Wyoming’s 88 Ranch will sell 23 lots—including a The Notorious B I G colt out of Relentless Glory, dam of $900,000 Old West sale-topper Relentless Empire, and a Stevie Rey Von stud colt—in the 88 Ranch Special Sale, an online auction hosted by Solo Select that closes Nov. 22 following the Solo Select Open House in Gainesville, Texas, Nov. 20-21.
The Henry family’s 88 Ranch, a six-generation cattle operation in Douglas, Wyo., that has supplied horses since a stage stop contract in 1878, raises its colts to work for a living before they ever see an arena. The sale is the ranch’s first with Solo Select, and owner Garrett Henry said the partnership is the part of the deal his family is most excited about.
“I think the most exciting part of the sale for me is that it’s at Solo,” Henry said. “As far as 88 Ranch and the family, we’re definitely most excited about having it at Solo. Solo and Melanie and Ty are such industry leaders, and to have the opportunity to have a sale with them is just an absolute blessing and an honor. That’s by far the most exciting part of it for us.”
Two Stud Colts for the Rope Horse Market
The roping headline in the catalog is Hip 251, Relentless Business, a 2025 blue roan colt by The Notorious B I G and out of Relentless Glory by Metallic Cat. Relentless Glory is the Select Genes mare owned by the Relentless Remuda and Solo Select whose daughter Relentless Empire, by Show Me The Buckles, topped the June 19 Old West Rope Horse Sale at $900,000 to Bryan Beaver. Relentless Glory earned $48,183 by Equi-Stat, won a heading futurity under Trevor Brazile and is a full sister to $280,000 roping earner Relentless Big Shot. The Notorious B I G, a 2018 black son of CD Lights out of PRCA Heel Horse of the Year DT Sugar Chex Whiz, earned $111,494 and stands at Weatherford Equine for Southern Ranches. The colt tested 5-panel N/N and HERDA N/HRD.
Hip 252, Sort Of Famous, is a 2025 sorrel stud colt by Stevie Rey Von out of Sort Of Popular by Popular Resortfigure. Stevie Rey Von, the 2015 NCHA Open Futurity Champion owned by Theorem Ranch, has sired earners of more than $31.8 million, including Crosby Ray Von, the $1.7 million Old West record seller. Popular Resortfigure, the 2002 AQHA Superhorse and World Champion Junior Heading and Heeling Horse, is also the sire of Relentless Glory’s dam, Z Oh Six. The colt tested 6-panel N/N.
Sort Of Popular, known as “Pouraguaja,” carried Brazil’s Marcos Costa to the 2016 PRCA tie-down roping world championship—the first by a Brazilian in the event—including a Round 2 win at that year’s NFR, where Costa became the first Brazilian to win a tie-down round. Owned at the time by Costa and Fred Werneck, she finished second in the 2016 AQHA/PRCA Tie-Down Roping Horse of the Year voting. She has since joined the 88 Ranch broodmare band.
“The Sort Of Popular stud colt in there by Stevie Rey Von—Sort Of Popular has been to the finals and done extremely well with Marcos Costa,” Henry said.
“We have him, which I think is a great stallion prospect, certainly a great rope prospect,” Henry said. “Those are two really cool stud rope-horse-type prospects.”
Horses That Work for a Living
The 88 Ranch program is built around the cow work first. Colt starter Troy Brandemuehl puts 120 days on the ranch’s young horses before they go out to remote cow camps for months of gathering and doctoring, a system Henry told The Team Roping Journal in 2023 lets the ranch “control the destiny of these young horses a little more.” Ranch-raised 88 horses have already carried that training into the arena: Casino Heist’s daughter Summer Colada was a 2022 ARHFA top-25 head horse for Kaden Richard and owners Lora and Nick Nichols, and Bugzees Heist earned ProRodeo breakaway money with Anna Callaway.
“We’re going to continue to try to push on the rope horse side of things with our program, and on the ranch, those rope horse crosses are super handy and nice to have here, too,” Henry said. “We try to make our horses multidimensional, because we not only have a job we need to accomplish, but we’re trying to produce athletes that can go on to the arena.”
The Riding Horses
Eighteen of the sale’s horses and pregnancies are by Sheik Jean Fly HTT, the Brazilian-born 2014 stallion the Henrys added to their roster and stand at Solo Select. By Victory Fly VM 01IBR—Brazil’s leading barrel sire—and out of Tiny Martha Jean by Marthas Six Moons, “Sheik” ran multiple 16-second standard patterns in Brazil, was a Pink Buckle Round 1 Open 2D finalist with Kassie Mowry and tested 7-panel N/N. His first performance-age colts are 2027 futurity horses, so this sale is the first real look at the stallion’s riding-age get.
The nine 2- and 3-year-olds—seven of them by Sheik:
FIRST SHEIK TO PERK (Hip 351)
Sheik Jean Fly HTT x First To Perk x Dash For Perks
2023 gray gelding, 15.1-15.2 hands, 1,046 pounds
KISS ME EASILY (Hip 352)
JL Dash Ta Heaven x Streakin Easy April x A Streak Of Fling
2023 sorrel mare, 14.3-15 hands, 1,011 pounds
BULLEVE IM EPIC (Hip 353)
Epic Leader x Bulleva x Bully Bullion
2023 sorrel mare, 14.2-14.3 hands, 978 pounds
OUR FAVORITES (Hip 303)
Sheik Jean Fly HTT x KVN Little Sister x Corona Cartel
2024 bay gelding, 15 hands, 967 pounds
GUYS A SHEIK (Hip 304)
Sheik Jean Fly HTT x Guyz Smooth Amber x A Smooth Guy
2024 sorrel gelding, 14.3-15 hands, 1,034 pounds
SHEIKY SMOOTH (Hip 305)
Sheik Jean Fly HTT x A Pepper Smoothie x A Smooth Guy
2024 buckskin gelding, 15.1 hands, 983 pounds
THE LAST OG (Hip 302), FRENCH JEANZ (Hip 307), UNNAMED PALOMINO FILLY (Hip 306)
2024 fillies by Sheik Jean Fly HTT out of TBR Royal Perks (Dash For Perks), French Streakin Lizzy (A Streak Of Fling) and RSR Speed Com Dash (PC Redwood Manny)
Mares, Foals and Embryos
The catalog rounds out with four broodmare packages, five 2026 weanlings and three 2027 embryos, all tied to Sheik Jean Fly HTT. The anchor mare is Hip 201, Persnikitty, a 2019 black daughter of Slick By Design out of three-time NFR round winner and nearly $1 million producer RC Back In Black, who earned $61,446. Her 2026 bay colt and a 2027 embryo, both by Sheik, sell separately.
“What I would consider some of our very best pairs is what these colts are out of—My Lady Bug Leo, LLP Streakin Dolly,” Henry said. “Persnikitty, we’re putting her in the sale, which won over $60,000 in the barrel futurities, and some of her babies.”
Also selling are three-in-one packages on Metallic Wild Child (Metallic Cat x Smart Little Jena) and Famouseaglesnowcone (One Famous Eagle x Frenchmark Pristine), both with 2026 Sheik fillies at side and bred back to him, and Peppermint Mocha (Blazin Jetolena x Peppermint Flit) with a 2026 Sheik colt at side.
Open House First, Then the Sale
Every 88 Ranch lot is stabled at Solo Select and will be on display during the Solo Select Open House, Nov. 20-21 at the Gainesville ranch—Friday from noon to 6 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. The open house also previews Solo’s 250-plus November and NCHA Futurity sale horses and every stallion standing at Solo in 2027, and includes an advisory symposium. Admission is free; Solo asks visitors to RSVP at openhouse.soloselect.com. The Henrys will be on the grounds both days.
“All the family will be down there,” Henry said. “We plan to be there and we’re excited to do what we can and answer whatever questions we can. It’ll be fun. We’re excited for it.”
Bidding opens at 8 a.m. CST Nov. 22 at bid.soloselecthorses.com and closes at 5 p.m. CST. Vet statements and radiographs are posted on each lot. Sale office: Shelby Minzenmayer, 940-727-3282, sale@soloselect.com.