English Pleasure - Special Section in Arabian Horse Times, Vol 46, No 12 by Arabian Horse Times

photos: osteen, schatzberg, vesty

AFIRES HEIR X MA GHAZTA TROT

Topping the English charts ...

All-Time Leading Sire of National Winners.

Offering a great selection of talented young prospects by Afire Bey V and IXL Noble Express. Visit our website for videos and information.

! n i a g A

Maroon Fire Arabians & Shea Stables

Creating his own dynasty!

MHR Nobility x RY Fire Ghazi U.S. National Champion Park Horse U.S. National Top Ten Stallion

Owned by MAROON FIRE ARABIANS Dave & Gail Liniger Castle Rock, Colorado Managed by SHEA STABLES Tim & Marty Shea Clair, Michigan â&#x20AC;˘ 810-329-6392 St. Clai

WWW.AFIREBEYV.COM

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English

From start to Finish! TRAINING

SHOWING

INSTRUCTION

SALES

CONSULTING

VICKI HUMPHREY TRAINING CENTER Vicki Humphrey |

Jessica Clinton DeSoto |

Canton, Georgia |

770.335.6194 |

Gabe DeSoto |

Hews Oldham

VHTC@VickiHumphrey.com

www.VickiHumphreyTrainingCenter.com

Ar abian Horse Times | 3 | English

the driving force behind

Irwin Schimmel has been breeding Arabians for over 40 years, and has consistently been recognized as one of the top breeders of National winning Arabians and Half-Arabians. Each year he is proud to offer talented young prospects for sale, and watches with pride as they go on to win National awards.

Spring brings another exciting year to Prestige Farms ... with foals arriving, we are excited to see what the future stars of Prestige will be.

Baskghazi

Baske Afire

Nutcrackers Nirvana

MHR Nobility

SF Aftershoc

2016 foals sired by the best! Filly Colt Filly Filly Filly Filly Colt Filly

Sire Baske Afire Baskghazi HA Toskcan Sun HA Toskcan Sun MHR Nobility Nutcrackers Nirvana Nutcrackers Nirvana Nutcrackers Nirvana SF Aftershoc SF Aftershoc

SOLD BEFORE FOALING Sire Colt Nutcrackers Nirvana Filly Nutcrackers Nirvana Colt CSP Grand Cayman

Dam JR Patrice (Apollopalooza x JR Penelope) MD Bellamesa (MHR Nobility x MC Bellasera) JR Primadona (AA Apollo Bey x JR Primrose) HV Tesstoify (Matoi x HV Tess) JSN Cosmopolitan (El Ghazi x Angel Afire) Miz Show Biz (Baske Afire x MZ Kitty) Miz Katarina Bask PF (Baske Afire x MZ Kitty) Red Hott Mama (Mamage x Ames déjà vu) Eternity PF (MHR Nobility x Harghazi Fire CMF) Noble Vision PF (MHR Noblility x Neveah W)

Dam Lady Mac Baske (Afire Bey V x Mac Baske) BB Ahmaree (Baske Afire x Mayan Baska) Heat Wave PF (SF Specs Shocwave x Afires Quintina)

Contact Irwin today about young prospects and bred mares available.

Visit us on Facebook. Check out the new videos of our sale horses.

Irwin Schimmel • 360-256-9432 • Cell: 503-367-4997 P.O. Box 814, Hillsboro, Oregon 97123

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HA Toskcan Sun

A thrill like NO other!

ENGLISH Offering exciting English horses ready for open and amateur competiton. ADANDY FARM CATHY VINCENT ~ 302.349.5116 | Alayna Mala ~ 413.552.7716 GREENWOOD, DELAWARE | ADANDYFARM@AOL.COM | WWW.ADANDYFARM.COM

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License To Thrill PF

Gibson Gitar

Scarlet O Butler

AF EddieVanHalen

RGT Breathin Afire

Citationn

at Adandy Standing top English producing stallions Gitar MF Citationn

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CP Manifesto (H Mobility H x Afire Charmm) 2016 Scottsdale Champion Country English Pleasure Jr. Horse Ridden by Sharon Blendinger for Kirby Arabians

H Magic Mobility H (H Mobility H x Ellusion of Magic) 2015 Spotlight Futurity Champion & Region 12 Reserve Champion Ridden by Peri Wilson for Dina & Michael Good (ferrara photo)

Hennessey Arabian Horse Partners LLC • Waterford, MI • 352.857.3384 • www.HennesseyArabians.com Multi-Program Nominated Sire • Standing at Trowbridge’s Ltd • 860-354-8926 • www.Trowbridgesltd.com

Breeding for Excellence O v e r

4 5

Y e a r s

Visit us to find your next champion! Ar abian Horse Times | 10 | English

E n g l i s h

P r o s p e c t s

Weanlings

Afires Heir x Toi Jabaska . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1/23/2016 Afires Heir x Ames Patina . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1/24/2016 SF Aftershoc x Isabella Divinci . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1/26/2016 Afires Heir x Aria Endless Summer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2/18/2016 Nutcracker’s Nirvana x Use Your Illusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2/26/2016 Nutcracker’s Nirvana x Ames Mirage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3/08/2016 A Noble Cause x Takaraa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3/24/2016 Vitorio TO x Exotic Angel AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4/09/2016 VJ Royal Heir x Shady Baby . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4/13/2016 Nobellistic CRF x Julietta Ames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4/20/2016 Afires Heir x Captivating Style . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5/08/2016 Afires Heir x Auroras Annie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5/24/2016

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Filly Colt Colt Filly Colt Filly Colt Filly Filly Colt

Weiza Bella . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ames Illusion . . . . . . . . . . . Suzanne Ames . . . . . . . . . . Ames Divine . . . . . . . . . . . Tory Burch CRF . . . . . . . . . Nirvana Angel CRF . . . . . . Rachael Ames . . . . . . . . . . Mighty Thor CRF . . . . . . . . Ghaza Heir CRF . . . . . . . . . Noble Emotions CRF . . . . . Shady Magna CRF . . . . . . . Hes In Style CRF . . . . . . . . Party Nut CRF . . . . . . . . . . .

Pogrom x Wieza Mocy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1/15/2015 A Noble Cause x Ames Mirage . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1/28/2015 Baahir El Marwan x Exotic Angel AB . . . . . . . . 2/27/2015 ROL Divine Style x Julietta Ames . . . . . . . . . . . 3/13/2015 SHF Encore x Glamorize . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4/27/2015 Nutcracker’s Nirvana x Colette Ames . . . . . . . . 5/13/2015 SHF Encore x HA Sahara Afire . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6/15/2015 SHF Encore x Julietta Ames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4/10/2015 Afires Heir x MA Ghaza Trot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5/13/2015 A Noble Cause x Madame Ghazi . . . . . . . . . . . 5/14/2015 VCP Magna Fire x Shady Baby . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2/09/2015 ROL Divine Style x Gunning For Roses KCF . . . 4/19/2015 Undulata’s Nutcracker x Marion Ames . . . . . . . 5/07/2015

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Filly Filly Filly Filly Filly Filly Filly Colt Colt Colt Gelding Gelding Gelding

Shes Magical CRF . . . . . . . Angelina Ames . . . . . . . . . Bold N Sassy CRF . . . . . . . Joyful Encore CRF . . . . . . . Bellazi CRF . . . . . . . . . . . . . Supreme Glamor CRF . . . . Hail Mary CRF . . . . . . . . . . Alpha Memories CRF . . . . Fire It Up CRF . . . . . . . . . . . Ultimate Fire CRF . . . . . . . . Sir Mystical CRF . . . . . . . . Cause Afire CRF . . . . . . . . . Cause A Discovery CRF . . . Noble Symbol CRF . . . . . . The Machine CRF . . . . . . .

Sir Marwan CRF x Exotic Angel AB . . . . . . . . . 3/04/2014 Afires Heir x Aria Endless Summer . . . . . . . . . 4/01/2014 A Noble Cause x Stella . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5/03/2014 SHF Encore x Colette Ames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5/30/2014 A Noble Cause x VDF Bella Ghazi . . . . . . . . . . . 5/31/2014 Noble Supreme CRF x Glamorize . . . . . . . . . . . 6/10/2014 Magnum Psyche x Marion Ames . . . . . . . . . . . 6/12/2014 Afires Heir x Alpha Phi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6/22/2014 Baske Afire x On Tulsa Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4/17/2014 Afire Bey V x Ames Patina . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5/10/2014 Sir Marwan CRF x Toi Jabaska . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1/01/2014 A Noble Cause x HA Sahara Fire . . . . . . . . . . . 5/29/2014 A Noble Cause x Madame Ghazi . . . . . . . . . . . 6/09/2014 Noble Supreme CRF x Colette Ames . . . . . . . . 6/14/2014 A Noble Cause x Lady Machine . . . . . . . . . . . . 6/20/2014

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Filly Filly Filly Filly Filly Filly Filly Filly Colt Colt Gelding Gelding Gelding Gelding Gelding

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Stallion Stallion Mare Mare Mare Mare Mare Mare Mare Mare Gelding Gelding Gelding Gelding Gelding Gelding Gelding

Noblistic CRF . . . . . . . . . . . Ames Imperator . . . . . . . . . Jordan Lady CRF . . . . . . . . Hannah Ames . . . . . . . . . . Ames Gypsy Moon . . . . . . Encores Touch CRF . . . . . . Ames Nutorious . . . . . . . . . Encores Love CRF . . . . . . . Anna Ames . . . . . . . . . . . . Sandra Ames . . . . . . . . . . . Noble Lad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sure Fire CRF . . . . . . . . . . . Im McDreamy . . . . . . . . . . MN Classic CRF . . . . . . . . . Encores Mark . . . . . . . . . . . His OwnMan CRF . . . . . . . Center Stage CRF . . . . . . .

Yearlings

2-Year-Olds

3-Year-Olds

A Noble Cause x Toi Jabaska . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1/29/2013 Afires Heir x Aria Endless Summer . . . . . . . . . 4/09/2013 Noble Supreme CRF x Royal Starina . . . . . . . . 3/10/2013 Brass x Afire Inmy Eyes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3/16/2013 Bey Ambition x Ames Mirage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3/25/2013 SHF Encore x Colette Ames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4/18/2013 Undulata’s Nutcracker x Toi Jabaska . . . . . . . . 5/20/2013 SHF Encore x Julietta Ames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5/29/2013 A Noble Cause x G Kallora . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6/17/2013 JA Urbino x Miss Mishah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6/30/2013 Noble Supreme CRF x HV Trinidoll . . . . . . . . . . 2/06/2013 Noble Supreme CRF x Stella . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2/25/2013 Matoi x Shady Baby . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3/11/2013 Audacious PS x Corssica . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3/15/2013 SHF Encore x My Proud Mary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5/04/2013 Baske Afire x Gunning For Roses KCF . . . . . . . 5/09/2013 SHF Encore x Stella . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7/09/2013

SYNONYMOUS ENGLISH ... CONWAY ... THEISEN

Expertly bred ...

Nite Trane CA (Coltrane SS x Nite Heiress)

The Conway Team has made a major commitment to building a breeding and training program that will enhance the English Performance division. With the arrival of our 2016 foals, we are excited to show you the results. We invite your inquiries on sales and breedings.

Conway Arabians 18080 Cty 2 • Chatfield, MN 55923 • 507-867-2981 • 507-202-4440 • 507-867-0060 barn • lori@conwayarabians.com Trainers: Tom Theisen • 404-304-9955 • tommytheisen@yahoo.com and Jennifer Schmitt

www.conwayarabians.com

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Noble Rendezvous (IXL Noble Express x Renee Afire)

Will be competing in the 2016 AEPA $100,000 Arabian Saddle Seat Futurity.

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M att Siemon

2015 Leading English Trainer

Our facility has been blessed with some of the best horses in the country, who are owned and ridden by some very special people. We feel honored to have been entrusted by you to work with you and your great horses. Our amateurs are special and you are what makes all the hard work worth it. From the experienced adults to the munchkins just beginning their careers ... you are the best. Thank you each and every one." â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The Siemon Family

Siemon Stables, Inc. Chuck, Matthew and Luke Siemon 9311 Lower Valley Pike, New Carlisle, Ohio 45344 937-849-1487 â&#x20AC;˘ www.siemonstablesinc.com

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A lejandro

2015 Leading Half-Arabian English Performance Horse

GSF

and Bill Castro | Kettering, Ohio

2015 â&#x20AC;Ś Unanimous Buckeye Champion ATR Unanimous Canadian National Champion ATR Unanimous Canadian National Champion Open Unanimous U.S. National Champion Open U.S. National Reserve Champion ATR

Photo by Brianna Burnham

(VCP Magnifire x Gingerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Dance)

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2016 SCOTTSDALE UNANIMOUS CHAMPION ENGLISH PLEASURE

3x U.S. National Champion | Afires Heir x Noble Aphroditie | Proudly bred & owned by Karlton Jackson

Proudly owned by Candace Avery For breeding information, contact Kiesner’s Joel’s Cell: 865-556-0413 • Ashton’s Cell: 865-556-0412 Ar abian Horse Times | 18 | English

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4 TIME UNANIMOUS U.S. NATIONAL

CHAMPION

Afire Bey V x Brassmis, by Brass • Proudly owned by Bill & Shirley Reilich • Standing at Kiesner Training • 865.984.5245 AEPA Enrolled Sire • Breeders Sweepstakes Nominated Sire • MN Medallion Stallion • SCID Clear • www.AfiresHeir.com

QH QH Serengeti 2011 Black Stallion Black Daniels X My Love Song by Allience+//

2015 US NATIONAL TOP TEN AEPA Arabian Horse Times $100,000 Arabian English Pleasure Futurity 2014 US NATIONAL TOP TEN Arabian English Pleasure Futurity Breeders Sweepstakes Nominated Sire SCID & CA Clear

Standing at Stachowski Farm 12561 State Route 44 Mantua, OH 44255 330-274-2494 Ar abian Horse Times | 21 | English

Owned & Bred by Quarry Hill Farm 345 Sharon Road Lakeville, CT 06039 860-435-2571

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ENGLISH COVER STORY

vj Royal Heir ENGLISH

COVER

STORY:

by Anne Stratton

VJ Royal Heir. Son of Afires Heir. Grandson of Afire Bey V. “At this point, he’s almost an outcross,” jokes Joel Kiesner, who stands Kelli Aguirre’s VJ Royal Heir at stud. “You’re not breeding to Afire Bey V anymore, but this horse has the look of a direct son—or of Afires Heir—because of the neck and that certain swagger these bloodlines come with. It’s prepotent enough that those qualities are lingering on, but with all the other influences.” Kiesner trained Royal Heir through a show career that included two U.S. National Championships in English Pleasure (open and junior horse) and generated a lot of interest in his potential as a sire. This year the stallion offers his fourth foal crop, enough for observers to draw conclusions, but because his oldest are just now entering English training, only the beginning for seeing how they perform. In particular, Kiesner is seeing two dominant qualities: neck and trot. “He really stamps them; there is no question,” he says. “I’ve seen enough now [to know] that it’s very consistent that he’s adding neck to everything, and he’s passing on a lot of trot—the big kind of rolling trot he has. He has a lot of suspension himself, and it looks like the babies are going to have it too.” He cites three examples of what he means. Among the earliest to go public will be Aguirre’s Royal Heiress SOF (x BL Miss Chips, a daughter of U.S. and Canadian National Champion Rumina Afire), who now is aiming at this year’s English Pleasure Futurity. “She’s a beautiful, high class mare, and we think she’s pretty special,” Kiesner says. “She’s bay, with a beautiful star and big bright

eyes, and she’s always looking at you. When she takes off trotting, she’s built to do the job. She has tons of shape to her neck, and you’re never going to have to worry about getting her head up. You’re just going to tip her nose in, and it’s a very flexible neck. She has that same lofty, slow—almost like slow motion—way of going.” The second is the yearling Regal Heir PVS, bred by Michael Aponte III. Out of the MHR Nobility daughter Nobility Miss, he has a certain look, Kiesner says. “He has a crazy neck, a beautiful eye, really tight, shapely ears, and he has a great front end and great back end. His granddam is out of MG Baskhari, and those who have been around a long time will probably remember her.” And third is Aguirre’s 2015 colt out of A Love Supreme, a mare whose name has been up in lights lately as the dam of the AEPA’s 2015 Arabian Horse Times $100,000 Arabian Futurity winner. Kiesner smiles when he describes the youngster. “He’s a beautiful colt that knows he’s special and he’s just waiting to show the world,” he says. “Until that time comes, he’ll do it for one visitor to his pasture at a time if he must.” In fact, the colt’s quality is such that if all goes well, he may be Aguirre’s next stallion prospect. As for the future, Kelli Aguirre reports that as she speaks with the people who have supported VJ Royal Heir with mares, she finds the outlook promising. “It’s thrilling for me to see people so excited about their babies.” “When the Royal Heir foals start showing, they are not going to disappoint,” Joel Kiesner says. “They are going to leave a mark.” ■

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Todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s English Horse The bar for English horses in the Arabian and HalfArabian industry has always been set high. Over the years we have seen the division progress and grow into an exciting one to be part of. In an ever-changing world, the quality and specialization of todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s English horse is phenomenal, thanks to those whose talents and dedication are focused on ensuring their success and popularity. In the following special feature, AHT asked todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s talented individuals who are invested in the English horse, questions regarding current issues on the growth and development of this division, from quality, shoeing, and the impact of certain classes, to who could be and is a star. As the English horse continues to evolve, one thing remains constant: the love and passion for the English discipline continues to shine at its brightest. From individual winners, to trainers, owners and breeders, there is a constant need for more talent, and those leaders can be found here.

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ENGLISH

Lara Ames

Candace Avery

Lara Ames Cedar Ridge Arabians, Jordan, MN

of my favorite moments in English and driving classes involve him. He is beautiful and does all with grace.

The bar for the English horse keeps getting raised. Would you attribute this to the quality of horses getting better, training, or a combination of both? I think we could attribute to both. We have bred amazing horses and the trainers are doing an excellent job in training them.

Candace Avery Kiesner Training, Louisville, TN

If the shoeing rules that apply today, would have existed 25 years ago, do you think the horses that were winning back then could win today? For sure. There was some greats from the past: Orans Adagio, Countess Vanessa, MHR Nobility, FF Summerstorm. In the last couple of years, the judges have done a great job making sure that country horses were country, and English horses were English. How do we get more competitors involved in the park division? I do not think there is much separation between the English and park divisions. We need to do a better job clarifying this as we did with the country. Do you think the AEPA Futurity classes have helped make the market stronger for selling and breeding? Yes. Anytime people can win prize money, they are anxious to breed or buy. I think the next step would be breaking these divisions up at Nationals. It appears that a purebred Arabian country horse does not have as strong a market as a Half-Arabian country horse, can you explain why? That is hard to answer, but there may be more ways to show a Half-Arabian country horse. They are more marketable to the youth, as a lot of them show in the Saddle Seat Equitation division. What horse not trained or bred by you do you wish you could have been associated with in the saddle seat division? Adams Afire. To me he is just breathtaking, and some

The bar for the English horse keeps getting raised. Would you attribute this to the quality of horses getting better, training, or a combination of both? I was really impressed with the quality of English horses at the last U.S. Nationals. There are some really excellent English trainers who are setting the highest standards and producing performance horses that are exceeding expectations. I also believe the quality of the horses has generally improved. Breeders have really become more focused, pairing the right mares to the right stallions in order to maximize the qualities of each. There is a new generation of fantastic stallions today producing amazing performance horses. If the shoeing rules that apply today, would have existed 25 years ago, do you think the horses that were winning back then could win today? I don’t think so. The paradigm for English horses has changed so much; today’s English horses are much bigger and able to achieve so much more motion. The horses of today can perform at a much higher level than ever before. In the last couple of years, the judges have done a great job making sure that country horses were country, and English horses were English. How do we get more competitors involved in the park division? That’s a challenge because the expectations for a park horse are so high, that there are very few horses that can achieve them. Breeding for a park horse, and getting one, is so very rare! Do you think the AEPA Futurity classes have helped make the market stronger for selling and breeding? Yes, I think it’s a terrific program and has helped immensely

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Bill Castro

to throw the spotlight on the English horse. It definitely provided an incentive for me last year to have my trainer, Joel Kiesner, compete in the AEPA class on my stallion Saxton DGL. Winning a lot of money certainly helped! It appears that a purebred Arabian country horse does not have as strong a market as a Half-Arabian country horse, can you explain why? I can’t explain this. It is still a surprise to me! Your dream pedigree for a purebred and/or HalfArabian saddle seat horse would be? I already have my dream horse, Saxton DGL, a purebred five year-old stallion. Joel Kiesner showed him in the Futurity in 2014 and won the class and then showed him again in the AEPA last year, and he went Reserve Champion. He has everything I ever wanted in an English horse: beauty, a great neck, motion, great hind end, intelligence, and manners! We just started to breed him this season, and I am excited to see his foals next year! What horse not trained or bred by you do you wish you could have been associated with in the saddle seat division? Afires Heir, all the way! Bill Castro Siemon Stables. New Carlisle, OH The bar for the English horse keeps getting raised. Would you attribute this to the quality of horses getting better, training, or a combination of both? I feel that it is both the quality and the training. I also think the level of amateurs ride equally to the pros. Many amateurs compete on open level horses! If the shoeing rules that apply today, would have existed 25 years ago, do you think the horses that were winning back then could win today? Not equally, as I think the breeding of performance horses has improved.

In the last couple of years, the judges have done a great job making sure that country horses were country, and English horses were English. How do we get more competitors involved in the park division? I feel that the broken level of placing horses in divisions that were not to AHA specs, rewarded entries not suited for that division. It is just a matter of time till the ripple effect gets the right entries in the park division. Speed should be penalized and cadence, balance, and impulsion should be sought. Do you think the AEPA Futurity classes have helped make the market stronger for selling and breeding? Yes, but we also need to get people into our breed. These are all good steps and in the right direction. It appears that a purebred Arabian country horse does not have as strong a market as a Half-Arabian country horse, can you explain why? Having shown Saddlebreds and Arabians, I feel the Half-Arabian is still the best of two breeds! I love my Half-Arabian/ Half-Saddlebreds. Your dream pedigree for a purebred and/or HalfArabian saddle seat horse would be? Afire Bey V and a Saddlebred. I am very partial to VCP Magnifire, VJ Royal Heir, and Vegaz. What horse not trained or bred by you do you wish you could have been associated with in the saddle seat division? Second Editions Debut, GTF Beetlejuice, and Adams Fire. Lori Conway Conway Arabians, Inc., Chatfield, MN The bar for the English horse keeps getting raised. Would you attribute this to the quality of horses getting better, training, or a combination of both? Definitely

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ENGLISH

Lori Conway

John Golladay

both. There is no doubt that the conformation characteristics have evolved to be more vertical in frame and motion on today’s Arabian and Half-Arabians. If the shoeing rules that apply today, would have existed 25 years ago, do you think the horses that were winning back then could win today? It is NOT the shoeing rules that have created the English horse that we have today. With that being said, a few of the great horses from 25 years ago would still be winning regardless of what was on their feet, but the majority would not. The style and carriage has evolved since then. In the last couple of years, the judges have done a great job making sure that country horses were country, and English horses were English. How do we get more competitors involved in the park division? I think it is time to remove the restrictions on “if you compete in the country division, you cannot go in the English division at the same show.” We don’t have restrictions in any other division, and if this was removed, I feel a shift will happen to improve the park and English divisions. People want to compete against horses. Nobody wants to go in a one horse class. Horses have the ability to change their frame and their motion depending on who is riding them, so why not let them compete in the different English divisions at a horse show? The Amateur and Youth English/Park divisions would surely benefit from this adjustment. As long as the judges adhere to the class specs for each division, I think it would be an interesting and positive evolution in the English division. This idea is from Rob Bick, and I think it is a good one.

Do you think the AEPA Futurity classes have helped make the market stronger for selling and breeding? ABSOLUTELY! The market is stronger and breeding has increased. It appears that a purebred Arabian country horse does not have as strong a market as a Half-Arabian country horse, can you explain why? That is new news to me. Really? The only reason I figure anyone is ever saying such a thing is because of a size preference. The majority of people are bigger and probably feel more comfortable on a bigger horse. Your dream pedigree for a purebred and/or HalfArabian saddle seat horse would be? Conway Arabians has certainly had good luck using Afire Bey V, IXL Noble Express, El Ghazi, MHR Nobility, Afires Heir, Baske Afire, Barbary, Hucklebey Berry, *Bask, and now hopefully, Coltrane! What horse not trained or bred by you do you wish you could have been associated with in the saddle seat division? My first pick would be Huckleberry Bey. I loved his personality and ease of moving. My second choice would be Afires Heir; he has the whole package and is doing a great job as a sire.

Hunters can change their frame and be a show hack horse or a western horse. Reining horses can change their frame and be a western pleasure horse or a hunter. Why can’t open country horses be English amateur or youth horses at the same show? ...Just a thought. :-)

John Golladay Golladay Training @ Cedar Ridge, Jordan, MN The bar for the English horse keeps getting raised. Would you attribute this to the quality of horses getting better, training, or a combination of both? I think that the bar for the English horse is in constant evolution. Breeders and trainers have dedicated themselves to that over the past 50 years. So, to say that the bar is getting raised, is more or less in comparison to the past. And many of those horses of the past were freaks of nature in their own right. I believe we have to attribute most of

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Vicki Humphrey

our change to the evolution of the sport, which would include every detail from shoeing, sports medicine and training, to specialized breeding.

What horse not trained or bred by you do you wish you could have been associated with in the saddle seat division? Hallelujah Bask.

If the shoeing rules that apply today, would have existed 25 years ago, do you think the horses that were winning back then could win today? Today we have the flexibility (regarding shoeing rules) to help these horses as much as we can. Saying that, I think there were some great horses of the past that, it would not matter what was on their feet, they still would win today.

Vicki Humphrey Vicki Humphrey Training Center, Canton, GA

In my opinion, every horse is different and has a different flight pattern regarding his range of motion, so in all cases, we should shoe these horses to benefit that individual’s natural range of motion. Many of the great ones of the past could, and only wore plates. So yes, they probably would turn a couple heads today. In the last couple of years, the judges have done a great job making sure that country horses were country, and English horses were English. How do we get more competitors involved in the park division? Compared to the recent past (last ten years or so), I actually think the park classes have been pretty full, and the quality has definitely risen in the past couple years. I know at every national show, Youth, Canada, and U.S., the purebred and Half-Arabian park numbers have been up. And have been exciting to watch! So, that seems like a good sign. Do you think the AEPA Futurity classes have helped make the market stronger for selling and breeding? Absolutely. I don’t know where our industry would be without people and programs like this dedicated to making our sport and breed better. Crucial. Your dream pedigree for a purebred and/or HalfArabian saddle seat horse would be? Bask x Heirs Noble Love.

The bar for the English horse keeps getting raised. Would you attribute this to the quality of horses getting better, training, or a combination of both? The bar is high. The training rises to the expectations of that bar. Although I think training techniques are always evolving and improving, and as trainers we have refined our skills, most of all, they are more specific. We ask for a more extreme carriage and more extreme eﬀort from our horses. We show them less often in order that they can perform at the level we expect. If our horses were tennis players or golfers who had to compete every weekend, we would train much more for endurance and conditioning and less for a brief high level of performance. Our trainers are highly talented as are our horses, but I think the raising of the bar is a result of the need to meet the expectations of owners in an extremely expensive and competitive sport. If the shoeing rules that apply today, would have existed 25 years ago, do you think the horses that were winning back then could win today? We have focused our breeding for the last twenty years on producing horses specific to our disciplines. The breeding of English horses has focused a great deal on high necked profiles as well as motion. If horses such as FF Summerstorm, Featurette, and Nobility wore the pads and shoes we are allowed today, we could have a great comparison of our breeding programs then to now. We have higher necked horses now, but the great horses then, would be great now.

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ENGLISH

Joel Kiesner

In the last couple of years, the judges have done a great job making sure that country horses were country, and English horses were English. How do we get more competitors involved in the park division? A great park horse is the epitome of our English division. It is understandable that there are less of them. Now that we have made strong definitions between English and country, the true park horse with cadence and balance and frame should have a place in our class line up. Do you think the AEPA Futurity classes have helped make the market stronger for selling and breeding? The classes are extremely popular and have showcased the English division well. It appears that a purebred Arabian country horse does not have as strong a market as a Half-Arabian country horse, can you explain why? I am not sure that is the case for the adult division, but in the youth division, equitation is a major interest and the Half-Arabian country horse can serve as an equitation mount as well. Your dream pedigree for a purebred and/or HalfArabian saddle seat horse would be? An After Shoc son with eight crosses to Bask out of a Baske Afire daughter, out of a Barbary daughter, out of an Eter daughter. Joel Kiesner Kiesner Training. Louisville, TN The bar for the English horse keeps getting raised. Would you attribute this to the quality of horses getting better, training, or a combination of both? I would attribute it to Afires Heir and excellent training. I would also actually attribute it to a decline in people breeding that aren’t as serious about what it takes to breed a great horse. The people involved now are very serious and very thoughtful and know what it takes to make a great horse. The overall quality has improved due to the breeding

programs we have today. Afires Heir though, has raised the bar immensely with what he is producing and what his progeny is accomplishing as well. Enough can’t be said about the trainers we have in our business and how thoughtful they are in what they do. We have some of the highest quality people in our breed training horses. If the shoeing rules that apply today, would have existed 25 years ago, do you think the horses that were winning back then could win today? I feel that some of them could win today, though there was a different look then. Horses were smaller and didn’t bridle like they do today. When Bask came onto the scene, he really stood out because he looked different and then he produced horses that looked different, changing the standard. Combine the changes from Bask with what Sheila did, and the horses became overall more elegant with better necks and more motion. We have blended the good parts of what was then and weaned out what didn’t work. Also, trainers have learned from trainers past and grown from what they did and work through it. In the last couple of years, the judges have done a great job making sure that country horses were country, and English horses were English. How do we get more competitors involved in the park division? I don’t feel that the park classes have been that bad. Since the park is the most extreme, it only makes sense that fewer people are in it. I think there will be more park horses in the future due to breeding, but it will never be as big as the country division due to the physical abilities of the horses. They are simply not the same. Do you think the AEPA Futurity classes have helped make the market stronger for selling and breeding? Does the sun rise and set every day? Absolutely, yes, this has helped make the breed stronger and the market, as well. The more things we have like this, the stronger the breed would be. The format of the classes are slightly different

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Tish Kondas

which makes it incredibly exciting to watch and also to compete in. There is nothing like riding in these type of classes. They are popular, yes, because of money, but also because of fun it is to be a part of it. People love to watch these classes, and if we continue to grow these type of events, the breed and market will grow with it. People want excitement and the AEPA classes oﬀer that. It appears that a purebred Arabian country horse does not have as strong a market as a Half-Arabian country horse, can you explain why? The diﬀerence in a purebred country horse vs. a Half-Arabian country horse would be that for one, a purebred is not as much fun to ride as a Half-Arabian. The Half-Arabians are more of the ideal saddle seat horse with long necks and easy to bridle. People spend more money on these type of horses because they are more fun to ride. A purebred can be hard to find with the neck, motion and overall look. However, don’t worry, because with the stallions out there today like Afires Heir and Royal Heir, these purebreds are being bred. Your dream pedigree for a purebred and/or HalfArabian saddle seat horse would be? I have been fortunate enough to have ridden some of them and have bred some of them as well. If I had to narrow it down, I would pick Afires Heir for the stallion and then on the dam side, Nobility/El Ghazi something, that still produces the neck, motion, tail, and look of the horse. What horse not trained or bred by you do you wish you could have been associated with in the saddle seat division? That is an easy answer for me. Bask would be who I would pick. To have been a part of the life of a horse like that, would have been incredible. Might as well reach for the stars, right?

Tish Kondas Showtime Training Center, Newnan, GA The bar for the English horse keeps getting raised. Would you attribute this to the quality of horses getting better, training, or a combination of both? Both. If the shoeing rules that apply today, would have existed 25 years ago, do you think the horses that were winning back then could win today? I wasn’t showing at the national level 25 years ago, but from what I have seen in pictures and learned from my mentors, I do believe the greats from back then would still be winners today. With that being said, people still need to be reminded that the shoeing rules changed for a lot of positive reasons. Length of foot, the use of pads, and weight makes for a crisper gait. It also keeps horses more comfortable, balanced, and organized. The rules need to stay this way. In the last couple of years, the judges have done a great job making sure that country horses were country, and English horses were English. How do we get more competitors involved in the park division? I think the park division goes in waves. It takes the right horse with the right style and motion to be a great park horse. I think in recent years, more participation is starting to happen. A lot of great English horses are crossing over into park and doing it extremely well: PF Tonka Toi, Eves Fire, and Defying Gravity RGS, just to name a few. Do you think the AEPA Futurity classes have helped make the market stronger for selling and breeding? The original idea behind the AEPA is good for breeding and sales. However, there are still a lot of details that need to be worked out before it gets the full support necessary to be great.

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ENGLISH

Renee Kramer

Peter Stachowski for Quarry Hill

It appears that a purebred Arabian country horse does not have as strong a market as a Half-Arabian country horse, can you explain why? If the purebred country division isn’t as strong as the Half-Arabian division, I feel this is due in part to the loss of so many great Arabian stallions. It has been difficult to find out crosses to what we currently have.

Do you think the AEPA Futurity classes have helped make the market stronger for selling and breeding? Somewhat.

Your dream pedigree for a purebred and/or HalfArabian saddle seat horse would be? Arrowheads Unlike Any Other x Premaghaza. This is the perfect combination of Blue Norther on the Saddlebred side, and El Ghazi, Pro Fire, and Bask on the Arabian side.

What horse not trained or bred by you do you wish you could have been associated with in the saddle seat division? Hard to say, I like a lot of them!

What horse not trained or bred by you do you wish you could have been associated with in the saddle seat division? HBB, Bask, and Can Can Dancer. Renee Kramer Red Tail Arabians, Elk Mound, WI The bar for the English horse keeps getting raised. Would you attribute this to the quality of horses getting better, training, or a combination of both? I would say both. The quality is certainly a large factor. If the shoeing rules that apply today, would have existed 25 years ago, do you think the horses that were winning back then could win today? Perhaps a few, but again, the horses have changed a lot. In the last couple of years, the judges have done a great job making sure that country horses were country, and English horses were English. How do we get more competitors involved in the park division? Boy, I think if they got to try a park horse, many would convert. I think to many, it seems the park horses are hard to handle.

It appears that a purebred Arabian country horse does not have as strong a market as a Half-Arabian country horse, can you explain why? I wish I could.

Quarry Hill Farm Kevin Dwyer and Bill Bohl, trainers, Lakeville, CT The bar for the English horse keeps getting raised. Would you attribute this to the quality of horses getting better, training, or a combination of both? A combination of both. If the shoeing rules that apply today, would have existed 25 years ago, do you think the horses that were winning back then could win today? We imagine they could.

In the last couple of years, the judges have done a great job making sure that country horses were country, and English horses were English. How do we get more competitors involved in the park division? KD: Move some English horses into the park division. BB: In my opinion, you would have to revise the shoeing rules. Do you think the AEPA Futurity classes have helped make the market stronger for selling and breeding? Not necessarily, but it is an exciting class to witness what a three year old can do and also with the money involved, it becomes more interesting.

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Carmelle Rooker

It appears that a purebred Arabian country horse does not have as strong a market as a Half-Arabian country horse, can you explain why? BB: I feel the judges need to regulate this a little more. Also, Half-Arabians are bigger and many people are looking for bigger horses. Your dream pedigree for a purebred and/or HalfArabian saddle seat horse would be? KD: Undulata’s Nutcracker and Barberry Bey bloodlines. BB: Of course, our QH Serengeti (Black Daniels x My Love Song, by Allience+//) with a broodmare with some Comet blood in it. What horse not trained or bred by you do you wish you could have been associated with in the saddle seat division? KD: Countess Vanessa. BB: Afires Heir. Carmelle Rooker Rooker Training Stable, Inc.. Fenton, MI The bar for the English horse keeps getting raised. Would you attribute this to the quality of horses getting better, training, or a combination of both? I believe the English pleasure bar is being raised due to the specific breeding and English attributes being bred into our horses. The quality of the horses, and the natural talent they possess, definitely have an impact on the trainability of the individual horse. If the shoeing rules that apply today, would have existed 25 years ago, do you think the horses that were winning back then could win today? The shoeing rules would have helped. Some of the great individuals could certainly still win today, but for the most part, I think the English horses have evolved; each generation being a little better than the one before. With the extreme necks

and gifted motion comes some weaknesses that will need to be monitored by knowledgeable breeders in the future to ensure our English horses continue on the path they are on. In the last couple of years, the judges have done a great job making sure that country horses were country, and English horses were English. How do we get more competitors involved in the park division? Getting more competitors in the park division is going to require the trainers to show the great English horses in the park division. Do you think the AEPA Futurity classes have helped make the market stronger for selling and breeding? Absolutely. It appears that a purebred Arabian country horse does not have as strong a market as a Half-Arabian country horse, can you explain why? I think it goes in cycles. I feel like comparing a Half-Arabian to a purebred of the same caliber will get you the same market (the purebred may bring a higher price). Your dream pedigree for a purebred and/or HalfArabian saddle seat horse would be? For a purebred I love the Apollopalooza horses crossed on Afire Bey V bloodlines. For a Half-Arabian, I am a fan of a well-bred Saddlebred crossed on most all of the Arabian English sires. What horse not trained or bred by you do you wish you could have been associated with in the saddle seat division? There are so many great English horses that I wish I was associated with! LOL! Very recently, Heirs Noble Love. I guess I’m distantly associated through AA Apollo Bey.

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ENGLISH

Marty and Tim Shea

Marty Shea Shea Stables, St. Clair, MI The bar for the English horse keeps getting raised. Would you attribute this to the quality of horses getting better, training, or a combination of both? I believe that everything is betting in the industry as a whole. The horses, the training—the best of every facet of our industry has grown. If the shoeing rules that apply today, would have existed 25 years ago, do you think the horses that were winning back then could win today? If you go back 25 years for shoeing references, we would be in the year 1991; a couple years before that would be 87 or 88, and that’s when they first were able to put a pad with the shoeing. To answer the question though, I do feel that the horses then could compete today. At that time is when I was involved with Huckleberry Bey and he won with Gene Lacroix. I still feel that today he would be just as competitive. Yes, of course our horses have changed and grown, but with the proper training, I feel that they could still win among our horses today. In the last couple of years, the judges have done a great job making sure that country horses were country, and English horses were English. How do we get more competitors involved in the park division? I don’t totally agree with that statement. I think there are a lot of horses that should be English that compete in the country and English horses that should be moved up to park. I feel for the park division, there needs to be more emphasis put on square motion and, that unfortunately, the park class has lost some prestige. It used to be a big deal to win the park class, but over the years it has become a smaller division to compete in. The English division has put too much emphasis on motion and not on overall form. There are country horses that I believe

are still too hot and too tense in the class that could easily be bumped up to English. If these issues were addressed, I feel that the divisions would even out more. If more horses moved up to park, then I feel that the division would gain its prestige back. Do you think the AEPA Futurity classes have helped make the market stronger for selling and breeding? Yes, I do think it has made it stronger. The class is so exciting to watch and really amps up U.S. Nationals for that Saturday night. It is also a great opportunity for a young trainer to participate in and be a part of. To have a young horse win that class really brings a lot of publicity to the stallion that sired that winner. It brings a whole new reputation for that stallion and that breeding program as a whole. It appears that a purebred Arabian country horse does not have as strong a market as a Half-Arabian country horse, can you explain why? I don’t know that to be true. I see just as many purebreds being trained and bred which makes more purebreds available today. Your dream pedigree for a purebred and/or HalfArabian saddle seat horse would be? For me, the ideal pedigree are the ones with multiple crosses back to Bask. What horse not trained or bred by you do you wish you could have been associated with in the saddle seat division? It would Comet. This horse sired a lot of great park horses that were imported in the late 60’s and early 70’s. His sons and daughters would go on to be national champion park horses. A horse today that has been very successful is Heirs Noble Love, and this mare has two crosses back to Comet.

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Chuck Siemon

Chuck Siemon Siemon Stables, New Carlisle, OH The bar for the English horse keeps getting raised. Would you attribute this to the quality of horses getting better, training, or a combination of both? For sure it is a combination of both. We are breeding better individuals and the training and expertise is second to none. Our breed has some of the best trainers in the world. Maybe we are prejudiced, but we are proud of the quality of people in our industry. And a competitive group of men and women which makes it a lot of fun for us all. If the shoeing rules that apply today, would have existed 25 years ago, do you think the horses that were winning back then could win today? Absolutely … some of the horses would compete on the same level as today’s horses. We were only allowed a 4 inch foot and a 12 oz. shoe with no pads. Today we would consider those plates. In the last couple of years, the judges have done a great job making sure that country horses were country, and English horses were English. How do we get more competitors involved in the park division? I think our true park horses today are fantastic. I do not think we need to worry about filling the class; it will take care of itself. Every discipline today demands quality with talent. Park may not be for everyone, but to ride a “true” park horse is an unbelievable thrill. Do you think the AEPA Futurity classes have helped make the market stronger for selling and breeding? Most definitely, the AEPA Futurity has helped our breeding. The prize money and the way the class is held has truly enhanced breeding to the nominated sires. It appears that a purebred Arabian country horse does not have as strong a market as a Half-Arabian country

horse, can you explain why? I disagree … we have just as big a market for the purebred country horse as the Half-Arabians. Your dream pedigree for a purebred and/or HalfArabian saddle seat horse would be? By Afire Bey V and out of a Hucklebey Berry/Barbary bred mare. What horse not trained or bred by you do you wish you could have been associated with in the saddle seat division? There are so many ... countless through the years, but one that comes to mind is definitely, Orans Adagio. Peter Stachowski Stachowski Farm, Inc., Mantua, OH The bar for the English hone keeps getting raised. Would you attribute this to the quality of horses getting better, training, or a combination of both? Both. Within the past 30 years, we have seen a change to more sophisticated breeding. People now breed for a specific horse—English, western, halter. We should be getting better horses because people have been breeding specifically “for English performance” horses. In regard to the trainer, 1). It is easier to train a horse that is built (was bred for) the task he/she is asking to perform, and 2). With age comes experience, and we’re all very old. If the shoeing rules that apply today, would have existed 25 years ago~ do you think the horses that were winning back then could win today? Yes. An exceptional horse that won in the past is no different than an exceptional horse that wins today. Having said that, the shoeing options we have today would have definitely benefited the horses of the past. These options provide for a more customized approach to each horse’s individual need. Lastly, the changes have helped the Half-Arabians. The additional toe length and shoe support are healthier for these large horses.

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ENGLISH

Peter Stachowski

Tom Theison

In the last couple of years, the judges have done a great job making sure that country horses were country, and English horses were English. How do we get more competitors involved in the park division? I think the winning English horses could be great park horses. In fact, I think they would elevate the quality of the park horse class. I would like to see some of the English horses go into the park class, and I think they could excel in that division. Do you think the AEPA Futurity classes have helped make the market stronger for selling and breeding? Yes, it allows breeders and trainers to showcase their young talent in a specific class. It presents the talent to an interested audience and creates enthusiasm to breed English performance horses. It appears that a purebred Arabian country horse does not have as strong a market as a Half-Arabian country horse, can you explain why? I actually don’t agree. I have just as many Arabian country English pleasure horses as I do Half-Arabian country English pleasure horses. In fact, some people prefer the smaller purebred to the larger Half-Arabian.

English performance horses and training methods have been evolving over the years and will continue to do so. Sure, the horses are better overall, thanks to some very astute breeders. It’s far easier for the horses today, who are conformed for this particular division, to perform with ease. Each new generation of trainers brings their own strengths to the table, as well as tools we/they learned from their mentors. If the shoeing rules that apply today, would have existed 25 years ago, do you think the horses that were winning back then could win today? I was fortunate to have been in the business 25 years ago and got to see many of the greats of that era. With a few exceptions, I don’t believe with current shoeing rules, that the majority would be winning today. As wonderful as they were, horses have improved and have become more specialized through the years; as it should be.

Tom Theisen Conway Arabians, Inc., Chatfield, MN

In the last couple of years, the judges have done a great job making sure that country horses were country, and English horses were English. How do we get more competitors involved in the park division? This may or may not be a popular response, but what I remember most about the great park horses from the past, is that they had great suspension, that extra spring in their step, more air time, something we are often lacking today. I often hear people say that the English pleasure horses today are the park horses of the past. While that may be true in some cases, I think for the most part, they are in the correct division. One of the many reasons we chose Coltrane SS as our breeding stallion is that he possesses both the neck and poll so needed in the English division, and that strength and power in the backend that provides for suspension.

The bar for the English horse keeps getting raised. Would you attribute this to the quality of horses getting better, training, or a combination of both? Both for sure!

Do you think the AEPA Futurity classes have helped make the market stronger for selling and breeding? No question about it, the AEPA classes have had a huge

Your dream pedigree for a purebred and/or HalfArabian saddle seat horse would be? Crans Adagio x M Govenors Miss. What horse not trained or bred by you do you wish you could have been associated with in the saddle seat division? Ericca.

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Jacque Thompson

impact. We see it both in the purchasing end, as we have been acquiring great mares, and in sales, as demand for quality English prospects is up. It appears that a purebred Arabian country horse does not have as strong a market as a Half-Arabian country horse, can you explain why? We certainly have had no difficulties selling purebred country horses. I do know that the Half-Arabian country horses have become the “go to” horse for the equitation division, which is huge. We show in most divisions and, to be honest, we find that it is always easy to sell a horse that is great in any discipline. Your dream pedigree for a purebred and/or HalfArabian saddle seat horse would be? My dream pedigree would include Afire Bey V, IXL Noble Express and El Ghazi. Those are the proven lines that we believe in and utilize in our breeding program. What horse not trained or bred by you do you wish you could have been associated with in the saddle seat division? That’s a tough one, there are so many! FF Summer Storm, Ice On Fire, Adams Fire and Gai Argosy are just a few that come to mind. Jacque Thompson Smoky Mountain Park Arabians, Lenoir City, TN The bar for the English horse keeps getting raised. Would you attribute this to the quality of horses getting better, training, or a combination of both? In the case of Smoky Mountain Park Arabians, the improving quality is due primarily to improved breeding as opposed to improved training methods. Of the top ten and national champion horses at U.S. in 2015 that were by Baskghazi and/or The Renaissance, three of four were ridden by three different trainers out of three training programs. That was our best showing to date and leaves

the common denominator for our wins being the SMP superstar breeding stallions. If the shoeing rules that apply today, would have existed 25 years ago, do you think the horses that were winning back then could win today? That is an interesting question. I don’t think the new shoes would affect past horses’ ability to win, but the shorter necks compared to today’s longer necks probably would. In the last couple of years, the judges have done a great job making sure that country horses were country, and English horses were English. How do we get more competitors involved in the park division? It would be nice if we would take a look back at the AHA rulebooks from past decades when the park horse class was far more distinctive and was popular with exhibitors. That would allow us to see what earlier generations were doing right in regard to park and English pleasure class descriptions. I recall in decades past that the rules were written with a great deal of difference between the two classes. Even today, trainers talk about a park trot that is distinguishable from the same in English pleasure. Should we choose to recognize the park trot, to define and condense it down to words in the rules, then the rules themselves would serve as a guide for trainers, buyers, breeders, judges, spectators and exhibitors. Define the gaits in the park horse section of the rules, and participation should improve. Also, returning to the roots of the original park horse could be useful in finding our way back to a purposeful, popular park class. Early on in my riding career, I was told the park horse was so named because it was originally developed to impress onlookers in the city parks, back when walking on foot and riding horses were common modes of transportation as well as a pastimes. I was told that a park horse’s collection, animation, height of all three gaits and relative slow speed were all

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ENGLISH

Mary Trowbridge

designed to give the park’s patrons both a reason to look, as well as a really good look at what the rider hoped was the showiest horse on the bridle path. Eventually, park horses became show horses, and in my mind should retain the qualities that inspired people to fancy them in the first place. Your dream pedigree for a purebred and/or HalfArabian saddle seat horse would be? This spring, The Renaissance foals from my oldest Baskghazi daughters are hitting the ground and are getting the best qualities that my gifted studs pass along, so to me, that is a dream pedigree. What horse not trained or bred by you do you wish you could have been associated with in the saddle seat division? By far, the horse I would pick would be Bask, due to his great influence on the English division. Mary Trowbridge Trowbridge’s Ltd.. Bridgewater, CT The bar for the English horse keeps getting raised. Would you attribute this to the quality of horses getting better, training, or a combination of both? In my opinion, this is the result of an increase in the knowledge of all involved, from judges to owners, riders, trainers, breeders, veterinarians, farriers and even spectators. We all know a great deal more about what a sound, comfortable horse looks like than ever before, and you seldom see one that doesn’t fulfill the specs of the class, regardless of the size of the show. This has had both positive and negative implications for the English division. On the very positive side, the horses that are competing are the soundest they have ever been in my entire career, and virtually every English horse you see in the show ring, even at Class A level shows, are good, sound representatives of the breed standard and performance specifications of each division. The negative

impact is that this has greatly affected the NUMBER of English horses exhibiting, and it has also impacted most people’s ability to maintain and develop an English horse on their own, without benefit of a full time manager/ trainer if they aren’t able to commit a very significant amount of time to this themselves. The understanding of what an English horse should look like has moved horses that don’t fit the criteria into other divisions, such as hunter or sport horse classes, leaving just a few good individuals to compete against each other in the myriad of classes that exist for English horses. If the shoeing rules that apply today, would have existed 25 years ago, do you think the horses that were winning back then could win today? Yes, of course, they would have. Shoeing is a developmental tool for the equine athlete just like proper footwear is to a human athlete. Shoeing does not make an equine athlete gifted, any more than wearing Stilettos will turn me into a Rockette or ballet slippers into being able to sport a tutu and dance for dollars, regardless of how hard I work at it. Tools and training don’t create athletic ability, but they can keep the athlete sounder and give it more longevity and ease of ability in performing to its peak abilities In fact, if we had the knowledge thirty years ago that we have today, we would have many, many more exceptional athletes that would have survived and contributed. Memory is a fickle friend—we lost massive numbers of great athletes in the past to tendon and ligamentous injuries such as bowed tendons, terrible suspensory tears, and other career ending sports injuries that are being alleviated by more ability to deal with each horse’s specific issues today. In the last couple of years, the judges have done a great job making sure that country horses were country, and English horses were English. How do we get more competitors involved in the park division? I don’t

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think I agree that as judges we’ve done that great a job differentiating between the two, and I believe that the entire community is responsible for that, right alongside of us as judges. The country pleasure division was instituted to support the horses that had English carriage, but not the extreme athletic ability and work ethic of an English or park horse, and for a little while that worked. However, it’s evolved into a division that requires as much forward impulsion as the higher motion English divisions, and as a community of trainers, exhibitors, spectators, and BUYERS of horses, we have looked for that and embraced it. While I think the country classes are lovely, they no longer support the English style horses that don’t have extremity of motion—those horses have moved to the hunter divisions. I don’t think there is enough differentiation in the performances of the two divisions; whether I am judging or simply walking up to the ring to see what’s in there, I need a schedule to tell me whether it’s a country or an English class, because all of the horses are being exhibited the same way from the park division to the country division. We have got to embrace as a community that we need to revisit the rules that differentiate these three divisions. Do you think the AEPA Futurity classes have helped make the market stronger for selling and breeding? Certainly, the AEPA has added excitement through prize money and a good venue for 4 year old horses. I think it has accomplished the goal of giving breeders who love the discipline an incentive to breed horses for that marketplace, and it has heightened the awareness of English style breeding programs, all to the betterment for the English division. I do also think, however, that the emphasis the program made on defining a particular STYLE of English horse has impacted the English division, and therefore the breeding and selling market, by attempting to influence the style of the English type horse too much, and that has negatively impacted the lines that didn’t fit their standardized “picture” that accompanied the program when it first debuted. Prior to the birth of the program, we had different styles of English horses competing in our English classes that included many horses that, while they didn’t have extreme neck carriage, had other beneficial traits, such as extreme hock action and four cornered strength of motion, for instance. When the AEPA was born, the association made a big push to “define” the “perfect”

English style horse for the community, and I think they’ve been very successful at that. However, through that narrowed image, along with some other factors like transported semen, we have lost lines that don’t conform to the accepted silhouette of the neck and carriage and front end, but that brought great value to the breed through added hind leg strength and four cornered trot. It appears that a purebred Arabian country horse does not have as strong a market as a Half-Arabian country horse, can you explain why? Half Arabians, or designer horses, are a better bet and easier, overall, for amateurs to attain carriage and motion from. Your dream pedigree for a purebred and/or HalfArabian saddle seat horse would be? A horse with strength in the bottom tail female line. *Eter was a sire who never was embraced that much, as he had a very straight neck, but his daughters and granddaughters produce strong horses with exceptional work ethics a couple generations out. And I’ll add to that, that those direct descendants were TOUGH suckers! But anything with Comet in the pedigree has always been my favorite. What horse not trained or bred by you do you wish you could have been associated with in the saddle seat division? Cease Fire, along with a lot of other great *Bask sons and daughters, was always a favorite, one of the quintessential English pleasure horses who I would have loved to have been a part of. He was a wonderful sire as well, and never got as much acclaim as he should have. The first great park horse I saw was Ambra, also, of course, by *Bask. I was about 14 years old and had never seen a *Bask horse before; I saw her at the New Hampshire All Arabian show when Amie Aquaviva showed her as a 3 year old, before she went to Lasma. She as wild there, but trotted with her front legs over the top of the rails even then, with a 4” toe, no pad and 12 ounces. I saw her later at my first Nationals in Louisville with Ray, and will never forget how it looked like her feet never touched the ground when she trotted, and when she broke, it was like she was taking flight— my favorite kind of ride, still to this day. Would have loved to ride her and learn from her—I still think about her every time I’m sitting in an airplane as it takes off. Cathy Vincent Adandy Farm, Greenwood, DE The bar for the English hone keeps getting raised. Would you attribute this to the quality of horses getting better, training, or a combination of both? The bar has been raised by miles in the English division! I contribute to breeders becoming more particular in their breeding programs. I have to give Sheila Varian a powerful

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Cathy Vincent

amount of credit for creating such beautiful athletes; Tim and Marty Shea, along with the Linigers/Maroon Fire Arabians, for seeing the potential in Afire Bey V, and many others as English breeding horses; and the LaCroix family for their influence in breeding and training. We as trainers have been blessed with better stock to do the job. There is nothing in the world more exciting then standing out in center ring watching my friends and incredible horsemen and women compete for the title of national champion in the English division—it gives me chills! If the shoeing rules that apply today, would have existed 25 years ago~ do you think the horses that were winning back then could win today? Oh shoeing rules ... I believe that we are breeding and training better individuals for the job. I am not one to train nor show my horses in “big” packages. So with that said, I believe breeding has more to do with our talented horses then shoeing. In the last couple of years, the judges have done a great job making sure that country horses were country, and English horses were English. How do we get more competitors involved in the park division? The true park horse is a gifted individual with talent and high energy. I believe that some of the English horses in the show ring today need to move up to the park division. The EEC has done a wonderful job educating

the judges; maybe they need to spend a bit more time on the park division verses English. There is a distinct difference between the two. It would be thrilling to watch an arena full of fantastic park horses at the Nationals again! Do you think the AEPA Futurity classes have helped make the market stronger for selling and breeding? I am a believer in the AEPA! Glad to see the western folks creating a new futurity. I think they will find a large increase in sales and breeding as well. There is no doubt about the fact that the AEPA has raised the bar in many ways. It appears that a purebred Arabian country horse does not have as strong a market as a Half-Arabian country horse, can you explain why? I wasn’t aware of that. I sell more purebreds then Half-Arabian country horses. Your dream pedigree for a purebred and/or HalfArabian saddle seat horse would be? My dream pedigree is purebred ... Afires Heir out of the National Champion Scarlet O Butler who is sired by Gitar MF—which has just been done and awaiting pregnancy results in two weeks! What horse not trained or bred by you do you wish you could have been associated with in the saddle seat division? Afires Heir. ■

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2015 National

English Leaders

Defying Gravity

Overall Arabian & Half-Arabian Leading Horses by number of wins Owner 1. Defying Gravity RGS 4 championships Cheryl Doran 2. GSF Alejandro 3 championships, 1 reserve Bill Castro 3. Americanbeautie 2 championships, 1 reserve Shamrock Farms LLC 4. JSN Manhattan 1 championships, 2 reserves Jennifer and Emily Schwing 5. Admire The Fire 2 championships North By Northwest LLC Afires Sunset 2 championships Channing and Hollis Turner Brimstone B 2 championships Jennifer Schwing DA Heatstroke 2 championships Remington Monroe Equine LLC Eves Fire 2 championships Starline Arabians LLC Halsteads Watchme 2 championships Jenna TeKolste James Brown 2 championships Lindsay O’Reilly French KW Hero 2 championships Kingswood Farms Love Sick 2 championships Conway Arabians, Inc. Nutcracker Sweet PF 2 championships 6D Ranch Ltd. Toi Showgirl 2 championships Mackinley Wilson Arabian Leading Horses by number of wins

GSF Alejandro

1. Defying Gravity RGS 2. Brimstone B DA Heatstroke KW Hero Love Sick 3. A Revelation BHA Goblet Of Fire CCF JA Mustafire Mandalay Bay Noble Reward Notorious Afire VA SA Gisele

4 championships 2 championships 2 championships 2 championships 2 championships 1 championship, 1 reserve 1 championship, 1 reserve 1 championship, 1 reserve 1 championship, 1 reserve 1 championship, 1 reserve 1 championship, 1 reserve 1 championship, 1 reserve Half-Arabian Leading Horses by number of wins

1. 2. 3. 4. Includes U.S., Canadian and Youth National English Champion and Reserve wins. AEPA Saddle Seat Futurity, English Pleasure, Country English, and Park Horse classes. Open and amateur/junior classes only.

GSF Alejandro Americanbeautie JSN Manhattan Admire The Fire Afires Sunset Eves Fire Halsteads Watchme James Brown Nutcracker Sweet PF Toi Showgirl

3 championships, 1 reserve 2 championships, 1 reserve 1 championships, 2 reserves 2 championships 2 championships 2 championships 2 championships 2 championships 2 championships 2 championships

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Owner Cheryl Doran Jennifer Schwing Remington Monroe Equine LLC Kingswood Farms Conway Arabians, Inc. Mary Jo Meier Karen Kelder Art and Elizabeth Bartlett Hawk Haven Farms LLC Conway Arabians, Inc. Karen and Mikayla Michels Starline Arabians LLC

Owner Bill Castro Shamrock Farms LLC Jennifer and Emily Schwing North By Northwest LLC Channing and Hollis Turner Starline Arabians LLC Jenna TeKolste Lindsay O’Reilly French 6D Ranch Ltd. Mackinley Wilson

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by number of winning get 1. Afire Bey V 2. Baske Afire 3. Afires Heir 4. VCP Magnifire 5. Matoi Vegaz

Overall Arabian Leading Sires by number of wins 37 1. Afire Bey V 26 2. Baske Afire 12 3. Afires Heir 9 4. Vegaz 8 5. IXL Noble Express 8 Matoi VCP Magnifire

Arabian Leading Sires by number of Arabian winning get by number of Arabian wins 1. Afire Bey V 12 1. Afire Bey V 2. Afires Heir 9 2. Afires Heir 3. Baske Afire 7 3. Baske Afire 4. Vegaz 6 4. IXL Noble Express 5. XL Noble Express 5 5. Vegaz by number of Half-Arabian winning get 1. Baske Afire 15 2. Afire Bey V 13 3. Matoi 4 4. Allience 2 Ariberry Bey V 2 Mamage 2 VCP Magnifire 2 Vegaz 2 Overall Leading Open Trainers by points (Top Ten included) 1. Matthew Siemon 93 2. James Stachowski 71 3. Jason Krohn 70 4. Jessica Clinton DeSoto 63 5. Joel Kiesner 59 6. Joel Gangi 58 7. Kevin Price 46 8. Jonathan Ramsay 43 9. Shawn Rooker 35 10. Gordon Potts 33

25 22 10 8 5 5 5

18 10 8 7 6

Afire Bey V

by number of Half-Arabian wins 1. Afire Bey V 19 2. Baske Afire 18 3. Matoi 6 4. VCP Magnifire 5 5. Mamage 4

Baske Afire

Overall Leading Owners by number of horses 1 Starline Arabians LLC 2. Lindsay Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Reilly French Kirby Arabians LLC 3. Burrline LLC Conway Arabians, Inc. Crescent Creek Farms LLC Leslie Palmer Garvis Madge Hester Mark and Deborah Himmel Vicki Humphrey Natalie Lindmark Linda Misco North By Northwest LLC Helen Lacey Reed Remington Monroe Equine LLC Jennifer Schwing Nancy Shafer Shamrock Farms LLC

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5 3 3 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

Arabian Leading Owners by number of horses 1. Starline Arabians LLC 2. Conway Arabians, Inc. Crescent Creek Farms LLC Lindsay Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Reilly French Kirby Arabians LLC Remington Monroe Equine LLC

3 2 2 2 2 2

The English Evolution by Mary Trowbridge

As in all things, evolution is assured. Just as social media, rap music and the internet are affecting and evolving the English language, so have innovations and changes in areas that include urban and societal trends, and training techniques along with major advances in farrier and veterinarian knowledge have affected the English Pleasure horse that we see in our show ring today. One of the many definitions of evolution is “the gradual development of something, especially from a simple to a more complex form.” This suits me well in regards to this article. The genesis of the saddle seat style of riding reaches back thousands of years, as noted Saddlebred trainer and author Smith Lily states in the beginning of his excellent book titled, Saddleseat Horsemanship, “The beautiful statue of Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius, dated 176 AD, shows that the principles of saddle seat riding are as timeless as horsemanship itself. From the beginning of mankind’s relationship with the horse, people have delighted in riding a horse of high spirits, proud carriage and an exuberant way of going.” The statue in the picture shows Aurelius mounted on an extremely high necked, collected horse trotting level in front, with a deeply engaged hind leg. As time progressed, the high necked, high motion saddle seat style of horse grew in popularity. In Victorian times, the English, or saddleseat style of riding moved to include not just emperors, conquerors and kings, but people riding in the parks on Sundays, intent on showing off their finery on the most charismatic, eyecatching horses. In the 1800’s in eastern European countries and Spain, the high-necked, high-energy horses were also coveted by cavalries of different countries to improve the breeding of cavalry mounts who would have the ability to perform the advanced dressage maneuvers that were taught to mounts for close-combat fighting assistance that are known today as the “Airs Above The Ground” commonly performed by the Lipizzans. I’ve been riding and training English style horses for a while now—it’s been pretty much a half a century. That’s hard to admit, since I still think of myself as the new kid on the block, especially now that there are so many really, really great new kids on the block; I wonder how to ever catch up. But I have seen some changes. Some good, some not so much, maybe, but evolving nonetheless.

When I first began showing my Arabian “English pleasure” gelding in 1972 at age 13, there was no question that the saddle seat discipline was popular and the English classes were full of entries. There were only two divisions of English type riding, English pleasure and park. At that time, in the 70’s and 80’s, Arabians had a hoof length limit of 4 inches, and no pads were allowed, along with a shoe weight not to exceed 12 ounces, and it was not uncommon at all for horses to compete in English, western, costume and trail at the same show. It was doable because the frame was basically the same for each discipline, and the training consisted mainly of being sure your horse would pick up correct leads and stop and start when you wanted them to. There were no hunter pleasure or country pleasure classes at Arabian horse shows, only the aforementioned, and of course, halter with just a bit of reining thrown in for flavor. No sport horse classes either. English classes were large at the few Class A shows there were, with 20-30+ horses common at the few big shows across the country, and at those, there might be eight or ten total English classes, including park. These classes were large for a number of reasons. There were much fewer Arabian clubs, and therefore significantly less Arabian shows to vie for competitors. Secondly, many exhibitors, if not most of us, were able to keep our horses at home in small barns and paddocks, whether it was one or two horses as in my case, or five or ten that people bred and sold. Land was cheaper, and urbanization had not yet taken up large tracts of it. If you had someone in your area to take lessons from you were lucky; luckier than me for sure. There were small breeding farms that catered to local populations, and many of them had their own stallions that bred area mares of all breeds. There was no transported semen yet, and owners promoted their own stallions to small breeders in the area. The horses that we showed and trained ourselves were seldom high end performers—they walked, trotted and cantered (most of the time), and hopefully, you learned to keep your hands quiet enough so that they wouldn’t knock your teeth out when you put a curb on them. There were certainly more and more great horse trainers emerging in those years, but the majority worked for larger breeding farms and trained and showed the farm-bred and owned horses. Amateur and junior riders were still doing it

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primarily on our own, because we had the time and property to keep horses at home, and we all went to the horse shows and club meetings to see each other a few times a year to stay connected with your friends, see each other’s horses, and indulge our passion for the Arabian horse together. Veterinarian care consisted mainly of worming. Shoeing was a simple thing, as the majority of the breed still had little or no fold to their front end motion, or necks either, for that matter— frankly, you could have hung a cinder block on the majority of the entries in the English division and it would not have affected their motion one iota. Now don’t shoot me—there were some great horses emerging that were ahead of the curve for sure, horses that blew my mind, like *Oran Van Crabett, Barbary+++/, Lewisfield Nizzof, Heritage Aiglon, *Sambor, and Mt. Hope Dahab, to name some of the great ones in the New England area where I grew up who would compete once a year at the AHANE show for us all to see. But these extreme athletes were still the exception, not the norm. Sires that would change the breed and the discipline, such as *Bask, Bay El Bey, Barbary and Huckleberry Bey, were just beginning to make their mark on the English style of breeding, training and showing, but without transported semen, their progressive effect on the breed and the English discipline as a whole was much slower. In the late 70’s and 80’s, a number of major changes occurred that began a seismic effect on the English division especially, although some impacted the entire Arabian breed. Probably the most profound change for the breed as a whole came in 1977, when the Arabian Horse Registry approved the use of transported semen. Not only did this provide a base revenue for farms through mare care and board, it also significantly increased the gene pool available to the breed. Once transported semen became a reality, *Bask+++ became the first stallion to sire over 1,000 foals, and the type of horses competing and winning in the English divisions began to radically change within five or six years as more and more foals were produced that began to fit today’s definition of an English pleasure style horse. In 1982 the National Show Horse Registry was born specifically to create high-necked, high motion horses that were Half-Arabian and Half-Saddlebred. Prior to the advent of the NSH registry, many of the successful Half-Arabians were purebred horses that were unable to be registered for various reasons, such as high white or body spots, which weren’t allowed on purebreds at the time, or ones who had been imported and not met the American registration criteria. Other Half-Arabians were almost entirely out of grade mares of all different types; people seldom bred a registered mare to a different breed of stallion. Only after creating a registry that encouraged the breeding of one purebred breed to another, the Half-Arabian/Half -Saddlebred cross, did we begin to see consistency of type emerging in the Half-Arabian English pleasure and park divisions. Not only did the style of the saddle seat horses begin to be more consistent in look and motion, but

we began to produce horses that were significantly larger than the purebred Arabian horse and who needed more length of foot to be safely and soundly shod. Two other major changes as the 80’s drew to a close that had a huge impact on the entries in the English divisions were the creation of the country English and the hunter pleasure divisions. The genesis for the additional divisions came from the desire to make a place for horses that were currently showing in the English division who a.) had high carriage but not high ambition or motion, and b.) horses with lower neck carriage who still had a forward mentality that was not suited to the western divisions. Additionally, the apprentice trainers who had worked across the country for various great horsemen were beginning to build their own businesses that were focused around amateur riders more than ever before, and the amateur division was becoming increasingly competitive. The late 80’s also saw the beginnings of the age divisions in amateur classes, and the advent of the split between youth classes, 18-40 and the 40+ group. Not long after that, Youth Nationals was born, and a few short years later Sport Horse Nationals, as the U.S. Nationals continued to face huge struggles accommodating the numbers of horses, disciplines and classes that were trying to converge all together in one venue at the end of the competition year for the U.S. National Championship Horse Show. In the late 1980’s the shoeing rule was amended for the first time since the inception of the rule, to move the length of foot from 4 inches to 4 and 1/2 inches, the weight of the shoe from 12 to 14 ounces, and also to include for the first time, the ability to utilize a single leather pad. Prior to this change, one of the most common leg injuries being experienced in the English division horses were bowed tendons and destroyed hoof walls, rendering horses unable to be shod, as the repetitive pounding of the hoof against the metal, with no leather to either absorb the shock or encompass the exterior wall of the foot, left the hoof extremely vulnerable to ripping and wall destruction. Additionally, veterinarian medicine was beginning to explore vast new areas of care, in all breeds and disciplines. I can still remember the first time I saw MHR Nobility with Gene LaCroix at U.S. Nationals on his return after having a chip taken out of his stifle in l989. I think he was among the first to have benefitted from what today is a common protocol. I will never, ever forget the huge difference it made in that great horse’s soundness, which led to greater height of motion, speed, and carriage than I had ever seen on an English or park horse before that. This seems like a good spot to comment about the number of entries that were filling the park classes in the past. Those classes were admittedly larger than today’s. However, the majority of the horses (and please remember that I am not saying ALL) were horses that performed in a manner that was not rewarded in the English pleasure classes, and not all were simply horses with more motion and energy. The horses winning in the English pleasure

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classes were well mannered, smooth moving, and performing on a comparatively light rein. The winners rarely ever broke gait or swapped a lead. Those that couldn’t meet those specifications were the ones considered “park” horses, and not all were ones with extreme motion. When we look at the videos today, we would almost all marvel at the lack of soundness in those horses, and today’s exhibitors, breeders, spectators and owners would all recognize that most if not all of the behavioral issues that made these entries “park” horses were in fact soundness related. While there were certainly many gifted individuals that showed and won in the park division, the simple fact was that even they were not as sound as the horses in our show ring today, and many of the other horses that competed who made up the number of horses competing in the division were decidedly less so. So where is the English division today vs. this historical narrative? As always, progress isn’t ever completely positive, and even that when it is, can be an easy target for contention. To fairly discuss the state of the English division, and all performance divisions today, it’s crucial for us to recognize the changes and their effect on what we see, both good and bad, so that we can continue to morph and build a sport, regardless of our discipline, that we all love and want to endure. One major change for all the divisions, is that our breed has morphed in the last twenty years from a primarily spectator event where open horses were shown in disciplines to highlight breeding programs, to an almost exclusively participants’ event, where amateurs are learning, riding and enjoying their horses more than ever before. This has impacted the open divisions dramatically, and with added pressure for amateurs to have more opportunity to show their horses at expensive events, the open divisions continue to shrink, since our knowledge of soundness, both mental and physical, has grown in leaps and bounds, along with our understanding that many behavioral issues that we used to see at Arabian shows (issues that incidentally gave credence to the “crazy Arabian” myths) are in reality, a strong, enduring breed’s reaction to physical pain.

put aside our sense of personal entitlement to what has brought us success in the past, to examine honestly, what will better serve the horse, the discipline and the breed in the future. Some of the challenges to growing the discipline are already being addressed and acted on. It’s crucial for the coming decade that as a community we continue to embrace and build the leveling system of dividing the amateur divisions so that new riders coming onto the show scene feel they are competing against people of similar experience and background. There’s no question that ‘select’ was a great addition for the breed in all divisions, but we have already hurt the original intent of the division, albeit inadvertently, when we added the next two levels and adopted a point system that is currently allowing riders who will tell you themselves, that they should not be eligible to ride in the select division any longer. As much as we hate to continue to change our rules, we owe it to ourselves and the breed to address the point system until it is truly making riders comfortable that they have an area where they can compete against their experience level. It’s crucial for the success of the efforts across the country, to help this breed survive and to bring new people into the show world through lesson programs, that the select division remain an obviously entry level class. Along with that, we need to allow ourselves as competitors to move away from age division classes, other than the 55 and over, and embrace the other new leveling divisions so that these flourish and survive. However, the select division remains, in my mind at least, the one that is most important to the growth of the breed as a whole and the English division in particular, and must be constantly evaluated and its integrity and intent protected at all costs.

To fairly discuss the condition of the English division today, I think it’s also important for us all to realize that this division is the only one in a very, very versatile breed that encompasses three different styles of horses within it, i.e. the country English pleasure, the English pleasure and the park horse. While other English style breeds also encompass these styles, they don’t see the depth of versatility within their breed across all divisions that we see within the Arabian breed.

Another issue, one that is most visible in the English divisions but that affects them all, is our current shoeing regulations. I am most definitely a proponent of being able to care for our horses in an individual manner as their conformation demands, and when we discuss this very contentious issue, we need to put aside, again, what may work for us individually and look at this issue from a perspective that takes into account all that is involved. The rules that we are currently showing under are the second rule change in my career, and the passing of this current one was much different than the first, back in the late ‘80’s. While I agreed then and still do that we need to be able to shoe horses differently today because of what we as a group have bred, this particular rule change opened the door too wide and too quickly, and frankly occurred with too little discussion and education about what affects and improves soundness vs. what is affected motion.

There are, in my opinion, changes that must be made to enhance the English division as a whole that we as a community have not yet had the collective courage to take on. If those of us who are most active in the arena today are truly invested in not only the present, but the future of the Arabian breed and our specific discipline of choice, then we owe it to ourselves and the horse to

There is no question that we have bred, as I stated above, larger horses in our Half-Arabian division and even in our purebred ranks that must be able to be shod with a length of foot that is appropriate to their size, and the 5” length rule for Half-Arabians accommodates that. As a breed, regardless of discipline, we have to accept that one of the greatest mistakes

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we’ve made as breeders over the last 40-50 years is that we have bred inconsistent front feet into our breed at a scope that is almost universal. This is something that cannot be laid at any one discipline’s door, or even one country—inconsistent front feet angles can be found all over the world, and as a global community, we didn’t realize the impact this would have as our disciplines progressed and evolved. The effects of what we currently call high-low front feet, meaning that one front foot has a high heel, the other a low heel, we now know affects virtually every aspect of the horse’s training, performance and soundness, regardless of the discipline. Today we are more knowledgeable about soundness as a group than ever before, and even the new eye can often pick out the gait deviations or performance issues that show pain reactions and effects on a horse’s carriage and position. The balance in our horse’s feet affects them all the way up through the limbs to the neck, thoracic cavity, back and sacroiliac, and even has a dramatic effect on one of the Arabian horse’s most signature traits, their tail carriage. Especially today, as every horse bred must have a way to live a productive life in order to survive, it’s crucial that we not only be able to shoe these horses in a manner that helps them stay sound, but we have to make a renewed push to educate owners, trainers and farriers around the country in the newest ways to manage what most horsemen, vets and farriers will agree is the basis to keeping a horse sound. While we need the ability to accommodate these crucial soundness issues to the best of our current ability, we also are in a climate where we have to consider the external perspective as we look to expose our horses to new marketplaces and introduce our horses outside of their borders. We also have to accept that the intricacy of shoeing under these current rules takes a specialist in a fading professional field, the show horse farrier, and that without a substantial educational effort to inform both at-home owner trainers, as well as farriers not familiar with this approach, we will continue to narrow the competitive field to that of the professionally managed English horses. These considerations can also be morphed to improve the distinction within our show ring between the different styles of English horses exhibiting. I will stand by my statement that shoeing cannot make an untalented, non-athletic horse talented and athletic, but our current rules do allow us to enhance motion to a degree that we are unwilling as a community to discuss. Until we accept this fact and incorporate it into our discussions of where we should be, we are simply not facing a reality that must be part of the same conversation that discusses how shoeing affects soundness. I also believe that the English divisions would be best served with revisiting and discussing both the expectations and the specifications surrounding our divisions that would encompass not only shoeing differences between that of the country, English and park divisions, but performance differences as well. Currently we look at the country division as the starting place for novice

amateur riders, with the English division being something to aspire to as horsemanship improves. Unfortunately, some of the things that are currently built into the specifications for the country division make this a more difficult division for new riders—perhaps it is time for us to change our thinking and understand that some of the things we are currently doing for all our English division horses, such as shoeing with heavier shoes and no limit on the number of pads, and training, showing and judging with emphasis on complete commitment to forward momentum, might in fact be better suited for the higher energy/ motion divisions, and that the country class could become a more intricate horsemanship event with performance on a light rein called for at all gaits, and less shoeing allowed that still allows us to care appropriately for our horses. Perhaps it’s time for us to consider that 5 inches isn’t extreme for any horse, purebred or Half-Arabian, but bands give a perception to the outside eye that isn’t in the best interest of the growth of our breed. Perhaps we need to discuss and consider whether as judges, trainers, owners and spectators, we are asking too much of our three year old horses in the name of early marketing, by expecting them to compete with flawless performances, flat-footed walks and yet extreme motion and brilliance in the English futurity classes. I believe that our training, breeding, ownership and horsemanship is the best it has ever been in my three plus decades of training and showing, and that virtually all of the horses that we see competing today are in venues suitable for their abilities that they are well trained and prepared for. However, what we haven’t done yet has been to look beyond our current accomplishments in perfecting performances and soundness care to how we can grow the breed and the show ring so that it can survive into the 21st century, the first one where horses are no longer critical for the survival of the majority of the human population. I believe that they still are, but we as a group have to be able to put aside our devotion to our personal tools of success and attempt to imagine a brave new world, to coin Aldous Huxley, where the Arabian breed is the leader of the equine world, as it should be, not the follower. Ultimately, we are living in an unprecedented era of knowledge and ability to perfect the craft of horsemanship, training, and riding that we all love deeply and consider a life-passion. However, we have to also accept that our knowledge and ability to affect our horses must be coupled with an appreciation that extremes are not necessarily extremely good, and that if we don’t continue to address our breed and areas of expertise from within with an eye to all involved, not just ourselves, then we will both lose support and participation. Even worse is that outside scrutiny from those not involved will, in this day of internet and imperceptible spying, attempt to contort and regulate for us in ways not in the best interest of our horses, if we don’t continue to examine where we are today and lay the groundwork for where we want to be tomorrow. ■

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SHINING ENGLISH STARS a n d Kathe rin e Kirby

A Thousand Stars

2X U.S. National Champion 1X U.S. Reserve National Champion

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Ar abian Horse Times | 47 | English

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GOLLADAY T

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Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Black and White ...

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Apollopalooza x Starkhana

B R AC H R TA

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Afire Bey V x IXL Miss Firef ly

U N A N I M O U S CA N A D I A N N AT I O N A L C H A M P I O N A N D S CO T T S DA LE R ES ERV E C H A M P I O N EN G LI S H P LE A S U R E O P EN Scottsdale Signature Stallion | Minnesota Medallion Stallion | AEPA Enrolled Sire 2016 Stud Fee: $3,000

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Baske Afire x Ghreta by El Ghazi

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HOWARD SCHATZBERG PHOTO • 2015

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