Colorado businesswoman and top American Paint Horse Association Amateur competitor Susan Juroe knew from the start it was going to take a special horse to replace Too Sleepy For Candy, her show partner of three years.

When she lost Mandy, her multiple APHA World Champion mare in the fall of 2014, Juroe was afraid she’d never get back to the level of showing she had worked so hard to reach.

The 2009 sorrel overo mare by Too Sleepy To Zip and out of Shez Eye Candy, was an Honor Roll Champion in both Amateur and Junior Western Pleasure and was a

a champion every time out in 2014.

“I always said she was a once-in-a-lifetime horse,” Juroe said.

But then along came First N Line (Kenny).

The 2011 double registered gelding by RL Best Of Sudden and out of Sheiks Bodys Hot was bred by Masterson Farms in Tennessee. In 2013 he won the Quarter Horse Congress 2-Year-Old Non-Pro Western Pleasure Stakes Class.

“I had always liked him as a pleasure horse, but saw him show in Trail and knew he had the potential to be a great all-around horse,” said Juroe’s trainer Shannon Gillespie.

“When I tried him, I saw that he would be a great match for Susan. He is very steady, responsive, and comfortable to ride. He also has excellent conformation and bloodlines, which are very important to Susan. Kenny also has a charming personality and is very kind, there were a lot of similarities to Mandy, and I just had a gut feeling it was the right horse.”

Juroe followed the advice of her trainers and purchased First N Line sight unseen last June.

“I’m so thankful that we waited out most of last year until we located the right horse for me,” Juroe said. “Over the years, I have learned to trust Tim and Shannon (Gillespie) with major decisions as they are always right.”

First N Line was then registered with the American Paint Horse Association (his APHA name is I’m First In Line) and attention was turned to getting everyone qualified for the APHA World Show.

“Our first outing was at an APHA show in Cedar Rapids, Iowa in September,” Juroe recalled. “He listened and was really good in Western Pleasure. He loves Showmanship and catches on really fast.”

Shannon Gillespie then captured First N Line’s second Quarter Horse Congress Championship in October when she rode him to victory in a tough Junior Green Trail of 68 entries.

“Winning the Trail at the Congress was a huge thrill for me,” Shannon said. “It is a newer event for me, and Kenny and I were still figuring each other out. That day we just got everything right, he was absolutely stellar and all the things we had struggled with just fell into place. Coincidentally, my first major award in Trail was with Too Sleepy For Candy when she was APHA Reserve World Champion Junior Trail.”

Just a few weeks later it was off to the APHA World Show.

“I was coached a lot before the class and we got into a groove where he felt really settled and happy and eager to please,” Juroe said.

And in just her second time in the ring with her new partner

Juroe, claimed a Reserve title in Masters Junior Western Pleasure. Shannon followed that up by placing third on him in Green Trail and fifth in Junior Western Pleasure.

Juroe was busy over the winter getting to better know her new horse and focusing on some new events – including Showmanship Horsemanship and Trail.

First N Line made his Western Riding debut at the Dixie National Quarter Horse Circuit, with a Circuit Championship in Junior Western Riding with Shannon Gillespie. Tim Gillespie showed him to a Circuit Championship in Performance Halter Geldings and a Reserve in Junior Western Pleasure.

“Susan is a fierce competitor, she has such a passion for showing that makes her a joy to work with,” Shannon said. “She is very analytical and wants all the details to be perfect. Susan is a natural Western Pleasure rider, but it has also been a lot of fun to teach her some new events.”

Juroe, who has been breeding APHA horses for 20 years and AQHA horses for 10, is also excited about the future of two futurity prospects out of Too Sleepy For Candy and sired by VS Flatline. The colt is named Kid In A Candy Store and the filly is called Line Up For Candy. Both are being prepared for major futurities at Gillespie Show Horses in Whitesboro, Texas. In addition, she has two yearlings out of Too Sleepy For Candy – one by VS Flatline and another by All Time Fancy – that will be shown this year as well.

This year Juroe welcomed the last two foals out of Too Sleepy For Candy — both are fillies and by VS Flatline. One is bay and the other is a red roan.

“Texas A&M did postmortem reproductive work on Candy and was able to obtain the two VS Flatline embryos,” Juroe explained. “They sent the embryos from their lab to Royal Vista where they were inserted into recipient mares.”

While Juroe is passionate about competition she is equally excited about watching the success of horses she has raised, out of broodmares she selected, with their new owners.

Some of those include:

• TheFairestofThemAll – by All Time Fancy (APHA) out of Dancin In The Truck (AQHA); 2015 APHA World Show Reserve World Champion in Green Hunter Under Saddle, owned by Jenna

•   Tolson and shown by Alyse Roberts. Dancin In The Truck has had offspring win five APHA World Show titles, including full siblings All I           Wanna Do and I’ve Heard It All, both Reserve World Champions in Hunter Under Saddle.

• Al Be On Time – by All Time Fancy (APHA) out of MyAssetsAreDetailed (AQHA); APHA Reserve World Champion, APHA Breeder’s Futurity Champion, Pinto World Champion 2-Year-Old Hunter Under Saddle, APHA Congress Champion Hunter Under Saddle; owned by Jan Bruxer and shown by Alyse Roberts.
• Goodilicious – by CR Good Machine (APHA) out of Certifiable Toni (AQHA); European APHA Western Pleasure Open and Amateur Champion 2015. Owned and shown by Katrin Tregg, under the guidance of Austria trainer, Nina Leiner.

“Shannon showed me Goodilicious and I was in love the first moment. The international handling, collaboration and sale was well organized and quick despite the vast distance,” Tregg said. “‘Goodie’ was from the first moment in Europe, a really well-trained, and behaved horse and just fun to ride. Susan Juroe is a unique breeder and Shannon Gillespie an amazing trainer.”

• Tom Braidy – by McKenzie’s Gallant Jet (APHA) out of Kissed By A Gator (JC); Premier Paint Sires 3-Year-Old Hunter Under Saddle winner and 2-Year-Old APHA Honor Roll Hunter Under Saddle winner; owned by Anne Rosen and shown by LeAnne Williams.
• My Big Benz – by Living Large (APHA) out of Cathys Mercedes (AQHA); Reserve Southern Belle Champion in the Open English Longe Line at the 2015 Quarter Horse Congress; owned by Julie Marweg.

Juroe and Marweg traded embryos between Congress Champion producer Cathys Mercedes and Dancin In The Truck.

“Friendships and bonds between horse breeders make for some fun deals on embryo trades,” Juroe said.

And, the horses are a welcome break from the demands of Juroe’s work at Balfour Senior Living, a company she and her husband, Michael Schonbrun founded in Denver, Colorado. The company now has two other facilities in Louisville and Stapleton, Colorado and recently won eight major national awards for design and innovation in senior housing. Juroe is currently working on an equestrian inspired senior living prototype.

“We plan to build this and others in Colorado and other states in the next year,” she explained. “Balfour Senior Living is proud to be on the cutting edge of rethinking the kinds of places we want to live when we age. I have been around barns all my life and have never seen unhappy people there so we found DTJ architects that specializes in ‘themes’ and have developed a site which looks like a house and attached barn.”

Juroe who has always been obsessed with design and architecture has been studying it for years in her travels both in Europe and the United States.

“I am passionate about lively and colorful decor. I feel it produces happiness and a sense of well being for our resident seniors,” she said.

Juroe and Schonbrun live in Longmont, Colorado with their twin sons, Teddy and Adam. When she is not at a show or working, Juroe loves traveling with her family and watching her sons participate in sports.