Bigg Smoke has a barrel horse pedigree worth studying on both sides of his papers.
The 2023 palomino stallion is by Tres Seis and out of Vanilas Sudden Fame, a $102,206 earner and full sister to National Finals Rodeo (NFR) mare Dash Ta Vanila. Consigned by Haugen Land & Livestock, he sells Friday, October 16, at the Old West Horse Sale in Amarillo, Texas.
Started by Tyson Benson, Bigg Smoke is now in barrel training with five-time NFR qualifier and 2019 average champion Ivy Saebens. He is also working in the roping pen with her husband, two-time NFR heeler Billie Jack Saebens.
For barrel horse buyers, the interest starts with his dam’s own futurity record and a maternal family that has continued to produce at the highest level. His enrollment in nine barrel incentives adds to the opportunities ahead, while selling through Old West gives him access to the sale’s graduate roping incentives.
“His pedigree doesn’t need much of an introduction and speaks for itself,” Ivy said. “He has tons of natural ability to do literally anything, and he’s exactly what I imagined his mother felt like around the barrels.”
A Maternal Family With Results
Vanilas Sudden Fame is a 2010 mare by Dash Ta Fame out of SX Frenchmans Vanila, by Frenchmans Guy. According to QData, she earned $102,206, with a substantial portion coming during her 2015 futurity season.
She finished second in the Diamonds & Dirt Slot Race for $50,000 and second in the Diamonds & Dirt Futurity for another $22,476. She also won the KOHR QH Futurity and finished second in the Triangle Cross Classic Futurity.
That gives Bigg Smoke a dam who proved herself in the futurity arena, alongside the accomplishments of her full sister, Dash Ta Vanila. An NFR competitor herself, Dash Ta Vanila went on to produce Rosas Cantina CC, Lisa Lockhart’s 2025 Cheyenne Frontier Days champion.
The family’s record reaches back another generation to SX Frenchmans Vanila, barrel racing’s first futurity Triple Crown winner and the 2001 Equi-Stat leading futurity horse. She later helped Amanda Clayman qualify for the 2004 NFR.
Bigg Smoke’s second dam, then, succeeded in both futurities and professional rodeo. Her daughters continued that record as competitors and producers.
Vanilas Sudden Fame’s Produce Record
According to QData, Vanilas Sudden Fame has 18 AQHA-registered foals, including seven money earners with combined earnings of $114,667.
Her leading earner is Sudden Hero, a 2015 gelding by Valiant Hero with $65,138. In 2019, he placed in the Diamonds & Dirt, Elite Extravaganza and Old Fort Days futurities before moving into the youth ranks with Charli Snow.
Bigg Smoke’s full brother, Three Times Famous, has earned $17,604. The 2017 horse, owned by Boyd Stallions, has checks from both futurity and open competition.
Tres Seis on Top
Bigg Smoke’s sire, Tres Seis, is a 1999 brown stallion by Sixarun out of Our Third Delight, by the Thoroughbred Reb’s Policy. A champion 2-year-old colt on the racetrack, Tres Seis went on to become a major sire in the barrel horse industry.
According to Q-Stallions, his barrel offspring had earned more than $13.1 million as of July 2026. His performers include Adios Pantalones and Tres Chasin Babe PZ.
On the bottom side, Dash Ta Fame brings his record as the all-time leading sire of barrel racing money earners. Bigg Smoke combines those sires with a dam whose earnings came from the same futurity arena he is being prepared to enter.
Developing in Two Events
Ivy won the 2019 NFR average and finished reserve in the world standings aboard KN Fabs Gift Of Fame, a granddaughter of Dash Ta Fame. She is now developing Bigg Smoke on the barrel pattern while Billie Jack works with him as a head horse prospect.
Billie Jack featured Bigg Smoke in The Team Roping Journal’s October Practice Pen, where the focus was developing speed while maintaining control.
“That horse rates the cow. He is talented and has a ton of speed, so we are working on harnessing that in all the right ways,” Billie Jack said.
“We’ve already introduced quite a bit of speed. What we’re working on now is doing it several times in a row, under control. That’s a good place to be in for a 3-year-old.”
“Raising and training all-around equine athletes is something we feel very strongly about, and Bigg Smoke is the epitome of the kind of horse that we want to bring to the public,” Dee Haugen said. “We put together one of the best teams to bring this athlete to the public. Having people like Tyson Benson, Billie Jack Saebens and Ivy on our team is going to allow this horse to perform on both sides of the arena. We’re incredibly excited for what the future holds for him.”
“This is the kind of horse that my dad tried his whole life to raise. I would have loved for him to be here to see what Bigg Smoke’s gonna do. We think he’s gonna do big things.”
Incentive Opportunities
Bigg Smoke is enrolled in the Breeders Challenge, Future Fortunes, Pink Buckle, Ruby Buckle, Select Stallion Stakes, Tomorrow’s Legends, TQHA Racing, Royal Crown and Texas A&M Legends.
As a 2023 foal, he will be 4 in 2027. His purchase through Old West would also make him an official sale graduate, opening additional opportunities in the roping arena.
Old West’s Road to the Million program offers a $1 million bonus pool for eligible sale graduates that win the main pot in the 4-and-under pre-futurity heading, heeling or breakaway at Heber City, Utah. Distribution depends on the qualifying winners and the program’s entry-based formula; a win does not guarantee the full $1 million in every discipline.
Eligible graduates that qualify for the short round can also earn separate graduate side-pot payouts, which pay up to five places in each discipline. Beginning in 2027, Old West is expanding those opportunities to a combined 5- and 6-year-old graduate division.
Old West advertises more than $3 million in graduate incentives and bonus opportunities for 2027. Eligibility follows the horse rather than the rider, although subsequent ownership transfers require Old West’s written approval.
Check out all of The Team Roping Journal’s Old West coverage.
Sale Details
The Old West Horse Sale begins at 6 p.m. Central Time on Friday, October 16, at the Amarillo Tri-State Fairgrounds. The preview is scheduled for Thursday, October 15, at 6 p.m. Central Time.
Online bidding is available through CCI.live. Registration opens four days before the sale, and bidding requires a $1,000 preauthorized credit card hold.
Radiographs are available to licensed veterinarians through Asteris. For access, contact Rexann Morrison at 737-299-2045.
For more information about Bigg Smoke, contact Dee Haugen at 605-490-1351.
Leading Money Earners Out of Vanilas Sudden Fame
Sudden Hero: $65,138
Valiant Hero × Vanilas Sudden Fame, by Dash Ta Fame
2015 gelding | Owner: Dale Snow
Finished second in the 2019 Diamonds & Dirt Slot Race for $10,395, fourth in the Diamonds & Dirt Futurity, fifth in the Elite Extravaganza Futurity and ninth in the Old Fort Days Futurity.
Sweet Kisses: $18,229
Kiss My Hocks × Vanilas Sudden Fame, by Dash Ta Fame
2019 mare | Owner: Jennifer McGraw
Finished 15th in the 2024 BBR OKC Futurity for $3,074 and third in the 2D at the 2024 Aloha Acres January Futurity for $1,597.
Three Times Famous: $17,604
Tres Seis × Vanilas Sudden Fame, by Dash Ta Fame
2017 horse | Owner: Boyd Stallions | Full brother to Bigg Smoke
Won the 2025 GTBRA Frostbite Day 2 Open 1D and its high-roller side pot for $3,352. Finished second in the 1D average at the 2022 Tony Alexander Memorial Futurity.
Hi Boys: $10,776
KVN Corona × Vanilas Sudden Fame, by Dash Ta Fame
2021 mare | Owner: Preslee Nellesen
Finished third in the 1D at the 2025 Today’s Horses Western Fest Futurity for $2,062 and fourth in the 2D in the second round of the 2025 Ruby Buckle West Futurity for $2,000.