Sorta on topic, but one of my best mares was a Morgan/Appendix cross. 15.2hh and just a nice looking and moving mare. Her full brother was doing 2nd level, schooling 3rd when I acquired her years ago. A hock injury as a baby prevented her from pursuing the same career so she became a broodmare for me and was a wonderful producer, as well. I wouldn’t mind having another like her.
I had a 3/4 Morgan 1/4 TB gelding. He looked very much like his Morgan sire; his dam looked more like her TB dam than her Morgan sire–she was a big tall, plain mare, quite lean built.
My gelding was a talented jumper & dressage horse. Very pretty, about 15.1 hands–very sound, with the best feet I’ve seen on a horse.
Well, judging by my screen name it is obvious what I think. I will say though that there are quite a few sporty morgans out there that would cross well with a TB. I have often thought of breeding my own mare (picture in my profile) to A Fine Romance for an eventer. My girl is 15.3 and comes from the working western and sporthorse lines so she’s not quite as cobby or showy as some morgan lines can be. I happen to think she’d cross very well with the right TB or TB/WB stallion.
Some of the sport bred Morgans are pretty incredible, tough, quicky, handy, smart little jumpers. Dragonfire Kublekahn was one of the first to go to advanced 3 day eventing. Dragonfire, Wintergreen and Taproot Morgans have established their horses as good jumpers - like Warmbloods, only hardier, smaller, and less pricey!
The few Tbred/Morgan crosses I’ve seen have been pretty high quality horses. And yes, they seem to sell pretty quickly! I think, if you are looking for a smaller eventing prospect, it would be a pretty good cross to look for.
I’m curious - Touchstone, are Lippies known for their jumping? I do know someone who has a Tbred/Lippie cross, and he is a lovely dressage horse, but definately not a jumper. And the purebred Lippies I’ve known were not jumper types either. But for a dressage horse, I’d think that would be a fabulous cross!
Another smaller cross I’d think would be great for eventing is a Connemera/Tbred cross.
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I’ve met two - both were great mid-level (Level 3/4/5) jumpers but erred on the “hot” side of things. Or crazy, depending on who you asked.
http://www.woodlandstallion.com/images/dragonfly_standing.jpg
I just found this on a breeders page - a Morgan/TB. Very much the same type as the two I knew. I personally have liked the ones I’ve seen and met, and would love to have on as a jumper prospect.
Most Lipizzan owners seem to do dressage/driving/pleasure so you don’t see them jumping in public much. I have seen some of the more modern type in hunters but normally a Lip doesn’t carry himself in a hunter frame. Jumpers would be more their style. Close relatives of my stallion were Danish nat’l jumping champs at 120cm amd up to 120cm. My stallion loves free jumping–no chute needed, just set some up and off he goes! They have quite pwerful engines you know:) So if you combmed one with a TB you might get somehting special.
My close friend has a 1/2 Morgan (old style, stocky), 1/4 QH, 1/4 TB gelding that she took through PSG. He is one of the most dynamic movers I have ever seen and as nice as any warmblood out there. A stunning fella with a great work ethic.
That Lipp/TB cross does sound interesting, I agree with Fresianx(By chance are you on HOrsecity BB?)that I see them more as a dressage horse but I can also see that crossed right how they might do well over fences.
I looove Morgans, grew up with them. I personally like a classic morgan more than a modern morgan but give me a brain and I’m fine with that. A TB would be a good cross, as a lot of Morgans are still on short side, not all, but a lot, and would add height and in some cases more bone.
I can see the good and the bad coming out in the cross lol
I bred one…
I wanted it to be a riding/driving horse. Owned his mom and she was a driving horse. She was very pretty but smaller than I wanted to ride and with a very expressive, huge trot with alot of knee action. I wanted to tone that down a bit in a riding horse.
Physically I got everything I was hoping for. He was about 15.2, gorgeous, a lovely trot, nice mover all around and did end up eventing, but not with me. His temperament was definitely hot – and a little stubborn. Definitely not a good amateur driving horse or all arounder like I had hoped. He was sold to a young eventer who liked em hot and apparently she loved him.
However, I never blamed the temperament issues on the cross of breeds so much as the individual parents – my mare was pretty hot for a driving horse – and the stallion who was relatively new to breeding when I bred to him ended up having a reputation for hot offspring.
But one thing someone mentioned that was so true about my Morgan mare – I haven’t known alot of them so can’t speak for all – although hot she was a wonderful driving horse because she did have that intuitive sense of self-preservation. I never worried she would do anything stupid in harness (or anywhere else) because she wouldn’t endanger herself. If it is a breed characteristic it is something that seems like it would be very useful in an eventing horse.
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Yes, this combination was done a great deal around the 1800’s and evolved into a breed known as the Standardbred… :yes: 
:lol:
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[QUOTE=Cherry;2899520]
Yes, this combination was done a great deal around the 1800’s and evolved into a breed known as the Standardbred… :yes: :lol:[/QUOTE]
Not exactly. The Morgan was but one line that the Standardbred came from, and of horses winning on the track today I would bet that few of them go back to the Justin Morgan in any significant amount. The Thoroughbred Messenger is of course considered the founder of the Standardbred line, the mares that line was bred on included other Thoroughbreds, Naragansett Pacers, Canadian Pacers, Norfolk Trotters, Saddlebreds, Hackneys and Morgans. Other famous sire lines besides Messenge include that of the Barb stallion Grand Bashaw who founded the Clay line and the Canadian Pacer stallion Old Pilot who founded the Pilot line. Of the three American breeds with the most similiar base stock, the Saddlebred, Standardbred and Morgan, the Saddlebred registry was founded first (1891, the oldest American breed registry) and recorded horses who could perform 5 gaits under saddle, then the Morgan registry came along and recorded the horses descending form the Justin Morgan, and then the USTA was formed in the 1920’s by merging some earlier harness horse race books. In the early days there were horses triple registerable as Saddlebred, Morgan and Standardbred, and double registered horses were not uncommon. A friend of mine had a stallion in Canada in the 1980s that was double registered Saddlebred and Standardbred. So as Paul Harvey says, now you know the rest of the story.
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One of the NICEST HUNTERS I ever saw showing was in the late 70;s here in NC, don’t remember horse or owners name, but she was an ammie and the horse was 1/2 morgan and 1/2 TB. I ADORED the horse, she was somewaht compact, about 16 hands and cute cute jumper! Won a LOT in this area!
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A friend of mine owned a young thoroughbred stallion here in Nova Scotia, quite a big strong colt with too much attitude. She would leave old tires out in his field and he would pick them up and gallop around with them in his mouth. I used to joke with her saying one of these days that is not going to be a tire, it is going to be you.
She bred a few local mares with him, and he probably had a total of ten offspring if that. One of those test breedings was to an older morgan mare. Resulting colt was a rather plain bay with a grey tail, not a bad colt but nothing to write home about. Noone thought that much of him. He was sold eventually for a song then I heard that this same horse has had considerable success eventing up through intermediate in Canada and in the US. I guess sometimes you just never know what they may be capable of if they fall into the right hands. He was apparantly very bold and would jump anything he was pointed at, and this was with a junior later an amateur ride…so that is one who in many people’s eyes was an unlikely cross that turned out to be quite a good horse.
Like in all breeds, one example does not necessarily prove much but this little guy grew into a quite capable horse.
Lipizzans are excellent at driving! The international combined driving and 4 in hand teams are good–look to Hungarians, Slovenians etc. The temperament would help you there too. They won’t have high knee action but will be a more rounded than WBs. The driving lines have a slightly different conformation with more action but any Lip is a good candidate.
I just got my 16 hand Morgan/TB gelding this spring. I absolutely love him (although he is being a pain to find a saddle for!) He is so willing to learn and please. His sire was a morgan reining national champ (2x) and dam was a race horse that never left the practice track. Apparently they blew out her tendons on the practice track, so she was retired before ever running a race. His trot is the smoothest thing I’ve ever ridden (although his canter has more to be desired-very long strides that I’m not used to yet) He would love to trot all day if I let him. He also seems to have a desire for fences, but then again he can turn on a dime and would make a great barrel racer. (Barrels are not my thing though!) He is decently confident out on the trail and likes the open fields, so I’m sure we could have some fun doing cross country eventually.
I’m really happy I found him and can’t wait for the fun in store!
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I knew a fella by the name of Howard Copenhaver who was an outfitter for many many years in the Bob Marshall Wilderness here in Western Montana. He liked a Morgan stallion crossed with a TB mare as he believed them to be an outstanding mountain horse. If anyone knew a mountain horse, it was him. He wrote some books if anyone’s interested. Tracks was the first and then More Tracks the second. I think he wrote even more than that though.
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Of course the best way to get an appropriate horse for your kids is to find one of whatever breeds that is already on the ground to evaluate.
There used to be a number of TB/Morgans around me before WBs were available. Not many as hunters, more often found in eventing. The temperaments were quite variable, with many not being “quiet”.
If you want just one horse, it is very tricky to get what you desire from one breeding - way more so if you are crossing breeds!
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The thread is about 10 years old. 
Ha! Didn’t look at the dates 
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