Words Chris Hector Photos Roz Neave

Sure, we know that the huge improvement in our Australian dressage horses owes much to the imported Warmblood: but for every successful European horse purchase, there are tales a-plenty of ripoffs and heartbreaks, of the 'Mafia' dealer system where any number of middlemen line up for their take till the poor buyer goes home with an inexpensive horse at a very high price, vowing never to return.
Actually, we hadn't set out to write this story, but when our friend Rebecca Fenner decided to join us on the last week of our travels in Europe, and announced that she wanted to buy a horse there, the wheels were set in motion.
There was no time to change our itinerary, so this expedition would have been somewhat different if we had framed it with horse buying in mind. Still, as you'll see, there was plenty to look at, and think about.

 

 

Our first stop was one of the best known studs in Oldenburg, the Böckmann brothers, where we intended checking out the stallions that would be coming into the Australian market in the form of frozen semen in the new season. It turned out to be a good spot for horse hunting as well when Tonnus Böckmann showed us a barn full of two year old colts, candidates to become licensed stallions. They were all stunning.
The most exciting mover was perhaps the least-good looking. A wishy washy chestnut by Welt Hit 11, with an abundance of white stockings but could it move!?!? It danced, it was amazing - it was also not for sale. Tonnus had bought the horse for a mere DM10,000 at the foal auction. The bidders apparently didn't like its colour and its less than wonderful head. The colt's mother is also the dam of Isabell Werth's promising dressage horse, Alleppo. Tonnus has great hopes for him.
Still there was another Welt Hit, out of a mare by Böckmann's great stallion, Landadel, that caught the eye. A handsome bay colt with real presence. We oohed and aahed but since at that stage, Rebecca had her heart set on something a little older, didn't ask to see him move. As we were leaving, Tonnus did mention that he was for sale, for DM30,000.
Our next shopping stop was the home of the famous colt dealer - Heinrich Ramsbrock - now here there was no shortage of numbers - you can see just a few of them checking us over in the shot at the top of this page. Each year, Mr Ramsbrock buys 100 colt foals, and each year he produces 15-16 licensed stallions. There is an enormous selling complex for the dressage horses and an equally enormous selling complex for the showjumping horses. Mr Ramsbrock also sells older horses that are in training.
While we were there, Ann-Kathrin Linsenhoff - accompanied by German coach, Klaus Balkenhohl - was looking at a nice Walt Disney three year old. We'd more or less decided that anything that was up-and-operating was going to be out of Rebecca's budget, and that the older the horse, the less likely we were to get something good with all those super smart European dealers on the prowl. If you think you've got a better eye than Klaus Balkenhohl, and a bigger wallet than Ann-Kathrin, go for it.

 

Ann-Kathrin did buy the Walt Disney, and one other. We weren't so lucky.
From a paddock with fifty colts, we chose two to see free-schooled in the indoor arena. There are so many horses on the property, that most times the staff can't tell you the breeding until they check the horse over with a microchip reader against the numbers in their big record book.
One of our choices was a nice elegant little brown horse, by Complement, and when they finally separated him from his pals, and set him free in one of the schools, he could really move. His breeding was a bit of a problem, he is solidly jumping bred, and I am constantly amazed by the people who import stallions of jumping blood to breed dressage horses (yes, I know that some of them have been the most successful, but why try to buck the percentages? It takes about twenty hours to get to Europe, surely that's enough time to read the WBSCH breeding handbook, and work out which stallions are producing what. And while you are at it, work out which countries are producing successful dressage horses. It's all in the book, and not hard to find.)
The other problem was the price. DM100,000.

 

The other colt we asked to see, was brilliantly bred for dressage, being by Rohdiamant, perhaps the most exciting son of dressage star, Rubinstein. He was a great type, but not a spectacular mover. Alas he was considered stallion material and not for sale.

 

Which perhaps goes to prove that we have good taste, or at least expensive tastes.
There's no way you can really do justice to a hundred horses in a couple of hours. To have any chance had at Herr Ramsbrock's you would have to have enough time to sit and watch the various paddocks-full of colts all day, then get your short list trotted up for you. We just didn't have the time.
Still we did have time to pick Mr Ramsbrock's brain.
Just how do you select top horses when they are still foals?
"Firstly I look at the type, then the feeling they give me, then the pedigree. You can say with 60-70% sureness of how they will be. If I buy ten, out of that, six or seven will be good. I get good results with first impressions.
And his top five dressage stallions?
"Alabaster is my number one. Very good movement with high quality in all paces. They are modern lighter types. The colour is not so good, they are always chestnut, but they work with you. Then Florestan - his father Fidelio came from this farm - sometimes it's hard to see when they are very young. For the first three weeks you can't look at them but as they get older you can see it. The Florestans are very good working horses, very clear in the head. Next are the Rubinsteins, they too are very good to work with. Then Sherlock Holmes, again very modern types and finally Walt Disney. They are again difficult to see, they look a bit ordinary, but when they are three or four, they work very well."
The next day we visited one of the world's truly great breeders, Herbert de Baey, the breeder of Ahlerich, Amon, Rembrandt and Rubinstein, just to name the superstars - and all from the original cross of the Thoroughbred stallion, Angelo over the mare, Dodone.
Here there was anything you could want. Foals, mares, mares with foals and in foal again (starting at about DM5000 and that's for a three-in-one deal) - or there were young stallions. How about Rubinstein's six year old full-brother, Rubinstein 111? Just DM50,000... well thanks, but no thanks.
But there is one stunner. A beautiful liver chestnut with a blonde mane. Again brilliantly bred, by Rohdiamant out of a Romadeur mare. He has that real look-at-me quality, and the sweetest nature. He has an absolutely wonderful canter, a good walk, and a nice but not stunning trot. He is only four, and lightly ridden, you get the feeling that with some serious work, the trot would be fine. The price is DM60,000 but you also get the feeling that it would come down if you got a bit serious (my feeling, reinforced by conversations with the cognizenti later is that DM40,000 would see him on the plane).

 

Rebecca decides it's time to have a little sit. And what a nice ride he gives her. This is one super horse. Fab breeding, unbelievable temperament (you should see him in the stable surrounded by mares, geldings and other stallions) and he gives her a lovely feeling on his back.
The drawback is that he is unlicensed. He did not pass at the initial approval and was not presented for the 100 day test. Rebecca feels that at this price, she needs a breeding stallion to get a return on her investment. For the horse to be registered with the AWHA he would need to be presented before he turns five, and the date is calculated on the Australian birth-day of August 1, not the European January 1 - it would be a hurry to get him home in time, but not impossible. He is a seriously beautiful individual carrying specialised dressage blood not currently available in Australia. Time to think and agonize.
The next day we visit the Westfalien Stud, and meet the director, Suzanne Rimkus. As she is showing us around the Stud, she mentions that occasionally stallions that are not popular with the breeders, are available for sale. She points out the stallion, Regenbogen who is trained in most of the movements of the Grand Prix - his foals have been a bit big and strong, but she suggests that over predominantly Thoroughbred mares he might be a star.
The stallions that are not in breeding are used in the German Riding School, and Regenbogen has been ridden by a succession of students since he was first trained in the FEI movements by one of the older trainers. He has learnt a few bad habits, like jacking up and napping. It's nothing a red-blooded Aussie girl can't handle and Rebecca gives him a couple of whacks and he settles into the work. They look sensational together, and even toss off a couple of nice flying changes.
The assistant head instructor, Stephan Kiesewetter gives Bec a little lesson, and explains that he thinks the stallion is a bit too sensitive to use as a school horse, he would work well he thinks with one special rider. Grand Prix? Yes, with the right rider.
There's an added bonus. Frau Rimkus and her deputy are making approving noises about our girl's riding style, and it is made clear that if she is serious about buying him, he will be put back into the hands of a more experienced rider for the rest of this year, and will be available at the beginning of January. Rebecca could also stay at the student hotel in the centre and spend some time getting to know the horse before taking him home. It is an incredibly tempting offer.
The drawbacks?
He is eleven years old, so he has a competition life of seven years in front of him, he is predominantly jumping bred and is not the modern type (which is not to say he might not be exceptional with our mares). He is also DM80,000, and this is not negotiable.
The options are multiplying.
Our next stop is Holland but before we head over the border, the memory of that Welt Hit colt back at Böckmanns has been nagging away, why didn't we get him trotted out?
Come any time, says Tonnus, and there he is. Tied to the wall in a halter for the first time in his life, and about to investigate the inside of a school. For an un-handled two year old he is taking it very well - and when they let him loose, it's all horse. So powerful, so correct, the walk, trot and canter are all exceptional, and every time he stands still, he looks brilliant.
No time to agonize, we are heading for the KWPN stallion selection in Ermelo, in Holland. As you might expect from one of the world's most go ahead, and successful breeding options, the horses are royally bred - the best from France, from Germany, and from Holland itself, but the standout stallion for us, is Norway, a son of Jazz, the dressage stallion currently in work with the Bartels family, himself a son of the international dressage stallion, Anky's Olympic Cocktail. The horse is gorgeous, and such a wonderful mover.
I ask my pal, Jacob Mellisen, an authority on the Dutch horses, what such a horse might cost. "It is hard to say. If he passes his test, 250,000 guilders, if he fails, still 100,000 because he would still be a good horse in the sport."
We can't see any way he is going to fail. The others are nice, but he is a star.
So they pass seven, and fail two, including our boy. Rebecca has already got Jacob to point out the owner, and she is off with the speed-of-light, ready to pounce. Alas the horse is not for sale, they will try to re-present him later.

So it's back to the original threesome. The raw brilliance of the two year old; the charm and breeding of the four year old, or the chance of getting out in double quick time in Grand Prix on the eleven year old.
What would you pick?
But wait, what is any good adventure story without a femme fatale? She was waiting for us at one of the most beautiful horse complexes in Holland.
Dekstation 'de Havikerwaard' is owned by Mr van der Kamp, and managed by his daughter, Patrizia. The stud is almost equally balanced as a competition barn - with star jumping rider, Rob Ehrens, and young dressage star, Leida Strijk flying the flag at international level competitions, and a breeding operation with half a dozen of the world's top stallions - including recent dressage acquisitions, Welt Hit 11 and Welcome - covering both the stud's own mares and a host of visitors.
It's certainly not a 'dealer' barn, but there are two young horses for sale. A three year old colt by Rhodiament, and a six year old mare, by Donnerslag. We see the young stallion first loose in the hall, then Leida rides him, then Rebecca. He really is a lovely horse - and has the advantage over Tonnus' Welt Hit of being twelve months older, and already three weeks under saddle. He is another lovely horse to ride - again with a super canter but an ordinary trot (what is it about these Rohdiamants? their Dad has one of the most spectacular trots in the world) and a good walk. He has a lovely mind and looks like he would be fun to ride.

 

On the downside, he is out of a Thoroughbred mare, and while I'm hopelessly hooked on Thoroughbreds, it does seem a mite quaint to travel all the way to Europe to buy a bloodline that we have in greater numbers with better quality right at home.
The mare is wonderful, the sweetest looking, most cooperative individual, and she can really trot, and canter, with the walk perhaps her most fragile pace, but 'Donner-Gal' is lovely. She is also very affordable at 28,000 Dutch Guilders and ready to start competition at Elementary level the minute she hits the ground. The van der Kamps also generously invited Rebecca to stay for a couple of weeks and work the mare - or the colt - with Leida's assistance if she decides to buy either.
To compound the intricacies of our equation, we have also watched Welt Hit 11 in a training session with Leida. At six, he is one of the most exciting young dressage horses in the world, and if you believe the scuttlebutt that the Weltmeyer's can't collect, you are in for a big surprise when this guy hits the Grand Prix circuit in a couple of years. He makes his son at Böckmanns, who we've already dubbed What-A-Hit, look even more attractive...
It's time to call in the aid of experts which is why when we meet Gotz Weber-Stefan, who recently judged at the diana ferrari, in the bar on the first night of Wiesbaden horse show, we rapidly pour him a glass of white wine, and proceed to show him photos of the four year old, Rubinsong, and the six year old Donnergal. Unfortunately we haven't had a chance to print the pix of the other real contender, What-A-Hit.
As Roz the photographer accurately predicted Rubinsong's trot looked a lot better in a still photo, she has seen it many times when the horse is in fact lengthening but just not strong enough to hold that lengthened moment. Gotz likes the stallion best, but calls in a real specialist for the second opinion, legendary German trainer, 'Bimbo' Peilicke. Bimbo too prefers the look of the stallion, but wants to see him move - can we pay you to do that, to come and look at the horse? No problem!
He arranges to meet Rebecca, the day after the Wiesbaden show, at de Baeys - we alas will already be on the plane heading home.
Bimbo inspects the horse, and says he is wonderful, that the trot will definitely improve with work, and that he thinks he should make FEI. Suddenly everything is looking fantastic, settled, resolved, sensational!
That is until a vet check reveals a couple of bone chips in one leg!
Time has run out for Rebecca, she too has to jet back to Australia, but vows to head back again at the earliest opportunity. She has had a wonderful time, and learnt that there are nice horses to be had ­ all she has to do is find one.