Conway Arabians, published in Arabian Horse Times

C O N W A Y

A R A B I A N S

Bred to Move You!

2

by KARA LARSON

When it started!

Lori Conway’s journey with horses finds its origin in 1969—she was a horse-crazy kid who happened to

come up at a very lucky time in the Arabian horse industry. She recalls being around the age of 8 and heading over to Owatonna, MN, with her dad to the famous Gainey Arabians, where she first fell in love with the

Arabian horse. Lori shares that she didn’t come from a horse family and money was tight, so everything she did and aimed to do with horses, she more or less had to figure out how to do on her own.

Her persistence and passion lead her to carve out creative ways to have horses in her life, and by the age of

14, she was training horses professionally. In Minnesota and after moving to Colorado, she grew up seeing

Arabian horse legends like Ferzon, Bay-Abi, *Bask, Cognac, *El Paso, *Aladdinn, Bay El Bey, Barbary,

and more—and quickly became a student of the breed. Lori decided to finish high school early to pursue a career with horses and then attended the University of Northern Colorado for a year. In this time, it

became undeniably clear to Lori where her heart remained all the while—the horse barn. After the year

ended, she went to work for Gene and Ray LaCroix at Lasma Arabians for the next few years and hasn’t

looked back since. Her success has led to numerous accolades including AHT Judge Of The Year, APAHA

Horsewoman Of The Year, APAHA Amateur Of The Year, and many National Championship rides in various divisions.

Peter Conway has a different kind of origin story. He didn’t grow up with horses—and it wasn’t until his daughters became interested in riding lessons that he felt horses could be an interest and lifestyle worth

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Lori & *Bask

Rachel, Peter and Anna Conway at 1996 Youth Nationals.

Sweet Summer Heir DGL, 2017 U.S. National Champion Arabian Hunter Pleasure AAOTR Maturity with Anna Conway-Zaffke.

pursuing. Peter set out to research which breed would be a good fit for his girls, who were mainly interested

in horses in general—not necessarily Arabians. Peter reflects, “I’m the kind of person who does a great deal of research when I get involved in something new—it’s just part of my nature. This is a big Quarter Horse area, so I first was looking at Quarter Horses and for whatever reason, they didn’t really trip my trigger.” It was in

meeting the Arabian horse at Jerland Farm that Peter found something unique and remarkable—and worth

pursuing. “When we went to see Arabian horses, I guess I saw what draws everyone in—they’re beautiful and

they move so gracefully, and there’s an almost instant response between horse and person with Arabian horses.

It’s a human-animal empathy that works in both directions.” Peter adds, “They drew me in right away and we bought our very first Arabian from Larry Jerome. I still hold him responsible for this addiction.”

In the beginning, it was Peter’s sister, Jane Halvorson, who took them to their first few lessons. Today, Jane

rides at Conway Arabians and both Rachel and Anna are still heavily involved with horses. Rachel, the older of the two, rides as an amateur—and quite successfully—winning another national championship this past

year in Half-Arabian English Pleasure at Canadian Nationals. Rachel’s children are also beginning to take part in riding at Conway—the start of a multi-generational immersion with the Arabian horse. Youngest

daughter Anna is also an amateur rider as well as the Farm Manager at Conway. She rides horses daily, and

soon, Peter and Lori expect to see her children in the saddle as well. Anna has enjoyed many fantastic wins,

including U.S. National Champion Hunter Maturity this year. Both girls take part in breeding decisions, adding to the family venture that is Conway Arabians.

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THE DEPTH OF THE ARABIAN BOND Regardless of Lori and Peter’s different paths to the Arabian horse,

it’s where they are today, and the hands-on approach they take, that

truly matters. They care deeply about the animals they breed, train, show and sell. From Peter’s perspective, this profound love for the

horse can be traced way back in time to the innate, instinctual bond between man and horse. “Throughout the course of history, horse

and man were very much dependent on each other and I think that’s

bred into both species—a longing to be with the other,” Peter begins.

“I think there’s a deep, atavistic bond between us—it’s in the genetic makeup of both. I believe good horses innately love people, and

that’s why they do for us what they do. Physically, it’s the reason they put up with us, and will go from running free in a pasture to loving

to be in the show ring.”

Because this kind of cooperative relationship between horse and

human is so vital to the way Conway Arabians accomplishes their

goals with the horse, they value temperament and a willing attitude above all else. For Peter and Lori, a kind and willing horse that

enjoys partnering with a human is the key marker of what a Conway

horse should be. In their minds, these are also key traits worth

preserving and passing along for generations to come.

“For us, temperament is a given. We want our horses to be kind,

willing, and have great attitudes. If they don’t have those things,

then their physical gifts or how pretty they are doesn’t matter,” says

Lori. “When you do barn check at night, and you open the top

door—if a horse doesn’t come to the front of the stall with their ears forward and say hi (unless they’re sick), then that’s not the

kind of attitude we want. We want ‘in-your-pocket, I love you, I’m glad to see you’ horses.”

BRED TO MOVE YOU Since the beginning of the Conway Arabians breeding program, they

have always set out to breed great horses. Aside from a good attitude,

Peter and Lori aspire to breed horses with Arabian type, beauty,

conformation and the ability to perform. The farm motto at Conway reads, “Bred to Move You,” a sentiment that rings true both literally

and figuratively. Peter explains, “We want to breed horses that move

you in an emotional way, that give you that wonderful, special feeling that a great horse can inspire. But also, it’s obviously a little play on

words meaning that our horses are bred to move—to be ridden or driven or utilized to the best of their ability.”

In the past three years, Peter and Lori’s breeding goals have evolved and deepened—greatly because of their involvement with the Arabian English Pleasure Association (AEPA). Peter admits, “Just seeing the quality of horses showing in that

class—we kind of had to make a decision. Are we going to step it up, or throttle down a little bit? It felt like we were at a bit of a crossroads.”

It’s no surprise that Peter and Lori decided to make a new commitment to breeding great horses. They purchased several

impressive mares and went on to acquire Coltrane as the primary breeding stallion in their quest to breed premier English horses. At the same time, Peter and Lori took an interest in and started to be more involved with breeding western horses as well. They set out to improve both the quality of the mare herd and the quantity of horses they’re breeding—and are

beginning to see the rewards of their efforts in the foals growing on their 400-acre Chatfield, MN, farm. “It’s such an asset

to be able to raise the foals in a natural herd environment.” says Lori, “they grow up on the rolling terrain and drink from the springs and trout stream that run through the farm.”

At the heart of their English breeding program is Coltrane, a young black stallion that Lori felt an immediate connection to—

and for her, just keeps on improving. “I fell in love with him the moment I saw him at Shea Stables,” Lori remembers. “So pretty, so correct, a pedigree of the highest caliber, and when I saw him move—he was just 2 years old—he took my breath away.”

The Conway team sees Coltrane beginning to prove himself as a keystone stallion in his 2016 and 2017 foal crops, expanding on his exceptional pedigree. Peter shares, “The pedigree is absolutely unique. His dam, Brassmis, is such a special mare and all her

foals have been fantastic. That he’s out of her and by IXL Noble Express, means he has no Huck blood at all, and yet, he has all

those physical gifts. So from our viewpoint, Coltrane is the perfect stallion to breed back on all the Huck-bred mares.

For Conway Arabians, Coltrane is the

complete package. As Peter says, he has, “a

tremendous amount of motion, both front

and back, and is extraordinarily athletic. He

is also, and I believe this is important, very

beautiful and exhibits a lot of Arabian type.

I think that’s something the English division in particular, can make use of.”

Coltrane, 2017 U.S. National Top Ten Arabian English Pleasure Junior Horse, presented by Joel Kiesner.

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A VISIONARY FUTURE At its core, Peter and Lori Conway set out to build a visionary breeding program full of Arabian horses that “love you back.”

Their approach to breeding is as hands-on as you can get—they make sure to never miss a foaling and are willing to devote so

much to making the Conway Arabians program a great one. Their enthusiasm and dedication are motivating factors, inspiring

them to spend a great deal of time, energy and thought into planning ahead for the future. “We have a vision for what we want a

Conway horse to be. We definitely know what our breeding goals are and work towards them,” says Peter

Looking ahead, Lori and Peter are excited about a 2015 colt named Rightful Heir CA, who is a full brother to VJ Royal Heir.

He has just started training with Joel Kiesner—and Lori and Peter have high hopes for him in the English division. Pedigreewise, he is the perfect complement to Coltrane for the future of their breeding program. Lori shares, “We’ll be able to breed

Coltrane daughters to him and vice versa, thinking generations ahead. Which is what we do—not only what we’re going to breed this year, but what we will be breeding five years, 10 years down the road. We build our whole program in that way.”

Far left: TA Lucky Spin and Elizabeth Schieffelbein.

Left: Shes So Bad and Rachel Schieffelbein.

Though the western program is still in its infancy at Conway, Peter and Lori anticipate some exceptional horses to come from the foundation they’re creating. “We bought several

show us in the training barn what it wants to do—if that

horse excels in the English division, that’s fantastic; if it’s

going to be much happier being a hunt horse, that’s fantastic,

really good western mares—we own four Khadraj daughters

too. We don’t pre-decide and try to force a horse into a

says. “We like raising babies—that’s just us—we’re kind of

to success.”

with completely different pedigrees to raise up and hopefully

This open-mindedness and awareness emphasizes a few

Sundance Kid V and the other by Jullyen El Jamaal. They

inherent value regardless of discipline. And ultimately,

now and we bred them to various western stallions,” Lori

dreamers at heart. So, we went and found two young colts bring into our program. They’re both 2015 colts; one by

are quite different, but both very high quality, beautiful and

correct. We are going to try them on our western mares this

year and see what these boys can do, and go from there.”

LISTENING TO THE HORSE It all begins with breeding a great horse, but from there,

frame; we’re content wherever it is content. And that leads

things at Conway Arabians—the horse, for them, has

it’s their happiness and suitability that leads to success.

Peter, Lori, and the rest of the Conway team believe in

maintaining a mindful respect for the Arabian horse and the

range of potential disciplines on the horizon. In the training barn, this overarching cognizance functions seamlessly with

the versatility of their trainer, Jennifer Schmitt. Peter and

the Conway program continues to foster a unique model

Lori wholeheartedly believe Jennifer brings so much to the

any one thing. In Lori’s eyes, the functionality of the horses

hard-working, soft, consistent, honest, loyal, sensitive, gifted,

of raising and training horses. No horse is expected to be becomes an asset when paired with something that the

Conway team is very good at: versatility. “Everybody here

table at Conway Arabians. Lori calls her, “talented, humble, caring and a team player.”

loves western, English, hunter—so that helps, and no matter

Peter, Lori, Jennifer, and the rest of the Conway team find

up in any division and are equally in love with each one,”

that genuinely cares for each horse, and no matter what

what a horse is, Jen, Anna, Rachel, or myself, we can all step says Lori.

Peter adds, “The better horses you breed, the easier it is for a horse to do its job. And the easier they can perform and

this individualized approach essential as a breeding farm

discipline best suits them, they believe the animal still has

purpose and merit. Peter says, “We want to be able to take

those horses in whatever direction they need to go and

we need a trainer who is comfortable doing exactly that.

do their jobs, the happier horse you have. It all goes hand in

Jennifer has worked a lot with both western and hunt horses

predestining what the horse is to become, we let that horse

She’s just a natural.”

hand, so we begin by breeding great horses. Then instead of

and is moving into working with the English horses now.

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“We want to breed horses that move you in an emotional way, that give you that wonderful, special feeling that a great horse can inspire. But also, it’s obviously a little play on words meaning that our horses are bred to move—to be ridden or driven or utilized to the best of their ability.”

— Peter Conway

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A LIFE DEVOTED TO THE ARABIAN HORSE When Peter first got involved with horses, he remembers telling Dick Ames, already a legendary breeder at that time, that he was interested in breeding horses—even early on, Peter believed it was going to be a real

passion in his life. As it turns out, he was right about that. He recalls, “Dick told me that whenever you sell a

horse and you see it go into the trailer and drive away—if you don’t feel like you need to cry a little bit, you’re

in it for the wrong reasons. At the time, I wasn’t completely sure what he meant by that, but now I get it. You breed a horse, you raise it up, you have all these aspirations for it, you get to know it, it lives in your barn, and

then you sell it, and there’s a part of you that feels that sense of sadness when you see them leave the farm. So

that’s why you try to match them up with really good people and find comfort in knowing they’re going to go to a great place.”

Peter and Lori assure that there’s a flipside to this equation, which happens when they see a Conway-bred

horse win a national championship or have a brilliant performance with new owners—people who genuinely

love the horse. For both, that’s an exceptional, one-of-a-kind feeling, and it’s part of the lifestyle they’ve built

for themselves through the Arabian horse. They find joy in the quiet selection of methodical breeding choices, making sure to be present for every birth at the farm, bringing the 2-year-olds in to begin training after U.S.

Nationals, and of course, watching it all come together in the show ring. They simply love the horse, the

lifestyle, the vision—a passion sparked so many years ago for both Lori and Peter, their life with horses still remains a great thrill.

“As you get older,” says Peter, “there are fewer and fewer things that can really stir your blood and affect you in

a real, deep, emotional way. In large part, because you’ve done them before. You’ve caught the big fish, shot the big buck, hit the hole-in-one.” He adds, “But with horses, the thrill never diminishes. That’s a great thing to

be able to have—something that still gets you and incites those passions in you to excel and strive—and horses

provide that. It’s a great thing for anybody.” ■

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Jennifer Schmitt

“One thing I’ve always said from the day we met Jen … she was as polite and gracious to her clients as she was kind to the horses. You could depend on her to get the job done and do it well. Her talent and beauty are a joy to watch, in and outside the ring.” – JoEllen Erickson “When I think of Jen, I think of calm, cool, gentle determination. And she leads her life the way she wants, without fear. Off to Ireland and find a job? Just do it! She has a special touch with horses and I am glad she landed with the Conway Arabian family. I admire Jen and wish I was more like her!” – Barb Sink-Krusenstjerna “It doesn’t take much to realize how hard working and dedicated Jen is.

I never quite understood how she could do so much and make it seem so easy. On top of that, she is one of the kindest people I know. She is always willing to help and doesn’t shy from any task. She truly is a great person to be around.” – Kirsten McKillop “I have been a client of Jody Strand and Strand’s Arabians, for many years. Jen started working there when she was a student in the equestrian program at Kirkwood Community College. She was a hard worker from the start with a great attitude and she soon developed a special relationship with the horses and clients. It wasn’t long before she was helping with the training, and showing some clients’ horses.

Jody thought that he was too tall to show our horse Sunsational Kid, so we were more than happy to have Jen show him in the Western Pleasure Junior Horse classes. She did a great job and won Top Fives at Regionals, a Top Ten at Scottsdale, and was Reserve National Champion at U.S. Nationals in 2009. That was a big win for a talented, young assistant trainer! She also trained and showed our purebred hunter, Totally Fame to many great wins!” – Joe & Debbie Frizzell

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Maybelline CA

Sunsational Kid I showed Jen how we start colts, and from the beginning, she was awesome at it. She was so natural on a horse—and what she didn’t know, she learned very quickly; she was so willing to take everything in stride. Without any previous training experience, she hadn’t developed any bad habits or preconceived training techniques, so she picked up on breaking colts quickly, got really good at that, and then it went from her riding a horse the first five rides to the next step.

Soon she was riding them for a month, and then two months, and kept improving.

It got to the point where I asked her, ‘hey Jen,

Chancellor CA

would you want to show something?’ And she said, ‘sure!’ Showing horses came super easily for her, too, and she was soon winning big prizes.

Her first regionals was Region 10 and I gave

“Jen is a super hard worker, a self-starter, and someone who was always there if you needed something.” – Jill Mitchell

her a really nice Half-Arab gelding. Her first time in, she wins reserve champion while I top-fived. And the first time we took her to Canadian Nationals, she rode a side saddle horse, which she took to like she’d been riding it her whole life, and

“When I first met Jen, I needed some help and at the time, she was tacking horses for a Quarter Horse farm about 5 miles from us. I had a friend who

went in and won national champion. Once again, I was left trying to explain, ‘you know, this isn’t the normal path,’ but for as many times as it happened early in

knew of her, and told me, ‘you just have to meet her—she has this awesome

her career, it absolutely was for her. Her first U.S. National western win was

personality and is a really hard worker.’ So, she came in and she was young—22,

on Sunsational Kid in the junior horse class—and she goes reserve national

maybe 23—and really quiet. We sat down, and I talked to her for five minutes

champion. I was just so proud of her! It was her and nine guys in the top ten and

and she just seemed like such a good, honest person. I pretty much hired her on

I didn’t make the cut that year, so I got to rail for her, and she looked so great on

the spot. She started tacking horses. When the guy who was breaking colts for

that horse; they were just perfect for each other. I had people ask, ‘why aren’t

me left, I asked Jen if she would be interested in helping me. She grew up riding,

you riding that horse?’ And it was like, well, I don’t need to; she’s beating you

but hadn’t trained or ridden show horses, and she just said, ‘sure!’

guys and looks awesome doing it!” – Jody Strand

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Coltrane (IXL Noble Express x Brassmis)

Sired by Coltrane

Wheres My Sock CA (Coltrane x MD Sugar Shoc)

Colette CA (Coltrane x MD Roullette)

Nite Trane CA Coltrane x Nite Heiress

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Conway Arabians

Peter and Lori Conway • lori@conwayarabians.com •18080 Cty 2 • Chatfield, MN 55923 507-867-2981 • 507-202-4440 • 507-867-0060 barn

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