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Firstly don't be so sure about the UAE breeding program. Well not just yet 
anyway.  Did you read the Kajeel times - "Australian bred" horse..... ??

Nashmi (aka Magic Glenn Tulgar) was bred in Australia by Castlebar (Meg Wade) 
albeit for Shk Mohammed.  Presumably he has belonged to Shk M. since Day 1, but 
he was raised and spent his formative years and early campaigning (up until at 
least July 2004) in Australia.

To be fair you have to give Shk M. credit for having the foresight to 
commission such horses to be bred outside his country.  A little insurance 
policy should the UAE program not produce as they would like.  I guess no 
different to all Mohammed's TB breeding programs all over the world.

<Aside> Wouldn't it would be great if Mohammed's stable didn't insist on name 
changing all the time?  Really find it irritating!  Why is it necessary to hide 
a horse's true identity????

The FEI should rule to stop this from happening without official notification 
as occurs in all other affiliated FEI horse sports.  As far as I am aware it 
does not!  I have never seen a list of endurance horses with "name changes" in 
the Bulletin.

Back to the horse at hand:  Magic Glenn Tulgar is by no means an ordinary 
horse.  A bay gelding, born in 1996, one presumes specifically prepared to be 
the Shks mount if and when he was up to it.  He has always shown extraordinary 
ability and great heart.  His riders in Australia have described him as simply 
an "awesome horse to ride".

Tulgar won the HH The President of the UAE Aust Champs 160km CEI*** at Peaks 
Crossing South East Queensland last June with Kristie McGaffin aboard (Aust 
team rider 2004 finished 17th on Bremervale Justice) in a time of 9 hrs 28mins. 
Though it has to be said that the course at Peaks had significantly more hilly 
and rough country than did the one in the UAE.

The breeding of Tulgar is IMO second to none.  He is by an Arabian Stallion by 
the name of Tribal (Poldark (Aethon - Bettina)x Shahlea (Nemo - Cadence(Aethon) 
of what you would refer to as CMK-style lines & what we refer to as 
Crabbet/Colonial, predominantly Colonial.  Tribal had two lines to Aethon - a 
significant sire of endurance horses in Australia.

Note that the horse to finish behind him with the individual bronze Mindari 
Aenzac is a grandson of Aethon.  (He's another grand Australian horse with the 
fabulous record of a champion.) 

Tribal was a tremendous endurance horse himself (at least one Quilty Buckle, 
1994) that I know of - I travelled behind him for part of this ride (with Meg 
aboard) and was hugely impressed by his way of going.  He unfortunately had his 
life cut tragically short by colic probably around 1995.  I believe that Tulgar 
may well have been in the last crop of foals he bred.

Tribal was the sire of Glenallan Sheida, a member of the 1994 WEG team and 
Castlebar Treaty, fourth place horse at the 2002 WEG (Team Bronze WEG 2002).

Tulgar's dam was an anglo mare by the name of Keishia.  She was the result of 
an Arabian stallion (Boomori Izak) over an Australian non Studbook thoroughbred 
mare (ASB TB)by the name of Alonep.  I am unsure if she raced.  Boomori Izak 
was a most interesting stallion.  He was by a stallion Chip Chase Kaiwanna 
(Silver Spot x Kai) Silver Spot the maternal grandsire of legendary endurance 
horse/sire Chip Chase Sadaqa.

Dam of Boomori Izak, Juanita is another seriously interesting horse in this 
pedigree she is by Makor, a Spannish stallion (Galero x Chauvali).  I believe 
that Makor may have resided in the USA - one thing I do know for sure is that 
he was a tough son of a gun.  He suffered a break to a hind leg early in his 
life and managed to live to a good age despite significant deformity and 
associated hardship.

Dam of Juanita was Lapis (Mubark x Leila II) both Dutch bred.  Juanita was a 
three quarter sister to the stallion *Gaspar.  *Gaspar (Makor x Leila II) was 
imported to Australia from the UK in the late seventies by Jill Toft .  After 
his time as a sire of "show" horses Gaspar went on to sire some highly 
significant (try champion) endurance horses.  He possessed extraordinary 
ability to pass on amazing gritiness and quite deceptive athleticism.  Two of 
the champions he sired were Mandala Galactic (Member of the Bronze Medal Team 
at the 1994 WEG) & Torremolinos super Australian heavyweight horse of the early 
nineties - they both won updeen dozen 100milers, QBs and 1000s of kilometres 
later.  The Gaspar horses I have ridden have all been "travelling machines".

Hence Tulgar's WEG littered pedigree on paper translates into amazing ability 
on the ground.

Breeding of endurance horses (by knowledgable endurance breeders) in Australia 
has really stepped up in recent times.  There are more and more endurance 
enthusiastics/breeeders using proven horses and proven lines -resulting in 
improved quality of Australian endurance horses.

The overall appreciation of the bloodlines in the past was pretty much limited 
to locality (we're a big country too, with issues of isolation).  However, with 
international influences I believe that even the "breeding" side of things has 
even grown legs particularly in the more professional circles.  The best horses 
are being identified and sourced from ALL states. And the better horses are 
being purpose-bred much more so than they ever were before.  We were lucky in 
the first instance (as endurance enthuasists) at having such a wonderful base 
of old fashion Arabians dotted about the country.  Valued highly for their 
ability as work, stock, pony club and pleasure horses.

I also disagree with the assertion horses have to be purebred to be any good.  
Four out of six of the Australian team were partbred, as was Tulgar.  In fact I 
believe that the tendency is in the UAE toward a purpose bred 3/4 Arabian: 1/4 
thoroughbred style.

Also it is interesting to note that some of the thoroughbreds being used in 
Australia these days just aren't any old TBs (at least not in recent years).  
Quite a few of these mares are stakes winning mares, though that said I would 
be surprised if Alonep was of this calibre.

The horse flesh is definitely improving.  As are the skills of the teams behind 
them....

Also notice the French horse Georgat (GOLD MEDAL WINNER) is listed as a 
crossbred.....  Would love to know her breeding?

Best regards to all in the US
Jo Hamilton-Branigan (Down-Under)




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