all for the love of a horse...: The Epic Battle of Night and Day

25 January, 2020

The Epic Battle of Night and Day

Who would have thought that the Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz International Arabian Horse Festival, held this weekend at Al Khalediah Farm in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, would become the world stage for the epic battle between night and day?

"The night never wants to end, to give itself over to light. So it traps itself in things: obsidian, crows. Even on summer solstice, the day of light’s great triumph, where fields of sunflowers guzzle in the sun— we break open the watermelon and spit out black seeds, bits of night glistening on the grass." - Joseph Stroud, Night in Day

Epic battle? OK, OK...but it was very exciting to watch two World Champion stallions, each horse a wonder of creation, face off, one against the other, to present their individual expression of the breed standard to the judges in Class 12, on Friday, January 24th. Which horse would the judges pick? The horse as dark as the night sky or the horse who dazzles the eyes like the sun?

A radiant vision in white, the 2019 Bronze World Champion Senior Stallion, the straight Egyptian stallion, Adham Saqr, is a son of Imperial Madori (Imperial Madheen x Imperial Orianah) and out of Ameera Saqr (Shaheen x Alidarra). A paternal sibling to Gelgelah Albadeia, the 2003 World Champion Senior Mare, Adham Saqr's dam, Ameera Saqr, is sired by Shaheen (El Hadiyyah x Bint Bint Hamamaa), whose get include consistently brilliant horses like Ghazal Saqr, Farouk Saqr, Gamal Saqr, Nada Saqr, Kameela Saqr and Ghazala Saqr to name only a few names that are part of Shaheen's incredible legacy. In the tail female line, Adham Saqr traces to Ansata Sabiha, not only an important mare at Ansata Arabian Stud but also, for Mike and Kiki Case of Glorieta Ranch. Ansata Sabiha was a full sister to Fa Halima, a United States National Champion Mare.

In the first few seconds of the video, Adham Saqr takes your breath away, as he gallops into the ring, tail streaming in the air behind him, creating a visual impression that the viewer will never forget. There is a reason why these horses are called "drinkers of the wind" and Adham Saqr reminds us of this, in the first minute or two of the video. He is a very balanced individual, with an overall smoothness and elegance, for example, the quality of his skin, in terms of it's fineness and depth of pigmentation. He is a good mover and one can dream of how to take all of his energy and put it to good use, under saddle. He would be one of those horses we refer to as electric. The biggest challenge with more sensitive horses is earning their trust and establishing a reciprocal relationship founded on respect, so they don't have to worry so much about self-preservation, especially in the face of changing stimuli. I see that a little here. I appreciate the ratio of forearm-length to cannon bone length in this horse. Another quality that I appreciate is his large, fully black and expressive eye. While his head is not extreme, like most Imperial-influenced horses, he has a larger jowl and the fineness of his skin allows for the accentuation of vein and bone, to present a clean, dry and elegant head. I liked this horse very much, when I saw him show in Paris and every time I see him, I like him a little more than the last time.

There's one thought that comes to my mind, as I watch the video of Equator, the 2015 Silver World Champion Senior Stallion and that is "horseman's horse". He establishes his self-confidence, right away. He marches into the ring with purpose, head and tail proudly held high, letting everyone know that the king has arrived. When I look at his body, I am overwhelmed, because there is just so much to like about him. His back is short and strong, his neck is so well set, flowing right out of the wither, he has depth through the heart girth and depth through the shoulders, his hind end is well-muscled and powerful, right down into the gaskins. No surprise that he can get under himself and drive forward, with so much freedom, lightness and power. His neck, while not long, is beautifully shaped with length in the poll and a fine throatlatch. His head is classic, both short and wide, the beauty of which is intensified by big, black and expressive eyes. The glare of the lights on his greasy face, somewhat hinder the detail of the bone and veins but his head is clean and dry, in an elegant expression of breed type. No surprise over the number of 20's he received for type from the judges. He earned that score.

Equator is a son of QR Marc (Marwan Al Shaqab x Swete Dreams) and out of the Ekstern daughter, Eklipytka, out of the Eukaliptus daughter, Ekspozycja. In his tail female line, he traces to Estebna, the *Nabor daughter out of Estokada, an Amurath Sahib daughter. Equator has Egyptian blood, the highest percentage coming from his great-grandsire, Gazal Al Shaqab, an Anaza el Farid son. QR Marc was bred by Lou and Vicky Doyle, Quail Ridge Arabians in Gilroy, California. The granddam of QR Marc is a mare named Kouream de Ment. A 1986 bay mare, she was sired by Kouros (Marhaba x Kissie) and out of a mare named Rawhides Amenda (Baghdad of Rawhide x Rawhides Nakota). Three generations later, you find a mare named Tambruk, a daughter of the stallion, Tobruk (Sulejman x Fazala). Do you know that the mare Fazala, is a daughter of *Bint Serra I, by *Fadl? Something to think about in this day and age, when it is so challenging to find breeding lines to *Bint Serra I and her celebrated dam, Serra, bred by Lady Anne Blunt at her Sheykh Obeyd Stud in Egypt. Just a peek at the Egyptian influence found in Equator, whom at first glance, is mistaken as being of 100% Polish breeding, as a result of QR Marc being leased by Michalow State Stud in Poland.

Both Equator and Adham Saqr, having placed 1st and 2nd respectively, in Class 12 moved into the stallion championships on Saturday, which was a very competitive class. Any of the stallions in the class could have been picked the winner. However, Equator was judged as the Silver Champion (behind ES Harir, an AJ Dinar son out of TF Magnums Magic); while Wortex Kalliste (Shanghai EA x Mirwanah Kalliste) earned the Bronze title and Adham Saqr placed fourth.

"The dance between darkness and light will always remain— the stars and the moon will always need the darkness to be seen, the darkness will just not be worth having without the moon and the stars.” - C. JoyBell C.

***Many thanks to Arabian Essence TV for the live stream of the show on their website, as well as the videos uploaded to their You Tube Channel***

***Please remember that this is not a public forum. Any comments regarding the PSAIAHF show, showing and training practices in the breed, handlers, conformational analysis, etc. will be moderated.***

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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.

25 January, 2020

The Epic Battle of Night and Day

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