GoHorseShow recently received news that good ‘ole’ Sleepy Clover Dale (Sleepy) is still around and showing. We touched base with his current and former owners to find out what he has been up to these past few years and what they remember about this great war horse in our industry.
The 1993 chestnut gelding is by Sleepy’s Man and out of Hank’s Bar Doll. His former owners include, Jessie Van Ness, Jessica (Gunn) Gilliam, The Shaw Family, The Gundlach Family, Griffin Knight, Ann Adair, and current owner, Molly Adair of Billings, Montana. He has amassed over 2000 AQHA points and multiple superiors. Trainer Troy Oakley remembers him when he was a yearling.
“I bought him from Cloverdale Farm in Danville Virginia,” Oakley recalls. “Started him as a two year-old. He had so much talent just like his full brother, Make Me Sleepy, who also got his start with me in Pinnacle, North Carolina. It’s so hard to find prospects like those two horses these days. They will always be at the top of my favorites list.”
Former owner, Jessica (Gunn) Gilliam of Greensburg, Indiana recalls how Sleepy changed her life forever. “He was made for longevity and to compete in the all around arena. He was my first horse that allowed me to accomplish a Reserve World Champion in Showmanship and numerous year end AQHA national titles,” Gilliam states, who accumulated over 1200 points with him. “He taught me to be a competitor and also patience. He was a little stubborn at times, well maybe more than that! But his stubbornness has given him a long and fulfilled life.”
Gilliam continues, “I remember when we showed every weekend and we kept him at home– he had to have his stall cleaned or he wouldn’t clean up his hay and on a hot day, he had to have a fan on. He was slightly picky as well. On showmanship mornings, I would tie him up by his hay so he would eat and stay clean. It never failed that by the time I showed, he had laid down while he was tied up and was usually sleeping–did I mention he had a wool cooler on in those fluffy shavings?”
Recently, Jessica was reminiscing about Sleepy while cleaning her office at Gilliam Show Horses. The now AQHA judge was dusting off the trophies she received for the AQHA Youth All Around, Showmanship, Horsemanship, and Western Pleasure and she could not help but stop and think about the great memories he has given her.
“The best memory was when Sleepy had new owners after my career and they asked me to help them get ready for showmanship, my favorite class, and Jason and I had started dating,” Jessica recalls. “Jason had no clue that a horse could do the things Sleepy could do in the showmanship. From that day, Jason has been hooked in the all around arena and Sleepy gave us that moment! Thank you Sleepy for taking care of me, teaching me, and most of all helping me become the person I am today.”
Current owners, The Adair Family of Billings, Montana have also done well with Sleepy the past four years. Ann Adair, whose daughter, Molly, now owns Sleepy, placed seventh in the Novice Amateur Horsemanship with the talented gelding at the Novice Championship West Show last year.
“Frequently, when we are at shows, people recognize Sleepy, so I know he has touched a lot of people’s lives in the industry. We are his final home and expect to keep him until he passes away,” Ann states. “He has a number of quirks that catch the unsuspecting off guard,” Ann says laughing. “He hates photographers. When they try to move his feet for win photos, he pins his ears flat back and lunges at them. I worry that he will finally get one.”
Ann continues, “If you have to wait at a cone to start your horsemanship pattern, he will cow kick at your right leg, just to remind you that he doesn’t appreciate waiting. Frequently, in the warmup pen, he will decide that he isn’t interested in cooperating any more and will whirl around and then back at full speed into whoever happens to be behind him. He has cleared out a number of warm up pens with this maneuver. You can keep spurring him forward but to no avail.”
Adair adds, “He hates to be touched on the face but will perk up his ears and give people a sweet face until they go to pet him when he will lay his ears back, flip his nose at them and scare the life out of them. If you practice a pattern more than once, he wants to drive. He will stop ten feet before the cone, decide when to break to a jog when he thinks he should, change leads if he feels like it. In trail, at the gate, you have about one second to get the rope off because he will already be backing up to go through it. If there is an L to back through, it is best just to let him drive. Another of his favorite moves is to flip his head in just the right way to cause both of your reins to end up on one side.”
His current owner Molly Adair says that she is glad that he has found a forever home with her.
“When I’m with him we completely understand each other, he is one of a kind, and will always hold a place in my heart. I know I wouldn’t be the caliber of rider I am today if it wasn’t for him. I’m the only one he’ll tolerate muzzle kisses from,” Molly fondly tells GoHorseShow.
“For being such a spoiled prince, he really is a sweet angel. I can’t wait for the day in the future when I’ll be able to see him carrying around my own children just like he did for me.”
Sleepy Clover Dale now diligently serves as one of the mounts at IHSA shows at Rocky Mountain College in Billings, Montana. “I think the vast majority of students have no idea how much experience they’re sitting on top of–two thousand plus AQHA points,” says Scott Neuman who is an AQHA judge and works at the college. “Big thanks to the Gundlach family for letting us have him and the Adair Family for providing him with a life fit for a king. He’s 21 years old and still super fit and going strong.”
Photos © AQHA-Pictured right, Ann Adair and Sleepy at the 2012 Novice Championship West Show
