AQHA World Champion Bob Avila Dies at the AQHA World Show

Bob Avila, renowned horseman, businessman and teacher suddenly died on Nov. 9, 2024 at the age of 72. He was attending the American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA) World Championship show to help his wife Dana and other amateur riders.

The AQHA confirmed his death on social media. No funeral plans were finalized at the time of this article’s publishing.

Avila set the standard for equine training videos and created a booming business for himself in the horse show world. Many will remember him for his magazine Ride With Bob Avila, his many training articles, numerous championships, endless training and business advice and his well-spoken interviews.

Legendary Ending for a Legendary Person Bob Avila (2005) * QHN File Photo

Avila was a familiar face to many at the world show and a few of his colleagues said he died doing what he loved, where he loved doing it.

“I don’t know if he’s ever missed a World Show,” Todd Bergen said. “The World Show is something that he looked forward to every year. He had horses going there every year for as long as I can remember.”

Bergen grew up in the same area of Oregon that Avila trained in and worked for him almost six years as a young trainer.

“He put me on some good horses and I won my first couple world championships working for him. I was an assistant trainer and I got to win some world shows,” Bergen reminisced. “If he felt like you were up to it and you were working hard, he would give you the opportunities. He gave me a ton of opportunities and I’ll never forget him for that.”

Background of Bob Avila Bob Avila riding Shine By The Bay in 2003. * QHN File Photo

Avila grew up in a family that showed in the American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA) and horses remained a constant part of his life, other than a short few years while he lived with his grandparents.

Throughout his career, he showed everything from halter horses and rope horses to Western pleasure, Western riding and trail in the AQHA. He worked for and around legendary trainers in the early days of the National Reined Cow Horse Association (NRCHA), namely Tony Amaral, he produced champions in every event he competed in.

“His true love was AQHA and in my mind he was probably the last great all-around horseman,” reined cow horse trainer and NRCHA judge Jim Spence said. “He could pick out and fit a halter horse and make it a world champion. He could pick out and fit a pleasure horse and make it a champion and he could do that with a Western riding horse, a trail horse, a rope horse, reiner, cow horse and a cutter.

“At those AQHA shows, when I first started going, he was in all those classes and winning them. That’s unheard of. Nobody does that anymore. I used to say he could train a horse to stack hay if he wanted to.”

He won the NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity Open Championship three times. In 1988 on Smart Little Calboy (Smart Little Lena x Miss Cal Sen x Cal Bar), in 1999 on Smart Zanolena (Smart Chic Olena x Zanee Lynx x Docs Lynx) and in 2003 on Chics Magic Potion (Smart Chic Olena x Remedys Magic Potion x Remedys Reply). Avila won the prestigious NRCHA World’s Greatest Horseman twice: in 2000 on Paid By Chic (Smart Chic Olena x Oaklynn x Docs Oak) and in 2007 on Light N Fine (Grays Starlight x Lenas Fine Freckle x Doc Olena).

The NRCHA Stallion Stakes, he won a record setting five times.

Bob Avila’s NRCHA Stallion Stakes Champions

• 1986 Docs Missy Command (Fritz Command x Ann Doc Bar x Doc Bar)
• 1999 Chex That Out (Smart Little Lena x Chexy Lady x King Fritz)
• 2002 Shine By The Bay (Shining Spark x Metermaid To Order x Doc Olena)
• 2003 Light N Fine (Grays Starlight x Lenas Fine Freckle x Doc Olena)
• 2005 Chics Magic Potion (Smart Chic Olena x Remedys Magic Potion x Remedys Reply)

Bob Avila riding Light N Fine in 2006. * QHN File Photo

In the National Reining Horse Association (NRHA), Avila won the Futurity Open Championship in 1994 on Lenas Wright On (Smart Little Lena x Slide Me Again x Isle Breeze). He also rode to multiple AQHA World Championships. He was an EquiStat Elite $1 Million Rider.

Tom St. Hilaire worked for Avila before he built his own training facility in Yamhill, Oregon, and is proud of his time with Avila. Bob was his best man at his wedding.

“There aren’t going to be a lot of guys like him, because of the era he was in,” St. Hilaire said. “We made some horses do things that on paper they weren’t really bred to do.”

Horses and trainers weren’t as specialized back then. So, trainers were happy with a horse that could compete in an event or multiple events no matter their bloodlines.

“He was not afraid to send one home if a horse wasn’t cutting it, I have a lot of respect for him in that matter because there’s guys that will string people along. When Bob came to the determination that this horse isn’t cutting it he was very upfront with the owners about that,” St. Hilaire explained.

St. Hilaire also had respect for Avila because he would accept new ideas and training techniques from other trainers. He said Avila also always had an air of confidence in the show pen.

A Successful Businessman

He was not only a force to be reckoned with in the show pen. Avila was a rarity in the Western performance horse world and set out to produce products and marketing that would support him throughout his career and set him up for a real retirement.

“He always looked at it as a business and took care of his customers and was very, very professional about everything that he did,” Bergen said, then added, “his trucks and trailers were always clean, his horses always looked like a million bucks.”

Avila was a founding member of the AQHA Professional Horsemen’s Committee and an AQHA and NRCHA Hall of Fame Inductee. In 2020, he moved from Temecula, California, to Scottsdale, Arizona. He also downsized his business from managing over 100 horses to under 20 horses.

A great teacher as well, he offered his help to many non-pro riders and fellow trainers. He made it a goal of his to teach the young people who worked for him and continued coaching other trainers through his retirement.

NRHA Futurity Champions Todd Bergen, Duane Latimer and John Slack all worked under Avila. Numerous others learned many lessons from Bob including his son BJ (Robert Avila Jr.) who has become an accomplished trainer himself.

“He always loved his kid and he was always proud of him,” Spence said.