By Caitlin Pigott for Arabian Horse World
As featured in the Fall 2024 issue of Arabian Horse World
According to Will Rogers, “You never get a second chance to make a good first impression.” Melinda Roberts’ first impression of PA McKoy needed no second take.
Since the day Melinda arrived in South Carolina with Rob Bick and Grant Krohn to meet PA McKoy, then just a yearling, McKoy has owned a huge part of her heart. For over a year before that fateful visit to Palmetto Arabians, Melinda had been looking for a western colt – a western colt who would stay western and stay a colt. “I asked for the help of advisors from the Arabian horse world who knew more than I did about how to make that happen.” And finally it did. “About three minutes into watching McKoy loping (and prancing) free in the arena, I felt sure that he was the one.” Once the enthusiastic support of those same advisors was secured, the deal was done.
McKoy is now a horse in full – an incredibly kind and athletic animal. The stallion and his trainer, Stanley White III, have a list of accomplishments that, together with their combined work ethic, have made them one of the most competitive duos in the western pleasure division in recent history.
McKoy spent his first years in training and competing with Rob Bick, whom Melinda credits with the horse’s solid foundation and positive introduction to the show arena.
In 2022, the horse made the move to Texas and began training with Stanley White III, who has western pleasure talent running through his blood as a third-generation trainer of Arabian horses.
Everything Is Bigger in Texas
“I have been watching Stanley and his father, Stan White, Jr., at work for decades in the western division, so I was very pleased when McKoy was able to enter the program at White Oak Farms,” Melinda added about her horse’s transition. “Stanley knows when a horse needs confidence but can also identify the teachable moment. He knows that a horse who is solid as a rock can also be a sensitive soul.”
She is originally from Texas herself, so she was no stranger to the White family legacy. Barely two months after McKoy’s arrival at the farm, Stanley and McKoy won their first Region 9 championship at Fort Worth’s Will Rogers coliseum in 2022. (They did it again in 2023.) She says that early victory and their open western pleasure victory this year at Region 12 in Ocala are two of her favorite moments with Stanley and McKoy. It seemed fitting that the win at the Ocala show was commemorated by the award of the Stanley White, Sr. Perpetual Memorial Trophy. And Melinda was especially delighted that Kitty White, Stanley’s grandmother, was there in attendance. “Kitty was as thrilled as I was!”
Trainability and Temperament
“Some horses, when they come to you, you can easily tell that they are exactly where they are meant to be,” Stanley White said about his teammate of the last three seasons. “This rings true for PA McKoy.”
Stanley credits McKoy as being one of – if not the most – trainable horses he has ever worked with. With two Scottsdale Arabian Horse Show championships, multiple regional wins, and a 2022 Mid Summer National victory already under their belts in the open western pleasure division, McKoy’s talents are at this point clearly on display. Stanley and McKoy are now gearing up for a high profile, season-finishing performance in Tulsa at the U.S. Nationals.
Stanley says that they work on things at home just as they know they’ll be expected to perform in the Saturday night finale. At home, McKoy and Stanley focus on transitions and maintaining their cohesive dynamic, so that there are “no surprises,” in Stanley’s words, when it comes to a big stage like U.S. Nationals. Of all the things McKoy excels at, his trainer says that the downward transition from the hand gallop to the lope is one of their favorites. Anyone watching an open western class with a semi-critical eye knows that that particular downward transition is one of great technical skill and often is what separates a good ride from a great one.
This will be the first time Stanley has shown McKoy at U.S. Nationals. As mentioned before, McKoy was named National Champion at the Midsummer Nationals. And his earlier reserve national championships with Rob at U.S., in the 2017 Western Pleasure Futurity and the 2018 AWPA Western Pleasure Futurity, were a perfect kickstart to his career. Nonetheless, while McKoy has found success at the “big dance” before, Stanley’s and McKoy’s appearance together in Tulsa will be a first for the duo.
Among the great performance qualities the stallion displays is that he can so successfully go from open to amateur competition and back to open again. Melinda and McKoy have together won many blue ribbons and championships at very competitive class A and regional shows. That adaptability clearly speaks to the incredible trainability that Stanley has found so appealing.
Those who know McKoy may well chalk his adaptability up to his people-pleasing nature. He makes strong bonds with his humans and does what he can to do good by them. His success at the 2024 Scottsdale Arabian Horse Show was a testament to his star duality. McKoy jogged out of one arena with a blue ribbon in PB Western Pleasure Choice AATR and Stanley loped out of the other arena with the red champion roses in PB Western Pleasure Open. Two different riders, two different sets of expectations, and two different environments – and he exceled nonetheless.
“To see the smile on Melinda’s face that day brought great joy to us all,” her trainer remembered about the February 2024 victory, which he also claims as one of his two standout moments with McKoy thus far.
RMA Magic McKoy, McKoy’s first foal out of Showthyme WCA.
Friendly, Curious and Graceful
“Friendly, curious, and graceful.” Those were the three words that Melinda chose to describe her horse. They represent a few of the reasons people love McKoy and consider him to have breeding potential. His first foal is a filly out of the remarkably beautiful Showthyme WCA. The filly’s pending name is RMA Magic McKoy, which includes a sweet nod to her sire. McKoy’s second foal will hit the ground in 2025 and is out of the incredibly well-tempered KA Resolute. Though Melinda, as lessee, is the designated as the breeder for both foals, the mares are owned by the Krohn family. Considering Grant’s role in the beginning of McKoy and Melinda’s story, the babies being bred and born at the Krohn family farm feels quite kismet.
Being able to carry on her horse’s legacy is something that Melinda is obviously proud of. Her connection with McKoy is multi-faceted, as a loving owner, adoring fan, and friend.
Melinda and McKoy
Melinda has ridden and shown McKoy for multiple seasons. She has a lot of wonderful things to say about the experience of showing and learning with her beloved horse.
“I look forward to showing McKoy more and more” she shared. “It is not just McKoy who has benefitted from Stanley’s teaching and training.”
“Though McKoy’s never rude, beneath it all he can be pretty discerning,” She added some fun notes about McKoy’s personality and tendencies as a show horse. “I love it that, in at least most of my lessons and most of my classes, he lets me know that am I doing okay. To have a horse like that treat me like that is an honor that I am extremely proud of. Among other things, he is willing to give me that amazing lope – you have to feel it to believe it!”
Stanley and McKoy
Stanley has similarly complimentary things to say about his national open western pleasure mount for the year. From their first ride, Stanley said that there was an undeniable “click” he felt with the talented stallion. As a competitive partner, he says one of his favorite things about McKoy is that “he gives you more in the show arena than he does in the warm-up. If he is giving you one hundred percent in the warm up, you will get one hundred and ten percent in the show ring.”
The stress of preparing and showing a horse for the open western pleasure is no simple feat. It requires a great deal of physical and mental fortitude for both rider and horse. The pair have already been proved to excel in high-pressure situations with their backto- back Scottsdale Arabian Horse Show wins during an extremely well-attended late evening sessions – sessions known throughout the Arabian horse world for their energetic buzz.
“McKoy isn’t fazed by the big crowds,” Melinda said about her stallion’s cool nature. “In fact, I think he likes the attention. He likes it when all eyes are on him. He considers them all to be friends.”
Stanley echoed Melinda’s statements. He shared that McKoy truly loves to show, making him a great teammate. He also talked often of his bond with McKoy. It seems that his ability to form connections with his humans might just be one of McKoy’s superpowers. When they go into the arena for a final in Scottsdale or Ocala or Fort Worth, Stanley says he just reminds himself to do the job they are both so well-prepared to complete. He doesn’t anticipate that the Tulsa experience will be much different.
PA McKoy’s story is one that showcases the benefit of sticking with a good thing. Melinda has been committed to this horse’s success from the start. And it is paying off. Remarkably, she notes, with each new challenge he does even better than with the last.
In closing, Stanley had this simple testament to make, “Melinda loves the horse like no tomorrow. And I do too.”
