The Heart of a Lion, Part II

‘The Heart of a Lion’ is a four-part series about a brave horse, good people, and life lessons. This is the true story of Macho Little Lena…


Wes and Cindy Smith of Mesa Ranch in Nogal, New Mexico have been in the cutting horse world most of their lives. They've raised and trained hundreds of horses, but one horse stands out in both their memories. They called him 'Macho'.

Macho Little Lena, a shiny copper-colored stallion with blazed face-started off right. He was the son of a respected daughter of Dual Pep and the great Smart Little Lena, mammied up to a recipient mare and catching everybody's eye from day one. His conformation was one thing that made people take notice of him. Underneath a glowing sorrel coat was balanced build, square on all four legs, but clearly not bulky and not stiff. Every muscle was smoothly sculpted and curved just right, the length of each line matching every other in proportion. He stood on four strong legs that were set just right under him and appearing a little long for the shortness of his back. He had a refined but bold head, kind, sparkling, clear eyes, and tiny little ears that never missed a thing.

Those that knew him say there was a unity of mind and body in this horse, every thing he was thinking was evident in his movement and posture. He was always alert, but never nervous, sometimes ornery and strong-willed but always teachable. He was the cream of the colt crop in 2000 and was likely to stick around as a stallion. There was never any doubt that this horse was going to make a name for himself.

Wes Smith has been a bronc tamer all of his life, and he knows good horses. He knows how horses think, how they move. He reads them like a poet would read his own poems. Macho stood out in his mind because he was so easy to get along with. "When I broke him, he acted like he was already broke," Wes said, " He was just kind all the time, like he was saying to you, "How can I help you and what do you want to do?" Wes describes Macho as "a little big horse."

Wes starts all the colts on Mesa Ranch, and has seen every one go on to the next stage of training. The temperaments of horses are not something Wes would overlook. Macho impressed him from the beginning. "Anything that you showed him, you show him one time and he'd act like he'd already done it before."

Once Macho was started, he handed him over to Cindy, who soon realized Macho was far from ordinary. "Every morning when I got up, I couldn't wait to ride that horse. He just made every day special." Cindy said. His early days under saddle were no trouble, though he was a little playful, he simply "melted in your hands". Cindy understood then that she was dealing with something special.

The day finally came for him to get started on cattle. He was afraid of cattle at first, so afraid that he could not be made to come within a few yards of one. It was just Macho, Cindy, and one cow in the round pen. Other colts usually take several minutes to notice the cow, and it may take days for them to lock in on one. But not Macho. "There was nothing else in the world except that cow, he was glued to that cow, " Cindy said.

Cindy urged him a little closer, and every muscle in the little horse wanted to run. But he obeyed, with his big eyes open even wider. The cow started to trot. Cindy sat still. Macho started to trot, too. The cow sped up. Macho sped up. The cow stopped. Macho stopped.

All this time, Cindy didn't have to give Macho a single cue. He stopped on his own. That first day on cattle is what stands out in Cindy's memory. After that, she knew he was going somewhere. "I couldn't say that I trained him, because he was just such a natural," she said.

When Cindy and Wes realized how much natural cow sense and athletic ability Macho had, they knew he couldn't stay at home in New Mexico if he was going to make it big. The promise in the colt helped them decide to send him to Gerald Alexander, a Texas horse trainer. When Macho was finished there, Cindy decided to turn him over to two-time world champion, Ronnie Rice. Macho's talent and Rice's winning record were sure to be the combination that would send them to the top.

Read how Macho's career developed and fate delt its blow in Part III.