The strength in depth of the Shetland Pony entry has fast become a key feature of the National Stallion Show, with this year’s entries bolstered yet further by the show’s new Royal Highland Centre venue.
Here, husband and wife partnership Robert and Dorothy Griffiths who have built their successful Ladbury Shetland Pony Stud in Swansea on a strong foundation of Wells, Millhouse and Lakehead bloodlines, enjoying five Royal Welsh championships took centre stage.
They chose to send Wells Vitesse onwards with her unrelenting run of championship wins, giving her the top ticket from the standard entry before awarding her the show’s breed supreme.
Universal in their praise for Vitesse, Mr Griffiths said: “She’s a really lovely youngster, with tremendous potential.
“She stood out in both her class and the championships and she moved very well.”
Owned and home-bred by Harry Sleigh, at St John’s Wells, Fyvie, this May-born filly, although very light in terms of show mileage, has stood unbeaten since the beginning of her two-year-old year.
She romped through last year’s show season, collecting the Royal Highland Show championship before standing supreme at the Tayside and Grampian foal shows from the Shetland entry.
Now rising three, Vitesse bred out of the Wells Riding Tide-sired mare Wells Vita, which has since been sold to Holland, and sired by the renowned five-time Royal Highland champion stallion Wells Highlight II (a son of Wells Petrena and Wells Vijay) was on her first outing for 2015.
Turning to their reserve supreme breed champion, the judges again praised another “top-class pony” which stood out from a strong class at the start of the day.
This was Ken and Anne Scott’s stallion Kerryston Theodore.
“He’s a very impressive stallion he was shown in great condition,” said Mr Griffiths, who had initially selected the seven-year-old as his standard section reserve.
Theodore home-bred by the Scotts at Braes of Kerryston, Broughty Ferry stood champion at the NPS Youngstock Show as a three-year-old and counts Ayr Show, the Winter Fair and the Heavy Horse Show at Kittochside among the other shows at which he has notched up class wins.
In the miniature proceedings Mrs Griffiths pulled John Lawrie’s chestnut stallion Tawna Rubus, from Danderhall, Dalkeith, forward as the champion entry.
“He’s a good, nice and compact pony,” she said.
“He offers a lovely top line and he moved very well around the arena,” she added.
John said the Stallion Show was Rubus’ first outing in Scotland, but he previously stood national champion at the South of England.
He brought the stallion north late last year from his breeder Audrey Runnall, in Cornwall, after successfully putting several mares to him last season.
Now 10 years old, he was bred out of Tawna Rosebud and sired by Brandon Fiery Jack, which now stands at stud on the Shetland Isles.
Reserve miniature was three-year-old Meadowpark Mescalero, owned by Lynn Gregg, of Three Acres, Jedburgh.
This coloured colt by South Sands Airborne was bred by the Aldersons, of Kirkby Stephen, Cumbria, out of Hermits Bella.
They listed him for sale through Harrison & Hetherington’s Special Spring Shetland Pony Sale in spring 2013.
Since joining the Gregg family, Mescalero has stood first at Haddington Show and was placed at the Stallion Show in 2013 and last year.
He was shown in the arena by Lynn’s 13-year-old daughter Jodi.
“He has a food future ahead of him,” said Mrs Griffiths. “He’s very correct and well put together.
“It was close between this colt and the leading mare for the reserve ticket but it is good to see quality youngstock coming through.”
Officiating in the centre of the Highland Pony ring, Bruce Halliburton spotted his breed leader from the get-go.
“He came into the ring for his initial class looking like a champion,” Mr Halliburton said about John and Kate Dykes’ winner Isleman of Mendick.
“He was well turned out, true to type and beautifully shown and presented.
“Ultimately, he is just the type and style of pony that I’m drawn to and that I’d really like for myself.”
Unshown at the Stallion Show last year, Isleman of Mendick was reserve breed champion at the event in 2013.
He progressed to win his yearling class at the Highland Pony Breed Show later that same year.
Over his career in the show ring, he was also champion foal, first as a yearling and then overall champion as a two-year-old, each time he has been presented at the Winter Fair.
Last season he took top place among the two-year-olds at the Central Scotland Highland Pony Club’s summer event, where he also stood in reserve position for the Grand In-hand Final.
The Dykes bred the now three-year-old colt at home at Mendick Lea, West Linton.
A son of Moss-side Iain Mor, he is the produce of the Carrick Raasay-sired mare Gissing’s Luscardene.
Shadowing Isleman of Mendick right from their class placings into the championship line-up, last year’s breed champion Whitefield Prince Platinum took the 2015 reserve.
“I felt he was really a similar type of stallion a real pony type,” saidMr Halliburton.
“He was looking really well on the day as well. There wasn’t a huge amount in it.”
Owned and home-bred at Strelitz, Burrelton, Blairgowrie, by Sandy Baird, this low mileage eight-year-old has made a good show of his limited outings.
Following his championship at the Stallion Show for 2014, the son of Viscount of Whitefield and Quicksilver of Whitefield progressed to stand second and reserve male champion at the Royal Highland Show in June.
Back in the championship at this year’s Stallion Show event Prince Platinum’s top youngstock was also clear to see, with his son Whitefield Prince Warrior the leader from the yearling entry.
“We’ve got a lot of good stock from him,” the Bairds added.
Lifting the award for the best animal of the opposite sex to the champion was Bowmore Lady Laura, for Jacqueline Bonar.
This seven-year-old mare, which was home-bred out of Lesley of Whitefield and sired by Carlung Findlay, had previously stood champion at Kittochside, reserve at Braco and third at the Royal Highland.
She also similarly won her class at the Stallion Show last year.
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