The lead horse mentioned is Ksar d’Esprit, a full TB, who won all six puissances he entered in one year.
Elles, he’s one reason why I love Ksar/Herod line horses in sport so much.
He’s got both Herod lines, as well as a Matchem line through Barcaldine on the first page, along with a good bit of Saint Simon.
http://www.pedigreequery.com/ksar+desprit
A very nice article about an incredible horse.
I also love a Herod line horse!
Back in the day, TBs sure were built for sport. It really is too bad they can no longer compete outside of eventing.
Thoroughbreds are still successfully competing as hunters, jumpers, dressage horses and even polo ponies. The warmblood has just become more popular.
PennG
[QUOTE=TKR;8408794]
Thoroughbreds are still successfully competing as hunters, jumpers, dressage horses and even polo ponies. The warmblood has just become more popular.
PennG[/QUOTE]
Exactly. And they are still built for sport!
Another Throwback Thursday Thoroughbred, one of my favourites, Bold Minstrel.
I can’t see it Fred. No facebook…
Female family 2. And William the Third is tail female to Enigma (also family 2), my own horse is also tail female to Enigma.
A lovely TB stallion Fred Astaire was a popular hunter sire for quite a while. Not sure if he is still living. I had a gelding by him - more the eventing/jumper type but gorgeous. Saw a mare by Fred Astaire that if I had $25K I would have snatched up. Stunning. Would put many fancy WBs to shame.
I love the Herod line too–and am sad that it’s getting so hard to find, especially in North America.
I first became aware of Ksar D’Esprit reading “Riding and Jumping” by Wm. Steinkraus (1961). I think Ksar is on the dust cover. In the caption to one of the photos of Ksar, Steinkraus writes, in part: “In the picture above he is taking me quite unconcernedly over the biggest fence I had ever ridden at up to that time, Rotterdam’s Puissance wall set at just over seven feet. Since then Ksar has taken me over almost a dozen very large Puissance walls, and I know that if my life depended on jumping one of them tomorrow, I would only hope to see it looming larger between those wise gray ears of his.”
Talking about going back in time…
Seen this before: https://www.facebook.com/Horseaddict/videos/984387924956409/ and http://www.equestriancoachworld.com/content/tribute-thoroughbred-sport-horse ?
Thank you Elles, I really enjoyed the video.
When I grew up during the 1960’s, if you wanted to do show jumping any horse with a big leap would do, and a lot of the horses with big leaps were TBs, of course. A lot of them could JUMP and proved it in international competition.
We do not have such a history in Holland because we have never really had a population of TB horses, hardly any racing going on.
If you look at the Dutch results during the 1970’s and 1980’s Olympics you see that Holland was not with the best nations and riders until 1992:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equestrian_at_the_1972_Summer_Olympics
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equestrian_at_the_1976_Summer_Olympics
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equestrian_at_the_1980_Summer_Olympics
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equestrian_at_the_1984_Summer_Olympics
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equestrian_at_the_1988_Summer_Olympics
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equestrian_at_the_1992_Summer_Olympics
No idea if that only had to do with the riders or also with the horses people were using / breeding at the time in Holland. The last time Holland was in that list before 1992, was in 1936.
I’ve always liked the Harris farms selection of stallions as possible sport sires.
horses that get a mile and race relatively long careers.
http://archives.harrisfarms.com/stallion.htm
Stormy Jack, for instance, is Matchem sire line with quite a bit of Herod throughout the pedigree.
Heatseeker has 2 crosses to Blushing Groom, plus Roberto and Sham.
-I just get tired of so many saying that there are no good TB’s today…
[QUOTE=TKR;8408794]
Thoroughbreds are still successfully competing as hunters, jumpers, dressage horses and even polo ponies. The warmblood has just become more popular.
PennG[/QUOTE]
‘The warmblood’ is not becoming more popular as a polo pony… some use criollo x, some QH x: the x being with TB; and there are many Off track TBs being used for polo or bred from for polo. -just to be clear.
Bold Minstrel
http://www.chronofhorse.com/article/legendary-horses-bold-minstrel
I am not sure he was 100% TB as I can find no record for his dam. Note she was a ‘test breeding’ mare for Royal Minstrel…
The dam’s foaling date is given as 1942 so she would have been one of his last crop - he died 1941- and foaled in Great Britain?
anyone with info?
Elles, that is a fabulous video. Thank you. I worked for Torrance Fleischmann and did a lot of the hacking conditioning, riding Finvarra sometimes.
[QUOTE=TKR;8408794]
Thoroughbreds are still successfully competing as hunters, jumpers, dressage horses and even polo ponies. The warmblood has just become more popular.
PennG[/QUOTE]
More people just have to learn how to ride them. Nothing nicer than watching a good TB do a hunter course!! Like in the old days!!!
[QUOTE=crosscreeksh;8413637]
More people just have to learn how to ride them. Nothing nicer than watching a good TB do a hunter course!! Like in the old days!!![/QUOTE]
Ain’t that the truth. I still remember the first time I rode a warmblood over fences after nothing but TBs my whole life… I was like, “wait, where’s the part where I’m launched out of the tack?” :lol:
That must have been wonderful, riding Finvarra!
http://kithoughton.zenfolio.com/p384602733/h3E754F9
[QUOTE=Beentheredonethat;8412956]
Elles, that is a fabulous video. Thank you. I worked for Torrance Fleischmann and did a lot of the hacking conditioning, riding Finvarra sometimes.[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE=Texarkana;8413694]
Ain’t that the truth. I still remember the first time I rode a warmblood over fences after nothing but TBs my whole life… I was like, “wait, where’s the part where I’m launched out of the tack?” :lol:[/QUOTE]
My jumpers have always been TB’s!! First time I watched a REALLY HIGH DOLLAR WB jump…I thought he’d never get to the jumps!! I likened the movement to pushing bubble gum through a key hole!! No offense WB people, but the difference between a good TB and a good WB is miles!! I’ll take my TB’s!!
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