Macy Grey Tops The Charts Again At National Preview
November 27, 2009
By Mollie Bailey

The medium pony caps off a strong season with a big win.

WHEN HEATHERLY DAVIS found out she was pregnant 11 years ago, she did what any other savvy horseperson would do: bred her pony in order to produce a special partner for her daughter-to-be.

But when her child turned out to be a boy, and not a horse-crazy one at that, Davis’ plans changed.

"Even if my son was going to ride, she wouldn't have been for him," said Davis of the delicate foal. "She was always a girl pony. She's just a diva: a fancy, talented girl's pony."

Luckily that pony, Macy Grey, landed in the hands of an appreciative young lady, Skylar Nelson, and together they made big names for themselves in the medium pony divisions, including the top title at the West Coast Pony Finals class during the National Preview in Burbank, Calif., Nov. 4-8.

Macy Grey picked up the medium pony title as well over the weekend, thanks in part to Tara Spencer who took over riding and modeling duties on Friday when Nelson couldn’t attend. And the 10-year old mare demonstrated her versatility by serving as Nelson’s winning mount in the LAHJA Pony Medal Finals.

Macy Grey was Davis’ first—and only—attempt at producing a top contender of shorter stature after years spent breeding warmbloods. She happened to have a spectacular mare in her Thoroughbred-Welsh cross Silver Slippers, but finding a suitable sire proved much more difficult.

“I knew I wanted to breed to an East Coast pony, but no one would let me,” she recalled. “Silver Slippers was a very well known mare, but no one would ship semen to the West Coast.”

So Davis hit the Welsh pony show circuit for some stallion shopping. Though she had little experience in the pony breeding world, she had some ideas of what she wanted, and as soon as she saw Gayfields Call The Cops (Sleight Of Hand—Dixie Blue Duchess, Findeln Blue Danube) she knew she’d found a sire for her future foal.

“He had that perfect typey build, fantastic conformation and great personality,” she said. “It’s kind of a crapshoot with the pony stallions because you don’t get to see a kid on them or see them jump, but you can tell a lot by how they’re built. He had a nice loose shoulder with a good angle and just looked super talented.”

Though Davis had never bred or broken a pony before, she followed the same protocol as with her larger charges and found Macy to be an easy, natural athlete.“There was no training process with her whatsoever, no breaking process,” she said. “She had fantastic balance and was born knowing her changes.”

Drawn by the pony’s natural talent, Nelson’s mother, Carlye Byron-Nelson, bought the pony as a green-broke 4-year old via Karen Healey, as a future mount for her daughter. They sent the pony across the country to Bibby Farmer Hill and Don Stewart Jr. for some miles, and she finished up the year as U.S. Equestrian Federation medium green pony hunter horse of the year.

“Macy is just a first-class show pony all the way; she’s doesn’t really care whether it’s equitation or the hunters,” said trainer Archie Cox. “She’s really well-schooled, and she and Skylar have a great relationship. They trust each other 100 percent.”

Macy and Nelson couldn’t stop winning all weekend during their final competition of the season. They topped both rounds of the West Coast Pony Finals class, run as a two-round classic, over a field of 40 ponies. Nelson felt especially proud to score an 87 in the first round then keep her nerves in check to win the second round. Fellow medium pony pair Glenhaven Jester and Sydney Hutchins finished second overall.

Nelson’s nerves amped up in the LAHJA Final, and she had to work hard to stay focused on her plan for the courses. The class, held over two days, included challenging tracks with mostly unrelated distances with plenty of rollbacks and difficult turns. And once again, Nelson won both rounds then held her composure during the test to finish on top.

The big wins in Burbank came at the end of a breakout year for Nelson. In 2008, she slowed down her riding to focus on her other passion: acting. She landed a part in a short film—a children’s film called Marbles With Thoreau—and spent most of her time driving to auditions rather than horse shows. But this year she put her acting on hold to focus on her pony, and her dedication paid off with armloads of tricolors in the medium pony hunter divisions.

She and Macy Grey started the season by winning the HITS Thermal (Calif.) series championship, then picked up the biggest West Coast pony titles around, including top honors at the Zone 10 Pony Finals (Calif.), Menlo Charity (Calif.) and Del Mar (Calif.).

Nelson, 13, got her start in the show ring thanks to her mother, who rode with Healey her entire life. Nelson, Burbank, Calif., started training with Cox, her godfather, three years ago. Since then, she and the pony have grown by leaps and bounds, which Cox attributed to the hard work of assistant trainers Teddi Mellencamp, who rides the pony at home, and Richard Slocum, who helps turn Skylar, in his words, “into a movie star” in the ring.

“Here in California there are fewer shows, and so we show against the same people at every show,” said Cox. “It’s very important to have a good pony and a good partnership. Skylar and Macy have been one of the most consistent teams out there, not just in the ponies, but in any division.”

Macy’s dam, Silver Slippers, has since injured a pastern, and it’s unlikely she’d still be able to safely carry another foal. But seeing Macy’s success has prompted Davis to consider breeding another pony, this time through embryo transfer.