4 Answers

A thoroughbred horse

Breed History
Learn the history of the world's most popular breed of horse.

Greek mythology records the epic exploits of a wonderful winged horse named Pegasus. The stories of early Texas cow country speak of another legendary horse. He was called Steel Dust, and like Pegasus, he could fly, but without ever leaving the ground.

Foaled in Kentucky, a descendent of the great Sir Archy, Steel Dust came to Texas as a yearling in 1844. His progeny and his legend spread as cowboys drove Longhorns up the trails from Texas and opened the Great Plains to ranching. The name Steel Dust came to identify an entire breed of horse; they were called “Steeldusts,” the cowboy’s favorite kind. They were heavy-muscled horses, marked with small ears, a big jaw, remarkable intelligence and lightning speed up to a quarter of a mile. Steel Dust was an American Quarter Horse. He and his kind would achieve fame in proportions every bit as magnificent as that of the mythical Pegasus.

But the story of the Quarter Horse begins long before Texans started tying their ropes and hard and fast to the saddle horn. The origins of the breed can be traced to Colonial America. When our forefathers weren’t dumping tea in the Boston Harbor and fighting Indians or Redcoats, they did enjoy a horse race. In the beginning, they ran the English horses with which they plowed and rode every day.

READ MORE HERE: http://www.aqha.com/en/About/Content-Pages/The-American-Quarter-Horse/Breed-History.aspx

The American Quarter Horse is an American Horse breed of a horse that excels at sprinting short distances. Its name came from its ability to outdistance other breeds of horses in races of a quarter mile or less; some individuals have been clocked at speeds up to 55 mph. The American Quarter Horse is the most popular breed in the United States today, and the American Quarter Horse Association is the largest breed registry in the world, with more than 4 million American Quarter Horses registered.

The actual breed as we know it today was perfected on the King Ranch in Texas.  It was from other breeds to combine strength, endurance, speed, and cow sense, to produce a horse suited to ranch work.  These qualities have endured to make this the most popular breed that we see today, they are so very versatile that you see them in every discipline of equine activity.   

Put a quarter in and ride for a minute or so.