Oldest Horse Competing at AQHA Select World is 26-Year-Old “Creepy Junior”

An Oldie but a Goodie- “Creepy Junior”

By: Brittany Bevis

The very essence of the AQHA Select World Championship Show is a celebration of equestrians, who, just like fine wine, have aged to perfection. Following that theme, we’d like to highlight the oldest horse competing at the Select World Show this year, a 26-year-old gelding named Creepy Junior.

This ageless wonder has state qualified for all three speed events at the World Show, but his rider, Lisa Hamilton, decided to save the best for last and will only compete in the Stake Race on Saturday.

“I decided we would make one great run at the World Show in the Stake Race,” Hamilton says. “I will be running in the last class on Saturday, draw number 5, just before the drag. I’m okay with saving the best for last, as the saying goes! This year, I decided to run him at the end of the jackpots, in order to keep him calm and focused, and it has worked out well.”

Hamilton and Creepy Junior have been a team for the past six years. Interestingly enough, their AQHA show career didn’t begin until 2010 when they won the AQHA Region 2 Novice Barrel Racing Championship. Creepy Junior kicked off his fantastic show career at the age of 21.

This unlikely pairing was the result of an offer that Hamilton deemed too good to refuse. A friend’s uncle was trying to get rid of his daughter’s old, back-up barrel horse and was willing to give him away, for free, to a good home.

“In July 2009, I was given Creepy Junior, for free, at the age of 20,” Hamilton says. “I found out that the man had tried for a year to give him away, but no one wanted a 20-year-old barrel horse with a sway back and a big knee. He was a back-up barrel horse that was used on all of the off ground for his daughter through her high school and college rodeo years.”

“When I drove up and saw two horses tied to a trailer, much to my surprise, his owner had the brand inspection, coggins, and health papers already in my name along with signed registration papers. I couldn’t turn down this offer and a free horse. I had no idea that this horse would take me further than I had ever gone showing in the AQHA. Now, at the age of 26, he is still placing in the 3D and top of the 4D at Barrel Racing jackpots and is still winning checks.”

Creepy Junior is a Montana-bred gelding by Oswald’s Pete, by Oswald, and out of Creepy Kramer. With his sire providing the speed and his dam supplying the stamina and endurance, Creepy Junior seemed destined for the fast-paced life of Barrel Racing, Pole Bending, and Stake Race competition.

“He has been running barrels for 24 years and definitely knows his job and enjoys it,” she says. “When he sees barrels or poles, his heart gets pumping so hard that I can feel it through the saddle. He is always ready and willing to go. He will tell me when it’s time to quit.”

During their time spent as a team, Hamilton and Creepy Junior have received numerous accolades. They placed third in Barrels, third in Poles, and fifth in Stake Race at the 2013 AQHA Novice Championship West Show, and as a result won their first Select Amateur High Point Western Horse title. Last year, at the same show, Creepy Junior was named the Reserve Champion in Stake Race and placed third in Barrels and Poles, which clinched his second Select Amateur High Point Western Horse title. This year, Creepy Junior earned his Amateur Performance ROM and continues to stay in the money at local jackpots.

Although Creepy Junior’s body has begun to feel the effects of aging, no one bothered to tell his spirit. Hamilton describes her equine partner as a big, athletic horse with a lot of rate who loves to turn and definitely responds to the roar of the crowd.

“He really likes the stadium arenas and all of the noise of the people and the announcer,” she says. “The louder the music, the better he runs, just like at a rodeo. I like it when the announcer can get the people fired up in the stands, and I hear them yelling for us! Both of us get in the zone and are ready to run.”

“He is a challenge to ride in the gate and loves to turn, so I need to keep my legs on him so I don’t hit a barrel or pole. It has taken me years to calm him down so we can get down the alley and in the arena without going backwards and spinning around. I need to have a ton of patience and learn to control my nerves. It’s been hard not to be able to get nervous during a run! I use breathing techniques and a prayer before a run to stay calm in order to keep him calm.”

In order to keep Creepy Junior in tip-top shape at his advanced age, Hamilton relies on a three pronged approach of proper nutrition, excellent hoof care, and a specific training program.

Nutrition: “It has been a challenge to maintain a senior equine athlete, for sure. He struggles with keeping his weight during the show season. I have tried all combinations of feed and have finally found that feeding him Purina Performance 200 with Amplify and adding rice bran pellets works the best. He eats a flake of alfalfa and a flake of grass hay twice a day. He is on SmartPak’s pituitary senior supplement and seems to be doing great. I use an OxyGen product called Jail Break that I give two hours before I run to calm him down and help with his gastrointestinal track. It’s an all natural, pre-race paste for nervous horses, horses with ulcers, and those with gate issues. It contains probiotics, electrolytes, and an acid reducer. It really works, and I don’t run without it.”

Hoof Care: “My horse shoer is the best! He understands what my horse needs, and, when I have a suggestion, he will listen and take it into consideration. People and other farriers always complement me on my horse’s feet. He is done every 4-6 weeks, and his toes are rounded for a faster break-over. I know when he’s getting long because he will stumble behind, so I have to stay on top of his shoeing.”

Training: “My training program consists of a vigorous trail riding routine in the hills by my barn. I start the two-mile ride by long trotting on a gradual slope and turn that into a lope uphill. We stop at the top and walk for a while, so he can catch his breath. Then, we trot and move into a lope before we stop again. I let him settle down and look around until he exhales and licks his lips. At this time, I know he’s relaxed. We walk downhill and set up for a fast run uphill. Then, we walk downhill along the fence line back to the gate heading for the barn. I  do this four out of the five days I ride him during the show season.”

“One day a week, we do drills on poles or I will practice a pattern. When he gets into an arena, it’s time to do his job, and that’s to run a pattern, so I can’t practice the patterns on him very often. I have to be very selective on the ground where I run him, so I only jackpot or show at arenas I know have the best ground. I can’t take a chance on hurting him. As far as his age is concerned, I can run him two weekends a month, and I give him two weeks between shows or jackpots to recuperate.”

As Creepy Junior is quickly approaching the 30-year mark, Hamilton is planning on his partial retirement. “I plan on semi-retiring him to local shows and jackpots and maybe the Region 2 show in Rapid City, because it’s only a five-hour drive,” she says. “As long as he wants to run, I will continue to compete on him. He will tell me when he’s done, and I will be listening.”

When he isn’t in the show pen, Creepy Junior’s favorite activities include riding in his horse trailer along old country roads, with his head out the window so he can watch as the scenery passes him by.

Meanwhile, Hamilton is on the lookout for another speed horse, but she knows it will be difficult to find a horse that can fill Creepy Junior’s shoes.

“I love the AQHA breed of horses and always have. He is an excellent example of how years of breeding and selection can produce a horse that can excel in and out of the arena. It’s all about selective breeding!”

Good luck to Lisa Hamilton and Creepy Junior this weekend at the Select World Show! If you’re watching the Stake Race, be sure to cheer loud for Creepy Junior. He loves his fans!