Dear Breeders,
Together with you we would like to enter the 2012 breeding season with renewed energy and ambitious breeding goals. Once more our declared aim is a successful union of breeding and sport. After all, the culmination of all breeding is the resulting success in the sport. We know that it takes many factors for a hopeful foal to become a successful sport horse.
Plenty of effort and resources must be invested before you can call yourself the proud owner of a high-performing sport horse, starting with the well-planned mating followed by healthy rearing of the foal and solid training. Many breeders, buyers and owners have already decided to take this journey with us, thereby giving the next generation a chance, including the youngsters in breeding and sport.
To continue to pursue these objectives together, we are offering an interesting cost-splitting scheme for 2012: stud fees are split into two moderate part payments. The first instalment is due on order and the second one once the mare is in foal. This gives breeders individual flexibility and could be the first step on a new road to success.
Talking about success, we would like to introduce you to you newly graded stallion Dollar d’Or SB who came to us after being sold to S. Banki/Los Angeles at the South German stallion grading in 2011. The stallion developed brilliantly, won the free-jumping championship in South-East Bavaria, passed the Munich stallion performance test with best overall result and third-best result for Germany. Here is a very hopeful horse with a great future.
Question d’Honneur B, or QDH B for short, also caused a stir this year. Once more the youngster jumped at the chance to achieve outstanding results. Aged 7, he has already excelled at S level tests and youngster tours. He was the impressive winner at the Grand Prix in Moos** and added to his great performance with numerous podium positions in classes S* and **. Like him, QDH B’s offspring have been pushing into the limelight again: four of his progeny won major free-jumping championships. Three-year old youngster Que Amor SB rounded off the breeding year in autumn when he won the South German under-saddle licensing in the dressage and jumping categories. He will be available at our stud in 2012.
There are, however, also sad moments to report. Well-known Trakehner stallion Herzruf died in May 2011 aged 24. Many of his offspring are active sport horses. Only a few days later, his best and internationally very successful offspring, Herzrufs Erbe, fetched third place in the dressage World Cup Final under Ulla Salzgeber. What a beautiful memorial to Herzruf!
All in all, 2011 was a good year for us, both in terms of breeding and sport. A new and exciting year is about to start and if we could choose one word to describe this new breeding year, it would be sustainability. It’s a big word – for us it means sustainability in pursuing our breeding goals, in rearing and training horses for the sport, in the way we care for our horses and compete with our sport horses. Combined with good horsemanship, such long-term thinking is and ought to be the basis of all good horse breeding, horse keeping and equestrian sport. The rest is down to us – the art of turning ideas into action. Let’s do it!
In the name of our family and team, we would like to wish you all the best, much success and good health, and above all – enjoy your horses.
