Amanda Pegasus

The 2023 Turfah Arabian Horse Show, held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, finished yesterday. The senior mare class is always my favorite and at this particular show, it was Class 6, for mares 10+ years old. It was a strong class, with some very nice mares competing.  I found it interesting that the full sisters, AJ Anwar and AJ Arwa, both sired by Marwan Al Shaqab and out of AJA Angelica (WH Justice x FS Anastasia) were competing against each other. A tenth of a point eventually separated the sisters. A big surprise was finding the Sanadik El Shaklan daughter, El Sanadika IA, out of Magnalina, a Magnum Psyche daughter out of Elle Padron. While Padron represents 20% of her dam's pedigree, I was more focused on the percentage of Spanish blood through horses like *Estopa, *Morisca V and A Fancy Miracle. I was struck by her height, as she is a taller mare and the ratio of her forearms to cannons is impressive. She is a willowy mare, with length to her back, neck, legs and head. She was my favorite, until I clicked on the video of Amanda Pegasus. A 2013 mare, she is a daughter of Shaezz El Madan (Shael Dream Desert x MFA Exoticaa) and out of Kasetta Pegasus (Johakim Carol x Amanda Rach). What I appreciate most in Amanda Pegasus is her body mass, balanced within three equal circles. She is so harmonious, broad of chest, with a wide back and  a well-muscled hind end. Her maternal granddam is overwhelmingly of Polish ancestry, with a matriline that runs back to one of the most influential desert horses imported to Poland. In 1844, Count Juliusz Dzieduszycki traveled to Alexandria, Egypt and having obtained letters of recommendation that he could present to a Bedouin Sheykh; he journeyed into the desert to meet the various horse breeding tribes, in the hope of securing their very best horses. The Count purchased seven stallions and four mares and would export these horses to the breeding farm he had inherited from his father, Jarczowce. One of the four mares he purchased was Mlecha, who founded an enduring line in Polish Arabian horse breeding. Her descendants eventually moved to his brother's farm, Jezupol, and from there, to the Janow Podlaski Stud, where her bloodlines have remained relevant to the present day. In tail female line, Amanda Pegasus traces to Mlecha, a Kuhaylah Dajaniyah by strain. Additionally, she carries  approximately 30% Egyptian blood through horses like Ansata Shaamis, Hadidi, *Soufian, *Ibn Moniet el Nefous, *Fadl, Aswan and Ruminaja Ali. Amanda Pegasus placed first in her class, advancing her to the senior mare championships, where she earned bronze. Congratations and best wishes to Al-Diriya Stud, her owners and Espolio Raul Luciano Folle, her breeder.

***Many thanks to Arabian Essence TV for making the videos of the 2023 Turfah Arabian Horse Show available on your YouTube channel.***