Still waiting...

Zaheera, our last mare to be due, is still pregnant! Although we're sure she'll deliver any day now, we're just dying of anticipation here. She hass lovely old breeding that is hard to find these days, and her foal will be the last Kkoi baby of 2007. So, while we're waiting, we'll share the following poem about Zaheera by Nikki Zuleger...

Zaheera's Soul

If seconds turn into minutes, and minutes into hours
then hours turn into days, then days turn into week's
and week's into months. Months into years.
Imagine what the world would be if everyone
made every second count.

Region 15 Top 5 and Reserve Champion

We’re very pleased to announce that EF KKlassique Beauty was named Region 15 Top 5 and Reserve Champion Sport Horse Under Saddle Junior Horse at Region 15 Championships in Lexington, Virginia. The show was long, hot and tiring, but in the end, the results were worth it. Beauty had qualified in Sport Horse in Hand, Sport Horse Under Saddle and Dressage, and showed well in all three events. But it was in the under saddle class that she really shone.

The class was sizeable and very competitive, with most of the horses having the benefit of a full year over Beauty. The judge clearly saw something special, though, and we all had our hearts in our throats as the Top 5 and finally Reserve Champion was announced. Although Beauty and Pam had shown very well, there were still a few bobbles with the number of horses that were in the ring. The judge clearly loved her though, and we shouted with excitement when her name was announced.

Beauty was one of Kkoi’s first foals and has had all her training, love and attention at Evergreen Farm. Pam selected the stallion, the dam and carefully raised this filly to be the outstanding competitor that she is, and all that work is finally paying off.

Keep your eyes open for Pam and Beauty at their next stop…East Coast Championships!

Summer time is here!

Summer is in full swing here at Evergreen. Pam is off to shows regularly with EF Kklassique Beauty, our dressage show series is chugging along, and we're overrun by barn rats every day! Seriously, we couldn't raise our babies or take care of the other horses on our farm without the help of our dedicated boarders and kids. Everyone is so helpful in handling our current six youngsters and broodmares, that we couldn't be more happy. It really is the early handling that helps make our babies so friendly.

We're also happy to report that after a frightening colic ordeal, Therese Schuler’s filly Zami is back from the Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center and is now on the road to recovery. After an emergency surgery and a few touch and go days, this lively filly by Cicera's Icewater looks to make a full recovery and we couldn't be more happy. Her dam Kalinka is taking it all in stride, and coping as best she can, being stuck in a stall with a rambunctious two month old at her side.

We're also happy to report that our two mares for next year are confirmed in foal. Sabiyana, a lovely purebred mare by the imported sire Stuyvesant, gave birth to a lovely, typey colt by Kkoi this spring. She is now confirmed in foal to the warmblood Rosenthal. This stallion is a lovely, large, elegant guy who crosses very well with Arabian mares and we have high hopes for this cross.

The other mare we've bred for a 2008 foal is our Alada Baskin daughter, Baskin Sunrise. Patience is confirmed in foal to the purebred stallion Padrons Hudsonbey, who was successful in reining, western pleasure and dressage. Making this cross even more special is the recent passing of the prolific sire Padron. We're expecting a substantial, but typey foal from this cross.

So...as summer rolls along, we're rolling with it. Check back soon for Region 15 results for EF Kklassique Beauty!

Region 16 - Another strong showing at Finger Lakes

Pam and Beauty just returned from another successful show in New York and we all couldn't be more proud of them. Beauty really is proving herself to be a competent, sane, and sensible mare amidst much show craziness. You'd never know she was just four years old.

The competition was fierce, with very deep classes in every division. The plan was to try their hand in the Sport Horse in Hand, Sport Horse Under Saddle, and Hunter Pleasure classes, and they acquitted themselves very well. With hunter pleasure and sport horse classes having more than 20 entries per class, Pam was very happy with not only Beauty's behavior, but also her placing. In a very competitive sport horse under saddle class, she managed to come away with a third place, qualifying her for Region 16 championships. She is also qualified in hand for Region 16, but I think Pam and Beauty will be concentrating their efforts a little closer to home in Region 15.

Look for Beauty in Lexington from July 4-7 as she competes in four divisions - Sport Horse in Hand, Sport Horse Under Saddle, Hunter Pleasure, and Dressage - in the Region 15 Championships!

Yet another successful show

This past weekend, we once again ventured forth with friends to an A-rated show, taking with us EF Kklassique Beauty (Beauty) and EF Fiona's Prince K (Prince). Beauty and Prince are from Kkoi's first foal crop and they really get better with every ride. Our goal was simple - qualify both horses for Region 15 Championships and Sport Horse Nationals, and I'm pleased to report that we did just that.

Friday was dominated by both heat and the in-hand classes. Beauty, the more seasoned campaigner of the two, garnered excellent scores in her Sport Horse In Hand classes. Those scores were good enough to win second place and Reserve Champion Sport Horse in Hand in a very competitive field of horses. For Prince, his time would come on Saturday when Heather Richards, a friend of his owner Katie Winters, would show him in dressage.

Our group, consisting of Jess Howard and Arizona's Wildfire, Becky Sine and Plakat, and Heather and Pam, schooled our horses on Friday evening just before a massive lighting storm, and put the horses away for the night, ready to compete in the morning.

Saturday morning dawned, muggy but clear, and we trudged to the barns to make our preparations. After braiding, grooming, and dressing in our finest, we all prepared for our dressage tests. Before dressage, Pam was able to squeeze in a Hunter Pleasure class with Beauty, pulling second place.

Overall, it was a great show for our horses. Prince was a superstar, and pulled all scores over 62, squarely qualifying him to compete in dressage at Sport Horse Nationals. His highest score was a 65.71 in Training Level 2, and we couldn't be more pleased with his progress. He gets better with every show, and we'll be ready to take the world by storm in September. In four classes, Prince won three second place ribbons and won his Training Level 1 - Junior Horse class on Sunday.

Beauty acquitted herself well in the dressage ring, with respectable scores, but really shone in the Hunter Pleasure classes. She received a third place in her Sunday Hunter pleasure class, and then pulled Reserve Champion Hunter Pleasure Junior Horse. Her placings were enough to qualify for Region 15 Championships.

Our other friends also did well, with Becky Sine and Plakat garnering some of their best scores ever and two sixth place ribbons. Jess Howard won her First Level 1 class, and received excellent scores in her other tests.

We'll post photos as soon as we can, so stay tuned!

Welcome Spidey!

We're pleased to report the birth of our second purebred Arabian of the year. We're still working on a real name, but are calling him Spidey for the moment, in honor of his long, spider-like legs. He's not what we were expecting from our large-boned Russian-bred mare, but we're thrilled all the same.

Spidey has an incredibly elegant, typey Arabian head with large dark eyes, a teacup muzzle and the tippiest ears we've ever seen. He's nicely put together, with long, long legs and a lovely shoulder. His markings are just as nice, with a little bit of chrome (4 short socks and a star), but not enough to be extravagant.

All in all, we're very pleased with this crossing. We'll be giving Sabi the year off from Kkoi, but plan to breed her to Rosenthal for a 2008 half-Arabian foal. After seeing what she could produce with Kkoi, we're really looking forward to next year.

A moment to breathe...

We finally have a moment to breathe - between births, horse shows, and other farm business - and wanted to present a fuller picture of our farm.

Evergreen Farm is both a boarding and Arabian breeding operation in Berryville, Virginia. We're very fortunate because our boarders are not just customers, they're friends and we have a very close knit family here. In addition to our own children, we have quite the group of kids that enjoy time here with their horses. Foaling season has been a real blast, with no less than four kids present for every birth! Although we hate staying up to watch the foaling camera, the kids revel in staying up all night, or taking turns in the cold barn aisle, waiting for a pregnant mare to give birth. Its been a very fun season with plenty of expectation, excitement and energy as our mares gave birth to beautiful babies.

Horse shows are just as much fun, with our students, boarders and friends bringing their own horses and ours, to their first horse show ever, their first Arabian show, or their first show with a new horse. The camaraderie makes for a good time, whether we have good rides or bad. At our last "A" rated Arabian show in Lexington, we were even able to bring a good friend into the "Arabian world". She enjoyed herself so much, she has even decided to buy one of Kkoi's 2007 foals!

The season is still young and we have a long summer ahead of us. We still have two more foals due - both purebreds - and have several more big shows planned. Our purebred mare Sabi, by the imported sire Stuyvesant, is the next due to foal...any day now! We're expecting her foal this year to be on the bigger side, since both sire and dam are 15.2 hands, and it should have great athleticism. Zaheera, a Zedann daughter, will be our last to foal in July or August. We're expecting her foal to be a stunning, refined, classic Arabian with all the desert fire and personality you'd expect.

In the meantime, we're pointing our riding efforts towards the VAHA Futurity Show in Culpeper on June 8-10. Once again, we'll be bringing EF Kklassique Beauty, EF Fiona's Prince K, and a slew of friends to compete in the ever-growing sporthorse divisions. If you happen to be there, be sure to look for our string of stalls and say hello!