Two Days, Every Level: Solo Select Thanksgiving Sale Hits on Access and High-End Demand
- Solo Select
- Dec 1, 2025
- 5 min read
Updated: Dec 3, 2025
From embryos to turnkey show horses, passing through foals, yearlings, 2-year-olds, 3-year-olds, and proven broodmares, the Solo Select Thanksgiving Sale was one of the most diverse and successful sales the program has ever hosted.
Day 1 Opens with a Bang: $140K for Cutting Icons LBR Hangem x Blackish Embryo
Hip 152—an embryo by Solo Select Resident Stallion and $309,420 earner LBR Hangem and out of Blackish, one of the most recognized mares in recent cutting history—topped the sale at $140,000.
It was no surprise to anyone watching closely.
“Blackish’s full sister brought $250,000 at the 2024 Western Bloodstock Futurity Sale, and her 2023 bay roan colt by Metallic Cat sold for $200,000. This family offers some of the most in-demand genetics in our industry.” — Melanie Smith
Shotty—LBR Hangem—has made his own case in the arena this year. Out of 11 appearances, he made 10 finals, proving his consistency against the best of the best.
“He just always shows up,” Smith added. “Kenny Platt and him are the team to cheer for, and we cannot wait to see what 2026 holds for him in the show pen.”
But Shotty isn’t just winning in the arena. He’s winning in the breeding shed.
“His books are a testament to how trustworthy this young sire is." Solo Select breeding manager Don Ham said. "Some stallions start the season with a few quiet bookings. LBR Hangem is not one of them. He’s stepping into 2026 the way he’s stepped into every show pen of his career—confident, strong, and with so much presence."
His first major breeding announcement of the year? A cross with The Run For A Million Cutting Horse Challenge Champion, Bella Louella, joining the likes of Show Biz Kitty, Special Nu Baby, and That Cattomine—a roster of mares that reads like a chapter of cutting horse history.
Charles Burger, Shotty’s breeder, bought the Blackish embryo.
“What a great opportunity to be able to purchase an embryo out of such a great mare and by one of the most athletic stallions in the industry,” Burger said.
As someone with firsthand experience of Shotty’s trajectory, Burger knows exactly how much potential is tucked inside this embryo—one that could make the cutting industry watch, wait, and talk for quite a while.
Day 2: A Sale Built for Every Player in the Game
“A lot is going at Solo, on all fronts,” founder Melanie Smith said. “And on the online sale side of things, we are definitely growing bigger and stronger. It’s a great reflection of the overall step up we are taking this year."
As Solo Select continues to evolve into a powerful 360-degree equine brand—with breeding, fitting, stallion management, and online sales under one roof—Smith says one principle remains central to its identity: accessibility.
“There is a horse for everyone here,” Smith insisted. “We are not only selling six-figure types of horses. We want everyone to be able to start playing through our online sale.”
That promise became reality over Thanksgiving. Cruiser Crews, who just decided to get back in the game, picked up three horses—all within the roping spectrum and all with the intention to build a competitive program. He purchased Coated Black, a beautiful black two-year-old son of World Champion Metallic Cattack and out of a daughter of the one and only PYC Paint Your Wagon, who earned over $850,000 on the racetrack and sired more than $68 million.
“I like his size and his bloodlines. It’s a really good cross," Crews said.
He also secured Duchess Darkkside, a yearling filly by one of the rope horse industry’s most exclusive young sires—The Darkk Side, AQHA World Champion Junior Heading Horse and earner of over $250,000. Her dam, PFR Apollitical Kate, was a Speedhorse Championship Futurity finalist with a race win, adding more speed to this already electric cross.
Both will head into training with Clay Logan, while Sheza Trackstar, another daughter of Metallic Cattack, will go to Crews’s farm in Florida to get started. All three horses are eligible for all major incentives in the rope horse industry—cementing their status as real contenders.
Crews has already purchased a foal-in-utero and a few embryos through Solo Select before this sale, and his decision to return speaks volumes.
“I like this sale, I like working with Solo," Crews said. "They’re very responsive, easy to communicate with. Everything is as advertised.”
Metallic Cattack: A Young Sire Turning Into a Sire of Champions
The sale also confirmed what many have been saying privately: Metallic Cattack is stepping into legitimacy as a sire. His charisma, color, demeanor, and athletic ability are already translating strongly in his offspring—and the race-horse crosses have proven to be very marketable, bringing speed and power to the team roping pen.
On Day 2 of the sale, his offspring averaged $25,000—an important number at this early stage of his sire career.
“We loved the way he was bred, obviously,” Smith said. “The CD Olenas have been pretty versatile to cut, cow, and rope on. We wanted to rope on him because he had such an eye appeal and he was such a monster stopper. The color and the splash and all the chrome really helps, too.”
But more than his pedigree, Smith emphasizes his ownership philosophy. Metallic Cattack isn’t just a stallion—he’s a partnership model.
“The biggest thing we want to let people know is that we’re a team with you guys on this if you breed to our stud,” she said. “You’re a partner with us from the time you breed on out. We want to pay him into the incentives, so you can get added value when you sell that colt or when you compete for millions at all these great events. We’re your partners in the business and we try to reinvest back into our breeders by promoting our horse so all of his babies have a lot of value.”
And the results are backing that statement. We’ve seen multiple Metallic Cattack offspring rise in the roping pen—Tom Cats R Popular (“Uzi”) won several tie-down championships in 2025, including the Solo Select Tie-Down Futurity last October.
Thiccthirty, a 3-year-old Metallic Cattack placed fourth in the prelims at the AQHA World Show—proving the line can compete against older horses and still bring results.
And next year? The watchlist already includes Kryptoniite, out of Fun N Fancy Free, making him a half-brother to Pride And Joyy. With Miles Baker at the reins, there is plenty of anticipation around this gelding’s future.
And the Year Isn’t Over Yet
Solo Select isn’t slowing down.
Next stop: the Western Bloodstock NCHA Futurity Sale next week.
After that? A New Year's Eve is coming—with some serious prospects already lined up. Stay tuned.
