AQHA World Champion and Leading Sire Zips Chocolate Chip died today on Myers Horse Farm in Ashland, Ohio, the place of his birth 30 years ago.

Bred and raised by Phil and Ann Myers, Zips Chocolate Chip was sired by Zippo Pine Bar and out of Fancy Blue Chip and was the leading sire of AQHA Performance Horses and AQHA’s All Time Leading Sire of Western Pleasure Point Earners for many years.

But before all of that Zips Chocolate Chip recorded quite the impressive show record.

As a 2-year-old he won numerous futurities, including the Texas Breeders and Arizona Fall Classic. He was Reserve at the Texas Classic and at the Quarter Horse Congress. He won the 3-Year-Old Western Pleasure at the 1988 Quarter Horse Congress as well as at the Solid Gold Futurity and Georgia Futurity.

In 1988 Zips Chocolate Chip placed third in Junior Western Pleasure at the AQHA World Show and won 10 successive AQHA Western Pleasure classes to qualify for the 1989 World Show. He returned in 1989 to win the Junior Western Pleasure under all five judges with Cleve Wells aboard.

In all he earned over 80 AQHA points before being retired to the breeding shed.

Zips Chocolate Chip is the sire of World and National Champions in multiple breeds and disciplines around the world. He has well over 1,500 foals in six different breed registries. His get have recorded over 44,000 points, 20 AQHA World Championships, 12 AQHA Reserve World Championships, $885,904 in AQHA Incentive Fund winnings and $985,861 in National Snaffle Bit Association earnings.

Some of his most decorated foals include Huntin For Chocolate, Chips Hot Chocolate, Skips Special Barb, Chocolate Leaguer, Chipariffic, Chips Original Cooki, One Red Hot Zip, Chocolua, Smooth N Chocolatey, Chipped In Chocolate, RA Undisputed and Chip Van Winkle.

In 1999, Zips Chocolate Chip was the first horse to be inducted in the NSBA Hall of Fame in two categories, as a Show Horse and as a Sire. He was also a Breyer model horse, and has been published in a coffee table book from New York City, 1001 Reasons To Love Chocolate.

Zips Chocolate Chip stood the majority of his breeding career at Down The Rail, Valley View, Texas, managed by Joe and Suzy Jeane. He retired from breeding in 2013 and returned to Ohio where he lived on the Myers Farm until he was euthanized this morning due to complications associated with old age.