Hali Williams is adding horsepower to her breakaway string with two new horses—Jewel Thief and Hesa Young Cat—each bringing a different kind of resume, feel and future to her program.
Williams recently added Jewel Thief, a 5-year-old gelding by Kit Kat Sugar who goes by JT or Thief, and Hesa Young Cat, better known as Michael, a 2018 gelding by Bet Hesa Cat and out of Young Amanda by Young Gun.
JT came to Williams from Robert Rust, and while he is still young, he already has a full year of seasoning on the breakaway side.
“He’s been in training with Marissa Boisjoli for the last year or so,” Williams said. “She’s actually won on him at the Gold Buckle, I believe, and she’s placed a couple other futurities on him.”
Williams said she had her eye on JT for quite a while before the deal came together.
“We’ve been haggling over it for the last couple months and finally came to an agreement,” she laughed. “I’m so excited to add him to the team.”
What stood out most to Williams was the way JT combines plenty of run with the kind of mind she wants one to have.
“It’s like a mix of Blaze and Red Light,” she said of JT’s style. “He’s got the speed that Red Light gives, but the calm mindset that Blaze has.”
For now, Williams’ plan is to let JT stay at home and keep building on what he already knows instead of taking him out on the road off the jump.
“He’s going to stay here with my dad this summer, at least the first month,” Williams said. “He will get him introduced to the heel side and learn that avenue.”
“Depending on how fast he takes to the heading, he may do that, too” she continued. “But as of right now, just heeling and breakaway is the main plan for that one for the future.”
Williams also added Hesa Young Cat, or Michael, a gelding she got from Tauna Alcorn. Williams said her brother, Gabe, will haul him on the heel side for a while, but Michael is a breakaway horse with a proven resume in the futurity and incentive world.
Williams also added Hesa Young Cat, or Michael, a gelding she bought from Tauna Alcorn after first seeing him at the US Finals.
“I really liked the way he moved,” Williams said. “My brother was like, ‘I’ll go talk to her, see if she’s going to price him.’ She did, and my dad rode him the next day and he looked great.”
The deal came together fast, but Michael already had the kind of feel Williams liked.
“It’s been a whirlwind since,” Williams said. “He’s way smaller than anything I’ve ever bought before. I always normally go for bigger-feeling horses, not super little, but he’s so catty, it’s unreal.”
Michael came with experience on the heel side, too. Williams said he was already a heel horse when she bought him, and Alcorn’s husband, Travis, had previously heeled on him at the first Riata Buckle in 2022 and made the short go in the #9.5.
Alcorn also helped put Michael on the map as a breakaway horse, winning the 2023 Ruby Buckle Breakaway Futurity 1D aggregate on him in Guthrie, Oklahoma. In 2024, Alcorn placed third on him at the US Finals, and qualified to Rope for the Crown with Michaels help.
For Williams, the next step is letting Michael settle in and get even more broke to the road and everyday chaos around her program.
“He’s a little more watchful,” she said. “Gabe’s getting to desensitize him for me.”
For Williams, having Gabe haul Michael this summer gives the him a chance to get more miles while still keeping him in the family’s program. Gabe will haul both Don’t Get Lippy, another shared horse between the siblings, and Michael as his two main horses, and Williams said that could give her a chance to step on Michael herself if she needs to fly somewhere.
“As of right now, I will have possibly a rig to fly out there if I need to fly somewhere and ride that horse,” Williams said.
For Alcorn, seeing Michael land in Williams’ program is the kind of full-circle moment that makes the process of training and selling good ones worth it.
“I’m very excited to see Michael go into Hali’s string of horses,” Alcorn said. “I always knew deep down that horse wanted to be good and be a breakaway horse. He is tough enough to go down the road.”
Now, with JT continuing to build experience and Michael bringing a proven resume, Williams has two more options to develop around her program—and two horses with room to step into even bigger shoes.
