So, have you ever wondered how to go about getting your horse made into
a Breyer horse? Suffice it to say, holding
the title of most World Championships in your breed, nearly 8,500 lifetime points and
nearing $100,000 in lifetime earnings will help your cause. Breyer agreed and decided to make 21-time APHA World Champion
Fleetstreet Max into a coveted Breyer Horse. Owner, Alisa Bernhard explains how she did it.
Alisa, please explain to us how the process worked?
AB: I got the call from Breyer last summer and I about fell off my chair. I had no idea they were even considering him. Then, I remembered the previous winter my younger cousin had written to Breyer suggesting they consider my horse since he had a stellar World Show in 06 and 07. After a record-breaking 2008 World Show, I got the call. I don’t know the exact timing of everything, they originally told me they were aiming to release his Breyer the beginning of 2010, but now it looks closer to May/June. When I was younger, maybe ages 9-12, I admit I was obsessed with Breyer Horses. Every year I would buy the new ones I likes and play with them with a close friend of mine. I still own about 50! I could never part with them.
The Breyer version of Max looks just like him! How did they do that?
AB: I had to send in many photos of all Max’s markings, they wanted the Breyer Horse to be as accurate and detailed as possible. They sent me a prototype to compare all the markings and I was asked to draw in sharpie on the model where changes still needed to be made. It was very cool to get a toy of your horse in the mail! But I had to send it back a few days later.
What happens now?
AB: Being part of the Breyer 2010 collection includes a trip to “Breyer Fest” for Max and me in late July at the Kentucky Horse Park. When I was younger, I remember begging my mom to take me to Breyer Fest. It would be full of every Breyer imaginable, there were model horse shows, even appearances by the real horses! What more could a little girl ask for? Now, Max and I are invited to come, and we are featured guests. We will be asked to have daily performances (just riding) and I will be signing people’s “Max” Breyers. Though I can imagine Max will feel like he’s in a petting zoo, he will have mixed feelings about that….
Where does this put Max in Breyer horse history?
AB: I Know he is not the first APHA horse to be made into a Breyer. In the mid 90’s they came out with Mister Mister. I, of course, own that Breyer. And I believe they also made Sacred Indian into one as well. It’s still a huge honor to receive such news. Many legendary horses will live on forever in the Breyer horse mold. Max is a once in a lifetime horse and now I get to share him and his story with thousands of people.
