It’s no secret that I’m an avid fan of the standardbred, and have known a number of talented horses over the years. As a result, it became a dream of mine to begin a small training and breeding program to produce an elegant sporthorse type – a true alrounder horse to succeed under saddle for both performance and pleasure.

In 2012, I would meet Ollie – a supremely talented gelding by champion New Zealand stallion “Il Vicolo”. I was already a fan of the breed for their temperaments, having worked with a number of them previously and already owning an Astreos gelding (Charles “Amberlus A Corka”) at the time, but it was Ollie who introduced me to the true potential of a sporthorse type standardbred – lanky in build, and with a floating powerful gait once he learned to carry himself more effectively. Tragically, Ollie was also affected by degenerative neurological issues and hypermobility, as well as carrying a number of injuries and trauma he had acquired over his short life. The most impressive and flashy mover I’ve ever known, but restrained by the physical limits of his broken body.

And so began my decade long search, to find another Ollie but without his many troubles.

Soon after Ollie, I would come to meet Ebony (“Mappinga Midnight) – a mare belonging to a hoofcare client. A little heavier boned, but still overall a very similar type to what I loved so much in Ollie. And unfortunately, Ebony was also troubled by soundness issues – though hers were acquired through injury and from long term compensation of her initial injury, while Ollie’s main troubles were congenital in nature.

While her hamstring injury would come to prevent a successful ridden career, Ebony was an excellent bold trail horse during her brief ridden period with an enormous walk to put an ASH to shame and temperament wise, a beautiful mix of curious, sensible, and sensitive.

Ollie and Ebony. Two horses, bound by the limits of their broken bodies. I would end up spending years trying to find another standardbred with their same natural talent but with their potential unmarred by injury. Ten years after I began my (admittedly fairly casual initially) search, I was beginning to accept that the only young horses that met my precise wants and needs were priced far, far above my budget with many of the yearlings I liked selling in excess of $40k and some even reaching over $200k – having been bred to race, rather than for the equestrian market. What can I say, I have good tastes?

With the loss of my appendix gelding (Scoot) in February 2022, I continued my search for the right horse, but yet again failed to find one to meet my precise needs within my available budget. And due to my disabilities and chronic health conditions, my budget could only stretch so far. I had been searching for Ollie or Ebony only younger and without injury. And Ebony had foaled previously as well, so there wouldn’t be the same concerns breeding her in her teens than there would be if she were maiden. For once, it would seem that breeding would actually be the more affordable choice – with youngstock being far out of my budget since they were intended for racing homes.

At the same time, I do also try to keep a fairly close eye on the market and harness industry in general – to keep an eye on breeding trends, and to learn which particular lines appeal to my specific tastes. With the impending sale of Yirribee Pacing Stud in NSW (now Wingate Farm), a large stock dispersal sale was advertised online and I was curious initially to see if there were any empty broodmares of the type I like so much in case Ebony failed her exam for breeding suitability. After the initial sale, a small number of horses were listed as still available after not selling at auction, and this time instead of just looking at broodmare prospects, I also looked at the youngstock available.

There she was. The horse I had spent a full decade searching for. A nine month old filly, by Tintin in America and out of Eternal Miss. With nothing more than a 90 second sales video, something told me that this was the one. And twelve hours later, she was mine – a gift from my husband after the loss of Scoot, knowing how valuable horses have always been for my health.

What a gamble to take – after so many heartbreaks from previous horses, to then buy my next horse from interstate based on nothing but a short video. Despite her immaturity, I could already recognise that she would mature beautifully, much like Ollie and Ebony – and was the precise type that I was hoping to produce by breeding Ebony. Two weeks later, this little black filly stepped off the truck and into my life.

There’s much you can assess through video, but temperament and personality is not one that you can judge in just 90 seconds of footage. I had found what will be an elegant sporthorse type standardbred like Ollie and Ebony once she matures, but with no idea as to the temperament I should expect. And yet somehow, I managed to find a filly with near identical temperament and quirks to Ebony – I’d ultimately chosen not to breed her, and ended up with a closer match than if I had actually bred her instead of buying Luna! Sensitive, yet sensible and highly intelligent – requiring a tactful hand, but incredibly loyal to those who show her respect.

While bred to race, with her sire being an incredibly successful pacer in his own right and having also sired Shartin N – the fastest pacing mare in all of history, my own goals are to raise Luna using classical training methods, and to start her under saddle later down the track for para-dressage and pleasure riding, along with any other disciplines she shows an aptitude for. As a filly, she will also be a broodmare prospect should she prove herself under saddle – perhaps even a foundation mare for my eventual breeding program, creating true alrounders bred both to race and ride.