Probably everyone has seen the video of Totilas and Edward Gal scoring over 90% at the European Championships -- but if you haven't, here it is.
Edward Gal & Moorlands Totilas Kür 90.750% European Championship 2009 UK Windsor
Will he make beautiful babies?
As if the performances are not exciting enough, remember he's a stallion! Will he pass along rideability for the amateurs among us? Hard to say. There is hype that he's referred to as the "horse from another planet" for his "incredible gaits and temperament [italics mine]." However, BBC's Richard Davidson told a story about Edward Gal riding Totilas as a 6 year old. After a few steps he dismounted and went to get the "stable rider" -- apparently an risk-taking underling (a redshirt à la Star Trek) whose job it is to get the bucks out. Most top riders will not risk being injured on a young horse. Davidson also noted Totilas is not an easy horse in the stable. Oh well, the hotness inspires the brilliance, right?
Timeline for Totilas tots?
Totilas' breeding career is on hold until he is done competing -- and at only nine years old that could be awhile. He was recently approved by the KWPN (Dutch), so when the time comes Dutch mare owners will be forming lines to the breeding brokers. Maybe he won't produce amateur horses, but let's hope he reproduces those gaits! Also, he is said to have some younger full brothers -- anyone know their names? Totilas is by Gribaldi but apparently on the mare side his bloodlines are pretty amazing. Thoroughbred lovers will be gratified to know that a full thoroughbred Pericles who traces back to War Relic.
RESOURCES
Totilas has it all from the KWPN
Edward Gal/Totilas footage and comments from horsehero.com
Bulletin board threads
http://www.chronicleforums.com/Forum/showthread.php?t=221437
http://www.chronicleforums.com/Forum/showthread.php?t=216319
http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/forums/showflat.php/Cat/0/Number/4755570/Main/4754187/
Oh, I expect people are lining up for this one, putting money down to reserve a breeding for mares they may not even own yet - I would be!!
ReplyDeleteQuestion will be, will he pass on his attributes to his offspring? Not all stallions do.
ReplyDeleteHe is an amazing horse, that's for sure. Some controversy about how he goes/is trained but that has nothing to do with his native talent.
Well... I don't know. I still don't feel sold on him. He is certainly a flamboyant mover. I think his 4 low socks enhance it. But I still think he looks tense, particularly at the walk. Perhaps he is just a bundle of energy like that.
ReplyDeleteOh well - I don't own a mare anyway! Would you breed a hypothetical mare to him, Stacey? What background would she have?
I love the exhuberance of his gaits and the showiness -- what tends to attract me to a horse performance, though, is the super-elasticity suppleness a la Don Schufro and his son (featured in an earlier blog entry) Heather Blitz's Paragon.
ReplyDeleteThe other issue for me would be rideability, if it's a horse I'm breeding for me. To me it's more a question of taste than quality, though. He's a beauty.
I really like him, I was worried how his walk would be, but it was quite nice. Though I'd like to see what he got for his 1 tempis though. Did anyone else notice he wasn't always correct with his hind legs? But I'd still breed to him!
ReplyDelete