Safe Bet: Solo Select & 7K Welcome Hesa Dual Bet, Make Strong Move Into Reined Cow Horse Industry
- Melanie Smith
- Oct 20
- 4 min read
BREAKING – Solo Select and 7K Quarter Horses, owned by Kurt Neff, bring $212,844 earning reined cow horse stallion Hesa Dual Bet into the 2026 stallion roster. Alongside him comes a new chapter for Solo Select: incentives designed to elevate the reined cow horse and cutting industries starting in 2026.
About Hesa Dual Bet
“I regret selling him,” first owner Kent Blough admitted.
From the wide-open spaces of Montana to the biggest stages of the reined cow horse industry, “Dually” has proven himself time and again. Raised by Kent Blough, out of the great mare RJJ Miss Viagra Pep, he carried some strong maternal abilities. According to World’s Greatest Horseman John Swales, there was no sense entering a cutting class in Canada when she was in it.
“Everything out of that mare has been incredible,” Blough said. “But Dually, he was just very, very special.”
By Bet Hesa Cat, Hesa Dual Bet embodies both performance and pedigree. As four-million-dollar rider Corey Cushing put it,“as strong of a sire as he has been and as stiff a competition as we have today, we’re lucky to have offspring by Bet Hesa Cat. They excel in cutting and cow horse—they’re the kind of horses you can’t take your eyes off.”
Piloted to the top of NRCHA’s premier events by Million-Dollar Riders
Hesa Dual Bet began his career under NRCHA Million Dollar Rider Matt Koch, who piloted him to more than $100,000 in earnings and a 5th-place finish at the 2019 NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity.
From there, he transitioned seamlessly into the program of Corey Cushing, where he captured the NRCHA Western Open Derby Championship and the NRCHA Open Hackamore Reserve World Championship. “He was a real easy follow,” said Cushing. “Matt gave him a great foundation. My favorite thing is to cut on him—he’s so bright, so electric, you feel it through his whole body. And he’s such a kind horse on top of that. He’s so pretty out there in the show pen. I love every part of him.”
Blough added: “Corey bugged us for two years to buy the horse. I think he has a special place in his heart for Dually.”
In 2023, they topped the prelims of the World’s Greatest Horseman. His agility in the cutting pen, combined with his strength in the rein work, makes him the definition of a true cow horse, one that will turn any beast down the fence without hesitation.
Hesa Dual Bet: Breeding a True Reined Cow Horse Stallion to Shape the Future of the Sport
Hesa Dual Bet started standing at Teton Ridge and his oldest foals are now coming-two-year-olds. With around 50 colts on the ground, early reports point to a crop brimming with potential.
“His look, his athleticism, his disposition—he is such a gentleman of a stallion,” Blough said.
“My very first colt by him… he’s the real deal, no doubt.”
Solo Select founder Melanie Smith echoed the sentiment. “He is such a well-built, athletic individual, and he brings tremendous value to our stallion lineup,” Smith said. “Our vision at Solo is to offer breeders the very best across every western discipline—stallions who have already proven themselves in the arena. Hesa Dual Bet is exactly that. He’s a proven athlete with all the qualities to succeed as a sire, and we have no doubt he’ll pass that on to his foals. As I told our partner Kurt Neff, this one is truly a safe bet.”
“Our priority was a good mind. His athleticism and presence are just the bonus,” noted Kurt Neff, owner of 7K Quarter Horses and Neff Livestock, and a partner with Ty and Melanie Smith on Hesa Dual Bet.
Hesa Dual Bet checks every box of a true reined cow horse: exceptional athleticism, a heart of gold and it doesn’t hurt that he is so dark bay that he looks black!
Stepping Strong Into Reined Cow Horse and Cutting Industries: Solo Select Incentives Coming 2026
With the addition of Hesa Dual Bet, Third Edge and Once In A Blu Boon, Solo Select is making a strong statement in both the reined cow horse and cutting horse industries.
Starting in 2026, Solo will launch new incentive programs designed with today’s breeders and competitors in mind, programs that reward those who breed to and show horses by Solo Select stallions.
It’s a vision anchored by some of the biggest names in the industry: LBR Hangem, Once In A Blu Boon, Third Edge, Woody Be Tuff, Metallics MVP, The Animal and Meteles Cat. Together with Hesa Dual Bet, they form the backbone of Solo’s mission to create opportunity, elevate breeders, and shape the next generation of champions in both industries.
Hesa Dual Bet will also be enrolled in major rope-horse incentives, creating an entry point into the roping industry and giving ropers the chance to breed to him.
“He’s got the cow sense and huge stop that ropers are after, plus the versatility that defines the best cow horses. Add in pedigree, a good mind, and a fancy look, and he slides right into our stallion lineup like he was made for it,” Ty Smith said.
Undeniably, 2026 is off to an exciting start.