Words of Love kickstarts BEF Futurity series

A dressage colt foal bred by Lynne Crowden topped the scoreboard on the first day of the Baileys Horse Feeds/British Breeding/British Equestrian Federation (BEF) Futurity at The College Equestrian Centre, Keysoe, Bedfordshire yesterday (Wednesday 30 July).

Three foals collected elite premiums, including Words of Love, (Woodlander Wavavoom

x St Moritz) who achieved the day’s top score of 9.33 (pictured above and right).

Lynne said: “We are delighted. The dam, St Barth is a good mare from the Christ motherline that we bought from Germany two years ago. Her 2013 foal tragically had to be put to sleep, so we waited with bated breath for her foal this year. The moment he was born we knew he was really special. He is a potential stallion.”

Another dressage colt foal, Dvorak, (De Niro x Florestan) attained an elite premium of 9.19 (pictured left). Bred at the first attempt by mother and daughter team, Toni and Claire Ballantyne, Dvorak’s dam, Fame, was ridden by Claire to small tour level. The evaluators said: “He has excellent power and expression and uses his whole body well”.

Barbara Heaton Smith’s eventing filly foal, CAWrus Girl, (Chippendale x Ring of Ford)

scored an elite premium of 9.00 (pictured right). Barbara is the principle at the College of Animal Welfare and therefore incorporated CAW into all of her horses names. CAWrus Girl is the second elite scoring foal bred from her dam, CAW Blimey, whose first foal DeCaw Diamond scored an elite premium of 9.18 at the Writtle Futurity in 2012.

The highest scoring yearling at The College was dressage colt, Immerdor (Diatano x Jazz) who took home a higher first premium of 8.98 for owner and breeder, Elizabeth Hough. The evaluators said: “This colt uses all gears in a three beat rhythm and has plenty of impulsion”.

Dressage prospect Qrusade was the top three-year-old of the day, scoring a higher first premium of 8.81. Bred by Karen Malcolmson, the Quaterback x HB I Donnerhall colt is owned by Tracey Nelson who bought him as a foal to go on and compete in dressage.

She said: “I am really pleased with him. The Futurity vet thought he was outstanding. Qrusade has now gone to Will Turnbull in Leicester to be broken in and then he will come back to me to be produced. I am delighted he is now eligible for the Futurity equine bridge.”

Best potential showjumper at The College was yearling Red Liberty Bell (Marius Claudius x New York). She scored a higher first premium of 8.64 for her owner and breeder, Valerie Redbart.

Evaluators Sacha Shaw, Carrie Andrews, Judith Davis and Futurity vet Jane Nixon had a busy day with 49 youngsters coming forwards for evaluation.

The Futurity continues today at Arena UK in Lincolnshire, the second of 11 venues where evaluations will take place this year.

For full details and results visit: britishbreeding.org

Photographs courtesy of Kevin Sparrow

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