In 1993, Horace T. Hambone or H.T. to his friends won a large Powerball jackpot. He then took some of the money and purchased a 350 acre ranch in Montana along the Bitterroot River and gave it to his wife, Myrtle for their 50th anniversary.

  Both were avid horse lovers and fans of racing and had dreamed of someday owning a race horse. They now set about making their dreams come true.

  They coaxed Angus 'Gus' Jenkins, a retired stud manager from Phantom Farms in New York, to come work for them.  Gus was getting pretty tired of this so called retirement so he jumped at the chance.

 Under Gus' guidance, they purchased two stallions and ten mares.

 In 1995, home-bred foals were ready to race but they needed a trainer.  They found their prize in Grady Carmichael, a well known Montana trainer.  Grady introduced H.T. to a savvy Irish horseman, Shamus O'toole, owner of Shamrock Farm in Kentucky and the two became fast friends.

  By 1998 Elkhorn's brown and gold silks were well-known on the west coast tracks but disaster struck when Grady was killed by a drunk driver on his way home from Billings.  Shamus offered to continue racing the Elkhorn string until a new trainer could be found.

 1999 brought even more tragedy when Myrtle Hambone passed away in her sleep. With the loss of his lifelong sweetheart, H.T. was thinking about selling the ranch but his eldest sons, Daniel and Michael offered to take over running the ranch.  Shamus again came to the rescue when he introduced them to Alex Carleton, a English trainer who was making a name for himself in Europe.

  Daniel began working with Alex to learn the training end of the business while his wife, Carrie, took care of the books.  Michael and his wife, Jeanie worked with Gus and the bloodstock.

  Son Cody joined the staff in 2000 as the resident vet along with his wife Lisa.  Under their guidance, Elkhorn has a up to date clinic that serves not only the ranch but ranches in the surrounding country side too.  The clinic has a surgery and recovery area, a hydro pool and treadmill to help their equine patients. It is staffed 24 hours a day by Cody, Lisa and three assistants.

  In 2003, youngest son, Jeff, joined the now family business as business manager. He had just finished his education with a double masters in business and business law.

  In 2004, a final tragedy struck the Hambone family when H.T passed away from a heart attack at the age of 75.

  The Hambone family are very determined to make Elkhorn Ranch a memorial to their parents' dream. They look forward to the coming season both on the track and in the sales barn.