Tammy Bradshaw – Paving Her Own Way
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By Sue Winslow
Tammy Bradshaw may be best known as a generous philanthropist and wife of football star, Terry Bradshaw, who quarterbacked the Pittsburgh Steelers in the National Football League before becoming a sports analyst and co-host of Fox NFL Sunday. However, she’s also making a name for herself as a force to be reckoned with in the show pen after taking up equestrian competition four years ago. She may have changed from being the horse-crazy kid, who kept her horse in the backyard on two acres, to a poised competitor with hundreds of horses on her 700-acre ranch, but this dedicated horsewoman still maintains a refreshing enthusiasm and appreciation of her horses and her success in the sport. 
Bradshaw describes how she has come full circle in the horse world. “I’ve always loved horses. What little girl doesn’t? I remember, at some point when I was young, that my parents promised to buy me a horse by the time I turned 12. We lived in the city when they made that promise, so maybe it was just a bribe for a big move we were about to make back to my parents’ hometown in Missouri. At any rate, it was good for me. They kept their promise and bought me my first horse just before I turned 12. It was a palomino named Rebel.
“To give you a description of the horse, I would say he was the equivalent of what you would call a sweet, old dog you adopt from the pound. He was a mutt! But, I loved that horse and spent most of my time with him. He just lived in the backyard. When I turned 16, I thought I needed a car more than I needed a horse, so I sold my horse and bought my first car. I didn’t get to have any more horses until I met Terry, and I didn’t start showing until about four years ago.”
Though she took a hiatus from horses after selling Rebel in her teens, Bradshaw returned years later with a natural affinity for competition. She has won impressive titles such as Palomino World Premiere Mare; Congress Champion Amateur Mare in 2018; Congress Reserve Champion Gelding in 2018, and a Select World Reserve Championship. Always looking for new challenges, Bradshaw has set her sights on more goals. “I’m still working on the AQHA World Championship. I recently won my first buckle. I wanted that for a long time.”
One of the highlights in her burgeoning show career was a recent win at the 2019 APHA World Show. Exhibiting for the first time with their yearling colt, Lies and Alibis, aka, ‘Gabe,’ she won the WCHA Intermediate Non-Pro Weanling Colts, taking home a coveted buckle and a hefty payday of $1,650. She’s modest about this accomplishment, preferring to focus on the exceptional quality of their colt. “He’s very refined,” she says. “He’s by Telasecret and out of a Palomino mare, JMKS Blonde Barbie, that Terry showed and won at the Palomino World with when she was two. He’s actually named after the song, Lies and Alibis, by Bradley Cooper. Terry is friends with Bradley, so Terry is going to have to send a picture to Bradley to show him that his namesake won!” Bradshaw is enthusiastic about Gabe, who was born and raised at Terry Bradshaw Quarter Horses, a state-of-the-art ranch in Thackerville, Oklahoma. She says, “I love Gabe. Not only does he have the looks, he really has the personality to go with it. I hear people say this all the time, but it’s really true. I’ve just thought he was beautiful since the moment he was born here at our ranch. I actually love showing the babies. Jarrell Jackson and Kate Jackson had him very broke, gentle, and looking great. That was the first time I had shown him. As soon as we went to the wall in the class, I told Jarrell that this was MY horse now, and I will always be showing him. He’s not for sale, unless Terry gets an offer he can’t refuse.”
One of her most memorable experiences with her horses happened at the Palomino World Show. Bradshaw smiles as she recalls it saying, “One of the most memorable and funny things was when I showed the mare, FG Just Imagine, at the Palomino World for the first time. Terry bought her as a surprise for me less than 24 hours before I was to show her! I was still pretty new at it then, and she was a huge mare. I was so nervous when we went into the pen. Once I got her in and realized that she was fine, I calmed down. While I was standing there, I could see Terry sitting in the crowd. He was so fidgety! I was watching him, and he could not sit still. I ended up winning the World Champion title and Premiere Mare award with her. As we came out of the pen, he was there to greet me with a huge smile and a hug. He said to me, ‘I was so nervous that I’m having chest pains!’ I think he was more nervous than I was!”
