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After first attending a miniature horse show in Topeka, Kansas, around 1988, Jerry knew that some day he would become involved in the breeding and showing of quality miniatures. After a long career as a professor and administrator with various universities across the country, in January of 1999 Jerry was able to establish a home office in Oklahoma near our families while still providing him with an opportunity to continue almost full-time work as a senior researcher in the internationally known Evaluation Center at Western Michigan University. That is where we begin “the rest of the story.” Crosswinds Farm was the name we gave our new home, a ten acre plat complete with barns and associated facilities. We are only six miles from Stillwater and Oklahoma State University, which provides us with an opportunity to maintain day-to-day contact with university people while still pursuing the development of Crosswinds Farm. We bought our first horse, a young stallion with the name of WeeOkies Ima QP Xclusive (XC), from Hugh and Rita Jenkins in August 1999; and shortly afterwards, we bought a two-year-old NFC Sugars Lover Boy filly (Angel) from Felix and Joyce Covington of MCC Farms. These two horses were our first and may be the last to go as they have become a part of our family. Since that beginning, we have added more quality horses and bloodlines (Patton, Buckeroo, "Hawk," etc.) to enhance our breeding program, with particular attention to composition and temperament. Our goal is to develop that “perfect horse” in miniature that meets AMHA as well as AMHR standards. Most of our horses are double registered. From our first crop of foals in 2001, we selected “Spice Girl” as our first serious show horse, and she did not disappoint us. With numerous blue ribbons and championship trophies, she set the standard and generated the interest in raising and showing “our own.” From our 2002 crop, we selected a little dark grey colt out of Angel and by XC to be a primary show gelding in 2004, and what a find. “Thunder” topped about every class that he entered as a gelding and as a solid color stallion/gelding; and he went on to place Top Ten at the World Show in two classes and second on the AMHA Honor Roll, as well as winning many championships and supreme awards throughout the year. Other horses that have met or exceeded that level of success with numerous grand championships and supreme placings include Crosswinds Nick O Tyme (Nick) in 2005; Crosswinds Ima Sweet Success Miss (Missy) in 2006 and 2007; Reggie in 2006 and 2008; Crosswinds Xclusive Smoke and Fire (Bubba) in 2007; Elija, Irish, and Bass in 2008; and Bass, Stormy, Cool, and Willie in 2009. While we have placed some horses with professional trainers, we also maintain our own Crosswinds-based show string. Importantly, we have sold a number of quality horses to enthusiasts in the U.S. and internationally, and they send back good reports on them. In total, we are fulfilling our dream and our goals. We want to maintain a herd of 25-30 miniature horses that always receive the best of care in a friendly environment for the horses, the owners, and visitors. We welcome visitors and are always willing to converse with anyone interested in exploring the possibility of becoming involved with a wonderful hobby or business in the miniatures. For the past several years, we have been actively involved in the state level club (the Oklahoma Miniature Horse Club, Inc.) as officers and as willing contributors to the maintenance of a quality organization that provides educational opportunities, competitive and quality shows, and in general promotes miniature horses. We hope you enjoy visiting our web site, and we would like to hear your story as well.
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