Draft x and IDSH in eventing

[Amberley]

@TheJenners

there is acres of difference between the imported Irish horse and the American Irish horse because of the difference between Irish and American riders. Full stop. T

Eh, not really. There are plenty of novice or older or working riders in Europe. The market for mother-daughter types and BFGs is robust and the field and show hunter market is still strong too. So those quiet, amateur friendly horses are bred there plenty, just not typically imported to the US. Or marketed to them. There are some lovely IDs and IDx being bred in the USA but they aren’t really terribly different.

No-one in the USA is breeding much in the way of 1.0m+ jumping horses in any discipline, certainly no-where near enough to meet demand. But that’s a whole other story.

[TheJenners]

@Amberley

not typically imported to the US

And that would be my point. Exactly what you quoted. The difference between imported Irish horses and American Irish horses. Thanks!

[nzrider]

For what it’s worth being a whole different country - clydie x tb are very popular amateur horses here in NZ and they tend to jump plenty well enough up to 1.10/1.20m. There are a couple of sporthorse type lines that have been shown to be reliably athletic enough for more than that, but there’s also plenty of “backyard” found a clydie stallion and put them over a tb mare that do very well. Generally as long as the conformation is decent they’re more than capable.
If you don’t want enormous height, then you could also consider a connemara/tb cross along with the IDs.
But realistically if you are wanting to go novice - as long as they have a decent canter they can usually manage the height no worries if sound.

[enjoytheride]

I’m a little confused because there’s a massive difference between telling an ammy they need a 6 figure import and the ammy shopping for 20k horses. It doesn’t seem realistic to me that a trainer would be that out of touch with the ammy’s price point. Also, the 6 figure imports are already going at a much higher level. If someone did want to purchase an import for the sake of saying they did, there are certainly cheaper horses (with varying training).

I’ve also seen a trend of people selling “Irish Cross” horses that are just bay draft crosses with ZERO Irish breeding so I’d make sure there is actually proof of breeding.

[fivestrideline]

I love a Clyde/1/2 or 3/4 TB. I’ve known a few, and all of them can JUMP. Sporty, and the smaller one was a turn-and-burn 16.1H pony-type that won all over Canada and the US in the 1.20. And he put up with a lot of rider shenanigans - ammy friendly but with a go button.

I’m about burnt out on the OTTB life, and am tossing around the idea of a Clyde cross or draftie cross youngster for my next one (whenever that happens). Essentially the same goals as OP - Novice/trails/low ammy jumpers, and really just looking for a sturdy safe horse I can put anyone on to plod around. I can make one up myself, but the “sturdy” has been lacking lately.

Also, Appendixes are on my radar for similar uses if you don’t want to risk an 18h behemoth.

[SolarFlare]

@Against_All_Odds2

I just wanted to make sure my internet searches aren’t in vein by seeing some successful draftie types, which was the purpose of my thread.

My coach used to dominate dressage on her draft cross in our area (and he jumped great too). I’m talking 18s and 19s in dressage - she’d be 7 or 8 points ahead of second place and far more from the rest in her division, and under different judges too.

Don’t forget it’s not just about the breeding, it’s about the training and riding. Especially here in Ontario and at the lower levels.

I just scribed nearly 8 hours of dressage tests yesterday from EV115 to EV85, sitting beside a licensed Senior judge and Grand Prix rider, and I’m telling you that the “non-fancy-pedigreed” horses who were correctly ridden and showed good training basics were scored higher than the great movers who were not well-ridden. Sure, he appreciated the gorgeous horses, but if the rider couldn’t put in a good test, they weren’t rewarded.

Now obviously if you get the great mover who is ALSO ridden well, they’re going to score high.

I think you need to seriously consider what you are wanting to get out of a possible new horse. Do you want to enjoy yourself safely, regardless of whether you win? Do you only want to win? Do you want to go into debt to finance an expensive horse who might colic or break its leg the day after you get it? None of these answers are wrong - you just need to decide what you really want and what you are willing to pay to get it.

Please don’t feel pressured to spend more than you can or want to, just to please your coach. It’s hard to tell online of course - maybe she’s just advising you that what you want is going to cost you more than you’ve budgeted. But you absolutely do NOT need to spend 6 figures to do well here in Ontario at the lower levels.

[Annie10]

Premarin farms

[Bluey]

When it comes to jumpers, no matter the breed or any other, what is important is the jump.
In the 1960s, our riding center owner had a big full blood Belgian that from 16 to 18 years old was our region High Point Open Jumper.
He could jump anything and faster than anyone else.
Costello reminded. me of him, but an even bigger model.
The ground shook when he just walked by you, he was big and heavy, but a great athletic jumper that had been trained and competed well.