all for the love of a horse...: KAMAR-OH!-LICIOUS

12 October, 2008

KAMAR-OH!-LICIOUS

My heart started pumping quickly and every hair on my head was standing on end, when I saw these series of Imperial Al Kamar pictures taken by Christine Emmert, at one of the last Pyramid Society meetings, held at Imperial Egyptian Stud.

GOOSEBUMPS...do you know what they are?

"I got chills,
they're multiplying
and I'm losing control
'cause the power
you're supplying
IT'S ELECTRIFYING!"-John Farrar, from the song, You're the One that I Want

I get them everytime I see one of these pictures. Which is a surprising feeling to experience, as I was not a fan of Imperial Al Kamar through most of his career at Imperial Egyptian Stud. I have to "come clean" and admit this to you, right here and now. I can't even tell you why I was not a fan of this horse. He is one of a few sons of the 1966 stallion, El Hilal (*Ansata Ibn Halima x *Bint Nefisaa) like Mohummed Sadden (out of Akid Fa Mona), Moon Sheine (out of Nafairtiti), RG Hilacious (out of Desert Song RSI), Carousel Hilal (out of Nora Halima) and VP Regal Heir (out of Bint Sammara). So, it is not like the community has an overabundance of El Hilal breeding. We don't. I did not have an opportunity to see El Hilal personally, while he was alive. I relied on second-hand information regarding his conformation and really, there were other horses born in El Hilal's time period, whom I was more attracted to than El Hilal.

I also knew that Sheila Varian had tried to use him in her program, without much success. I was being unfair. I had made too many assumptions, which led me to incorrect conclusions about this horse. Maybe, just maybe, he was never bred to the right mare...that is, until Imperial Sonbesjul came along. In 2004, I had the opportunity to visit Imperial again and SUDDENLY came to the realization that every horse that captured my attention, the horses that I would buy, if I could afford to, were all sired by Kamar!!! So, what was I thinking about El Hilal again?????

WOW!!!!!!!!

Imperial Al Kamar is a grandson of *Serenity Sonbolah and I think this blog accurately conveys how I feel about this once-in-a-lifetime mare. For this reason alone, you would think that I would have felt differently about Imperial Al Kamar.

For lovers of the "Dahman" horse, Imperial Al Kamar has two crosses to *Ansata Ibn Halima in his pedigree. *Sanaa (Hossny's dam) is a daughter of Yashmak (the dam of Rashad Ibn Nazeer), who is also a Sheikh El Arab daughter, as is Halima, the dam of *Ansata Ibn Halima. If you believe in "strain theory", Yashmak also brings in another source of the Kuhaylan Rodan strain, which is the tail female strain of Imperial Al Kamar. So, in this stallion, we have the very dominant presence of the Kuhaylan Rodans and in particular, the powerful Rodania family; balanced by the Dahman sire lines of not only Halima but also Farida (through *Bint Nefisa). The presence of Yashmak in Imperial Al Kamar's pedigree, combined with El Hilal, also brings in another interesting point to consider. El Hilal's grand-dam, Nefisa, produced another daughter by El Sareei, *Bint Nefisa, who was imported to America by Richard Pritzlaff. *Bint Nefisa, combined with the blood of the Yashmak son, Rashad Ibn Nazeer, produced many beautiful horses for the Pritzlaff breeding program, including the lovely mare, Perfecta RSI.

Imperial Al Kamar is 20 years old now. Hard to believe that this amount of time has passed so quickly. As a two year old, he appeared to be the next star in the Imperial show string, winning prizes wherever he was shown: the Egyptian Event, Region 15 championships, the Buckeye. However, it was not as a show horse that Imperial Al Kamar would receive the most acclaim; it was as a sire.

Going back to my Imperial visit in 2004, I met the young stallion, Imperial Amir Kamar (out of the Imperial Imdal daughter and *Fawkia tail female line mare, Imperial Falaah). I was captivated. This horse was everything that I ever wanted in one horse. There, in front of me, was the horse that galloped in my dreams, suddenly come to life, in flesh and bone. If Imperial Al Kamar had only sired this one horse, for me, he would remain an astounding sire but he sired so many more horses.

"Four, tres, two, uno
Listen up ya'll cuz this is it
the beat that I'm bangin' is de-li-cious"-Fergie, from her song, Fergielicious

I believe that Imperial Al Kamar nicked especially well with two Imperial mares: the Orashan daughter, BB Ora Kalilah, who produced by Imperial Al Kamar: Imperial Bint Kalilah, Imperial Kaleen, Imperial Kabisah and Imperial Kambriah. My favorite of these mares was Kaleen, because when she was bred to *Ibn Safinaz, she produced the mare Imperial Sahleen (who eventually, when bred to Baarez, produced my favorite filly, Imperial Baalena).

Which segways me into the other mare, Imperial Mistilll. With Mistilll, Imperial Al Kamar sired the most famous of his sons, the stallion, Imperial Kamill. This stallion was owned up until recently by Donald Duke of England. However, with the Mistill daughter (sired by *Ibn Safinaz) Imperial Safilla, Imperial Al Kamar sired the young mare, Imperial Karee, who is a gorgeous mare. With the Mistilll daughter (sired by Baarez), Imperial Baarilla, Imperial Al Kamar has sired the young mares, Imperial Kabaarah and Imperial Kahleedah. And again, another "seqway" in this article, as the Imperial Al Kamar sired offspring appears to nick well with the blood of *Ibn Safinaz and Imperial Baarez. Some of the best horses that I have seen anywhere, result from this blend of bloodlines.

Imperial Al Kamar is now owned by Jody Cruz of Rancho Bulakenyo and perhaps, this will be the most exciting chapter of this amazing stallion's life. It's like waiting for the next sequel in the Harry Potter film series. You know that it is going to be good, you just don't know how great its going to actually be. However, one thing is for certain, the results are going to be

KAMARLICIOUS!!!!!!!!!

Enjoy your horses,
Ralph

1 comment:

AnonymousMonday, October 13, 2008 1:44:00 AM
Hi Ralph

I love your articles!

Those pictures are frames from a video I took while I was visiting privately - I went two different days as there were visitors coming and Beverly graciously allowed me to visit a second time that day.

Guess why I visited the farm?
Because you posted a picture of Imperial Amir Kamar on SE.com and I really liked it. It pushed me to go visit Imperial Stud and I never regretted it.

I now am lucky to go visit Jody Cruz once in a while and took real pictures of Al Kamar (I mean with a real camera).

I don't know how to post pictures here but he is in the slideshow on the homepage of my website.

Christine Emmert
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MY FAVORITE WEBSITE

If you want to understand the desert Arabian horse on a deeper level, then you will want to visit Daughters of the Wind, a blog maintained by Edouard al-Dahdah, since 2008. It's my favorite place to visit, on a regular basis. For me personally, the information that Edouard presents is at times so profound, that I find myself weeks, even months later, still thinking about what he has written. I consider him a treasured source of inspiration and for the times that I don't feel like writing anymore, a significant source of encouragement. In one place, you will be able to read of the horses, their heritage; as well as the culture, traditions and the geography of the land, from where they originated. I strongly encourage you to visit his blog to broaden your understanding and deepen your appreciation for the Bedouin-bred horse.

MY FAVORITE WEBSITE X 2

The Horse In Word and Picture is the blog of Rania el Sayed, a very talented photographer, whose equine photography is second-to-none. I still remember when I first learned of Rania, it was all because of the late Dr. Nasr Marei. At the time, Nasr published an article that featured Rania's photography. I was thrilled by the photography and later, "meeting" Rania was one of the highlights of my horse life. I loved her photo of Mangooma and Rania, in an act of kindness never to be forgotten, let me use her photo in my blog. Thanks Rania for all of your support. You'll love Rania's blog and all of the equine topics she covers, including the straight Egyptian Arabian Horse. She really pushes me to think deeply about things that I haven't thought in a while. And you don't have to join Facebook, to read her posts. .

MY FAVORITE BOOK

One of the questions that I am asked most frequently is which book(s) do I recommend? Judith Forbis', The Classic Arabian Horse, published in 1976, is MY FAVORITE BOOK...EVER. Prior to the publication of this book, we really didn't have anything that compiled the history, the bloodlines & breeding practices and conformation (including breed type) of the straight Egyptian horse in one volume. You had to dig through multiple sources, sometimes in languages foreign to one's own, to try and develop an understanding of the Egyptian Arabian horse. So, this is my recommendation to you today, especially if you are just starting, this is the most important book you will ever own. You can find the book on Amazon, previously owned, at a very affordable price.

A NEW FAVORITE BOOK

Many times, I have heard other enthuiasts say, "if only I could get into the mind of this breeder and understand the Arabian horse as he or she does!" Dr. William Hudson, a long-time breeder, weaves together his lifetime of experiences including the latest developments in equine genetic science with the history, art and culture of the Arabian horse. This is not the type of book that you will read, cover-to-cover, in one sitting. You will find yourself turning to this massive 1,500 page, 2-volume set, over and over. If you love Arabian horses and want to understand the breed intimately, on a deeper level, this is the only book you will ever need to own. If you are breeding Egyptian Arabian horses, I urge you to purchase this 2-volume set before you breed one more horse!

MORE FAVORITE BOOKS...

One of the questions that I am asked most frequently is which book(s) do I recommend? Previously, I mentioned Judith Forbis' THE CLASSIC ARABIAN HORSE which is a great introduction to the breed and to Egyptian Arabian horses specifically. But now, you have read that book and are ready to go deeper. So, this is the book that I recommend reading (VOLUME II ) without hesitation. It's fantastic. The depth of this book, within tail female lines, sire lines and strains found in Egyptian (EAO) breeding is not found anywhere else. If you are serious about the Egyptian Arabian horse, whether a breeder, student or enthusiast, you must read this book, at least once!

STILL MORE FAVORITE BOOKS

In the Preface, Dr. Nagel wrote, "Since it is claimed that the Arabian horse breed is one of the oldest on earth, one has to accept that it is also in the crossfire of many opinions which sometimes clash vigorously. There are obviously many doubts and errors, and the advocates of different concepts seem to be not ready to settle on a common stance. It should encourage the reader to think...The refreshing variety of thoughts surrounding this noble member of the great family of horses should not be lost." Whether you agree or disagree with Dr. Nagel, is not what is important but rather, the resulting thought that this book will inspire. I can't even tell you how many times I have read this wonderful book cover-to-cover. It's one of the more provocative books that I have ever read and each time I have read it, a part of the book that had not impacted me previously, will cause me to think deeply for days, weeks and even months at a time. So, dear reader, I recommend this book to you, in the hope that it will inspire you to think deeply about our breed and examine why, you feel the way you do.

"The ideal Arabian type is recognizable at sight to the experienced horseman and novice alike. It falls short of the ideal if it reminds one of another horse or breed. It falls short of the ideal if it is so plain and uncertain of type as to require a sign: 'This is an Arabian horse.' It falls short of the ideal if it is so coarse and masculine as to remind one of a small Percheron, at one extreme, or so highly animated and elf-like as to remind one of a gazelle at the other extreme. The ideal type stands out alone. You know it immediately when you see it."-Ben Hur, from his 1951 Western Horseman article, Type in the Arab

In the summer of 2006, when I discovered Blogger, the last thing on my mind was creating a blog. At the time, I had been participating in a popular Egyptian Arabian horse website and desired to find a website that would allow me to "cut-and-paste" the posts that I had written for future reference. From those humble beginnings, this blog was born. I'm not a professional writer and although I want to say that writing is a hobby; I think it is better to say that I write for the love of the breed. I've had the good fortune to meet a number of horses who are now considered legendary, as well as some really wonderful people, who are equally legendary. Over the years, people have suggested that I charge a subscription fee or pursue paid sponsorships but you know how money changes everything and this blog, after all, is a labor of love. So, there you have it, the story of the blog. Many thanks to the people who make this blog doable, for example, where would I be without any of the photographers, the "visual storytellers" of our breed, who allow me to post their pictures and to the authors of the many books and magazine articles that I have read over the course of 45 or so years, helping to educate a long ago kid, crazy in love with Arabian horses. And finally, an overwhelming amount of gratitude for you dear readers, for coming here to this place, to read, discover and celebrate this common ground we share, all for the love of an Arabian horse.