Woody Be Tuff spent part of his life at the renowned Center Ranch until its dispersal sale in 2021. The stallion was purchased years earlier by Finis Welch, a man with a deep love for mathematics. The ranch’s historic brand is the Greek letter sigma, ∑, a symbol of summation—the adding together of parts from a starting point to an ending point. For Melanie Smith of Solo Select Horses, that symbolism carries special weight. She was there at the starting point of “Woody’s” story and the lineage of his sire Nitas Wood, having worked for Woody’s breeders at 17 years old.
During that time, she rode Woody’s full and half siblings, and even then, she and the Crumplers sensed there was something special about him. Two decades later, Smith and partner Kaleb Terlip purchased Woody at the 2021 Center Ranch dispersal sale. In a sense, she has witnessed the summation of the stallion’s life, seeing his promise as a colt and now guiding his legacy as a sire. The horse’s earnings total $351,063 in the National Cutting Horse Association. At Center Ranch, he was primarily bred to ranch mares, but under Solo Select, his reach has expanded to running-bred mares, elite cow horse mares, and top cutting mares.
His offspring have already earned more than $16 million. Across Western performance events, such as roping, reined cow horse, cutting, and even barrel racing, Woody consistently sires winners.
An Unplanned Partnership
Kaleb Terlip was determined to buy Woody Be Tuff, whether on his own or in partnership with Solo Select Horses. In the end, he gave them something of an ultimatum.
“We kind of got forced into the partnership, but he has been absolutely wonderful, and he has been a great partner,” Smith laughs. “He just let us do our jobs. It’s funny how a horse can bring a partnership together like that.”
What drew Smith most to Woody was his athleticism and potential as the ultimate outcross. With Terlip and Solo Select both prioritizing the stallion’s best interests, the partnership has thrived.
“For us, it felt like we backed ourselves into a corner as far as what you can breed to,” Smith explains. “There are so many High Brow Cat and Dual Rey studs; you see so much of that criss-cross. We’ve always looked for an outcross, and that was the first thing that drew us to that horse.”
Ironically, one of Woody’s most successful foals came from that very “criss-cross.” A Woody out of Cat Digs Lucinda by High Brow Cat produced Zak 34, the 2021 National Reined Cow Horse Association Snaffle Bit Open Futurity Champion, owned by Missy Fischer.
“From everything I know about Woody, he is just steady, focused, bigger, athletic, and you could see all of that in Zak,” Fischer says.
Woody’s size is another trademark, something Fischer sees reflected in Zak as he matures.
“Zak may not be as wide as Woody, but he’s taller, and now that he’s maturing, he’s definitely filling out,” she says. “Now he’s becoming more powerful.”
Age is Just a Number
At 25 years old, most stallions are enjoying retirement. Not Woody Be Tuff. The 2001 stallion is proving he’s making one of the biggest comebacks the Western performance horse industry has seen.
“We feel like the demand is definitely still there for him, and the demand for an outcross is there,” Smith says. “We are just going to keep trekking along and keep trying to breed the best mares we can, making sure they get in the best programs they can.”
Woody’s offspring are known for being athletic, cowy, and versatile. Their ability to rate and lock onto cattle makes them naturals in the roping pen, while their quickness and agility shine in cutting and reined cow horse events. With added speed, they can even succeed in barrel racing. Since standing at Solo Select, Woody has been introduced to a wider variety of mares than ever before.
“We are excited to see how it works out, especially the ones crossed on racehorse mares for head horses, just because he has never, not once, been crossed that way,” Smith says.
Now settled at Solo Select, Woody is preparing for his sixth breeding season there.
In Honor of a Son and a Legacy
For Fischer, attending the NRCHA Western Bloodstock 2-year-old sale was never about buying a futurity prospect. She was simply looking for a distraction after the loss of her son, Seth Fischer, who died in 2020. When she saw Zak 34 standing in line for the sale ring, she had a gut feeling he was special because of his commanding presence. That decision carried her all the way to the NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity championship.
Zak’s name itself is a tribute: Zak was the screen name her son used on social media, and 34 was his sports jersey number. Every time the stallion steps into the pen, he honors that memory. Though Zak has proven himself in the cow horse pen, Fischer wanted him to be more than just a fence horse. She sent him to a rope horse trainer, where he added to his lifetime earnings.
“I wanted him to be a versatile stallion, not just one that can go down the fence and eat a cow,” she says. “I wanted him to rope, and he even won a little.”
That versatility reflects his sire’s influence. At the 2026 World’s Greatest Horseman, Zak was crowned Reserve Champion. The event is the pinnacle of the reined cow horse sport where elite riders battle it out across four tough events: herd work, reined work, fence work and steer stopping. Fischer already sees Woody’s legacy shining through Zak’s foals.
“They pass down unbelievable calmness. The mind, I see it in all the Zak colts,” she says. “It’s like they foal and want to stand instantly. They are the world’s friendliest guys, and they’re already showing so much athletic ability, just like Woody and just like Zak.”
Woody Be Tuff Facts & Stats
Info: 2001 AQHA sorrel stallion bred by Craig Crumpler, owned by Solo Select/Kaleb Terlip
Pedigree: Nitas Wood x Tuffs Junie x Tuff Lena
Lifetime Earnings: $351,063
Accolades
◆ $16 Million Sire
◆ NCHA Earner of $351,063
◆ NCHA Silver Award
◆ NRCHA $1 Million Sire
◆ No. 2 All-Time Western Sports Leading Sire
◆ No. 1 Rope Horse Sire in 2023
◆ No. 3 Reined Cow Horse Sire in 2023
Woody Be Tuff Top Five Progeny:
1. Zak 34 (2018 black stallion out of Cat Digs Lucinda), lifetime earnings $420,295 NRCHA Open Futurity Champion, NRCHA World’s Greatest Horseman Open Reserve Champion, and NRCHA Western Open Derby Reserve Champion
2. Wood She B Magic (2018 sorrel mare out of Magic Metallic), lifetime earnings $385, 803, third NCHA Open Futurity and NCHA Open Derby Reserve Champion
3. CR Tuff Lucy (2011 sorrel mare out of Lucindas Catolena), lifetime earnings $382,088, NCHA Open Derby Reserve Champion and two-time NCHA Super Stakes Open Classic Reserve Champion
4. Liken It Tough (2014 sorrel gelding out of Catlike Kit), lifetime earnings $314,874, PRCA NFR Team Roping Round 1 & Round 9 Champion
5. CR Tuff Hearted Cat (2009 sorrel mare out of CR Cats Meow), lifetime earnings $276,864, NCHA Open Futurity Co-Champion and AQHA Reserve World Champion Junior Cutting Horse
This article about Woody Be Tuff appeared in the Winter 2025 issue of Western Life Today magazine. Click here to subscribe!
