Tonight, Honors and Larry Edwards were finally crowned World Grand Champions in front of 13,000 fans, at the 2016 Celebration in Shelbyville, Tennessee.  A Home Run By Ted, He's Shady In Black, He's Unleashed, Reservation On Line, Lord Stanley, Lester H Burns, Joses Cold Chills and Joses Power Broker were the other horses entered in the Stakes Class tonight, but Honors was the unanimous choice of the judging panel. 118,155 people attended the 2016 Celebration.  Bred by Brian Anderson of Moulton, Alabama and foaled on October 2, 2007, Honors is currently owned by Keith McSwain of Alpharetta, Georgia.

There is so much to say about this living legend of a horse, that I don't know where to start.

I could use up six screens, telling you about this fabulous horse's show ring triumphs and bitter disappointments. Three times he passed inspection for a preliminary Celebration class, won it and yet was turned away from the Stakes Class, by the very same DQPs. We could speculate about clusters of Celebration officials and DQPs huddled in private offices, muttering things like, "How are we going to keep him out of the Stakes Class? He would be the only one in the ring!".  We could eavesdrop on groups of irritated trainers, avowing "I ain't gonna show against him.. He's gonna blow our doors off!"   Even though Larry and Honors just kept winning and winning and winning, it finally took a court order for him to receive fair treatment, but you can read all about that here: Honors vs the US government and McSwain Obtains an Injunction

I could cover a whole page, discussing his pedigree and how he is a son of WC The Titleist, and a grandson of WGCh He's Puttin' On The Ritz and WGCH The Pushover, and a great-grandson of WC A Comand Performance, WGCh The Pusher, Prides Beam and WGCh Mark Of Carbon. I could tell you how Honors is already the sire of 33 foals to date, which are selling for up to $20,000 and that was BEFORE he became the 2016 World Grand Champion, ...but you probably already know all of that.

I could confidently predict that if Honors continued to show, he could be the first horse to win the roses, four or even FIVE times in a row, and that he will probably be named the new 'Horse of the Century'.  I could point out his magnificent conformation, and his awesome, breath-taking, heart-stopping gaits.  I could tell you how I can't watch a video of him without standing up and cheering and laughing and crying all at the same time................. or........................

I could just show ya 

Thank you, Larry Edwards and Keith McSwain and the whole HONORS team, for not giving up and for taking Honors all the way to his well-deserved crown. Charging along with nary a glitch, hitch, stumble or twitch, if this deep-walking, head-nodding, ear flopping powerhouse of a horse doesn't thrill you right down to your toenails, you just don't know what you're looking at.

He truly IS a horse who can walk a hole in the wind. !!

So Honors has been busy in the breeding barn. At the 2021 Tennessee Walking Horse Celebration, Honors sired the Two Year Old World Grand Champion Broadway Honors; the Three Year Old World Grand Champion Kobe 24; and the Four Year Old World Grand Champion Justified Honors, who also came back to win the 2021 World Grand Championship. This makes Justified Honors the first horse sired by Honors to win the roses. We can expect to see this pattern repeated again and again in the future.

If you have a story or photos of Honors that you would like added to this page, 
please forward them to Walkers West.

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