by Machine Made and out of Richard’s former show partner, Rhapsody In The Rain.

The Early Days

To truly understand how Carr Quarter Horses got to where it is now, breeders of American Quarter Horse Association Reserve World and High Point winners and Quarter Horse Congress and futurity champions, you need to know a little about Richard and Betty.

They met on Friday the 13th of October in 1972, while Betty was attending Purdue University and Richard was taking classes at Manchester College a few hours away. It was the day, Richard says, that turned out to be the best of his life and a turning point for everything in his life.

“I believe if I hadn’t met Betty my life would have turned out very differently and not in a good way,” he said.

After graduation, Richard found work at a wire and cable company in Bremen. There he met Jim Pomeroy, who was his first real boss, but eventually became a father figure, mentor, business partner and friend.  Richard really liked the business and spent the next 18 years learning everything he could about it as well as the whole industry.

In 1974, Richard and Betty were married and they settled in Bremen. Three years later, they built a house on two acres across the street from Betty’s parents and then welcomed first a son, Andy, followed by daughter, Nikki.

Eventually, the wire business was sold to a Fortune 500 company and, although he says he learned from the experience, Richard decided the public company life was not for him.

In 1990, Richard, Pomeroy and another associate decided to start their own company called Copperfield, using an unusual philosophy they termed “two kings.”

“The first ‘king’ is the customer and the second “king” is our production employee,” he explained. “If you are not one of these kings, you are a servant.  Thus, servant leadership was birthed in our company.  We then added to this lean manufacturing principle, standardization and world class housekeeping.  We believe we changed the wire and cable industry forever.”

At the same time, Richard was helping to build Copperfield, the young family was busy with swimming, softball, arts and a broad array of other activities. Betty’s dad, had a real love of horses, so there was always a pony around for her to ride while she was growing up. Naturally, Betty wanted the same for Andy and Nikki.

The kids started out, like many, in the local 4-H program, showing their horses at the county fair.

“I remember one year, Rich came to the fair to watch both kids show,” Betty recalled. “They did horrible and Rich said to me ‘If we’re going to do this, we’re going to do it right.’”

And that leads us to the two most important things you need to know about the Carrs.

Number one.

“The Carr family works for fun,” Betty said. “When people ask us what we do to relax, we tell them, we love to work … whether it’s mowing the lawn, planting fields, building a wire company or cleaning the barn, we get our enjoyment from hard work.”

Number two.

“Betty and I are both very competitive,” Richard said. “We rarely do anything where we don’t go out to try and be the best.”

And so it went with their journey into the world of showing horses and breeding world class show horses.

Once Richard uttered those words “do it right” at the fair, Betty made it her mission to find the best show horses and coaches she could for at first, the kids and eventually the whole family.

One of Nikki’s instructors suggested Betty look at a horse by the name of Black ET Black (Edy), a 1990 mare by Born A Boss and out of Miss Blair Mandy. Richard and Betty liked Edy and purchased her for Nikki to show in all-around classes like Showmanship, Western Pleasure and Hunter Under Saddle. Nikki continued to compete at 4-H and Open shows with Edy, winning the State Fair in Western Pleasure. But she also started getting her feet wet in AQHA classes, with the help of Allison Clark McDonald, who lived nearby in Bourbon, Indiana.

In 1994, the Carrs added an eight-stall barn, complete with an attached indoor arena, on to their property.

Nikki quickly outgrew Edy and after an extensive and careful search for a replacement, Scootin Spider Man, a 1992 bay gelding by Dules Sur Tom and out of Hijo Baby was purchased during the 1995 Quarter Horse Congress through Rick and Heidi Cecil and the Carr family started showing under their guidance. By the next year, Richard joined the family in the show arena with a little horse named A Copper Top Rose.

Over the next decade, the Carrs had the opportunity to own many talented and successful show horses. Betty showed Artistic Touch, a 1994 bay gelding by Artful Move and out of Secorillo Imp, to a win in the first Amateur Hunter Hack class held at the Quarter Horse Congress and Richard captured a Reserve Congress Championship in 50 & Over Amateur Western Pleasure with Rhapsody In The Rain in 2003. There were others as well, like Dynamic Fashion and Gota Lota Potential. In addition to working with great horses, the Carrs also enlisted the help of some of the top trainers in the industry, including Troy Oakley, Rusty and Tanya Green and Steve Heckaman, to name a few. They all continued to improve in the show pen and started breeding a few horses of their own at home.

Turning Points

As the years went by and their kids ventured off to experience college and other interests, Richard and Betty stayed involved in showing horses and if anything, just grew more competitive. After showing Artistic Touch, Betty teamed with Dont Ya Wanna Dance (Eddie), a 1998 sorrel gelding by Dont Skip Charlie and out of Ready To Dance. Betty enjoyed tremendous success with Eddie, finishing 2002 as the Reserve AQHA High Point Champion in Amateur Hunter Under Saddle and winning the Hunter Under Saddle at the 2004 AQHA Amateur Select World Show, by now under the guidance of Georgia trainers Carl and Trisha Yamber.

Armed with the knowledge she had gained from her father about what makes a successful breeding program and Carl Yamber’s keen eye for talent, Betty set out to buy Eddie’s dam, Ready To Dance. It was a move that would later prove pivotal in the success of the Carr breeding program.

Though Betty was really busy showing Don’t Ya Wanna Dance and with the purchase of his dam, Richard, on the other hand, was between horses. In 2005, he traveled to a show in Findlay, Ohio, to watch Betty compete in Amateur Hunter Under Saddle and that’s where he spotted Carl Yamber riding Ima Good Rodder (Bertha).

“I called Betty over to watch because I had never seen a horse stick a front leg out like she could,” he said.

The 2001 bay mare by Ima Zippo Good Bar out of Hot Roddin Vickie, became Richard’s next Amateur Select show horse and just like that, the Carrs were back in the Western Pleasure arena. Over the next few years Richard and Bertha racked up over 100 AQHA points in Western Pleasure andCarl rode her to AQHA High Point titles in Open and Junior Western Pleasure in 2006.

Ima Good Rodder, was eventually sold and Carl found Crystals Legacy for Richard to show from 2009 until 2013.

“Carl always had a really good eye when it came to matching a horse with my skills and abilities as a rider,” Richard said.

Crystal, a 2005 brown mare by Certain Potential and out of Crystal Affair, helped Richard earn over 75 AQHA points, numerous circuit and futurity championships and place in the Top 10 in Western Pleasure at the Amateur Select World Show twice.

Crystal was eventually retired to the Carr broodmare band and once again Carl was on the hunt for a competitive replacement for Richard. He found exactly that in OHK Goodbars Krymsun (Riley), a 2009 mare by One Hot Krymsun and out of Goodbars Glory.

Success came quickly for the new team as just months later they placed 10th in Amateur Select Western Pleasure at the Quarter Horse Congress. Tragically, just weeks later Carl suffered a stroke and was sidelined. By the time the 2015 Tom Powers Futurity rolled around, Carl had arranged for NSBA’s first Million Dollar Rider Gil Galyean, of Purcell, Oklahoma, to step in and help. The transition was seamless as Richard and Riley rode away with a Reserve Championship at the 2015 Amateur Select World Show.

Producing Winners

By now, the Carrs were already raising several foals a year, breeding their former show mares including Rhapsody In The Rain and Dynamic Fashion to their own stallion, Gota Lota Potential, as well many others. But the addition of Ready To Dance in 2002, shifted the dynamic a bit. Ready To Dance herself was the 1996 AQHA High Point Hunter Under Saddle Champion and earned 101 AQHA Open Hunter Under Saddle points and seven Open Pleasure Driving points.

It’s her produce record, however, that really catches your eye. Of her total 11 foals 10 have been performers, earning 1,962 AQHA points and recording $91,562 in NSBA earnings.

“When we bought her, Ready To Dance was carrying a Do You Have A Minute foal (Ready In A Minute),” Betty explained. “We bred her back in 2004 to Too Sleepy To Zip and she foaled Dancin In My Sleep, a black gelding in 2005.”

Dancin In My Sleep went on to earn 459 (all divisions) performance points and 121.5 (all divisions) Halter points.

Trisha Yamber was, at that time, showing AQHA Hunter Under Saddle sire These Irons Are Hot and Betty decided to cross Ready To Dance on him.

The result was pure magic.

First to arrive in 2006 was These Irons R Dancin (Sasha), a brown mare that captured Congress Championships in both the 3-Year-Old Open Hunter Under Saddle and the Junior Hunter Under Saddle in 2009, with Trisha in the irons. That same year they were Reserve AQHA World Champions in Junior Hunter Under Saddle and NSBA Reserve World Champions in both the Junior Hunter Under Saddle and the 3-Year-Old Open Hunter Under Saddle. The following year, Trisha rode Sasha to an NSBA World Championship title in the Open Hunter Under Saddle Maturity and another Reserve Championship in Junior Hunter Under Saddle. Betty also got her turn, claiming a Reserve World Championship title in Hunter Under Saddle at the AQHA Amateur Select World Show.

“As a breeder, raising Sasha and having the opportunity to ride her has got to be the pinnacle of our success,” Betty said. “She was the first foal that we bred, raised and took all the way to winning a Congress Championship and I can tell you that is so cool.”

But that is not the end of the story …. far from it.

Betty bred Ready To Dance back to These Irons Are Hot and in 2007 she foaled These Irons R Ready (Jordan). Three years later, Betty rode Jordan to a Congress Reserve Championship in Amateur Select Hunter Under Saddle and in 2012 Trisha Yamber rode her to a Congress Reserve Championship in Junior Hunter Under Saddle. With earnings just shy of $31,000, Jordan won numerous futurities, including the Tom Powers, and was Top 10 at the AQHA World Show and Select World Show, as well as at the National Snaffle Bit Association’s World Show and Breeders Championship Futurity.

And that all brings us back to Iron Lion Zion, who is the first living foal out of These Irons R Ready.

When he was born, Betty knew to trust in her program.

“I’ve learned over the years not to try too hard to make an early assessment of the hunt seat babies,” she said. “They are much different from the western foals in that you can tell right away what the movement is going to be like in the western babies. The hunt seat babies are gangly and take longer to get to the point where you can make a critical assessment.”

But by the time he was 18 months old, Betty was feeling confident that Zion was going to be special.

“My farrier was out working on all of the babies and after we finished with Zion, we turned him out,” Betty recalled. “He took off loping and we looked at each other. My blacksmith said, ‘pretty nice.’ I thought so too.”

Just a month or so later, trainer Mark Zeitler stopped by to get eyes on the youngster.

“He was big, beautiful, a fancy mover and for his age very mature,” Mark said.

Even though he, like all the hunt seat foals, was gangly at first, Betty was always confident in him.

“With his bloodlines, I honestly always thought he was the real deal,” she said. “From his attitude to his solid feet to the quality of his movement, he just always had all the elements.”

Judy didn’t get to see Zion until he arrived at the Zeitler facility to begin his training.

“Mark had been telling me how great this coming 2-year-old was and when I finally saw him in person, I was like wow.”

All In The Family

These Irons R Dancin, on the other hand, got a big head start on her produce record and she made the most of it.

She has 13 foals on the ground now and they have earned a combined 915 AQHA points and recorded over $137,000 in NSBA earnings. Sasha’s foals also have claimed three Open AQHA World Championship titles and three Reserve titles.

Some of her foals include:

            • Hubbout A Dance (Hubba Hubba Huntin): 2017 AQHA World Champion Amateur Hunter Under Saddle; 2018 AQHA Reserve World Champion Amateur Hunter Under Saddle; 2019 Level 2 Hunter Under Saddle Champion; 2020 AQHA World Champion Amateur Pleasure Driving; 2019 AQHA World Champion Junior Pleasure Driving; 2021 AQHA Reserve World Champion Senior Pleasure Driving; 10-time Congress Champion; Over 400 AQHA points and $76,000 in total earnings.

            • A Boy Named Hoo (Hot Ones Only): 2015 Congress Masters Hunter Under Saddle Champion, 2018 AQHA Amateur Select World Show Reserve Hunter Under Saddle Champion; Over 90 AQHA points and $50,000 in total earnings.

            • Heza Dancin Hubba (Hubba Hubba Huntin) 2021 Amateur Select World Champion in Pleasure Driving; 2019 AQHA Level 2 Champion in Junior Hunter Under Saddle; 2020 World Champion in Junior Pleasure Driving. Over 150 AQHA points and $30,000 in total earnings.

Still Going Strong

Betty is not ruling out the possibility of a return to the Hunter Under Saddle arena one day and would love to ride Zion but for now, she thinks the smart move is to allow Judy to focus all her attention and Zion’s on the Open Division. At 17-plus hands tall now, the young stallion continues to impress her each time she sees him.

“It just amazes me that as big as he is, his legs are so slow, his topline is so strong and he has such a boldness and confidence about him,” she said. “In my opinion, he is what a Hunter Under Saddle horse is supposed to look like so he’s the type I set out to produce.”

Fortunately, Betty has successfully transitioned into the Western Pleasure arena, herself and now enjoys showing alongside Richard. In 2016 when Galyean helped Richard purchase I Will Be A Good RV (Boo), a then 3-year-old bay mare by Good I Will Be and out of Ill Be Dun Won It, as his next show partner, Betty took the reins of OHK Goodbars Krymsun with Gil’s help. Both matches proved successful as Richard and Boo captured a Reserve Championship in Amateur Select Western Pleasure at the 2017 Quarter Horse Congress and third in Western Pleasure at the 2017 Amateur Select World Show. They also grabbed a Reserve Championship at the 2020 NSBA World Show. Betty and Riley also logged many futurity wins, including one in the 50 & Over Amateur Western Pleasure at the 2019 Tom Powers Futurity and they placed third in the Novice Amateur Select Western Pleasure at the Quarter Horse Congress in both 2016 and 2017. They won the Amateur Western Pleasure at the 2017 Level 1 Central Championships and were Level 2 Champions in Western Pleasure at the Amateur Select World Show in 2018.

“Gil is an excellent teacher and I’m so appreciative of all I’ve learned and been able to accomplish in the short amount of time I’ve been riding Western Pleasure,” Betty said.

In January of 2020, just before the Covid-19 pandemic shut down shows across the United States, Betty Carr purchased Knockin It Out (Pippa), a 2016 sorrel mare by No Doubt Im Lazy. She is the last filly out of Zippin The Breeze, the all-time leading producer of Western Pleasure money earners, according to Robin Glenn Pedigrees.

The new team got off to a strong start winning a bronze championship in Level 2 Western Pleasure at the AQHA Amateur Select World Show that year. They won the 50 & Over Amateur Western Pleasure at the 2021 Tom Powers Futurity and placed third in that class at the NSBA World Show. Galyean also placed third with Pippa there in the Maturity Open Western Pleasure. But the highlight of the year came at the Quarter Horse Congress when Betty and Pippa won the Amateur Select Western Pleasure and Gil and Pippa won the Junior Western Pleasure. Just a month later Galyean claimed a bronze in Junior Western Pleasure at the AQHA World Show.

“Pippa is one of the best horses I have ever ridden,” Galyean said. “She has the natural ability to do it on her own, especially at the lope. I call her a true loping horse. She is extremely pretty and very correct conformationally. She is not a man-made horse, she’s just natural and it’s easy for her.”

Already this year Pippa has won Circuit Championships in Amateur Select Western Pleasure with Betty and in Senior Western Pleasure with Galyean.

“Some horses just fit certain people and Pippa really fits Betty,” Galyean said. “Pippa is just so natural and Betty is great at riding her rhythm.”

Now it’s Richard’s turn to start over. He recently purchased Congress Champion Best To Be Lopin, a 2018 bay AQHA/APHA mare by The Lopin Machine and out of Congress Masters Champion, Its Best To Be Hot, to show in Amateur Select Western Pleasure and the Non-Pro Maturities.

“We are just in the developmental stages with her and getting to know her better,” Galyean said. “She is very slow-legged and pretty. I believe the more Rich gets to ride and show her the better it’s going to get.”

Back At Home

The first part of the year is always busy at home for the Carrs. Since moving to that two-acre plot in Bremen, their property has swelled to include 350 acres and they rent another 70 acres. Crops grown on the land include beans and corn as well as about 10 acres of hay. Betty is still involved in every aspect of the farming process from planting to harvest.

Betty is also hands-on in every aspect of their breeding program. With input from Richard, she selects all the stallions that they breed to their mares. She works side-by-side with her veterinarians to get all the mares at home in foal and, of course, she is there to usher the new arrivals into the world, rub them down and make sure they are nursing.

Betty also makes it a point to work with the trainers to coordinate the breedings of the show mares, whether by intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), or embryo flush. She applies the knowledge gained from her dad, even today.

“I believe firmly in the strength of the mare side,” she said. “It’s one of the reasons Knockin It Out appealed to me.”

Staying true to that faith, The Carrs bred Knockin It Out to Machine Made right after they bought her because they remember clearly Carl showing his dam, Gypsys Little Image, to AQHA High-Point titles in 2001. Their first foal out of her (a bay filly) arrived early last year. This year they have a colt out of Pippa by Machine Made; a colt out of Sasha by Hubba Hubba Huntin; and a filly out of Jordan by Hubba Hubba Huntin.

Now, Richard will tell you that he knows Betty isn’t likely to stop working anytime soon and that’s one of the reasons that in 2019 he “unretired” and teamed with three partners, to start Sequel Wire and Cable in Argos, Indiana.

Combining a new state-of-the-art manufacturing facility with 130-plus years of combined management experience the Sequel plant is now operational and produces copper fabricated and insulated wire and cable products for use in a variety of markets including OEM, wire and cable distribution, appliance, automotive and recreational vehicles.

Although he admits starting a new business at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic was taxing, it’s just that kind of challenge that inspires him even more.

“My entire life I have enjoyed building things and doing things better and differently than anyone before me had done,” Richard said.

Looking Ahead

With show season now back in full swing, Richard and Betty are shifting gears and will be spending time riding at Gil’s and competing at the big shows and futurities. What they enjoy most about the sport is that they can do it together.

“We are very fortunate to have the Carrs as clients,” Galyean said. “They are very realistic with their expectations and take the truth very well. They are both very competitive but truly enjoy the horses and the people they meet at shows. They also have a great appreciation for top quality horses.”

But riding is not the only thing on the agenda. The Carrs will also be along the rail when Judy shows Iron Lion Zion at the Back To Berrien Futurity in Michigan, NSBA World Show, the Congress and at the AQHA World Show in November.

“I have really big expectations for him,” Betty said. “It will be exciting to watch his career unfold.”