Keuring Clinic was this weekend – awesome
The Mid-Atlantic Friesian Association (“MAFA”) – a local Friesian club in the DC metro area – put together a keuring clinic August 25-26. It was presented by Jan Englesma, a former judge. This was held in Beallsville Maryland at the stables of Wish Upon a Ster Friesians, which donated their lovely facilities.
I know pretty much about Friesian horses, and everyday I research to learn more. So I was unsure of how much new information I might pick up. I debated making the 5 hour drive to Beallesville. But boy, am I glad I did. For a minimal cost of $50 (the price for a MAFA club member), I got 2 days full of jam packed information. presented in a clear and articulate manner. We got to see 2 mares, a gelding, a stallion and a mare/filly up close and, point by point, learn exactly what a judge is looking at during a keuring. Jan also went in depth regarding the approved stallions – including strengths and weaknesses they tend to pass on to their offspring. In the first afternoon, Jan answered a question I have always had concerning how certain aspects of a horse’s build may affect the performance. That alone was worth the price of admission.
I had two particularly nice bonuses. For one, I got to see the approved stallion Fridse 423, who is standing stud at Wish Upon a Ster. I must say, I was really impressed. He is just gorgeous. I do not know much about his offspring (he is a very young stallion and has not been breeding long), but if they are anything like him, they will be something.
My other treat was in finding out that Jan, our presenter, is related to Mr. Bruggen, who is the man who bred and owns Wilmaa B (Dahlia’s grandma). In fact, Jan told me that Wilmaa’s mother (Dahlia’s great grandmother) is so famous she has a photo in the mare’s book. And that he, Jan, trained Wilmaa B for her IBOP, and she scored an incredible 88 points. Jan promises to send me a picture of his wedding photo, in which he not only was with his wife, but was holding Wilmaa B as well! I showed Jan Dahlia’s video of her in training and he was very happy to see her. “That mare line”, he said in a soft voice, ” is not only top quality, but also has a special meaning to me personally”. Ah, me too, Jan.
So, thank you MAFA, Jan, Steven Feys of Wish Upon a Ster, Nina Miller (education coordinator for FHANA, owner of Wander 352 – one of my favorite stallions – and a good friend) and all my old and new buddies from the clinic. What a terrific weekend.
To IBOP … or not?
With Friesian horses, there is a performance test which an adult horse may undergo. This test, in either harness or under saddle, indicates the horse’s capacity for doing well in that particular discipline. That is, the inspectors are evaluating the horse’s potential to perform well (based on inherent musculature, movement, conformation , attitude, etc). A horse may be young, and therefore not very well trained, or may be older and very experienced. The inspectors should be able to tell potential and good performance blood in even the more junior horses.
This test is called an IBOP (pronounced “EE-bop”[correct], or “EYE-bop” [not actually correct]) and is a very difficult test to score well on. I am unsure of exactly how horses are scored, but I do know that if a horse can reach 77 or more out of a possible 100 points, that horse is considered very very good. 77 points is an elite measure, in fact, and not often achieved.
Traditionally, people prepared 1st premie star mares for an IBOP, because 77 points or better could position her to make model. Nowadays, you are hearing more about the IBOP and I feel more people will be striving to achieve a good score with their horse, regardless of the horse’s gender or papers. Why? In my opinion, this is because the KFPS (the Dutch Friesian registry) very much wants Friesians to prove their utility as sport horses. IBOP is one indicator of performance capability. So, although taking a horse for IBOP does not happen in the US much now, I have a feeling this is about to change.
My ster mare Dahlia is not model material, but I do think she has the potential for doing well on her IBOP. She loves driving and took to it like a fish to water. She has not been in training much at all and is very very rusty. But this year, though recently pregnant, she is still young and does not have a foal by her side. If I would like for the inspectors to look at her, this is the year for it. It will cost a good bit of money for the trainer and transport. I woudl have one good month to get her ready – and that is not much time at all.
And come on… practically, what would be the benefit of spending the money and time to condition Dahlia to be ready for an IBOP in early October? Would it make her or her offspring more valuable? Possibly yes, but probably no – the IBOP, though prestigious in the Netherlands, is too unknown in this country. So why should I bother?
I have been thinking a lot about this question of “why”. Finally today I came to the realization that it is mostly out of a desire to let Dahlia try to achieve part of what I think she can. I feel somewhat guilty that I have not utilized her more and I am letting her talent go to waste because I have not placed her in a position to succeed. She could be a good performer I think, and win points and recognition. I think she would be very happy in competition. But for me, she just eats and has babies. I think of last winter when my Friesian friend Marten asked me “what do you do with your mares?”. “They are broodmares” I answered, puzzled. He looked at me quizically and said “yes, but what do you do with them?” In a small way, the IBOP gives Dahlia the opportunity to do.
So tell me, what do you think? IBOP, or not? Take the poll.
Training and the Friesian Keuring
Yesterday our three year old fillies – Ock and Oeke – headed south for a two month training session. Since we are not professional trainers ourselves, we send the three year olds to a professional for training in harness and under saddle. This is timed so the horses will be in peak physical condition just as they go to their Friesian breed inspection (“keuring”). The keuring happens once per year. For us, this year’s keuring will be September 25 in Morristown, TN.
For a keuring, breed inspectors are brought in (generally from Europe) to judge horses against a breeding standard. This is not a competition between horses – each horse is judged on his/her own merits. After about 15 minutes, where the horse is judged on conformation as well as movement through the walk and trot, the horse is given a rating. The horse will also get a detailed “report card” in the mail in a few months time.
Babies are rated, and this is interesting and fun, but babies can change a lot over time so one takes these ratings a little less seriously. It is the rating for an adult, age 3 or more, that is of huge importance for a Friesian. Ratings vary from “not registerable” up to “studbook” then “3rd premie”, up to “2nd premie” and finally “1st premie”. An exceptional, and rare, rating of 1st or 2nd premie (1st or 2nd premies are also called called “ster” or “star”. You are very lucky to have a star quality horse – only about 1 in 5 can make this ) is quite something and can make the value of a horse – broodmares especially – rise 50% or more. So, when we take a 3 year old filly for star, it is a very big deal for us.
We select the trainer based on the trainer’s strengths and the needs of the horse. This year both Ock and Oeke are going to Wiebe and Amy Dragstra of Dragstra Stables in NC. Wiebe himself is Friesian and understands Friesian horses through and through. He is also a tremendous harness trainer – the best I have ever seen. I think he performs magic with these horses. Amy works with her husband Wiebe on the horse’s ground manners and does all the under saddle work. They are not cheap but they are, in my opinion, the best Friesian trainers on the east coast.
Look to this spot soon for pictures/videos of Ock and Oeke as they progress in their training. We are very excited!
