When Christan Trainor moved from the United States to Australia 11 years ago, she caught the breeding bug. She and her husband went on to develop a boutique equestrian property from scratch in the Southern Highlands of NSW, and it wasn’t long before Glenhill Sporthorses began making their mark.

Growing up on the Caribbean island of St Croix, Christan Trainor spent her childhood riding island ponies bareback. Moving to North Carolina as a teenager with her non-horsey parents, she continued to ride – eventually becoming a professional rider and leasing farms in Virginia and the equestrian mecca of Wellington, Florida. It was then off to university, however, her love of horses never waned and once her study was complete it was back to professionally training and competing dressage and event horses.

As an eventer, she was long-listed for the Olympics and trained a well-known pony, Theodore O’Connor, to four-star level before Karen O’Connor took the reins and rode the 14.2-hand star to team gold at the Pan American Games, and two top-10 placings at the Kentucky Three-Day Event.

“And then I married an Australian and moved to Australia and had to start all over again!” laughs Christan. When she made the move 11 years ago, she brought with her a couple of horses – including a retired Thoroughbred competition mare, Morchant, who had a colt foal at foot named Glenhill Bounce (by Jumbo). “He was the only Jumbo full colt in the southern hemisphere to stand at stud,” recalls Christan of the horse that signalled the beginning of Glenhill Sporthorses in Australia. Glenhill Bounce competed successfully in the jumping arena with James Arkins, before eventually being gelded and sold to an event rider where he continues to excel.

Christan continued to ride in Australia, but over the years she gravitated towards breeding. Morchant was her first broodmare, and in the early days Christan bred jumpers – however, over time her focus switched to dressage. While she has bred every year since moving to Australia, it wasn’t until 2018 that her breeding program really began to hit its stride.

THE GLENHILL MARES

At Glenhill Sporthorses, most of the breeding mares are also competition mares, meaning the majority of foals born at the stud are done so via embryo transfer with recipient mares.

“We’ve got a bit of a unique program where our breeding mares are also top competition mares. We pull embryos and use imported frozen semen from the top sires around the world; none of our competition mares carry foals,” explains Christan, noting that all five of Glenhill’s competition mares are from imported bloodlines.

“These mares are all proven in their own right, and they are ridden by a professional rider, Lisa Janke, who rides full-time for us. We’ve got two mares so far that have been awarded their premium mare status from Hanoverian in Germany, just through competition. There have only been five mares in Australia ever to be awarded it; we have two, and we’re about to probably have a third.”

Christan explains that a number of Glenhill’s competition mares are from other Australian breeders. “It’s not all just about what I can breed, I like looking for what’s out there that is super top quality,” she says. “Our highest level competition mare, New Star Lp, is a Hanoverian Premium Mare (PrM) by Negro out of an imported FEI mare, Debstar, who is by DiMaggio. She was purchased from the lady who bred her in Victoria. She was fifth in the six-year-old young horse championships at Sydney CD-Lite this year, and she is about to come out at Medium/Advanced level. She’s really spectacular and definitely a Grand Prix horse, who we have some pretty special foals from; we’ve kept a Totilas filly, Glenhill Totil Star, that was a Hanoverian gold medal foal.”

Christan explains that this season out of New Star they’ve got another Totilas foal due as well as a Le Formidable foal, and a Springbank II foal. “I believe it will be one of only two Springbank II foals ever born in Australia.

“And we’ve got a Vitalis x Zonik mare, Glenhill Vivid, who was purchased as a foal from a breeder in Victoria, Michelle Williams; Zonik is really hard to get in Australia because he passed away [this year, due to an injury sustained while recovering from surgery] and his semen isn’t available here anymore.” Christan explains that from Glenhill Vivid, they’ve also just bred a Total Hope (Totilas x Weihegold OLD) foal of which there are perhaps only a handful of in Australia. “And then we’ve got Total Fame, who was also bred by Michelle Williams. She’s a PrM Fürst Heinrich x Whisper V mare – of which there aren’t many in Australia – and this season we’ve got an Ibiza foal due from her.”

Glenhill also has a young Sezuan mare, Glenhill Silhouette, who is out of another of their mares, Glenhill Firefly (Ferrero Rocher [Florestan/Weltmeyer] x Stirling Sprite [Salute]) who was injured at age five and is hence one of only two warmblood mares on the property carrying her own foals – the other being New Beginnings (Negro x Worldy x Rotspon). “We’ve got a Valverde (Vitalis x Ampere) foal due out of Glenhill Firefly and it should be one of the first Valverde foals in Australia.” Silhouette is under saddle and preparing to compete in young horse classes.

Another special mare at Glenhill is Tulara Schufretta II (Blue Hors Don Schufro x Vancouver), who was bred by Mark Fraser of Tulara Warmbloods in Victoria. “Don Schufro is just such a proven line and very hard to get. It’s really a line we need to hang on to in Australia [Don Schufro passed away last year], because it just gives the rideability and the Grand Prix horses. Don Schufro had quite a few progeny at the Olympics this year.” Due to the scarcity of the bloodline in Australia, Tulara Schufretta is bred via embryo transfer to limit risk. Christan has retained a Franklin x Tulara Schufretta II colt, who’s now rising two and also a 2019 filly, Glenhill Demisante (Deniro x Negro), who has been retained as a future competition horse.

Finally, the legacy of Christan’s first broodmare, Morchant, lives on in the jumping-bred Glenhill Contessa (by Contendro 1) who is under saddle and competing.

When it comes to competing the ridden mares, Christan explains that Lisa does all the planning and the preparation. “I drive and play groom and owner. It’s a good team, we have a lot of fun; I’ve enjoyed going from being a professional rider, being paid to ride other people’s horses, to getting to support somebody who’s talented like Lisa.”

Christan says that having top quality, proven competition mares to breed from is an integral part of Glenhill’s program, because when it comes to producing top horses, the mares are equal to the stallions. “You’ve got to have an eye for what is going to make the next good producing stallion and then combine it with top mares. We’re lucky we’ve got a really good range of top mares and, because we’re riding them, we know what they need to improve on or what their strengths are.

BUSY BREEDING SEASON

“During breeding season my life consists of getting up and feeding the horses, putting something on the float driving to the vet to either inseminate or flush, driving back, cleaning paddocks, foaling down mares at night, and then driving back to the vets. I might drive back four or five days a week, just until we’ve got all the embryos that we want for the season,” says Christan, adding that she couldn’t do it all without her vet, Dr Andrew Argyle of Wollondilly Equine.

Christan first met Andrew when he was the quarantine vet looking after her horses when she first flew out from the States. “He’s been doing my vet work ever since! He’s a reproductive expert; during breeding season he’s up all night scanning mares – he covers about 500 mares a season – and then he’s up all day doing his vet work.

“Once the recipient mares have passed 45 or 60 days, then I pick them up from the vet’s and we bring them home and put them on a beautiful 100-acre property that we lease nearby; they go there for the winter, and then they come home to foal down in the foaling yards.” Standardbreds are Christan’s recipient mare of choice, as they are easy to handle, great mothers – and it gives them a second career after racing.

Christan explains that breeding from competition mares via embryo is expensive; there are the costs of looking after and competing the mares, vet costs, and then also looking after the recipient mares, but she says it’s worth it. Half of Glenhill’s foals are sold in-utero and the others are sold almost as soon as they hit the ground. “It’s exciting to have people actually value and want these lines that we’re producing,” says Christan, noting that even a pandemic hasn’t slowed the rate at which they sell.

Although much of her time is spent on the breeding side of the business, Christan still enjoys getting in the saddle when she has the chance. “I have this side passion, German Riding Ponies for dressage. So I do have a few German Riding Ponies on the side that I try to get on as much as I can!”

BUILDING GLENHILL

When they first arrived in Australia, Christan and her husband, Scott Britnell, settled in New South Wales – first living in Helensburgh and then Camden. Six years ago, the couple purchased and developed their 40-acre Southern Highlands property, with the vision of creating a place that accommodates both the breeding and riding arms of the business.

“We built it all up from scratch; we built a covered arena with a SOILTEX custom blended surface, a 70m x 65m sand outdoor arena, and a turf outdoor, and we renovated the houses and put in suitable fencing,” explains Christan. The indoor arena was one of the first things built, as it was essential for the competition mares. “The covered arena is just vital for us because our mares are mostly all competition horses, so they have to have a really good arena with good surfaces to work in. They’re not just in a paddock.”

Christan explains that the concept for the indoor was created by her husband, Scott, with input from her years of experience riding at quality establishments, and it was brought to life by the team at ABC Sheds. The shed is 66m x 21.6m, with eight bays at 7.5m and 1 bay at 6m; a cantilevered awning extends off the side, with the actual riding arena footprint being 60m x 20m. “We worked with ABC Sheds to design the indoor. It’s enclosed on three sides, and the actual arena is a proper 60m x 20m. We’ve then got a three-metre overhang that goes down the open side – so there’s good ventilation but the weather never comes in and we don’t get shadows. It is quite a clever design. And then we’ve got Perspex along the top third of the enclosed walls, so it lets in a lot of light.” Christan says ABC Sheds were brilliant to work with throughout the design and building process.

“It was important for us to work with Christan and Scott to provide a bespoke arena cover that suited their property and specific business needs,” says ABC Sheds Director Jonny Hornsey. “They had a clear vision of what they wanted to achieve, and it was a pleasure to bring that to fruition.”

To help with the correct training of their mares, a wall of mirrors adorns the entire short side. ABC Sheds’ fully structural arena covers make it simple to install the framing for mirrors right where they are needed, as all UB columns have the ability for railing and framework to be attached at any time.

You can read more about designing your covered riding arena – including the importance of mirrors – in the September issue of Equestrian Life magazine.

THE NEXT CHAPTER

In total there are usually around 40 horses at Glenhill, including the competition mares, retained young stock and recipient mares. Despite leasing 100 acres nearby for the recipient mares in addition to their 40-acre base, Christan explains that ultimately Glenhill Sporthorses needed more space – which is why the property is now on the market.

“We’ve just purchased a 100-acre property two kilometres down the road, because we just needed to expand. The new place became available opportunistically, and we were ready to make one last move… so we’re actually planning to relocate there and build everything all over again!”

ABC Sheds will again build an indoor arena for Glenhill Sporthorses once they move, and Christan says they will barely change a thing from the first design. “Right now, we’ve got the entrance at the end where C is on a short side, because of the layout of this property. I think we might make the entrance on the closed wall right in the middle instead when we rebuild. However, other than that, the shape and the build of the shed will be exactly the same – we love it.”

In terms of their current property coming onto the market, Christan says all the hard work is done and someone else can now enjoy an equestrian paradise that features a layout and quality infrastructure – such as the ABC Sheds-built indoor – that has been designed through the lens of vast industry experience.

You can view the real estate listing for the property, known as Owlswood Farm, here.

“Breeding jumps ahead rapidly
with each generation.”

BREEDING FOR THE FUTURE

“My goal is to breed horses that are rideable; the temperament is really important to me, because I’m a rider as well as a breeder,” says Christan. “I want horses that are going to be competitive on a European scale; we can breed just as well here in Australia as anywhere in the world. It’s been really exciting to use some really cool stallions, including some young ones that are really improving the breed.”

While Christan acknowledges the proven bloodlines that have produced countless dressage stars over the past decade or more, she is excited about some of the emerging stallions. “I think you have to be a little bit daring as a breeder, to not just use the 20-year-old stallions that other people have all used and are proven. You’ve got to be looking a bit ahead.”

Totilas is one such stallion that Christan believes is just starting to make his mark. “A couple of years ago when we started using Totilas, and I had purchased a Totilas foal, some said ‘It’s just the rider’. He’s a polarising stallion; people seem to love him or hate him. I’ve always loved him. I think, yes, the rider is an amazing rider, but the horse is pretty darn special. And the entire Dutch dressage team [at the Tokyo Olympics], bar one, was by Totilas.

“I think Franklin is also pretty exciting. There’s going to be a lot more Franklin [progeny] that we’re going to see in the next few years in Europe; he’s now doing Grand Prix, and his foals are just coming to that four-year-old age.”

Although Christan is enthusiastic about some of the new bloodlines, she also notes that the older, proven lines won’t be going anywhere. “There’s always going to be a mix, to have the older lines as well… you see it a lot with Don Schufro, in the mare lines with horses such as [Isabell Werth’s] Weihegold OLD.”

Where we’ll be in terms of breeding come the Brisbane 2032 Olympics is anyone’s guess, but Christan does believe some of the stallions just starting to reach Grand Prix now are the ones we might see a lot more of in the next few years. “Breeding jumps ahead rapidly with each generation; the breeders around the world are amazing. And here in Australia, there are amazing breeders too that are doing some super work.

“They are breeding for rideability. I sometimes hear, ‘It moves amazing, but nobody can ride it’ or ‘Australians can’t ride it’. I don’t agree with that; I think Australians are amazing riders, number one, and number two, having bred these types of horses ourselves here at Glenhill, and we’re riding these lines ourselves, they’re incredibly rideable. If they’re bred for it, they’re soft to sit on, even though they have big movement. They are naturally already on the bit because we’re improving the breeding to have them already ready built for it. I’m finding that the horses are actually staying sounder because they’re built to do it easily.”

Christan is full of optimism and praise when it comes to Australian warmblood breeders, and she believes that we as a country are capable of breeding and producing dressage horses to rival those found anywhere else in the world. “I’m not just saying that because we’re breeding them; I’ve seen that with a lot of other people’s breeding here in Australia as well. We’ve got some really super horses being bred and produced here in Australia, definitely as good as what’s in Europe.” EQ

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE TO READ:

Training the Piaffe – Equestrian Life, November, 2021

Breeding for Brisbane, What Tokyo Taught Us – Equestrian Life, September, 2021