I tried the “Search” option and was not successful. I want to know about the temperment of his offspring as a group…and anything else anyone would care to share about him. Thanks.
It depends which Riverman you are asking about. We bred to the Holsteiner stallion, Riverman, by Redfort and out of lexis III.
We had a Riverman colt in 1998 out of an extremely well behaved mare who always threw foals with outstanding temperaments. If I remember correctly, Riverman didn’t have a great score for temperament on his 100-day test but it wasn’t a concern to us due to the mare.
We imprinted him at birth which was a bit of a chore and he was difficult to initially start under saddle, and I’m a pro! :eek: Once he figured out what was expected of him, he turned into the nicest horse imaginable.
We had heard through the grapevine that Riverman offspring can be difficult and are often considered a “pro’s horse” but we liked ours a lot. The lady who bought him had just sold her Riverman gelding due to the fact he was too difficult for her and only her pro could ride her but wanted another one and was hoping for one less difficult. As far as I know, he is still packing her around the hunter ring.
I’ve seen two other Riverman offspring in our area and would definitely say they were pro horses and not for an amateur or junior to ride or handle. Fabulous to look at but only meant for educated owners!!
The first baby out of one of my Dutch mares is by Riverman.
I agree with Daventry. My guy was sold to a professional and he was a challenge for her, but now he has the best work ethic ever. He’s 6. His owner is thrilled with him now, but he was a challenge to start, and she knows young horses.
Her mentor is a well-known German trainer and SWORE she bought her new horse in Germany. No, it was here in Southern California. (yeah for me)
I don’t know the temperament of babies out of my mare since he was her first. She is a bit opinionated so it could be coming from her, too. Every horse has a mother.
I have a COMATOSE 3 year old gelding by Riverman. He has shown quite successfully in the hunter breeding division. He was started under saddle a little over two months ago without any problems or issues. Very easy, no spook, and very well mannered. This one is an amateur horse. Interestingly enough, the mare he is out of has a little bit of an attitude.
I see a bunch of Riverman’s in the hunter rings - ridden by a lot of different age riders, many of them junior riders.
Bumpkin
Talk to Bumpkin about awesome Elliott!
Bumpkin, Bumpkin
Please SHARE about awesome Elliot!!! Thank you everyone for your information…Riverman is the one Hilltop stallion that they present as a jumping sire…and although I admire many of their stallions, I feel strongly about the jumping ethic. His video shows an excellent bascule and use of his shoulders and topline…as well as “hunter” form!!!
Tri…I am in WPB now and would LOVE to know the names of any of the Rivermans you are referring to…I will go and watch them in the hunter/jumper rings.
I have a friend who is riding a Riverman daughter. She’s excellent, athletic, great fun, etc, but only if she knows you. For strangers, apparently she’ll stand there and kick like a grumpy pony and not go forward, even for professionals. I guess if you’ve ridden her more than a few times, then she’s fine.
I showed/trained a Riverman gelding 2 years ago. He was beautiful, but definatly not easy to deal with. He pinned me in the corner of his stall twice, and both times, I was really afraid of getting kicked. To ride, he “seemed” like he was quiet, but the slightest thing set him off, and there was no getting his head back the rest of that ride. He was better for me than for his owner. With her would randomly bolt or take off in a total bucking spree. The experience with this Riverman has made me not want to deal with another.
I have another comatose colt by riverman. his mother has an exceptionally laid back attitude that she passes on to all her offspring.
I don’t have a clue what this one is going to look like, the parents were very different in build.
I have one. She’s an 8yr old whom I raised from birth, broke her to saddle myself and ride her in the jumper divisions. I’m not a pro but this mare is not for the average ammie or junior rider. She’s not hot but she’s very sensitive and is considered by the pros I ride with to be a pro type of ride. She’s extremely easy on the ground to handle, bombproof and very agreeable with everything. She’s a very in your lap horse. The mare is a cross country machine and probably should really go down that route b/c she’s ultra brave, careful and picks up the concepts on the very first go at it. I also clinic with a pro dressage rider/trainer named Steve Kannikkeberg. He absolutely loves her. He said that he’s ridden quite a few Riverman and the majority of them are not easy horses to ride for most b/c they are sensitive and react 10 fold to things. He said he’s seen some being ruined b/c they are in the wrong hands. He equates them to “riding art”. That being said, in my mare’s case, she’s been one to mentally mature later than my other horses. At 8, she is just now coming into her own and has become very rideable. My other trainer has an Ommen mare who is also 8. She has also just now come into her own mentally. She was told by Lynn Little that Ommens mature late. It’s uncanny how similar mentally the two mares are. You can pm me if you have any questions as I’ve seen quite a few of them and really like them but again, at least in my mare’s case, she’s for someone who has very good feel and allows the horse to actively communicate to the rider as to how they like to be ridden.
Just fyi, there are no less than 6 Riverman’s on Dreamhorse including 1 stallion son. None listed have much of a show track record.
I’d have to see what I can find on the Riverman’s I’ve seen in the hunter rings & dig up some names. Off the top of my head there is Rivano which is the stallion son competing in hunters who is for sale.
Don’t know about Rivermans’ offspring in competition, or under saddle, other than the kind of info people have shared here. Just wanted to add, I think his daughters make very good broodmares. When all is said and done, he may be best remembered as a broodmare sire. 
here is a picture of ours. Since he was his owners first totally green horse, we had him started elsewhere for 30 days ( easy), then she stayed here with him for 6 months before taking him to her BNT. He is super simple, and winning EVERYTHING in the A/A younger, ansd starting the first year greens. His dam was my personal horse , and a wonderful , intelligent mare.
Edited to add: with only 8 shows( i think), all champion or reserve except one, he finished to qualify for the zone in 11th
Re the comment about the Rivermans for sale without much of a show record, many of us breed to sell, and the sooner the better. No reflection on the horse.
My Riverman gelding scored consistently in the low 70s in training level dressage and was high point horse repeatedly. He gets 8s on gaits.
AHHA recently approved a Riverman son so that is at least five who have been approved by the warmblood registeries.
MagicRose, nice hunter!! That horse is fairly representative of what I’ve seen of the Riverman hunters except yours is exceptionally nice. If someone had a very laid back hunter mare, I would not hesitate to recommend a breeding to Riverman if the desired goal was a nice hunter foal. And I’m partial to greys too.
I have a Riverman grandson. His father was stunning. He was owned by a fellow COTH poster, and pictures can be seen on her website (www.hopefulfarm.com). My boy is about as laid-back as they come. His mother was a bit of a pistol, so I’m assuming the calming influence came from the sire side. 
I have trained and handled many of them
Hi,
I ahve trained and handled many Riverman offspring. The ones out of super laid-back mares are OK. In general, however, stay away from them. A lot of them have difficult temperaments and even more have very poor work ethics. He gets 250 mares a year - so you will hear success stories. But there’s a reason why the Germans sold him - a very good reason. www.prairiepinesfarm.com
I’ve known and handled several of his offspring, and while they are lovely animals with exceptional conformation and to-die-for movement, I wouldn never buy one for myself. I’m an ammie and just don’t like to work that hard! The one’s I’ve known have been very difficult, sometimes flighty, and have a very poor work ethic. With the right rider (read: a pro who wants to take a fantastic moving horse up through the levels) they can be superstars. For an ammie who just wants to enjoy their ride, more often than not, I think they are a bad choice. There are always exceptions and I’m sure there are some quiet, easy ones out there, but more often than not, I hear the bad stories.
There was a mare that I thought was just beautiful that went through the Spring 2005 Atlantic Hunter and Sport Horse sale http://www.professionalauction.com/results05.htm already trained around 7yrs old jumping $9,000 as per the results registered and branded named Rapunzel. I think she went to NH - anyway it seems every RIverman I have looked at has been just beautiful (well built with good conformation) really something!!
