Football legend Joe Montana, his wife Jennifer, and their trainer Macella O’Neill were in Ireland looking for horses to buy. This particular day they were looking at two specific horses warming up at a show. Well, at least Jennifer and Macella were looking at them. Joe’s focus was in the opposite direction some distance across the rolling green hills. “What horse is that?” he inquired. The quarterback, who for years had seen things down a field that others couldn’t spot, had found The King of Hearts.

It took some persistence on Joe’s part, but the group eventually took a good look at the horse. However, buying a stallion wasn’t in the plan for this trip so they left Ireland without The King of Hearts. But Joe kept talking about this horse, so Jennifer sent Macella back to Ireland and brought him home to the Napa area’s Calistoga.
Barn manager Claudia Colo recounts her amazement as she slowly discovered what a gem Joe had found in The King of Hearts. She’s been a horse breeder for more than 25 years, yet she says without reservation that “this is the best horse I’ve ever worked with in my life. And Joe just would not give up on that horse.”
Claudia manages The King of Hearts for Joe and Jennifer and she started her own business, Stand and Deliver Farms, because she wants people to have fantastic horses to ride. Claudia believes the Irish Draught breed in general and The King of Hearts specifically produce brilliant horses for professional and amateur riders.
“All these horses jump. They all want to. They can’t wait to jump; they jump as weanlings! And when you add in a brain and the bone to hold up to years of jumping or hacking out, you have a horse partner for any level of rider,” Claudia says.
With extensive experience breeding hunter/jumpers, Claudia has worked at several farms and with varied breeds including Thoroughbreds and Arabians. She worked for Hap Hansen in the 1980s and the USET internationally and nationally. “My emphasis is in breeding because I believe we can breed quality horses here,” she explains. “People don’t need to go over to Europe.”
The King of Hearts is always in the ribbons. But that’s not what has Claudia’s attention. “I’ve never seen a stallion passing such consistent performance and conformation onto his progeny. Every single one wants to jump and they do it in his same form,” she says with a big grin. “He throws exactly what he is, and better.”
A Regal Line
The King of Hearts is by Knave of Hearts, son of the famous King of Diamonds. He has the brain, the bone and the jump that makes the Irish Draught such a popular breed to cross with Thoroughbred and Thoroughbred cross mares. At 12 years old The King of Hearts has competed successfully both in Ireland and in the United States and stands 16.2 hh with solid conformation, good feet, good mind, and a kind disposition.
Everybody who meets The King of Hearts falls in love with him. He’s the kind of horse who after completing a jump-off round stops to say hello to his admirers. This horse loves to show and win. And he’s kind and gentle. Claudia says that people are drawn to The King of Hearts. “He has some kind of aura about him. Not because he’s beautiful–it’s just him,” she says. “I don’t understand why. He’s just special. And his babies are all like him.”
The King of Hearts has recently been showing with Hap Hansen. In 2006 he was champion in Las Vegas and earned the Greater San Diego Open Jumper Champion award. The King of Hearts’ 4 year old son, Jack of Hearts, was recently approved as an Irish Sport Horse stallion. The Irish judges said Jack of Hearts is “an athletic colt, showing scope and intelligence in his jump.” Jack will be competing in the 5-year Old Championships in 2007.
For more information on breeding to The King of Hearts, contact Claudia Colo at Stand and Deliver Farm at 707-942-8329, www.kingofheartsstud.com, or claudia@kingofheartsstud.com. Stand and Deliver Farms is a full-service breeding business providing total care for stallions, mares and young stock.