The Quarter Horse Association of Indiana (QHRAI) celebrated two new inductees into the Quarter Horse Hall of Fame Saturday at Indiana Grand.
Noel Alexander, longtime owner and breeder, and Harold Collins, jockey, were officially honored for their outstanding service and dedicated service to the Indiana Quarter Horse industry.
Alexander, a native of Monticello, Indiana, has been involved in Quarter Horse racing in and around Indiana for 60 years. He competed at the smaller tracks in Indiana, including Wabash Valley Downs in Terre Haute and the Muncie Fairgrounds, before the implementation of pari-mutuel Quarter Horse racing in 1997 at Hoosier Park.
Running under the farm’s name of DNA Quarter Horses, Alexander (top photo) has had a lot of success over the years at Indiana Grand. He is currently ranked among the top 20 all-time leading owners at the track.
Coady Photography photos
Former jockey Harold Collins was inducted into the Indiana Quarter Horse Hall of Fame Saturday at Indiana Grand in Shelbyville.
Collins, a native of North Carolina, completed his stellar riding career in 2018 with 787 wins and earnings in excess of $7 million. He is second on the list in all-time leading purse earnings for a Quarter Horse jockey and holds the record for most jockey titles at Indiana Grand, winning the top spot five times (2005, 2008, 2009, 2011 and 2013). He also has the most career stakes victories of any other Quarter Horse jockey in Indiana Grand history.
Collins still holds the record for the 100-yard dash, a mark he set in 2010 aboard Courvilles Bluff in .06776 seconds. Standout horses during his career in Indiana include Air Born Leader, Eyes Got Hope, One Tough Dude and Sum Fun for Magic.
Both Alexander and Collins were recognized during the second all-Quarter Horse racing day Saturday at Indiana Grand for their achievements and induction into the Hall of Fame with commemorative plaques. Members of the QHRAI were on hand to make the presentations for 2020.
QHRAI also honored several other award recipients from 2020. The awards, generally provided during the annual banquet, were delayed due to COVID-19 restrictions earlier this season. Those receiving awards and honored in the winner’s circle included Randy Smith, trainer; Samuel Mendez, jockey; German Rodriguez, sophomore jockey; Erik Esqueda, rookie jockey; Sheri Miller, breeder and owner; and Matt Frazier, small stable.
Each recipient was awarded a belt buckle for their success in 2020 in Indiana.
