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Topic: How did you get into the trakehner breed? (Read 2198 times)
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Lucky Mistake
ata
Gold Medallist
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Posts: 308
I love Trakehners!
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My first schoolmaster, may she have only perfect riders in heaven and correct work (forget the heavenly carrots - she wanted correct work!).
I bought her on my trainer's recommendation when I was looking to get into breeding. She was a Pregelstrand mare, and my trainer had shown Pregelstrand for a while. So I bought the mare and proceeded to pour money down a hole trying to breed her for a few years. We had every breeding experience you can name: Losing 'em early, losing 'em late, hard to get in foal some years. She was a total washout as a foundation broodmare.
But in the meantime, the mare really liked 24/7 turnout with run-ins at my place and thrived on it, and I started riding her regularly because she was there and was so dadgum good looking and wanted to be ridden. I could tell any time I took a saddle to anyone else, she was disappointed.
Once I stopped trying to breed her and decided to just get another mare as my first broodmare and use this one exclusively for riding, she was a marvelous schoolmaster, and she taught me a whole lot. Forward, willing, but also held me to a high standard. She was wonderful. If I'd bought her with that many riding years left in her instead of as a broodmare prospect, I probably couldn't have afforded her, but it worked out great.
One of my top memories of her is the day I had gotten the call the night before about maybe buying Freedom as a broodmare. I wanted to ask the trainer's opinion, because she'd seen Freedom years ago, and I hadn't, and she never forgot a horse. So I was taking a lesson on my grand old girl, and we were warming up first - she did have some arthritis and took a good warm up. So as I was walking her around and stretching out the kinks, I said, "I want to talk to you about buying another horse." So the trainer and I talked extensively about Freedom's pros and cons and concluded she was a good deal.
By that point, my mare was warmed up, so I put her together, and off we went into the lesson. That was the only time I ever rode that horse where she was trying to impress me instead of get me to do it right. That day alone, it was, "You want a lengthening? Here!!!! How's that? Want more? HERE you go!!!" It was the trainer who put it together after just a few minutes. In front of this mare, we had just spent 5 minutes talking about me getting another horse, and citing this mare's age as a factor in the decision. Of course, I meant replacing her for breeding, had no intention of giving up my girl because I was having so much fun riding her, but she heard that whole conversation, and she set out to prove to me just how much she still had in those aging joints. Who needs a younger horse, anyway? Can a younger horse do THIS for you?
What a gal! After knowing her, I was hooked.
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"Then we began to ride. My soul smoothed itself out, a long-cramped scroll freshening and fluttering in the wind." Robert Browning
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acottongim
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Old Hand
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Posts: 1,397
I love Trakehners!
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I am an AF brat and was lucky enough to have my parents stationed in Germany for 7 years (from the time I was 11 until I was 18). The first 4 years we were in Bitburg (a tiny village near the Luxumburg border). Being the horse crazy kid that I was I rode my bike all over the countryside until I found a riding stable, Hungerburg. I started taking lessons (riding my bike out there everyday) and generally hanging out. This barn bred Trakehners. In fact this was the last place that the stallion Marlo stood prior to his death (they only used him for thier own mares). Some really excellen OLD lines (direct sons of Gunter Stern, Marlo, a mare that was only a few generations removed from Fetszy himself). Of course all I knew was that they were wonderful horses and I was having the time of my life riding them all. I helped with the babies, I rode EVERYTHING they had, I helped train them, you name it. I lilved at that barn. Even when we moved the last 3 years to Kaiserslautern, I still went up to Bitburg almost everymonth for a weekend to ride and work at Hungerburg (took the train just me and my schnauzer). I did put a few photos of the old days on my website for grins and giggles, and one day will post a few more: http://emeraldacrestk.com/germany.htm
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Joy
ata
Old Hand
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Posts: 1,270
I love Trakehners!
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I'd always love QH's and Arabs, but became friends with someone who had warmbloods. "Warmbloods? What are they?" She introduced me to Hannoverians and dressage, jumping, and breeding. When I moved to Colorado a few years later, I got a flyer in my mailbox announcing a sale on Trakehner horses at Mile High Horse Ranch. Hey, it was only 2 miles down the road, so I might as well take a look, right? I wasn't really interested in buying anything but I love lookiing at horses, so why not? When I laid eyes on those gorgeous creatures, I was hooked. After seeing several 2 y.o.'s, I narrowed it down to Mixta and Letzte, both by Erzsand, and after agonizing a little more, I bought Letzte. She was my dream horse, and I still get a knot in my stomach thinking about my beautiful girl dying, with Mozart's very last foal in utero, from a vaccine reaction. But I've had Trakehners ever since, buying two more from Vanda (Pscilla and Freedom's Fire), and breeding a few more. I can't even imagine not having a Trakehner, or at least a half-Trakehner, in my pasture. Trakehners--the Ultimate Horse.
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Stacey Ellis
FEI
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Posts: 212
I love Trakehners!
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Fun topic!
I went to a breeding farm to look at a stallion to breed my QH mare to. The owner said "come and see my new babies first". She had imported 5 TK mares all in foal and they had all just foaled recently. I got to the last foal and something just hit me - I HAD TO HAVE HER! I could not spell Trakehner and had no idea what they were, but I knew this filly was special. She was 6 days old and her name is Fairwell. My uncle co-signed a note for me and she was all mine. She is 11 years old now and we are working third level and having a blast.
I ended up buying her dam, SPS Fair Rock, but we lost her last year foaling. I own Fairwell's sister, Fair Diva, and Fairwell's son Fairwind. To make completely sure I was hooked on TK's, we bought SPS Hofdame last year and she had the "Bonus" foal High Light (by C'Est Bon).
So, as they say...the rest is history - still in the making.
I have ridden QH's, paints and Arabs all of my life until I found this unique and special breed. I thank God that I was introduced to this breed and more importantly, the true friends that I have made on this journey. It is so wonderful to meet TK people, they are different and more kind than most other circles I have been in. Everyone wants to see the success and happiness of others - very cool! And, I have to mention the true support. When you are a TK breeder and have a bad year, the support is amazing! Friends and strangers will e-mail and call you to give support and shed tears with you. I consider myself very blessed to be a part of this world. 
Stacey
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SteveSamples
FEI
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Posts: 176
I love Trakehners!
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While in the Air Force at San Antonio in the early 1980's I worked at a jumping stable part-time to stay close to horses (I'd grown up on QHs & worked on TB farms in KY). The buzz at that time was a TK stallion that was new to town. I don't remember who he was, just that one of the big name trainers had him. Twenty years later in CO I decided to sell my QH and get back into hunter/jumper. A friend offered her Arabian mare to me to breed to a TB, as I had been impressed with the beauty & athleticism of that cross in the past. While researching stallions my riding coach, Valerie Spahr, sent me to the Ackermans who have Arabs and TKs. I was blown away by their TK Ibsen and Arab stallions. They had a 2yo Arab/TK filly for sale, a good deal as she was closely related to Ibsen so they wouldn't be breeding her and they needed to reduce their herd. She was so kind and fit my motto, "Life's too short to ride ugly horses". It's frustrating that so few people know what a TK is, but exciting when they see Copper and her yearling Tycoon filly and realize this is something special. I couldn't be happier with the breed, and I'm especially excited that their jumping potential is being realized. TK people are awfully nice compared to some other horse people as well.
Blessings,
Steve +
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Deb
FEI
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Posts: 208
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By accident. I had friends that had a Falke daughter that I loved. I wasn't in the market but they talked me into looking at another Falke daughter. She was an unstarted 4 yo. So, after 18 years of riding what ever I could get my hands on, I was a horse owner again. 12 years later I still have her plus two homebreds out of a TB mare and by Hennessey. Even bought a farm so I could have more than one of them. 
http://web.centre.edu/dajones/
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Laurie
Novice
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Posts: 46
Aim High!
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I love that there have been several Air Force references because in a way, that's what led me to Trakehners. I grew up in Maine (had a Morgan gelding) and opted to join the Air Force after graduating college. I started taking jumping lessons at my first base, something I'd always wanted to do...and never looked back. After getting stationed in Georgia, I joined the dressage club down there and met Ruthanne Gardner of Joint Venture Farm. She convinced me to bring my recently acquired TB mare to an inspection she was having at her house and not knowing anything about Trakehner's except that I liked hers, I did - and Pepper was subsequently approved.
It was actually because I really wanted to breed Pepper (unfortunately unsuccessfull this year) that I decided to buy a young Trake mare, Anniko, and I swear I'll never own another breed. She is the most trainable, sweet, smart, athletic horse I've ever owned. To put it in perspective, she was a three year old and barely halter broke when I got her two years ago and I've only ridden her once or twice a week since...and this weekend we just placed fourth in our second Novice Event (for both of us!) at Northern Colorado Horse Trials.
I can't tell you how many people have looked at me with surprise when I told them what breed she is...as she's dozing while we wait for the stadium round - they all say they thought Trakehners were "hotter". We even got a huge compliment from the cross country start box official this weekend "What a nice calm horse you have!" You should have seen her face when I told her she was only 5! So we are doing our best to show everyone around here that they are not only a level headed enormously sweet breed but that they can be a cross country jumping machine at the same time!
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« Last Edit: September 02, 2008, 12:15:24 PM by Laurie »
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Sean
Gold Medallist
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Posts: 385
Trakehner Eventing!
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I mucked stalls, fixed fences, baled hay and every other farm job there was in exchange for lessons on an old Arab when I was really young (5-6). After a couple of years I took a clinic with Darren and started to get regular lessons from him on some older Trakehner's he had at his place. I wound up buying a tiny QH, then a fearless Appy and a few others that carried me through as a teen. Surrounded by Darren and the other working student's great Trakehners I had to put up with a lot of harrassment over my less than pretty herd! The worst was a narcoleptic OTTB that was a great Training level eventer except when he fell asleep before or during Stadium!
Finally ten years later I have started my dream herd of mares and foals! Trakehners have been the only horse for me since I was a kid, thankfully now I can finally have them!
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Sean
Gold Medallist
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Posts: 385
Trakehner Eventing!
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Oh boy, I thought I told you about him!!
Once as we were standing waiting to enter the ring, down he went...woke up and had a clean round...last event with him he fell asleep in the middle of the round, crashed to the ground on a bending line and shot me facefirst in to the board fence surrounding the ring. First broken helmet and first broken collarbone of my career! He was aptly named Crash...
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Cate
Preliminary
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Posts: 86
I LOVE Trakehners!
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I started out in Arabians but wanted something bigger, but retaining the Arabian elegance and attitude (the working type Arabians, not the crappy show ones). In 2000 I had the opportunity to purchase one of the original full Trak mares that was bred in NZ, Liebesgabe and a year later her older full sister Liebelei. Both these mares are by Polarschnee (who was by Gazal Sh ) and out of the imported mare Liebchen.
I then begain a Frozen semen program with Liebesgabe to try and expand the bloodlines we have here. Unfortunately Liebelei has not been suitable for frozen so we went live cover with her.
They haven't been bred every year due to some economic constraints and now at the age of 24 Liebelei may have had her last foal... we will see how she shapes up for next season.... or if money allws I would love to do ET with her.
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STFT
ata
Novice
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Posts: 8
I love Trakehners!
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For me.....By the help of a bunch of bad bad enablers...... 
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