Legendary hunt-seat sire and APHA Lifetime Leading Sire All Time Fancy died October 19. Nicknamed “Nike,” the 1998 bay overo stallion by CF Wicked Willie and out of Forced To Be Fancy was bred by Rosemarie Shedd of Rockton, Illinois, and owned by Peggy Knaus of Tuttle, Oklahoma.
Nike caught Peggy’s eye as a yearling at the World Wide Paint Horse Congress—she knew she needed to bring him home, and he was so laid back, she actually thought he was a gelding at first. Naturally talented, with floating extension at the trot and a naturally slow canter, Nike became a fan favorite in hunter under saddle and pleasure driving, ultimately earning 277 points and a 2003 reserve world champion buckle in Junior Hunter Under Saddle.
Peggy posted announcement of Nike’s death on her Facebook page, spurring an outpouring of condolences from across the Metaverse.
“It is with deep sadness that we announce that All Time Fancy, The Potato King, traded his crown for a much earned Halo and went to heaven. Nike lived 24 1/2 years as one of the kindest, most honorable souls we had the pleasure and privilege of knowing. He blessed our immediate family (Summer, Truman and I) in countless ways. We are forever humbly grateful to him for picking us. Nike’s get changed the lives of so many wonderful individuals that we called the Nike Family. He made the dreams of so many Breeders, Owners and Trainer into reality. Nike sired more than 1000 foals. He now passes the baton of the Potato Inheritance to his many sons and daughters.”
As a sire, Nike has 1,039 registered offspring. More than half have APHA show records, earning 95,864 performance points, 11,882.5 halter points, 141 world/national championships and 128 reserve world/national championships to date.
To date, Nike is leading all four APHA 2022 Leading Sires Lists for halter and performance (as of October 20, 2022). He ranks high on APHA’s Lifetime Leading Sires lists, too; data as of February 4, 2022, shows Nike is:
- No. 1 Lifetime Leading Sire Halter Point Earners
- No. 2 Lifetime Leading Sire Performance Points Earned
- No. 2 Lifetime Leading Sire Performance Point Earners
“The breeders who came and bred mares or bought babies are the reason Nike is what he is. They have made him famous,” Peggy said in a July 2016 Paint Horse Journal article. “It’s the people who have taken those babies and shown them who have put Nike on those lists—that’s owed to them.
“I’ve always felt that a horse like All Time Fancy can’t be owned—he is just part of the family,” Peggy continued. “We’ve been privileged to be on this ride together.”
Read the July 2016 Paint Horse Journal article, “A Splash of Serendipity,” here.
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[Reprinting all or part of this news release is permitted, so long as credit is given to the Paint Horse Journal and a link provided back to apha.com.]
About APHA
The American Paint Horse Association is the world’s second-largest international equine breed association, registering more than a million horses in 59 nations and territories since it was founded in 1962. APHA promotes, preserves and provides meaningful experiences with Paint Horses.