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McLean to Judge Gaited Mule Show in Brazil

By Amy McLean

Sowhatchet Mule Farm, Inc.

It is an honor to write about the opportunity that has been presented to my father Ray McLean who has been asked to judge the 2 nd Annual International Equus Congress Gaited Mule Show in Brazil on January 19 th-21, 2007. He will be one of three judges and the only international judge for the competition. The winners of each gaited mule class will be awarded a Harley Davidson Motorcycle. Dr. Fernando Rolim, who raises gaited mules in Brazil and has traveled to the United States and competed met Ray in Bishop, California in 2004. He was asked to attend the Congress at that time but was not able to attend the first International Equus Congress which was a huge success! Many mule people who are considered famous in the mule industry were in attendance in 2005 such as Dr. Robert Miller, Dr. Carl Lind, Rod Lara, Steve Edwards, Denis Reiss, and Rick Lamb.

My father who founded the Walking and Racking Mule and Donkey Association in 1979 and is currently the President has been a pioneer and some could even say a founding father of the gaited mule industry. We exhibited some of our first gaited mules at Columbia Mule Days and needless to say we were the only ones showing mules that were not of draft genetics or sorrel in color. At that point most people would sell a “saddle mule” for barely anything. In the early 90’s Ray was invited by the American Mule Association to Bishop Mule Days to give a seminar on Walking and Racking Mules. The seminar was well attended and the interest was very high.

In 1997 he won the first Walking mule class ever held at Bishop Mule Days with a mule named Snoopy. Although the popularity of gaited mules has grown exponentially he has played an integral part in training and licensing judges and trainers on how to judge and train gaited mules. His association has been approached and asked year after year to supply many mule shows and organizations with rules and regulations including Bishop Mule Days. The WRMDA broke the ground by writing the first set and the original set of gaited mule rules. Ray also played a key role in promoting gaited mules at mule and horse shows and on the trail. He has increased the interest of gaited mules at the country’s largest and oldest mule show (Bishop Mule Days) by working closely with the staff of Mule Days by their request and his various committees to try and add and promote gaited mules and their versatility.

He has also made many contacts within the Tennessee Walking Horse industry and you can now find a walking mule class or two at many of the shows thanks to Ray. In addition to my father promoting gaited mules and having horse shows add classes for them; he has trained many mules that I have ridden to World Championships. To just list a few of the mules and possibly some names you may recognize the list includes a mule by the name of Fido, who won 8 Georgia 4-H State Horse Championships and was the only mule to qualify for the Southern Regional 4-H Horse Championships and was in the top 5 for three years in every class, he also won 4 World Championships and 5 reserve World Championships, then there was a big, tall, handsome bay mule by the name of Las Vegas Lights (who won over 15 total world championships throughout his show career and many against horses) and 2 World Championship High Points (1997 and 2000) and he performed several exhibitions including one on August 27, 1997 at the TWH Celebration World Championships in front of a record crowd for the final Friday night, September 1997 South Carolina State Walking Horse Championships and then in May 1998 at Bishop Mule Days on the last Sunday evening again in front of a record number of people, then Viva Las Vegas won the World Championship High Point in 2003 and Bishop Mule Days in 2003, as well as other mules like Just Grits Please, Mademoiselle, Poker Chips (trained by Sowhatchet but purchased by Cheryl Koenig) was the high point in 2002, and Rhinestone Cowgirl was Reserve High Point in 2002 (shown by Crystal Ward), Las Vegas Showgirl, Bishop Mule Days 2004, and Red Eye Gravy who has won 3 Reserve World Champion and won many other state and horse championships. Along with training mules to perform well in the show ring Ray also enjoys to judge mule shows.

He has judged Bishop Mule Days several times (3 or 4) as well as the Mule and Donkey Congress in Springfield, IL. He has been approached by show managers to judge several other large shows but has turned down the opportunity because he knows our family enjoys exhibiting at those shows. Taking on the position to judge the International Equus Congress is a very exciting opportunity for Ray and another great way to promote gaited mules internationally! It is also important to note that the International Equus Congress Gaited Mule Show has appointed not one but 3 judges to provide their opinion on who has the best gaited mule that day. It is very sad that only one show in our country (the Kentucky State Mule and Donkey Championship Show) has hired 3 judges to award their state championships in the gaited mule classes. Judging is very subjective and it’s someone’s opinion on that given day and when ever championship titles are awarded more than one opinion should be utilized even two is better than one (i.e. NASMA World Show employs 2 judges). I have yet to see a World Championship Horse Show to only employ one judge to award such titles. The International Equus Congress and Dr. Fernando Rolim should be commended on recognizing the importance of hiring more than one official as well as the uniqueness of hiring an international judge which will truly make this event an International Mule Show! For more information on gaited mules please contact us at amule@bellsouth.net or visit www.sowhatchetmulefarminc.com or you can call Ray at 678-294-5066. For more information on the 2 nd International Equus Congress please visit www.globalequus.com.br 

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