Open Day Reports
This was our second Stud Open Day and again, it was great to have the chance to show our Knabstruppers in action and give people an opportunity to see the versatility, talent and fantastic temperament of this rare breed.
Jackpots Stud is unique among Knabstrupper breeders in the UK in that not only do we have two very successful stallions that we can show under saddle but we also have ridden offspring that demonstrate very clearly the fantastic temperament and trainability of these wonderful horses. We have foals and youngstock to present so we are able to show Knabstruppers at all stages of development and also our 3 Knabstrupper mares that are in foal for 2011. All our foals are very carefully bred to produce top quality sports horses with lovely trainable temperaments and we are very proud that the quality of our foals has been recognised by breed societies and the BEF with premiums awarded to every single foal.
We started the day with Stavsdals Julliette and her colt foal Jackpots Horatio, aka Caine (a connection which I'm sure all CSI Miami fans will appreciate). Caine, by the premium Knabstrupper stallion Hussar of Independence, was presented to the KNN this year where he was awarded foal premium with an 8 overall and also the ZfdP where once again he was given a foal premium. Julliette is in foal to the premium Knabstrupper stallion Houdini @ Little Uncle and her foal is due at the beginning of July 2011.
Next in was Jackpots Who Dunnit, a 2007 Knabstrupper gelding, and Julliette's first foal who is by Stavsdals Maestro. Houdie came back to us at the end of July to be backed and has been a first class student. His owner Victoria Stevenson rode him and they looked very comfortable together despite this being the first time they had made a public appearance. Houdie went forwards in a lovely soft outline with Victoria showing him beautifully and they deserved their round of applause. Houdie has now gone home to have a break over winter and will start ridden work again next year.
Julliette's second foal, Jackpots Hat-Trick, a 2009 filly also by the premium Knabstrupper stallion Hussar of Independence was shown in hand and loose and showed us all her off the floor paces. Hattie was presented to the ZfdP as a foal and awarded a foal premium and this year was presented to the KNN as a yearling where she gained a 9 for her type and scored an 8 overall.
Claire Knowles came in next on Rughavens Sheik, a 2001 Knabstrupper gelding by Stavsdals Jackpot. Sheik was imported as a 2yo and has been backed and trained by Claire. They gave a lovely display of advanced dressage work with Sheik performing 2, 3 and 4 time changes as well as showing the beginnings of piaffe and passage.
Lucienne Mahoney and Stavsdals Jackpot followed and demonstrated some lovely flowing lateral work, expressive flying changes and some very impressive medium trot work. Jackpot's good paces, trainability and temperament are all qualities that he passes onto his offspring as was clearly shown throughout the day.
Trixi Von Nordstern, a Knabstrupper mare by Shirkan, was shown in hand and loose and once again showed us some very expressive trot work. Trixi is in foal to Flammengold, a top class Hanoverian stallion who already has some very successful offspring, and her foal is due in April 2011. Flammengold is black and Trixi is whiteborn so we are looking forward to a having a black spotted foal next year.
Last in before our break was Jackpots Jazz-Time, Trixi's 2009 leopard spotted filly by Stavsdals Jackpot. Jazz is Stavsdals Jackpot's first UK born foal and we were very proud when she was presented to the ZfdP and awarded a premium. Jazz has been bought by Pat Douglas and we look forward to following their progress together.
After a short break Claire came back into the arena, this time riding side-saddle on Stavsdals Jackpot. Claire was wearing a lovely powder blue skirt and jacket as would be seen in a Concours d'Elegance side-saddle class. Jackpot has only had the side saddle on a handful of times but has picked up the meaning of the different aids very quickly, and as well as working in trot and canter, displayed some polished lateral work on both reins.
Next in was Jackpots Jabulani, a 2010 filly by Stavsdals Jackpots, out of Ulkah Bunders, a ZfdP premium mare by Metall. Lani was presented to the ZfdP this year and was awarded a foal premium, impressing everyone at the grading with her refined elegance and floating paces.
Claire then brought in Rughavens Jackpot (JJ), an 8yo stallion by Stavsdals Jackpot, who has also been backed and trained by Claire. Proving that he is following very closely in his brother's footsteps, JJ gave a lovely demonstration of advanced dressage work including some very active piaffe steps and an outstanding collected trot.
Our finale for the day was a Pas de Deux featuring Claire on JJ and Rachel Maddocks, a grade4 para rider, on Sheik. With the horses working in unison both side by side and away from each other, showing off their lateral work, flying changes and medium trot work, it was a great way to show the trainability, talent and temperament of these lovely horses.
Many thanks to Jo Baker for these stunning photos of our Open Day. You can see more of Jo's work at www.jobakerphotography.co.uk
We sold drinks and homemade cakes throughout the afternoon and raised £66.00, which we have donated to the McMillan Nurses fund so, a big thank you to all the people who braved the cold wind and the rain to come to our Open Day and especially our team of helpers without whom the day would not have happened.
Jackpots Stud Open Day 2009.
A big thank you to everyone who came to our Open day - it was lovely to see so many people and to have the chance to show the talent, ability and versatility of these wondeful horses to those of you who were not familiar with the breed.
The day started with a ridden display by Lucienne Mahoney and Stavsdals Jackpot. Jackpot is an old hand now at showing himself off and impressed everyone with his extended trot and expressive flying changes. Jackpot and Lucienne are currently competing very successfully in British Dressage classes and they have already qualified for the Winter Regional finals.
Next in was Jackpot's 8yo son, Rughavens Sheik ridden by Claire Knowles, fresh from their success in the Petplan Advanced Medium Final (see News page), and proceeded to show everyone exactly why they were doing so well in the competition world with some lovely soft, flowing lateral work, lovely flying changes and a demonstration of the more collected trot work that Sheik is showing such an aptitude for.
We then brought in Jackpots Jazz-Time and her dam, Trixi Vom Nordstern. Jazz is Stavsdals Jackpots first UK bred foal and with her spots changing to dark bay she is going to be a very striking looking horse. Jazz has the fabulous temperament that we would expect from this breeding and is showing all the promise of being a wonderful sports horse. This was her first public appearance and she coped very well and showed some lovely trot and canter paces.
Claire came back in aboard Rughavens Jackpot, our 7yo stallion who is also by Stavsdals Jackpot and they proceeded to give a lovely flatwork demonstration with impressive medium trot work and expressive flying changes. This year, this young stallion was also campaigned by Fay Mahoney where they were selected as reserve for the Eastern team in the Byrds Inter Regional competition in their very first season together. Fay and her family have recently emigrated to Australia so were unable to be with us in person for the Open Day but we wish them lots of luck in their new life.
Rughavens Jackpot's first foal was next in, a stunning liver chesnut colt who was awarded a Foal Premium by the ZfdP and a First premium as a dressage foal at the BEF Futurity. Jackpots Jericho proved that he knew exactly what he had to do at such an event and gave a wonderful demonstration of his fantastic paces.
Jackpots Tinkerbelle, our delightful Knabstrupper pony filly by Rughavens Jackpot, followed and won everyone's heart. Tinkerbelle was awarded a First Premium at the BEF as a Sports Pony foal and in fact was the highest scoring Sports Pony foal of the day.
Our final foal on show was Jackpots Hat-trick, a beautiful leopard spotted filly by the German stallion Hussar of Independence. Hattie set out to show everyone that she too had very expressive paces and a lovely temperament and finished our foal display with a lovely trot round the arena.
After a short break for tea and home made cakes, Kaile Sherry came in on the Knabstrupper mare Evita to give a jumping demonstration. Kaile is 15 and a member of the local pony club and has been enjoying riding Evita over the last couple of months. This was only about the 4th time they had jumped and they both did very well, clearly showing that Knabstruppers are a very talented and versatile breed.
The day was rounded off by Claire coming back in to jump on Stavsdals Jackpot, who loves jumping and proceeded to impress everyone with his enthusiasm and ability. Shouts of "higher, higher" were not lost on Claire and she had the jumps raised a couple of times, much to Jackpot's delight - not bad for a dressage rider!!!
Many thanks to our helpers and riders on the day, Pat, John, Jane, Tor, Lucienne, Claire and Kaile - without you it would not have been possible!
We look forward to seeing you all next year!