Legendary hunt-seat sire and APHA Lifetime Leading Sire All Time Fancy died Oct. 19. Nicknamed “Nike,” the 1998 bay overo stallion by CF Wicked Willie and out of Forced To Be Fancy was bred by Rosemarie Shedd of Rockton, Illinois, and owned by Peggy Knaus of Tuttle, Oklahoma.

Nike caught Peggy’s eye as a yearling at the World Wide Paint Horse Congress—she knew she needed to bring him home, and he was so laid back, she actually thought he was a gelding at first. Naturally talented, with floating extension at the trot and a naturally slow canter, Nike became a fan favorite in hunter under saddle and pleasure driving, ultimately earning 277 points and a 2003 reserve world champion buckle in Junior Hunter Under Saddle.

As a sire, Nike has 1,039 registered offspring. More than half have APHA show records, earning 95,864 performance points, 11,882.5 halter points, 141 world/national championships and 128 reserve world/national championships to date.

To date, Nike is leading all four APHA 2022 Leading Sires Lists for halter and performance (as of October 20, 2022). He ranks high on APHA’s Lifetime Leading Sires lists, too; data as of February 4, 2022, shows Nike is:

• No. 1 Lifetime Leading Sire Halter Point Earners
• No. 2 Lifetime Leading Sire Performance Points Earned
• No. 2 Lifetime Leading Sire Performance Point Earners

“The breeders who came and bred mares or bought babies are the reason Nike is what he is. They have made him famous,” Peggy said in a July 2016 Paint Horse Journal article. “It’s the people who have taken those babies and shown them who have put Nike on those lists—that’s owed to them.

“I’ve always felt that a horse like All Time Fancy can’t be owned—he is just part of the family,” Peggy continued. “We’ve been privileged to be on this ride together.”