The Baileys Horse Feeds/British Breeding/British Equestrian Federation (BEF) Futurity continued yesterday (31 July 2014) at Arena UK, Lincolnshire where two elite premiums were awarded.
Top scorer of the day was Preci Spark’s embryo transfer eventing colt foal, Tredders (pictured top) (Esteban x Welton Crackerjack). Out of Welton Lady, who is the dam of four-star eventer Treason, Tredders took an elite premium of 9.01.
Liz Jones of Preci Spark said: “We are delighted, we have always liked Tredders. He was a last minute entry to the Futurity and hadn’t done much practise. He was very self-assured and interested at Arena UK.”
Penny Walster of the Bathleyhills Stud in Newark scored an elite premium of 9.00 with her dressage filly foal, Bathleyhills Joan (pictured right) (Rembrandt x Gigman Jacana). Joan 
is the second foal from dam, Loveden Sea Swallow to score an elite premium; the first being Bathleyhills Sea Spray, who scored an elite premium of 9.00 in 2011 as a three-year-old.
Penny said: “I am delighted, Swallow is just amazing. She is now the dam of two elite scoring youngsters and was the leading pony broodmare of 2012. She is in foal to Imperial High Order for 2015”.
From the same stud, dressage colt foal Bathleyhills Vincent (Bathleyhills Monet x Bathleyhills First Mystery) was the next highest scorer of the day with a higher first premium of 8.98.
Father of Vincent, Bathleyhills Monet was awarded an elite Futurity premium as a yearling and is graded with the SPSS (Sports Pony Studbook Society). Penny added: “Monet is now a five-year-old and has just started his ridden career. He is being produced for dressage alongside his stallion duties.”.
Top two-year-old of the day was dressage gelding, Freckleton Illumino (Montecarlo x Renkum Englishman). Bred by Penny Roots, he is now owned by Catherina Arris and scored a higher first premium of 8.59. The Futurity evaluators commented on his “good hindleg engagement”.
Another potential sports pony was the best scoring yearling at Arena UK. Moira Richardson’s dressage pony yearling, Monet’s First Impression (Bathleyhills Monet x Gribaldi) scored a higher first premium of 8.51. This result followed on from a higher first premium for the filly in 2013. Moira, a list 5 British Dressage judge said: “This is the first foal we have bred from Urayadien. We are delighted with her and her temperament is brilliant”.
Evaluators for the day were: Carrie Adams, Mark Shaw, Fred Bergendorff and Futurity vet, Jane Nixon.
The Futurity continues tomorrow (Saturday 2 August) at Hartpury College in Gloucestershire.
Visit www.britishbreeding.org for full details and results.
Photographs courtesy of Kevin Sparrow
