Sandra Morgan of Scottsdale, Arizona brought home her first golden globe and AQHA World Championship in the Select Amateur Hunter Under Saddle. On Wednesday at the AQHA Select World, Sandra and her homebred gray gelding, Willy In The Sky (Cole), won the class in demanding fashion by 15 points with two firsts and two seconds. What was also impressive about this win is that the gray gelding by Morgan’s late, great stallion, Good I Will Be, is just three-years-old.
“I came here last year for the first time on a different horse and was fourth,” Sandra shared with us. “So, I just wanted third or better. The win means a lot, of course, but it is extra special because I bred and raised him. He is always great to ride and show, but he has challenging ground manners,” Morgan says and laughs. “Let’s say I buy a lot of new English reins. Cole is much brattier than his sire, Good I Will Be, but the chewing and sucking on things are similar.”
A Native of Canada, Morgan was a professional trainer before deciding to get back her amateur status. Sandra is also well known for owning the stallion, Good I Will Be, and more recently, is currently standing Mechanic and The Mile High Club at Dry River Ranch.
Morgan talks more about Cole, who is named after a particular color of gray. “He is a very happy, in your face horse and wants all of the attention. When he was born, he immediately stood out and loped everywhere he went and was big, right from the start.”
Trainers, Tami and Paul Thurston of Tarboro, North Carolina, had Cole for a very successful two-year-old year before Morgan brought him home in mid-January to train him herself.
“Terry Cross has been helping me for the past two weeks and the last 20 years,” 
Morgan says, who stands her stallion, Mechanic and Mile High Club with Stephen Stephens and Terry Cross of Dry River Ranch in Weatherford, Texas. Morgan has had a long-time successful partnership with Stephens and Cross for over two decades.
Tami Thurston shared her thoughts about Sandra and Cole’s win in Amarillo. “Sandra and Cole are the total package. Sandra is a great rider and is matched perfectly with Cole, who is beautiful, big, gray and a great mover. It is even more special because she won her first AQHA World Championship on a gelding by her late stallion, Good I Will Be. I’m so happy for them and their success.”
Look out for Thurston and Morgan showing Willy In The Sky at the Congress coming up in October.
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