98 The Chronicle of the Horse

Mike HanaganPotomac Hunt whipper-in and foxhunting enthusiast Mike Hanagan died at home in Dickerson, Md., on April 4 due to complications from Parkinson’s disease. He was 58.

Mr. Hanagan was born on Jan. 22, 1958, in Washington, D.C., to John and Carol Krause Hanagan. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps for six years and then worked as a heavy equipment mechanic. He married Nellie Carpenter in 1985.

Mr. Hanagan’s fondness for horses and livestock began at a young age on visits to his grandpar-ents’ dairy farm in Pennsylvania.

“He used to get on the plow horses and do bad things,” joked his wife.

A professional horsewoman, Nellie helped Mr. Hanagan develop his riding skills aboard her horses in the early years of their marriage.

“I pretty much gave him riding lessons and taught him how to truly ride,” Nellie recalled. She also taught him horsemanship out of the saddle by including him in the day-to-day care of the horses.

The Hanagans joined the Potomac Hunt (Md.) in 1988, and Mr. Hanagan’s childhood hobby of hunting rabbits and groundhogs was rekindled and transformed into a passion for foxhunting. He whipped in for almost 20 years and served on the Potomac Hunt Committee for four years.

“He only rode to hunt,” Nellie said. “He loved to watch the hounds work—watching the hounds figure out where a fox was and helping the hounds stay on a fox. In the summer when he wasn’t hunting, he would help clean the kennels.

When he became unable to ride, he would go hang out at the kennels and be with the hounds.”

Mr. Hanagan also loved his Shire-Percheron cross, Speedy. Nellie

bred the 18-hand horse specifi-cally for Mr. Hanagan.

She broke him, and Mr. Hanagan took over the ride when the horse was 4.

“He was a big, beautiful, wonderful horse that took to

hunting,” Nellie said. “Our kids at 5 and 6

years old could ride him, and yet he could gallop with the

best of the Thoroughbreds. Mike just loved him.”

Unfortunately, Speedy died at the age of 8, due to colic complica-tions. “He was always searching for another Speedy,” said Nellie.

Mr. Hanagan’s final mount, Huey, was also an exceptional horse because the draft cross took care of him when he was having a difficult time riding.

The Potomac Hunt members will remember Mr. Hanagan for his caring and kind character.

“He was very opinionated and stubborn. He was a hard worker. He was a good guy,” Nellie noted.

Mr. Hanagan is survived by his wife, Nellie of Dickerson, Md.; his children, Lela of Martinsburg, W.Va., Catherine of Dickerson and Melissa of Hagerstown, Md.; his mother, Carol of Germantown, Md.; and his siblings, Pat of Damascus, Md., Jimmy of Orange, Va., Tony of Germantown, Chipper of Germantown, and Jacquelyn of Silver Springs, Md. He also leaves behind one grandchild and numerous nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to support the Movement Disorders Clinic at

Medstar Georgetown University Hospital Office of Philanthropy Hospital Administration, 1 Main 3800 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007.

Prince PanacheKaren O’Connor’s four-star partner Prince Panache was euthanized on May 1 due to complications from old age. He was 32.

Owned by O’Connor’s longtime supporter Jacqueline Mars, the bay English Thoroughbred gelding (Nickel King—Scotch Pancake, Scottish Venture) was a fixture at the highest levels of the sport for most of his career.

Susie Pragnell connected O’Connor with the gelding after he placed second in the Windsor CCI** in England in 1993 with John Mears. After jumping him over one fence, O’Connor said she knew he was special.

The pair placed fifth at the Burghley CCI**** (England) in 1994, completed the Rolex Kentucky CCI*** in 1996 and finished fifth at the Badminton CCI**** in 1998.

They were members of the third-placed U.S. team at the 1998 FEI World Equestrian Games in Rome, as well as the bronze-medal winning team at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney.

O’Connor and “Nash” won the Rolex Kentucky CCI**** in 1999 and were third in 2000.

Nash was diagnosed with a heart murmur, but he competed safely and comfortably with medication.

“I always said he may have a bad heart, but anybody who knew Prince Panache knew he had a huge heart,” said O’Connor. “There wasn’t anything wrong with his heart.”

She remembered him as a fierce cross-country partner and a loving horse on the ground.

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“He was a lion: very genuine, 100 percent brave and courageous,” she said. “He had a beautiful gallop and never, ever got tired, no matter how hard the course was or how wet it was.”

Nash won his last CCI competi-tion, the three-star at Foxhall (Ga.) in 2001, and then retired in 2002. He enjoyed his golden years at Mars’ Stonehall Farm in The Plains, Va., where he was turned out as part of “the Fab Four”—O’Connor’s Biko, and her husband David’s Custom Made and Giltedge.

“They all were great by them-selves, but collectively those horses were a power to be reckoned with,” said Karen.

Nash was honored with an offi-cial retirement ceremony at Rolex Kentucky in 2003, where Jimmy Wofford gave a speech.

Karen once told him Nash was the bravest cross-country horse she’d ever ridden.

“I thought that too, as I watched him during the early part of the course [at the Sydney Olympic Games], but what really struck me at that moment was the uncanny intelligence Nash brought to every situation,” Wofford said. “By the time he jumped, you had the feeling that he had walked each fence beforehand. So they galloped up into view, into a golden glow, into the history books, and into our hearts. And I thought at that moment that I had been given an insight into one of the most remark-able horses I have ever seen.”

Karen was able to visit Nash the week before Rolex Kentucky this year. She’d planned to euthanize him the Monday after the event, but farm manager and long time groom Sue Clarke called her over the weekend to say it was time.

“I’m sad today, but I think it’s so remarkable—in the end he was a

horse that did a lot for the U.S.,” said Karen. “He won Rolex; he won a lot of competitions. In the end, he was able to choose his time, and isn’t it interesting that he chose the Sunday morning of Rolex?”

Star PowerIan Millar’s 2012 Olympic show jumping mount Star Power was euthanized on April 15 following a devastating soft tissue injury in turnout. He was 15.

Emile and Paul Hendrix of Stal Hendrix in the Netherlands found the Dutch Warmblood gelding (Quick Star—Maxim, Calvados) in 2009 in Italy, where Paolo Mencolini was competing him in grand prix classes. Team Works syndicate purchased the horse for Millar with the London Olympic Games in mind.

Star Power originally competed as Uranus, but Millar changed the gelding’s name due to his diva-like mentality.

During their first year together, Millar focused on building a part-nership with “Star” and worked on the gelding’s rideability. He became a serious competitor, producing consistent results over the seven years he was part of Team Millar.

Some of Star’s highlights included taking home five grand prix victories in 2011 and representing Canada in the Pan American Games in Mexico that year.

Millar and Star finished ninth individually at the London Olympic Games, the highest-placed Canadian combination. With Star, Millar became the first athlete in any sport to contest 10 Olympic Games. He also placed second in the $500,000 FTI Consulting Finale Grand Prix at the Winter Equestrian Festival (Fla.) that year.

Star Power racked up numerous top grand prix placings and Nations

Cup appearances for Millar. He called him “a freak of nature,” and said the horse had unbelievable athletic ability and really wanted to leave the jumps up.

In 2015, Millar’s son Jonathon took over the ride. Their last competition together was the Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup in Ocala, Fla., this past February. Star’s slow recovery from the event prompted Team Millar’s decision to stop competing the gelding. They kept him in light work for the rest of the Florida season, and then in April he returned to Millar Brooke Farm in Perth, Ontario, Canada, to retire.

In an email, a representative from Team Millar said Star was “powerful, careful and an incred-ible talent. Star’s unique ability and character are greatly missed in the barn and in the show ring.”

The Millars also thanked Star’s owners and his caregivers, Danny Ingratta and Sandi Patterson.

Ingratta posted a tribute to the gelding over social media: “He was loved by many and will always have a special place in my heart. I was fortunate enough to take care of him almost every day for three years. He was the first horse I took care of representing the Canadian Team at Nations Cup events and was the first horse that took me on numerous unforgettable adven-tures throughout North America. He always kept me on my toes, as he was constantly trying to squish them. He loved his bananas and pizza buns and would go nuts for honeydew melon. I will never forget his different ‘voices’ nor his incredible personality and talent. ‘Pookie’ you were the best, with the biggest heart in the world. You did anything and everything that was ever asked of you. You will be truly missed.”