Paradise
Arabians$
Story by Gary Kenworthy Photos by Gary Kenworthy, Suzanne Sturgill, Cookie Serletic, a n d Dav i d R e i s s i g
t was a cold and not very pretty Saturday in February, 1994. In fact, it actually spit snow that day, and Wanda, who hates being cold, was not particularly amused being at a horse show when we were supposed to be heading back home to Georgia where it was warmer. We were in Phoenix on a business trip. Well, I was there on business, she came along to enjoy the “warm sunshine” that area is known for; and she had packed clothes suitable for her vision of that destination — only. Oh, but what a fateful day it was to become! You see, my customer in Phoenix, after learning that I had a love for Arabian horses (even though I had never owned one) invited us to attend “The World’s Largest Arabian Horse Show” that was, coincidentally, taking place that very week in Scottsdale. Heaven only knows what I had to promise Wanda to get her to agree to extend our trip to attend this show. My powers of persuasion worked and she acquiesced, perhaps just to shut me up. As it turned out we somehow found
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Above: The 2005 straight Egyptian stallion Scapa (*Mishaal HP x Erie Anna by Thee Infidel). Facing page: The 1994 mare Alia Riyala (The Minstril x Aliala by Ruminaja Ali), Wanda and Gary Kenworthy’s first Arabian and the one responsible for putting Paradise Arabians on the map.
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West World and Wendell Arena, and it was packed with people screaming and cheering. Somehow Jim Maloney found us in the crowd and escorted us over to meet Jim and Judy Sirbasku, David and Marion Gardner, Jim and Carole Deegan, and Shawn Crews. Obviously, we had gotten there just in the nick of time because the introductions had to be interrupted when the ring announcer picked up her microphone and said (and I’ll never forget her words) “Ladies and gentlemen, we’ve had a lot of beautiful horses here in Scottsdale but never one so handsome as this year’s champion, Thee Desperado.” Now, that meant nothing to us, but it sure meant something to the people to whom we were being introduced! They were hugging and screaming and crying and laughing and jumping up and down. That’s when I noticed Wanda. She was right in there hugging and screaming, crying and laughing. That’s when I knew, “what a fateful day it was!” It was lifechanging and I thank God every day for putting me in that place, that day! I didn’t
Scapa, right, and pictured above with Gary Kenworthy enjoying an afternoon ride.
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Left: A 2010 colt by Scapa out of FOF Marzia by Padrons Psyche. Below: A 2010 grey filly by Scapa out of Minstrils Fair Lady by The Minstril.
know how I was going to do it, but I knew I had to be a part of it and Arabian horses were going to play a large role in our lives. Not long after that meeting we purchased our first Arabian horse. She was a four-day-old black straight Egyptian filly by The Minstril out of Aliala by Ruminaja Ali. We named her Alia Riyala and called her “Ally.” To say she turned out to be a good choice may be the understatement of the century. She put us on the map and when she was three she began her breeding career. In 2007, the cumulative value of the foals she produced eclipsed one million dollars. Some of the more notable
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Above: The 2002 straight Egyptian stallion The Singleton (Thee Desperado x Alia Riyala by The Minstril).
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in this group were Alia Shaniah, multi-champion at the Egyptian Event; SoVeign, 2004 Egyptian Event Junior Champion colt; and our senior sire here at Paradise, The Singleton, unanimous Egyptian Event Futurity Champion. Over the years we continued to add to our herd and one of the mares we purchased along the way was a daughter of Thee Infidel named Erie Anna, out of Imbadia EV. She is huge. A true 16 hands tall, she has a beautiful face and an extreme, well-set-on and shapely neck. We liked her conformation and we also liked the fact that the female side
of her pedigree was a complete outcross. We like to maintain a certain amount of genetic diversity in our herd and we felt that Erie Anna would contribute to our program on many levels. Little did we know what an impact she would make. Her first foal was a colt sired by *Mishaal HP, his first American-born son. We named him Scapa, “The One.” You may have heard of him. In the fall of 2006, when Scapa was just a yearling, Stu Vesty and Fernando Poli were visiting Paradise at the same time. I presented Scapa for them and after he put on his regular “show” they turned to me and simultaneously said
Top: A 2010 colt by The Singleton out of Respect Me by Thee Infidel. Middle left: A 2010 filly by The Singleton out of Lady Sexton by Thee Outlaw.
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“Congratulations!” I took that as quite a compliment. Since then, as he has matured, he has turned into the horse that just about everybody says is the most beautiful they have ever seen. One visitor from Jordan said, “I didn’t know a horse so beautiful existed in the United States.” He’s a “take your breath away” kind of horse, and at 16 hands, like his dam, he’s tall, with incredible scope. Early on it became clear that other people wanted to be a part of his life — so we offered 20 ownership shares in him, eleven of which have already been sold. When he was a three-year-old, we bred him to a small and diverse group of mares to see how he would cross with vastly different types. The results were outstanding. More than anything we were excited to see how upright his foals were with fabulous toplines, extraordinary tail carriage and, without exception, eyepopping movement! Of course, with his oldest foals being only two, it’s hard to say how they will mature, but they have caught the attention of some of the most
The main barn at Paradise Arabians.
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astute breeders from all over the world, and they are selling at premium prices. While Scapa has enjoyed success in the showring, scoring the only 20 earned by any stallion over two in Las Vegas at the World Cup in 2008, and several titles at the Egyptian Event, he doesn’t like leaving Paradise. Here he can enjoy all of
his friends, equine and human, run in large pastures and graze on lush grass. Paradise is his home and he is most happy being here at home in Paradise. He’s now been started under saddle and he loves it. Multitalented, it appears that he will excel in any discipline. Scapa is not the only stallion standing at stud here at Paradise. We also have our senior sire, The Singleton. He is sired by Thee Desperado out of our foundation mare, Alia Riyala. The Singleton’s oldest foals are only three, yet he was named Champion Get of Sire at this year’s Egyptian Event. The very first filly he sired, Nadirah Al Jameelah, also at this year’s Egyptian Event, won the Three-Year-Old World-Class Mare
Scapa and Gary Kenworthy, above, and pictured at right under saddle with trainer Frank Halloman.
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Championship and his first son, Neo de Bloodstone, was Reserve Champion in World-Class Two-Year-Old Colts, behind the eventual winner of the Supreme Champion Stallion title. Of course these weren’t his only accomplishments, The Singleton was also fourth on the AHW leading sires list. Pretty impressive when you realize that all the stallions that sired more winners had well over 100 registered foals to their credit. The Singleton, a halter champion in his own right, is siring champion after champion, and people everywhere are taking notice! We realize how fortunate we are. Both our stallions were born right here at Paradise and I don’t think too many farms can boast that. They are both beautiful and correct, and now proven sires, but they couldn’t be more different phenotypically. The Singleton is Kehilan in strain and he looks it. He is compact, masculine, and muscular. He has an extremely short head with great ears, a massive jaw, big eyes, and a prominent dish, and he stamps his get with these traits consistently. Scapa, on the other hand, is Saqlawi in strain and he looks it. He is tall, stretchy, stunningly beautiful with incredible scope. His head is, well, you can see for yourself on these pages, and the cover of this magazine. Scapa, too, is proving to be very prepotent, passing on his traits to his foals. We just can’t wait 10 b PARADISE b WORLD
to see what happens when we breed The Singleton’s daughters to Scapa and Scapa’s daughters to The Singleton. We see this as a potentially spectacular cross because when you look at their pedigrees the picture becomes very interesting. The Singleton is linebred with two lines to The Minstril and three to Ruminaja Ali. Scapa, on the other hand, epitomizes the term “outcross.” In five generations not a single horse appears more than once in his pedigree and it contains some of the most notable horses of our time. With the likes of *Mishaal HP,
Above: The 2008 straight Egyptian mare Marah Nabila (The Singleton x Minstrils Nafia by The Minstril).
Ansata Sinan, Prince Fa Moniet, TheEgyptianPrince, Ansata Halim Shah, *Messaoud, Mesoudah M (full sister to *Imperial Madheen), Ibn Galal, Mona II, Thee Infidel, Thee Desperado, The Minstril, *Magidaa and Bint Magidaa, and Imperial Imdal, the future for Scapa as a sire is exciting to say the least. When one looks at some of the most important purebred Arabian horses of our time, those that have gone on to create dynasties, they all seem to have one thing in common: straight Egyptian ancestors up close in their pedigrees. Ali Jamaal (what a marvelous tribute was paid to him at this year’s U.S. Nationals), *El Shaklan, Patron (the sire of the immortal *Padron), *Gazal Al Shaqab, just to name a few, are all sired by straight Egyptian stallions! Just think of the horses that wouldn’t exist today if the owners of their respective dams hadn’t made the decision to breed them to a straight Egyptian stallion. The importance of the straight Egyptian blood cannot be overstated.
The 1999 straight Egyptian mare and the dam of Scapa, Erie Anna (Thee Infidel x Imbadia EV by Imperial Imdal)
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The most revered breeding programs in the world recognize its importance. Egyptian/Spanish is called the “Golden Cross.” Virtually every Russian-bred horse traces back to the Tersk Stud whose foundation sire was the straight Egyptian stallion Aswan. The Polish state studs have been using straight Egyptian stallions in their programs rather consistently for years. The influence the straight Egyptian had in this year’s U.S. Nationals is telling. The U.S. National Champion Senior Stallion, *El Nabila B, is out of a straight Egyptian mare. The Reserve Champion senior mare, *Negma Al Shaqab, is sired by a straight Egyptian stallion as was the Reserve Champion Junior Stallion, Om El Al Azeem. The importance of the straight Egyptian certainly has not been lost on Manny Vierra of Valley Oak Arabians in Brentwood, California. After a visit to Paradise an agreement (some may call it a “coup” but time will tell) has been struck that in 2011 three of his finest pure Polish mares — U.S. National Champion SFA Wind Chime (Fame VF x Winterset), *Epima (Ekstern x Epimeria), and U.S. National Top Ten Senior Mare *Euscera (Emigrant x Elcantara) — will be bred to Scapa and three of our finest straight Egyptian mares — Scapa’s dam Erie Anna (Thee Infidel x Imbadia EV), Egyptian Event multi-champion Alia Shaniah (*Shahir IASB x Alia Riyala), and SA Emarkessa (Imperial Immarouf x Ramses Emore) — will be bred to Emigrant. As you can see, we’re serious about this endeavor and we can’t wait to see the
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Javan photo
results of these matings. Wanda and I are also very excited about a Scapa son that was born this year out of our Padrons Psyche daughter, FOF Marzia. He looks like he is going to be somebody really special. But Paradise isn’t just about our stallions. Many knowledgeable visitors have commented that the mares that call Paradise home make up one of the finest collections in one place anywhere in the world. And remember I mentioned the importance of “genetic diversity”? Each of the five contemporary strains in Egyptian breeding is represented on this farm. But, it’s not just about the mares either. We recognize that if we are serious about preserving the Egyptian horse for future generations to enjoy we must enable more people to get involved with their ownership. We also recognize that there are a lot of people out there who want to be involved — they just don’t know it yet. In fact, they don’t know that such a thing as a “straight Egyptian Arabian horse” exists, so we try to tell everybody.
Top: Wanda Kenworthy with the 1995 mare MB Eleena (Safeen x Egyptian Charm CAHR). Left: Gary Kenworthy and one of his three Golden Retrievers, “Handsome.” Middle: Wanda and Gary’s daughter-inlaw Misty Kenworthy with Nadirah Al Jameelah (The Singleton x SA Shuhira). Bottom: Matt Kenworthy, director of sales.
(*Mishaal HP x Erie Anna) 2005 Grey Straight Egyptian Arabian Stallion Saklawi Jedran Strain · First American-born son of *Mishaal HP
Twice Egyptian Event Reserve Champion, Class A Reserve Champion, Las Vegas World Cup Top Five posting the only “20” awarded to any stallion over the age of two years. Limited breedings available to approved mares only. SCID and CA clear
Nominated to the following programs: AHA Breeders Sweepstakes Egyptian Event Breeders Challenge Silver Sire Program AHA Region 12 Spotlight Futurity Sire Scottsdale Signature Stallion Iowa Gold Star Las Vegas World Cup Nominated Sire
Proudly owned by Paradise Arabians, Ltd. and the Scapa Partnership: Dr. Danny and Carol Heithold, Randall & Pamela Allen*, Missy Head*, Jeannette Longley, Dr. Walter & Marianna Arms, Nadine Pappas, Beth & Dr. Ed Witt, Ann & Al Trausch, Gary & Wanda Kenworthy* — *Indicates multiple share owners Bred by Gary and Wanda Kenworthy · 706.397.9950 · email: info@paradisearabians.com
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We find that many people would love to be involved but they have neither a facility nor the expertise to care for horses, so we provide both. According to the DataSource, the average number of straight Egyptian fillies produced and registered over the last three years is well under 400 per year. Because there are so few, the continued existence of the straight Egyptian horse is dependent upon more people becoming involved with them, and that requires that we all share this wonderful gift with others and help those who may not have the facility or expertise, to have a great “horse experience.” To that end Paradise exists. Set on 450 acres with a current population of 137 horses, we provide the means by which others can enjoy a life with horses and help preserve a global treasure. We are a full-service facility and provide full training, whether it be at halter or under saddle. We also conduct educational seminars and lots of parties and social events. We stand stallions 14 b PARADISE b WORLD
Top: El Helou (Thee Asil x Minstrilsgreymist by The Minstril), with Misty Kenworthy was 2008 Egyptian Event Supreme Champion Gelding Middle left: Benny Horne showing 2010 Egyptian Event Top Ten World Class Filly and Top Ten Mare JTH Noor Al Jannat (Scapa x BFA Francesca by MFA Mareekh Amir).
at stud, provide mare care and foaling services, and offer — through our sales and marketing division — assistance in getting foals sold. And, because we have so many international visitors every year, our clients’ horses get exposure to a worldwide market they couldn’t get through any other means. Being a part of “Paradise” has many benefits, not to mention plenty of room for hiking, picnicking, fishing, or riding the trails on your horse without ever having to leave the property. We have been blessed with such a great group of supportive, loyal clients; we can’t say enough about them. They love
Middle right: Nadirah Al Jameelah (The Singleton x SA Shuhira by Thee Desperado), being shown by Mary Scott Head to win Reserve Champion Mare JTH at the 2010 Egyptian Event. She was also Champion World Class Three-YearOld Mare. Bottom: Suzanne DeBolt and Tayyar Al Jannat (Alixir x Lady Sexton by Thee Outlaw) who won Champion Gelding honors plus the liberty championship at this year’s Egyptian Event.
Thee Desperado x Alia Riyala 2002 Straight Egyptian, Al Khamsa Stallion
Egyptian Event Unanimous Futurity Champion, Get of Sire Champion, and Class A Reserve Champion Fourth on the 2010 Egyptian Event leading sire list by number of winners, with only 27 registered foals at the time of the show. All sires with more winners had over 100 registered progeny. Limited breedings available to approved mares only. SCID and CA clear Nominated to the following programs: AHA Breeders Sweepstakes Egyptian Event Breeders Challenge Iowa Gold Star Silver Sire AHA Region 12 Spotlight Futurity Sire Scottsdale Signature Stallion Las Vegas World Cup Nominated Sire
Proudly owned by The Singleton Partnership: Buddy & Taffy Laughridge, Missy Head, Misty Kenworthy, Gary & Wanda Kenworthy For breeding information, contact Paradise Arabians 路 706.397.9950 路 email: info@paradisearabians.com
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their horses and all the activities that go on here at Paradise. We’ve tried to make Paradise a warm and welcoming place where people can come and relax, spend time with horses, and socialize with other, like-minded people, and have fun! For our clients who live close by this is a very special part of what Paradise is. For those who don’t live so close, and with owners of Paradise horses on every continent except Antarctica (that list is becoming quite long), well, they’re at a disadvantage! It is for this reason that we try so hard to keep our Web site up-to-date featuring all the activities and happenings and even live stream some of the events so our not-so-close friends and clients can enjoy the experience even in absentia. You see, we believe it’s not just about the horses, it’s about the people, too! As the song goes, we all “ … just wanna have fun!” Even though it wasn’t all that long ago, Wanda and I can’t seem to remember what we did before “horses.” This magnificent horse enhanced our lives, and the lives of the great clients that share it with us, in ways we could not have imagined. Oh, what a fateful day it was back in February, 1994. 16 b PARADISE b WORLD
Paradise Arabians extended “family” at the 2010 Egyptian Event in Kentucky.