Waiting patiently in the barn before the historic event Tuesday morning, big “Jake” was standing quietly covered in a green blanket, calm and collected despite the palpable buzz around him, like a veteran prizefighter before a heavyweight title bout.
And make no doubt about it, big Jake is a heavyweight.
Valicia Denson’s Smokey Hollow Farm in Dekorra was the site for the much-anticipated measurement. Denson knew Jake could top the mark of 80 inches tall and e-mailed Guinness a few months back to see what she needed to do to get Jake in the contest.
Guinness officials, who were not present, e-mailed her a packet of guidelines needed to submit the record. All she needed were witness statements, photos and video evidence, and of course, a horse.
Neither the chilly temperatures, barn full of strangers nor the constant camera flashes bothered Jake in the least as he stood straight and tall for the measurement, which was at the base of the neck.
“He’s 82 and three-quarters,” called out Dr. Ann Sherwood Zieser of the Middleton Veterinary Hospital. “That’s 20 hands, two and three-quarters.”
He had the record.
Guinness officials must still look at the video and photo to verify the claim, but it looks like Dekorra, and Smokey Hollow Farm is the home to a world record-holder, standing just a few inches shy of seven feet, not counting his massive head and neck.
Large lineage
According to the Belgian Draft Horse Corp. of America, “Belgians” (as they are called) are the most direct lineal descendants of the “Great Horse” of medieval times, used as a farm horse to pull heavy plows and wagons. The horses generally get as tall as 17 hands; just a pint-sized equine compared to big Jake. Denson said Jake just kept “growing and growing” when he was younger, giving her the idea to see if he measured up to the world’s tallest.
“We had seen one of the record tallest living horses at the Dane County Fair and at a grand opening for a Farm & Fleet,” she said. “After seeing these horses being displayed, we decided that Jake was most likely a candidate.”
Belgians are bred at the farm, though Jake was purchased about five years ago for use as a wheel horse on the farm’s hitch teams, which Smokey Hollow handlers show at various fairs and events.
“Belgians come in all different sizes, just like people,” Denson said. “It is rare to have one this big.”
Now it’s up to the Guinness Book of World Records officials to see just how rare, and if it’s enough for Jake to be a world record-holder.
