nss official programme Celtic gem in the Southern Uplands
Located in the expansive, rather rugged Scottish Borders landscape of the southern uplands close to Hawick, the largest of the Border towns internationally famous for fine quality knitwear, Rachan Sports Horses is a small, friendly stud breeding quality horses and ponies.
It all started 12 years ago when Sally and David Burns did what many people do, sell one horse and buy another. However unlike most people, the horse they bought was the young Dutch stallion Wonderful van’T Zwaanenheike. Sally explains: “I had a lovely big chestnut horse by Broadstone Westcountry called Broadstone Westminster Poet and together we had done very well in dressage competitions. We competed at Hickstead in the Young Dressage Horse Finals, finished in 14th place at Badminton in the Young Horse Final there, but at 18.1hh, he just didn’t find the higher level work easy and we decided to sell him. “Believe it or not, he actually went to be a vaulting horse! He had never done anything like that before, but when the people
came to try him, they were doing backflips off him after 20 minutes and the only thing he even thought about at first was when they ran along beside and jumped on. It was amazing to see how well he took to it, so off he went to enjoy a new career.” Looking for a stallion and finding an online advertisement for two at the same yard in Gloucestershire, Sally and David went down to see them. David, who also has his own business as a farrier, remembers: “I looked over the door at the first of them, saw a nice 4-year-old, but with legs already showing the signs of overwork. I told Sally not to even bother looking at that one. The other was Wonder.” Sally takes up the story and says: “When we first saw Wonder it was 2006, he was three, just backed and he had ringworm, so there was virtually no hair on his back! At 16.1hh we have always assumed he wasn’t considered big enough for the Dutch stallion licensing at that time, so had been sold and brought over to the UK. “We bought him in the August and took him to the British
Rachan Westcountry Da Vinci (Vinnie) is a modern type of colt
Warmblood Society grading in the October, where he loose jumped 1.60m! Nine stallions graded that year from those forward.” The stud’s two foundation mares were West End Girl, a black mare by Broadstone Westcountry and a chestnut Hanoverian by Cardiner. It was West End Girl who produced the stud’s the first foal by Wonderful van’T Zwaaenheike, a lovely filly called Wonderful Van’T Wynona. Sally was no stranger to Broadstone Westcountry, having
bred two foals by him when he stood with Jennifer Gilchrist at Romanno Stud and having known Jennifer for a while, she recalls spending many happy days riding him around the stud’s expansive acres. Having thought previously about buying him to stand at Rachan Sports Horses, when she eventually got the opportunity, she confesses: “I had just sold a foal and the money was in the bank, so I spent it without telling David! When he got home and I told him I’d bought Westie, he just
Wonderful Van’T Zwaanenheike, pictured with Sally Burns, is being aimed at Medium level dressage competition this season
Equine Page 54
Broadstone Westcountry is now 26 years old and will stand to only a limited number of mares this season
www.theequinesite.co.uk
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