BrooKVille
A a ians LLC
“This is my signature as a breeder: I’m all about type. Beautiful faces, beautiful bodies, and great motion. And this ideal informs my dream for Brookville: a farm
that excels in breeding, showing, and marketing great Arabian horses.”
That’s Annabella Gelbard musing on the future as she introduces a new staff, and, as she says, “It’s a whole new page. A new era. Totally!” As David and Annabella Gelbards’ Brookville Arabians, LLC, in Scottsdale, Arizona, enters its eighth year, Annabella is kicking things up a notch with the hiring of halter trainer Jordan Simons. “Jordan is up-and-coming and he has the drive. I wanted somebody who was a go-getter,” says Annabella. “When I interviewed him we talked about how he handles horses, and the
interview was so effortless I knew he’d be a perfect fit. He came straight from the airport to the open house I had at Brookville. He rolled up his sleeves and boom, he just took over. And it was beautiful to see. Everyone enjoyed themselves. They drank, they ate, they had lots of fun while the rain poured down. And that was the beginning of Jordan’s association with Brookville. He’s really a great guy. It’s nice to actually say that and mean it and feel it.” Another newcomer to Brookville is Ally Nelson, breeding and office manager. “Ally is just a super girl,” says Annabella. “I was thrilled that both she and Jordan are familyoriented. I met Jordan’s Mom and Dad and I saw that family connection, and meeting Ally and her husband and her son showed me that same connection. It’s nice to have people around me who share my values.” For Annabella, the farm allows her to express herself as an Arabian breeder, marketer, and entertainer (“I’m a party girl — it’s nice for
clients to have a good time when they come to see their horses!”). “I enjoy owning Brookville Arabians, LLC. It’s my baby,” she says. “I love knowing that my horses and my clients’ horses are in a very good, clean, healthy environment. I like the fact that people come and compliment the facility and our staff. I love the breeding aspect — I like to see the foals being born and I like to watch them grow. I like to see them move on and go to good homes. To know that you’ve marketed a really great horse and it’s gone on to win and make its owner proud and happy — that’s the part of the business I really like. Like just today we heard that a filly we marketed, *Valentyna F (Psytadel x Veronia) placed second in her class at the Dubai show. And of course I’ve met some incredible people through this business. And I enjoy that.” Head sire status at Brookville goes to the fancy chestnut Ames Charisma (Magnum Psyche x Ames Mirage), clearly Annabella’s special pet. “When I first met Charisma as a foal I gravitated to his big, bulgy eyes. I’m an eye person. I like people to look me in the eye when they talk to me. You see the soul of the
2 b BROOKVILLE b WORLD
Above and opening page: Ames Charisma (Magnum Psyche x Ames Mirage), inset with Annabella Gelbard.
Above: The Ames Charisma daughter Bella Rose BVA (x FW Rosetta Rose). Right: The 2008 colt by Ames Charisma Mecca SA (x Mega Star LL).
3 b BROOKVILLE b WORLD
person through the eyes, and that’s what I saw in Charisma. When a horse or a person is unforgettable that means they’re interesting and exciting and they have a lot to offer. That’s Charisma. He’s never let me down. He has a following — people who love to breed to him every year, like Rhoda Coleal who just absolutely loves him and breeds to him every year. “Charisma is just as his name implies — charismatic and full of himself. He responds to situations, and I like that about him because I can read him. I know when he’s upset, I know when he’s down in the dumps, I know when he’s happy. He shows you that. “During Scottsdale, we had visitors at the farm, a group of gentlemen from Bahrain. They asked to see Charisma and when we brought him out they were mesmerized by him. They took pictures with him; they were so happy — they made phone calls to their friend in Bahrain who owns a Charisma daughter. They said they’re going to go home happy knowing
Jordan Simons
“This is the first time I’ve had the responsibility of being head trainer,” Jordan says. “So now everything is resting on my shoulders — it’s a whole different sense of responsibility. But that’s what all my hard work for other trainers has been
Jordan with Ames Charisma.
4 b BROOKVILLE b WORLD
Facing page: The stallion Staarwan (*Marwan Al Shaqab x C Star-
that they’ve seen a classic Arabian. That was a beautiful statement from those people. It made my day.” Annabella breeds for six to eight foals per year. Among her favorite broodmares is the Padrons Psyche daughter LC Pirouette (x WN Sultress). “She is awesome. All of her foals have sold easily either domestically or overseas. She crosses very well with every stallion. Other favorites are *Penny Carol (Lethyf El Jamaal x Harlekyne) and Ciara Bey (Bey Shah x TW Forteyna). “She’s getting up there in age but we’re going to see if we can breed her this year. You know that little child that you have that’s dear to you? That’s Ciara Bey for me. She’s my darling. And her daughter, Coco Chanel BVA (by *Gazal Al Shaqab), I love a lot. She’s going to be bred to Charisma this year so I’m looking forward to that because I bred Coco, and now I’d like to see what Coco’s going to give me. And I treasure Madonna BVA (Ames Charisma x GC Evita Padron). “Those mares give me that look that I’m searching for. There’s just
lite Bey), and his daughter Staarbella BVA (x Seleucia), above.
leading up to. I worked at Midwest for David and Terry Anne Boggs, then Greg and Nancy Gallún at Gallún Farms and Andy Sellman of Argent Farms. And I am grateful to each one of them for all that they taught me. David gave me my start and opened the doors. And with Andy and Greg, it was refining my horsemanship skills and experience in the show arena. I definitely want to thank Annabella for the opportunity she’s given me. “I never had horses growing up in Minnesota. One year my dad went to
Scottsdale for a business trip and ended up going to the horse show. He stayed there 15 hours and came back home all excited about it. And here I am. Arabians grabbed me because of their charisma and their natural beauty. That’s what I love. I was 12 when I started showing all in halter and I had a lot of success. My parents still have horses, in fact, together they own a mare who produced a filly I bred named Valori TRF (DA Valentino x Satin Chall LL). She was sold to Claire and Margaret Larson, and won 2009 U.S. National
Champion Breeders Sweepstakes Yearling Filly. “What excites me about Brookville is the new challenge and opportunity to be the head guy with different horses and getting to make my own decisions about which horses to show. I’m young but I’m experienced and I am going to go the extra mile to get on top. I have the drive. For clients, Brookville is a great place to be. I love the facility — it’s one of the best, and the staff is great. My goal is to help Brookville to become one of the elite farms in the business.”
5 b BROOKVILLE b WORLD
something about the look in their eyes and the feeling you have when you look at them. People look for those long, long, long necks and I feel that when you have that long neck, you kind of lose the type. So I prefer to have my horses in that square box. I want them to fit in there. Totally balanced. I love a flat topline. And I like motion. There’s nothing like a mare that can move — she’s just so sexy and so elegant and just full of herself and so proud — that’s what I like to see. “I always wanted to have my own place to keep my personal horses and focus on breeding. I never thought about training. When I had the foals on the ground I realized that I either had to send them away for training or keep them here. So it was more for personal reasons that the training center evolved. I like to have as many client horses as the barn can hold. I love that because you have variety. I like dealing with people. Right now my group of clients are phenomenal. Clients are going to be happy if they’re taken care of, and they will be
MP Carizma (Enzo x Cariala).
Ally Nelson
Pictured with Muhajer BVA (Ames Charisma x Penny Carol), owned by Dr. Ghanem Mohamed Obaid Al Hajri.
“I grew up with Arabian horses and rode as a kid with Rick Nab,” says Ally. “More recently I worked with Equine Image Center with Ricardo and Riyan Rivero. I received my bachelor’s degree from Cal Poly Pomona so I spent a lot of time at the W. K. Kellogg ranch learning about the breeding practices, herd health management, and was also able to ride some very nice horses. Here at Brookville I am responsible for all aspects of breeding. These include: getting the mares in foal, collecting our beautiful stallions, foaling out mares and imprinting the foals. When I’m not in the breeding barn, you can find me in the office taking care of the day to day practices of running a farm, answering e-mails and phone calls, handling the billing, and making sure we have all the needed supplies on the farm. 6 b BROOKVILLE b WORLD
Madonna BVA (Ames Charisma x GC Evita Padron )
“I am very excited about being a part of Brookville, it’s like being in paradise every day. A girl couldn’t ask for more than a beautiful farm and exquisite horses! It was a great move for me. Jordan and I are young, motivated and excited to create new and fun adventures for this farm. We have a lot of great inventive ideas and cannot wait to show them to the world. “I do have a few favorites already. It’s funny how easy it is to become attached to these animals. Of course Ames Charisma is absolutely amazing, he’s the sweetest stallion. I trust Charisma around my two-year-old son, Brayden, who loves more than anything to be in the barn with
me. I have always had a soft spot for the stallions. I also love the mare Diammond Lil (Versace x LF Eursofab) who is absolutely gorgeous. She’s owned by Dr. Ghanem Mohamed Obaid Al Hajri. “My favorite part of my job is being with the foals. I absolutely love the little ones and just breeding in general. It’s very rewarding to get these mares in foal and to work hard for the clients because it’s what they love to do. It’s really neat to be a part of making their dreams and desires reality. We just had a beautiful Marwan filly out of Diammond Lil and we have her full sibling coming this June. There are also a few Ruminaja Ali babies due late
thankful if you tell them the truth. Don’t tell them only what they want to hear at that moment — that happens a lot in this industry, and it’s not the way to do business. I like to keep in touch with my clients. I want to be able to sit down at a table and have dinner with them. It’s about a long-term relationship. “When people come to Brookville looking for their first horse, I prepare them for the costs associated with horse ownership. There’s care and board on that horse and at a training facility, there are a lot of things that can add up: body clipping, supplements, or God forbid there’s an accident. We try to ascertain what exactly they are looking for — is it a breeding horse? Pet? Show horse? When people come, we do a presentation, and I have found that most people gravitate toward a certain horse because of its temperament, or what they sense chemistry-wise.” Of course with the sales, come the inevitable moments of seller’s remorse. “Do I ever regret a sale? Yes, absolutely. There was one
this year so we’re very excited to see those. Brookville has big plans taking place in the breeding barn right now so I’m very excited to see our 2012 foal crop. “When Annabella comes to the farm, we talk about our day and get a game plan going and then just enjoy the horses. She loves just spending time with the horses and she has a very close bond with Ames Charisma. He doesn’t see her all that often but when she walks through the barn he definitely recognizes her. It’s a pretty moving experience to watch. “As a young and highly motivated woman in this industry I see big things in Brookville’s near future!” 7 b BROOKVILLE b WORLD
mare in particular that I hated selling because my daughter loved her so much. She still looks at me sideways when the mare’s name is mentioned. “In addition to sales out of my own barn, we’ve done outside sales too. I sold a horse for Sheila Varian — Kwesturas Juell V, and Bob Pomeroy’s Major Jamaal, both to the Middle East. Some are horses that were here, but because of the economic situation have gone home, but we still feature them and try to market them through the website. Many people today make the mistake of not marketing their horse because of the economy and then their horse just disappears and then they’ve got no chance at all. We get a lot of e-mails Designed and produced by Arabian Horse World · 4/11
from people who are looking. You can never have everything on your farm … so instead of killing a deal or trying to sell them something that’s not quite what they want, I do like to keep abreast of what is being offered at other farms.” While Annabella and her family live in New York, she flies out to Brookville every four to six weeks. “I’m almost always there during Scottsdale, and throughout the summer months, when everything is quiet, I’m always there,” she says. “When I go to the farm I love to sit down, have my glass of wine or my bottle of water, depending on the circumstances and the mood, and just have a private presentation. That’s a must. I enjoy having horses in my
life. I enjoy owning them. I enjoy the client’s horses because I get to know their owners.” The farm life is vastly different from the Gelbards’ busy life in New York as parents of three: son Dylan, 16; Ryan, 9; and Makenzie 7. “Makenzie is interested in horses,” Annabella says. “The middle boy is more interested in computer games and my son Dylan is a musician; he likes rock music and his guitar. My husband loves horses, well, actually he loves all animals. In my other life, I am also a ballroom dancer. I go to competitions around the country. And I do the gym every day, and then there’s girl time every Thursday, lunches with a bunch of girlfriends. One needs that.” Looking to the future, Annabella hopes to see her daughter running Brookville one day. “A team of good honest people and happy clients, great Arabian horses, beautiful faces, bodies, motion, and movement — that’s what I’d like to carry on with until I hand the reins to my daughter.”
David & Annabella Gelbard 16106 E. Redbird Rd., Scottsdale, AZ 85262 www.brookvillearabians.com · 480-471-2285 Trainer Jordan Simons 612-710-6730 · jordan@brookvillearabians.com