Dr. Eugene LaCroix with actress Elizabeth Taylor.
Entertainer and Arabian horse breeder Wayne Newton with actress Brooke Shields.
show ring. Accompanying the success of the *Bask sons and daughters was the rise of Lasma Arabians; while other breeding programs may have ultimately had more impact on the breed, no other has enjoyed the show ring dominance of Lasma. So prolific were its titles that in 1970 at the U.S. National Championships, the tricolors decorating Lasma’s stalls included those for the national champion mare and her reserve, the reserve national champion stallion, the English pleasure national champion and reserve, the park champion, and the reserve champion in pleasure driving horse. Five years later, the farm accounted for four out of the five major U.S. National Championship titles—stallions, mares, English pleasure, and park. Only western pleasure, which went to Khemosabi that year, eluded it. Such occurrences were not uncommon throughout the 1970s and the first half of the 1980s. The trainers of that era also were required to be adept at a variety of skills. They were expected to school in all disciplines, and appeared in both halter and performance. The LaCroix brothers, Bob Battaglia, Bob Hart Sr., Stanley White Sr., Don DeLongpré, Bruce Howard, Tom McNair, Gene Reichardt and all the other big names of the day led halter horses and were front-and-center in English, western and driving. It was not until the late 1970s/ early 1980s, and the advent of
140 Tu t to A r A b i | A R A BI A N HOR SE T I MES
Arabian horse lover and actor, the late Patrick Swayze.
two blonde halter handlers from Minnesota—David and Bob Boggs—that the trend toward specialization for trainers began. Over the years, with the escalating level of equine talent, the horses began focusing on specific competitions as well. Before that, it was not unusual to see one horse win national championships both in halter and performance. Another development in recent decades has been the explosive growth of Arabian racing in the U.S. It had been expanding steadily since 1959, largely due to the efforts of owner/breeder Dr. Sam Harrison, but the decade of the 1980s saw it take off, and it has continued to develop ever since. In 1987, the Arabian Jockey Club was chartered, and that same year, the first Darley Awards for Arabian racing excellence were presented. For years, Wall Street personality Louis Rukeyser lent his caché to the sport as emcee of its gala awards dinner. Across the board starting in 1970 to now, there has been multiple changes in pricing, sales, training methods, rules, judging, pedigrees, and conformation. And the Arabian breed has continued to evolve. Now, in the 21st century, there is more change to come. The only certainty is that the breed will continue to attract a significant number of its owners through sheer devotion to the Arabian horse.