A snippet of video showing our favourite filly.
June 08
The photo to the right was taken on the 4th of June. The location is Ostler Vineyard. The rider is Roy Stringer. For many months now,Roy has been busy building the fabulous wall that is behind he and Quassa.
The project has been a challenge in many regards, not least, because Roy has endured summer heat and now winter cold to get it as close to finished as he can. Only a shortage of suitable rocks has seen the temporary halt to progress.
Anyway: when Roy asked if I had a quiet horse for him to ride, I automatically thought of "Mister Reliable" Quassa as the mount of choice. Sure enough, I dusted off my saddle and rode up to the vineyard where I work, and helped Roy to realise a long held dream.
Happy trails pard'ner.
May 08.
The news from our corner of the world seems to feature the full siblings produced by Quassa out of Zhola (Arabesque Crystal Flame imp Aust x Zest)..
In January Zhola foaled a very attractive bay filly, yet to be named and now owned by Blue El Arabians of South Canterbury. This filly has her sire’s nature and when I was handling her I found myself wishing she were mine.
But one must not be greedy. Zhola’s previous foal was a filly and she is mine. Her name is Zareth-Shahar, which means “Brightness of the Dawn”. It would be very tempting to label her as a typical red head, but as showy and vivacious as she is out in the paddock, she can still display a desire to learn in the yard.
At Easter time I went up the road to Kurow and strapped for Alex Lothian while he and Zion (Quassa x Zhola) competed in the 100km Open at this year’s National Endurance Champs. It was a real treat to see Zion out there on the trail and performing so honestly for Alex. They finished in eighth place.
Meanwhile back at the ranch: I am working with Zion’s younger brother Zircon. He is running with his sire and I take them both out on the trail as part of Zircon’s education. Although Zircon may not grow as tall as Zion, he will still be a useful mount with his balanced free movement.
As winter really sets in and everything seems drab and damp it is hard to imagine that the breeding season is only a couple of months away. As far as I can ascertain none of our mares are infoal, so I can concentrate on the existing youngstock.
But then again, we might enjoy a pleasant surprise. Watch this space.
Happy trails,