From Champion Equine Athlete to Champion of Hearts

Mr Solanos Kid, affectionately known as “Larry,” was named the 2025 AQHA-PATH Intl. Equine-Assisted Services American Quarter Horse of the Year.

From AQHA:

Mr Solanos Kid, known to many as “Larry,” was named first-place recipient of the 2025 AQHA-PATH Intl. Equine-Assisted Services American Quarter Horse of the Year Award. Selected by a panel of judges, Larry was honored for a life defined not only by excellence in the arena, but by his extraordinary ability to serve, inspire and heal.

The dun gelding, foaled in 2000 by Brennas Kid and out of Solanos Melody by Mr Melody Jac, was bred by Wayne and Stacey Jones and owned by Oklahoma State University Athletics. Throughout his 25 years, Larry demonstrated the very qualities that make the American Quarter Horse so beloved: athleticism, intelligence, versatility, dependability and a compassionate heart.

Long before he entered a therapy arena, Larry built an impressive competitive career excelling in AQHA youth reining competition. He earned an AQHA youth performance Register of Merit, finished seventh in the nation in the youth reining year-end high-point standings, as well as placing fifth at the AQHYA World Championship Show in reining in 2007. He also qualified twice for the Youth World Show in 2008 and 2009. By the end of his National Reining Horse Association and AQHA show career, he had earned more than $10,800 in NRHA earnings.

In 2010, Larry began a second chapter as a collegiate reining horse for Oklahoma State University’s nationally recognized equestrian program. There, he became a standout athlete and trusted teammate. At the 2011 Varsity Equestrian National Championships, he earned  the top horse award in reining and the championship horse award in reining. In 2012, he was named National Collegiate Equestrian Association Reining Horse of the Year and was later recognized as a top-10 reining horse for four consecutive seasons. Through nearly a decade of collegiate competition, Larry’s consistency, precision and professionalism helped define Oklahoma State’s success.

When his competitive career ended in 2019, many assumed Larry had earned a quiet retirement. Instead, he discovered his greatest calling.

After enduring multiple surgeries and a lengthy recovery, Larry arrived at Turning Point Ranch on New Year’s Eve 2019. At 19 years old, he was no longer the elite athlete who had captivated judges and coaches. He was a horse rebuilding his strength and searching for a new purpose.

What happened next would become the most meaningful chapter of his life.

Over the next five years, Larry partnered with 82 riders in nearly 1,000 therapeutic riding sessions. As a therapy horse, Larry brought the same dedication and focus to his riders that he once brought to championship runs. His movements were deliberate, his patience steadfast and his intuition remarkable. He listened carefully to riders learning to communicate, offering confidence where there was uncertainty and stability where there was fear.

Larry helped a teenage girl regain strength and confidence after a rare neurological illness, eventually carrying her to a Special Olympics gold medal. He gave a young child, born prematurely, the opportunity to ride independently for the first time. He allowed a rider with severe cerebral palsy to guide him using only neck reins. To each individual, his impact reached far beyond daily lessons.

Larry returned to competition through Special Olympics, partnering with eight riders and helping them earn 15 gold medals and three silver medals. Yet ribbons and medals never seemed to matter to him. What mattered was the person on his back and the bond they shared.

At Turning Point Ranch, Larry was a friend to everyone. He brought calm to every corner of the barn. He was known for standing quietly while children traced his markings for Literacy Day, posing proudly for photographs and sporting pink with undeniable confidence. He greeted friends with grass-green kisses, monitored the gate like a dedicated security guard and somehow made everyone feel as though they were his favorite person.

Larry wasn’t just a therapy horse. He was a teacher, teammate, comedian, confidant and a healer. Most of all, he was a friend.

On August 3, 2025, Larry took his final ride. In a deeply moving coincidence, he passed away on the same day as one of his longtime riders. For those who knew him, it felt fitting that even in his final moments, Larry remained devoted to the people he loved.

Though he is gone, his presence remains woven into the fabric of Turning Point Ranch and the countless lives he changed. His legacy can be seen in the confidence of a rider taking an independent lap, the smile of a volunteer sharing a favorite Larry story and the quiet understanding between horse and human that he exemplified so greatly.

Larry’s life was a testament to the remarkable versatility of the American Quarter Horse. He excelled as a youth competitor, collegiate champion and therapy horse, but his greatest achievement cannot be measured by points, earnings or titles. Instead, it is measured by courage restored, confidence built, obstacles overcome and lives forever changed.

He entered the world as Mr Solanos Kid. He left it as Larry, a champion in the arena, a healer in the barn and forever the champion of our hearts.