The S Ranch Legacy

Jim Bode Scott catching a mount from the S Ranch cavvy.
 

By Bailee Murnion

Note: Although this blog is dedicated to "handy women", I wanted to share with the readers an article that I wrote about some good friends, the Scott's. This article was first published in the Tri State Livestock News.

S Ranch

South of Billings, Montana lays the rough terrain encompassed by Big Horn County. The Pryor Mountains sprawl across the picturesque Montana landscape where one of the largest ranches in the United States operates. The true American cowboy heritage is thriving on the family owned S Ranch. Established over sixty years ago, the S Ranch operates on 200,000+ acres between Pryor and St. Xavier where they run a 5,000 head cow/calf operation. The Scott families primary business is their commercial herd of Black Angus cattle, however their legacy of breeding and using American Quarter Horses have gained them recognition worldwide.

The S Ranch is a “cowboy outfit”, where horses are depended upon for accomplishing the work needed in running a large cattle operation. All of the ranch work is done horseback on offspring that the ranch has raised. What makes the S Ranch horses unique is that they are used and proven on the ranch before they are considered for breeding. Nearly every broodmare was once used as a ranch horse or arena performance horse before she proved herself worthy to produce foals. Over the years, Scott horses have achieved success in all areas of competition. S Ranch foals have proven themselves as cutting horses, working cow horses, reining horses, barrel racing horses, roping horses and ranch horses. The Scott’s are best known for two of their prominent sires that left a lasting legacy on AQHA performance bloodlines: Doc O Dynamite and Paddys Irish Whiskey. In 2007, the S Ranch was awarded the AQHA Best Remuda Award, an award that honors American Quarter Horse ranches that continue the traditions of the past.

Scott’s Heritage

John Scott

The S Ranch’s roots in raising cattle and horses dates back to the 1800’s, when the Scott’s, who were of English and Welsh decent,  were some of the original settlers in Texas.  The Montana division of the S Ranch was founded in 1948 by John R. Scott, Jr. The Texas native, who was an accomplished roper, had a passion for ranching and raising horses. The 25 year old cowboy was looking to run cattle in Montana, hoping to leave drought inflicted Texas. While competing at the Cheyenne Frontier Days rodeo, young Scott heard about the grass that was stirrup deep and the water that ran for miles in the Big Sky country. He decided to travel to Montana and see the country for himself. John was enthused with the captivating scenery and satisfactory ranching conditions. It was then John decided Montana was where he wanted to plant his roots. John’s father and brothers agreed to partner on three ranches in Eastern Montana, along the Powder River. John then shipped 800 head of cattle and 25 head of horses from south Texas to the rugged territory of Montana by train and the S Ranch was established. It was there John raised his family, built up his cow herd and started breeding Quarter Horses. When John Scott retired and returned to the Texas ranch, his son, Jim Bode Scott took over the reins of the Montana operation, along with his family, who still operate the ranch today. Jim, along with his wife, Marcie, daughters Sarah Scott-Verhelst (husband, KC and daughters Paisley and Quill); Hannah Scott and son, Bode Caleb Scott continue the legacy of the S Ranch.

The S Ranch horses

John Scott had an appreciation for a good ranch horse. He strived to breed a horse with ample athleticism and adequate cow sense. “Horses were number one in my dad’s life,” said John’s son, Jim. “My dad was a cowboy. He was out riding ‘em before he started breeding ‘em.” John did not base his breeding program on registration papers alone, instead he selected his breeding stock from riding, training and competing on the horses he was breeding and raising. John’s goal was to breed the best of the best mares to the best studs. The remuda on the Scott ranch traced back to the old foundation bloodlines of the King Ranch, including Peppy and Old Sorrel. The ranch’s breeding program began in 1925 when John Scott Sr. purchased ten daughters of Hickory Bill which would supply the West Texas remuda, as well as the Montana ranches. Over the years, John Scott Jr. selected top sires for his mares including the Haythorn owned sire, Eddie 40. Scott believed that the Eddie 40 sired colts were some of their best, exhibiting the traits that every cowboy needed: a lot of cow, and a heart that wouldn’t quit.



KC Verhelst



John continued raising horses while ranching in Montana, yet he was actively searching for another good herd sire. In 1980, John Scott purchased a bay yearling stud colt named Doc O Dynamite. Sired by the legendary Doc O Lena, Doc O Dynamite’s dam was the Gay Bar King daughter, Gay Bar Dixie. “My dad paid $80,000 for Doc O Dynamite and we thought he was nuts,” laughed Jim. “That was an un heard of amount of money for a rancher to pay for a yearling back in those days, but dad saw something special in that colt.” John’s intuition was right. The bay stud that is now deceased is an Equistat All Time Leading sire of performance horses. “Dynamite’s” siring accomplishments produced winners in every aspect of performance horse competition, with his offspring earning over $1 million. Dynamite also sired the horses that carried the Scott family to numerous accomplishments in the rodeo arena. “The Dynamite’s were just outstanding horses that could do anything,” recalled Jim. “They were easy to get along with, compared the horses we had been riding.”



Jim Bode Scott

Doc O Dynamite

Anyone that rodeoed in the Montana circuit in the 80’s and 90’s could recall the amazing mare named Docs Fine Sis that carried Jim to a Montana Circuit Calf Roping championship and two Montana Circuit Calf Roping Horse of the Year titles. The Doc O Dynamite daughter they called “Sissy” was getting her start in the cutting pen as a two year old at the Texas ranch when Jim was visiting and first saw the mare in action. “She was something special,” recalled Jim. “She was just a natural. Dad thought about selling her but she got over looked because she was a mare.” During her training in Texas, a stud accidently got to Sissy and bred her. “We thought she was bred so dad stopped her training and turned her out in the brush. When she came back in that spring she didn’t have a colt on her. I figured dad would start her back in the cutting pen but instead he gave her to me,” explained Jim. And the rest is history. Jim rode Sissy to numerous PRCA championships in calf roping during their career together. Sissy was still at the top of her game when injuries forced her to retire at 18 years old. Unfortunately the mare never produced any offspring. “She was too good to breed,” said Jim. “She was my main horse, so I couldn’t give her a year off to carry a foal.”

Jim Bode Scott, CEO, S Ranch LTD

Keeping the success of Scott raised Doc O Dynamite calf roping horses in the family, Jim’s son; Caleb has also won the Montana Circuit Horse of the Year honors on his gelding, Time For Dynamite. Doc O Dynamite’s most well-known barrel racing son was Easy Does It Doc that carried Rachael Myllymaki to numerous NFR qualifications and over $200,000 in barrel racing earnings.  Doc O Dynamite passed his great siring capabilities on to his sons as well. “We feel that the best siring son of Dynamite is a stud named Doc O Montana,” said Sarah Verhelst. The bay stud owned by Jay Murnion has produced many great rope horses over the years. “We still haul 4-6 mares to Doc O Montana every year,” said Sarah.

The Scott’s legacy did not end with Doc O Dynamite. In 1992, John Scott purchased another bay stud prospect named Paddys Irish Whiskey. The Peppy San Badger sired bay stud was out of the National Cutting Horse Association Hall of Fame member Doc’s Starlight, who was a NCHA World Champion as well as a NCHA Finals Champion. Whiskey earned over $12,000 in NCHA earnings, while his offspring have won well over $1 million in earnings. “That was the magic cross,” said Jim. “We bred all of our Doc O Dynamite daughters to Paddys Irish Whiskey which resulted in some darn good horses.” Paddys Irish Whiskey never stood to outside mares during his time at the S Ranch.  In 2000, Paddys Irish Whiskey was the high seller at the S Ranch’s dispersal sale. The 6666’s ranch purchased the stallion for $560,000. Scott’s retained breeding’s on Whiskey and still have his sons and daughters in their cavvy.

Paddys Irish Whiskey

Today, the S Ranch still strives to breed the using kind of Quarter Horses. The ranch runs between 200-250 horses, with about 20 broodmares. While they only have a handful of Doc O Dynamite daughters left in their broodmare string, the ranch is turning their focus to their newest herd sire, Picks Secret, a 6 year old son of Sixes Pick out of a Special Leader daughter. “We had been looking for another herd sire for about two years,” said Sarah. “We liked this horse since he has the perfect mix of cow and run in his pedigree.” Picks Secret is earning his keep as a ranch horse but also has been hauled to bright lights of the PBR events where Sarah’s husband, KC Verhelst ropes bulls on the stud. His first crop of foals will be two years olds in the spring.

Over the past 60 years, the way in which work is done on the ranch has not changed much. The ranch has 4-6 full time employees who assist with the cattle operation. Nearly every task on the ranch is done horseback. S Ranch horses run in the Pryor Mountains where they learn to survive the brutally cold Montana winters. The Scott’s still sell a select few well broke horses at private treaty off the ranch. “We start them as 2 year olds, then turn them out until their 3 year old year, ride them a little bit more and then they start earning their keep as hard working ranch horses when they are 4 year olds,” explained Sarah. “Good withers and black feet is a requirement for our horses. The country that we ride in is so rough that a horse has to have good black feet that won’t crack and solid withers to withstand the riding that we put on them.”

S Ranch cavvy

 “Ranches such as S Ranch have contributed to our nation’s greatness and helped build the American Quarter Horse Association into what it is today,” said former AQHA executive director, Bill Brewer. The western heritage of ranching and raising good horses and black cattle in Montana will no doubt continue through the next generation of the Scott family.

One Smooth Ride

Jessica & Smoothie at the Badlands Circuit Finals

The term, "smooth is fast" is often used in the world of barrel racing when referring to a picture perfect pattern. But if we're talking about Jessica Routier and her queen of consistency, Smoothie is faster.

By Bailee Murnion

In the northwestern corner of South Dakota lives one of the toughest barrel racing mares in the country. Known for her grittiness and unbelievable longevity, Jessica Routier’s “Smoothie” is undoubtedly, timeless. Together, this dynamic duo captured wins during their early years dominating the Wisconsin High School Rodeo Association, to now leading an assault on the professional rodeo circuit. The partnership of Jessica and Smoothie has lasted 17 years and the 20 year old Smoothie just keeps getting better with age.

For most barrel horses going down the road at a professional level, 20 years old is "over the hill". Someone forgot to mention that to Smoothie, as the cow bred mare continues to dominate year after year, showing no signs of slowing down in the near future. Though Smoothie might not have the head turning color or jaw dropping pedigree, her uncanny ability to run in any size of arena on ever changing ground conditions and Jessica's incredible jockeying skills, has made the pair one of the toughest teams going down the road for the last 17 years. Together, they have amassed over $200,000 in lifetime earnings, numerous National High School rodeo qualifications and state championships, three Great Plains regional barrel racing championships, two Great Plains all around championships, one National Intercollegiate Barrel Racing title, five qualifications to the Great Lakes Circuit Finals, six qualifications to the Badlands Circuit Finals, 4 qualifications to the Dodge National Circuit Finals, a circuit championship and numerous Horse of the Year honors, just to name a few of their accomplishments.

 

Jessica & Smoothie competing at the National High School Finals in the pole bending

 

Well known clinician and horseman Ray Hunt once said, "A horse knows. They know when you know. But they also know when you don't know." Undeniably, Jessica and Smoothie know each other better than most professional athletes know their teammates. "Smoothie has been with me through all of it. She's stuck with me through high school, college, marriage and three pregnancies," Jessica said when reflecting on her years with her beloved partner.

When horse crazy little girls fantasize about chasing their barrel racing dreams with their equine partner, they hope to have the perfect bond. That unbreakable bond that many hope for was formed between a 13 year old pint sized brunette and a stocky built blazed face sorrel mare when their collaboration began.

 Montfort, Wisconsin was home to Jessica Mueller where she grew up rodeoing and riding cutting horses which her parents Jon and Shelley Mueller trained. She found success in almost every event in junior rodeo however; a legacy was in the making when Shelley acquired a three year old double bred Doc Bar mare named Especials Smoothie. Sired by the Doc Bar son, Especial and out of Docs Lil Smoothie, by Smooth Herman, Smoothie was originally sent to the Mueller family from a friend in Texas to re-sell. Jessica started riding Smoothie, who had approximately 30 days of training when they acquired her, and was quickly competing on the mare within a year. "From day one, she knew how to run barrels," said Routier. "I never had to drill her or correct mistakes when I was first running her, she just always knew her job. I have never switched bits on her in all the years I've ran her. She has always run in the same bridle."

By the summer of Smoothie's four year old year Jessica was running poles and barrels on her, as well as using her in the breakaway roping. Smoothie made her first trip to the National High School Finals Rodeo in Springfield, Illinois where Jessica ran her in one round of the pole bending. Although she qualified for the finals on a different horse Smoothie rode along on the trip to experience the sights and sounds. "She started to get a potbelly that summer and as much as I rode her, she wouldn't lose any weight," Jessica recalled. "We wormed her repeatedly but she just kept gaining weight and we couldn't figure out why." In September, Smoothie surprised the Mueller's when she foaled a sorrel stud colt that Jessica appropriately named "Special". "We had no idea that she was bred," Jessica laughed. Although Special's sire is unknown, he went on to serve as a backup horse to his infamous dam. Not to be out done by his mother, Special carried Jessica to qualifications in the NRCA and SDRA associations and also pulled checks at several pro rodeos.

In 2001, Smoothie got the call to be Jessica's main mount. She won two high school state championships that summer and qualified for the National High School Finals in both pole bending and breakaway roping. Ironically, Smoothie and Jessica never qualified to the high school national finals in the barrel racing. "She didn't really shine in the barrels until my freshman year of college," Jessica said. And shine she did.

The Black Hills of South Dakota drew the Wisconsin raised high school rodeo standout to accept a rodeo scholarship and attend National American University in Rapid City, SD where she majored in Business. While rodeoing under the direction of NAU rodeo coach, Glen Lammers, the pair would go on to win the Great Plains region barrel racing title in 2002, 2004 and 2005. Smoothie also helped Jessica capture two regional All Around titles in 2002 and 2003 when she served double duty as Jessica's number one breakaway roping and barrel racing mount. It was in 2003 when Jessica's favorite memory and Smoothie's greatest accomplishment came in the form of a barrel racing championship at the College National Finals Rodeo. "She always shines in little indoor pens where the ground might be a little hard and the music might be a little loud," explained Jessica. "The CNFR was her perfect set up." With a National Championship saddle in her trailer, Jessica and Smoothie set out on the rodeo road and began their professional rodeo career. "Winning the CNFR was one of my greatest memories on Smoothie, because after that we hit the road and went out west for the pro rodeo's that summer," Jessica recalled. "Every friend I've ever had from every phase of my life knows Smoothie, because she's been with me through all of it."

Jessica running Smoothie's first foal, "Special"

 Jessica continued barrel racing after graduating from NAU in 2005 with a Master's degree in Business. In 2007, she married Riley Routier and moved to the Routier ranch south of Buffalo, SD where they run a commercial herd of black angus cows and raise their two children, Braden, 9, and Payton, 7. Braden and Payton are active in the family ranch, where the majority of their cattle work is done horseback. Jessica enjoys spending her time training futurity horses and is counting down the days until she can swing a leg over Smoothie's latest offspring. By virtue of embryo transfers, Smoothie produced two foals in 2013 while still competing. Sired by the Corona Cartel son, High On Corona, the two foals, a filly and a stud colt, are registered as Hot Corona Smoothie and Cold Corona Smoothie. Jessica is anxiously awaiting their full sibling, also being carried by a donor mare, to be born this spring.

Smoothie with Braden and Payton

 Smoothie's legacy will live on through her foals. She has already proven that she produces colts that will take after her hard turning, barrel hunting capability. "One of Smoothie's greatest strengths is her desire to please you," Jessica explained. "No amount of athleticism can replace her desire to be number one." Even with all of their accomplishments, Jessica said she does have her quirks. "She can be kind of naughty," Jessica laughed. "For the first five years that I rode her, I always tried to make her stand still when I got on her. I finally gave up, knowing that was a battle I was never going to win. She also has a tendency to bite my traveling partners unannounced!" Overlooking the few quirks that she has, Jessica believes that her heart and willingness have contributed to her longevity in the rodeo arena. "I still let her be a horse," Jessica said when explaining how she cares for Smoothie. "I never try to confine her to a stall, she's always in the pasture grazing and I think that keeps her happy and still running strong at her age."

 At press time, Smoothie is on a short break from the winter rodeos while Jessica is expecting twin girls in early May. Don't expect the duo to take a year off from their winning ways. Jessica plans to once again hit the Badlands circuit rodeos throughout the summer and is shooting for another qualification to the circuit finals. When asked when she will retire Smoothie, Jessica smiles and replies "when she tells me she's done." Smoothie has no doubt left an indelible mark on Routier's career. Though Jessica has trained and competed on many other horses throughout the years, none will replace to the infamous Smoothie.



Riley, Jessica, Braden & Payton Routier. (Family photos will soon be multiplied by TWO!)