all for the love of a horse...: Fa Carolina Moon

28 July, 2019

Fa Carolina Moon

Fa Carolina Moon (Halim el Mansour x Fa Bukra)

I try to check in with Marilyn Lang every few weeks to see how she is doing. I have known Marilyn for a long time and am blessed with her friendship. She is one of the people in my inner circle who occupy a role similar to that of a mother, an aunt, a sister, a mentor, a trusted advisor, a teacher, a friend...all rolled into one person. To say that I deeply admire her and respect her, would be an understatement, as Marilyn, through her wisdom and life experiences, has deeply affected my life. When it comes down to Egyptian Arabian horses, whatever Marilyn tells me, becomes my gospel truth. She has been at it for a long time and she has created a multi-generational breeding program which runs deeper than any other program I know of. So, when I dropped her an email on Friday, the last thing that I expected was the tragic news that her most wonderful mare, Fa Carolina Moon, had died earlier in the week. I was devastated. I loved that mare.

Fa Carolina Moon (Halim el Mansour x Fa Bukra)

Some of the most beautiful horses bred by Marilyn include "Moon" in their names; a designation Marilyn uses within her naming convention, to acknowledge the presence of Bukra in the pedigree, along with the influence of RDM Maar Hala, a grand-daughter of Maar-Ree. FA Carolina Moon, a 2000 bay mare, was a Halim el Mansour daughter. Bred by Rancho Bulakenyo, Halim El Mansour, up until April 12, 2007, was one of the last living sons of the legendary *Ansata Ibn Halima and a full brother to El Halimaar. Jody Cruz, in an interview with Honi Roberts said of RDM Maar Hala, "What many don't realize is that her first five foals were all colts-not what new breeders would normally hope for but what colts they were!" Halim El Mansour will forever remind me of the lesson I learned in quantifying the greatness of a horse. In Halim El Mansour's case, he was an *Ansata Ibn Halima son but as great as being a son of this stallion was, that is not what made Halim El Mansour great. The greatness of this particular horse, was measured by the quality of the offspring which he consistently sired. Carolina Moon was proof of his excellence as a sire. Marilyn said of Carolina Moon, "She is a Halim El Mansour look alike, no doubt. Lovely mare with a very sweet disposition much like her Dad."

Fa Carolina Moon's dam was FA Bukra (Fa Asar x SF Khala Zahra), a mare also bred by Marilyn, who matured into an important foundation mare for her program. Fa Asar was an Ibn Fa-Serr son, out of the straight Babson Egyptian mare, Serasabba (Fabah x Serrasab). While SF Khala Zahra, his half-sister in blood, is a daughter of Ansata el Sherif and out of Sabrah (a full sister to Serasabba), what I like most about Carolina Moon's pedigree are the four lines to the mare Farida, who is found in the pedigrees of the most influential horses to ever leave Egypt.

Fa Carolina Moon (Halim el Mansour x Fa Bukra)

The Farida horses are close-coupled, deep through the heart girth, with well-sprung rib cages, supporting a strong, smooth and level top line, bigger hips, with generous and round, voluptuous hindquarters. Carolina Moon was wider and well-muscled, when viewed from behind. Carolina Moon's hocks were so elastic, she was able to reach far under herself, generating a lot of ground-covering power.

Her strong body also helped her, in transitioning to the breeding herd. An easier mare to settle, she was an easy mare to manage and foal out, as well as a terrific mother to her new foal. Up until last year, she consistently produced colts. Bred to her paternal brother, WK HalimElShakhir, she produced Fa Halim El Nasr in 2007. She was also bred to Shaheen Al Waab, producing her best colt yet in 2015, Fa Amir Ibn Shaheen. A very refined bay colt, he took the strong conformational attributes of his dam, while possessing the refinement of his sire. Carolina Moon was bred to the exciting black stallion, Fa Ali Bey (Justynn x Fa Angelita Rose), producing a beautiful black filly, who was named Fa Bint Carolina Moon. Although black in color, she is very much like her mother, strong of body with the trademark powerful hind end, voluptuous and well muscled, driving her body forward with the same brilliant movement. Marilyn says of Carolina Moon's filly, "Ali Bey gave her a prettier head and even bigger eyes and tail carriage. His signature trait he is passing on to all of his babies is the flag tail carriage." And perhaps, this is where we find some consolation, as no finer tribute can be given to a cherished and beloved mare like Carolina Moon than through the life that will be lived by her daughter, as she matures into an equally important broodmare for Marilyn's program, just as her mother once was.

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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.

28 July, 2019

Fa Carolina Moon

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