Tooele County is horse country. Rodeos abound in the spring and summer, politicians advertise on horse trailers in the fall, and now one local ranch has set up an annual horse auction.

Running U Livestock is starting another Tooele County tradition with their Annual Production and Invitational Sale on Saturday, Aug. 25, beginning at 10 a.m. at the Deseret Peak Complex. The auction is open to the public and potential buyers. A preview of the saddle horses up for sale will begin at 10 a.m.

Horses will be ridden to display strength and agility, with the auction beginning at noon.

"The main reason for the auction is to get my product out," said Shamus Haws, owner of RU Livestock. "I've got a lot of good horses for sale, and at the end of the day there won't be any 'no sales' no matter what the final bid."

Running U Livestock is a second-generation, family-owned and operated working horse and cattle ranch at the mouth of Ophir Canyon. It was founded by Terry and Elaine George. Haws married Jolyn George and the two have been managing the ranch for 11 years. They currently run approximately 150 horses for breeding and ranch work, along with a herd of commercial cattle. The ranch trains horses on the Oquirrh Mountain range to manage on steep, rocky terrain.

The ranch also specializes in selective breeding to produce high-quality working ranch horses. Some of the well-known bloodlines that are being sold include Hancock, Doc O Lena, Doc Bar, Deregulate, Prepotent, Easy Saint, Go Man Go, Top Deck, Dash for Cash, Streakin' Six and many others.

The auction will be offering up to 60 head of ranch-broken geldings, mares and foals in many colors, including roans, palominos, bays, sorrels, grays, buckskins and some paints. Randy M. Anderson, sales manager for the RMA Sales Management Company, will serve as auctioneer.

Although the auction is being conducted through a local owner, the sale won't be limited to local attention, explained Haws.

"We have people coming from all over the western United States," he said. "I just received a call today from someone in New Mexico. This will be a good auction with horses of all ages. We are very proud of the great, hard-to-find foundation bloodlines that our horses carry, and we're excited to offer our horses to the public."

To find specific information on what horses will be auctioned, visit www.rmahorsesales.com, or for questions concerning the auction itself, check out www.runningulivestsock.com.

Natalie Tripp: ntripp@tooeletranscript.com