Top Barrel Racing Producer, Go Go Fame, Passes Away at Age 15

As barrel racing breeding has advanced and evolved over the years, it has become increasingly clear how powerful a great broodmare truly is. Winners can come from anywhere, but with the right genetics, the scales are greatly tipped in the right direction. One of those incredible broodmares crossed the Rainbow Bridge on March 4, 2024.

Go Go Fame, the 2010 daughter of Dash Ta Fame out of Volley Six by Streakin Six, was a cornerstone of Sharin Hall's program. Although her most well-known offspring is Hello Stella, the $1 million dollar mare, Go Go Fame produced several big winners in her short breeding career. Go Go Fame was a winner in her own right, before retiring as a broodmare.

VC GoGo Fling (by A Streak Of Fling) won over $76,000 and Triple Fame To Go (by Triple Vodka) won over $74,000. Although "GoGo," is gone, her legacy is far from removed from this earth. Hall still has young offspring by GoGo, who will be beginning their competition career and continuing what their dam started.

Like many great ones, GoGo had some quirks. Hall was not deterred and worked through them, getting the talented mare trained and entering in futurities. Ashley Schafer later took over, jockeying the mare for part of her futurity year.

In a touching remembrance on Facebook, Hall posted:

"The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit." — Psalm 34:18

Nobody said that trusting in God’s plan would be easy, but He is the only one who can heal us when tragedy strikes. I can barely get these words out, but in the early hours of March 4, I lost a piece of my heart—Go Go Fame is gone.

There are no words to describe the weight of this loss. She wasn’t just a great performer, and she wasn’t just an incredible producer—she was Go Go. She was one of those horses who carried herself like she already knew she was a champion. She was confident, and larger than life, both in her athleticism and her presence. It was her world, and we were all just lucky to be in it.

Go Go Fame changed my life in so many ways. From the moment I started training her, she taught me things no other horse ever had—about patience, about trust, about grit. She was strong through her turns, aggressive in her runs, and honest to her core. She knew her job, and she did it with fire in her heart. She gave me everything she had every time, whether it was in the arena or through the babies she blessed us with.

And oh, the babies.

She left behind a legacy that will never be forgotten. She gave us Hello Stella, the once-in-a-lifetime mare who has changed the game and crossed over a million in earnings...and she's just getting started. She gave us VC Gogo Fling ($76,425 LTE), Triple Fame To Go ($74,120 LTE), and so many more who are proving her greatness lives on through them. And there are more, waiting in the wings, ready to step into their mother’s and siblings' shoes and continue what she started, along with others she selflessly gave us.

Go Go Fame was a daughter of Dash Ta Fame and out of Volley Six (by Streakin Six), and she built a name for herself as a competitor, earning $43,065 in earnings that were recorded at the time. But her true impact came in the breeding barn, where she produced over $1.1 million in earnings, with an average of nearly $390,000 per money earner.

She shaped the future of this sport, and she will continue to do so. But right now, all I can do is grieve the loss of the mare who gave me everything.

I pray that in this heartbreak, I can see God’s greater plan. I don’t understand why she was taken so soon, but I do know I was blessed beyond measure to have had her. And I know I will see her again.

Thank you, Go Go. For every lesson. For every run. For every incredible foal you gave us. For every moment we had with you.

You were one of the greats.

Run free, big girl."

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