by Emily Paulk, Speedhorse
Bred by Allene Tatom out of the accomplished mare Dreams Of Blue, Slick By Design felt preordained from the start. His breeder once told Speedhorse that when he was a baby, she kept telling him he was special, and that he was just meant to be. He set out to prove it in 2011 with Kim Ulbricht Grunkemeyer, stacking futurity titles and big checks in a single season that announced him not merely as talented, but as a force. The next year, with Jennifer Sharp aboard, he became the AQHA World Champion Junior Barrel Racing Horse. Later that same season, Charlie Cole and Jason Martin of Highpoint Performance Horses took a chance on a black stud that kept outrunning expectations. Under their program, Slick climbed to the sport’s brightest lights as a four-time Wrangler NFR qualifier, finishing fourth overall twice and earning the AQHA/PRCA Reserve Barrel Horse of the Year. By the end of his career he had banked $626,962.
In remembering him, Jason and Charlie shared a message on Facebook that captured what he meant to their lives and to so many others, “Slick changed our lives and the lives of so many that he touched. slick put us on the map in the barrel horse world and allowed us to travel places and meet amazing people that we would never have met.”
His first foals arrived in 2016. By September 25, 2025, his dynasty had grown to 2,228 AQHA-registered foals with total earnings of $10,871,623. 640 of those horses became money earners, averaging nearly $17,000 each. Almost all of that total came from the barrel pen, more than $10.7 million, with the balance spread across roping, pole bending, and other speed events, a testament to the way Slick passed along not only speed but also a willingness and adaptability that allowed his foals to shine in a variety of arenas.
Slick’s legacy shines brightest through his leading foals, who have carried his name into the biggest arenas. Slicks Lil Amigo has become his top earner with more than $428,000, a horse that continues to deliver on the sport’s largest stages. Fiesta By Design turned heads with a Pink Buckle Futurity Championship in 2024 and added major victories at the BFA and Ruby Buckle. Slick Lane Ta Fame has built a long and steady career, from an Old Fort Days Derby win in 2020 to aged-event and rodeo checks well into 2025. Slick N Black brought his bloodline into the PRCA spotlight, highlighted by an American Royal win and NFR credentials.
His bloodline is recognizable not only in pedigree pages but in the way his foals perform. From a futurity colt that first caught his breeder’s eye to a stallion honored on the cover of the Speedhorse Barrel Stallion Register, Slick By Design leaves behind a record that secures his place as one of the most important sires of his generation.
