05/14/07 Joe Reed

A bit of Luck? or was it fate? I'm Jeff Keane and I'll be right back with how this illegitimate horse changed history. Maybe he was the product of an unplanned breeding between a nimble Louisiana mare, Della Moore and the dignified Thoroughbred stallion Joe Blair, but his unintentional existence was bound for greatness. Here is Becky to extend on the story. Born small this unexpected foal and was left mostly to himself, as in 1921 there was little use for a colt with an unknown sire. Luckily, nearly one-year after his birth, his owner cleverly uncovered the sires name. Weighing in at about 1,000 pounds Joe Reed's small 14.2 hand frame did not fit the conventional thoroughbred mold. Hitting the match tracks early, the undersized horse certainly did not turn any heads, but proved very hard to beat at the quarter mile and almost impossible to take off the line. Like most legendary stallions, his lightening fast tendencies did not rest with retirement. Yeah Jeff, no longer on the track, this one time catch colt moved on to produce some extremely significant offspring most notably runners and showmen, Joe Reed II and Leo. Given the number, P-3 upon the formation of the AQHA Joe Reed's chance existence was designated extremely influential for the foundation of the breed. Well it's easy to see fate had plans for the scrawny mistake who is now observed as Joe Reed. And proving once again that great things can come in small packages, I'm Jeff Keane.