When Christan Trainor founded Glenhill Sporthorses she had two main aims: to produce rideable, quality horses with bloodlines comparable to the best in Europe, and to see these horses partnered with Australian riders in the competition arena.

Established in the Southern Highlands of NSW, Glenhill Sporthorses has honed its breeding program over the years to focus on Warmbloods and German Riding Ponies for the dressage arena. Glenhill’s program differs to most in that the majority of mares are bred via embryo transfer and therefore don’t carry foals themselves, allowing them to develop as riding horses and forge dressage careers of their own. While it isn’t necessarily the most cost-effective way to run a breeding program, Christan feels it’s important to have mares that don’t just carry impressive bloodlines – but are also proven competitors in their own right. This approach has the added benefit of being able to gain a deeper understanding of a mare’s rideability and temperament, allowing Christan to improve Glenhill’s bloodlines with pairings that better complement each other.

Joining Glenhill nine months ago, Grand Prix dressage rider Riley Alexander is an important part of the equation. The 29-year-old spends half his day at the stud training the competition horses and has already developed strong partnerships.

ALEXANDER EQUESTRIAN & GLENHILL

Riley and Christan have been friends since they met more than 10 years ago. Although he describes himself as “just a weird Tasmanian dude who struggles to rise to the trot most days”, Riley is actually one Australia’s up-and-coming young dressage stars with Grand Prix success to his name, a strong track record with young horses, and clearly a good sense of humour.

Born and raised on King Island, Riley has ridden since the age of six. His interest in dressage was piqued during his early teens after watching a Thrills and Spills DVD featuring Anky van Grunsven and Bonfire. To date, he’s worked and trained with some of the most respected equestrians in Australia, has competed at the highest levels of the sport and now operates his own business.

“He’s a talented young rider and has his career ahead of him,” says Christan. “It’s really exciting to be able to support that and it’s great to have someone with experience who is able to not only produce these horses really well but also give invaluable feedback on the breeding program.”

Riley agrees. “I can give Christan really accurate feedback when she looks at a stallion as to what traits we want to be working on and building with the excellent group of horses we already have,” he explains. “It’s a really exciting opportunity, because you don’t really get the opportunity to have the idea of what you want to breed, see the foal grow up, ride it, and then produce it all the way through. From a rider’s perspective, that’s the most exciting thing for me to be a part of… to see the whole journey.”

The Glenhill competition horses are certainly exciting and have already enjoyed success in the competition arena this year.

MEET THE TEAM

Newstar LP

By Negro and out of Dimaggio mare Debstar IMP, rising nine-year-old PrM New Star LP is currently Glenhill’s highest performing mare and has just begun competing at Advanced level. As Christan explains, New Star’s 17-year-old dam was also a proven performer: “Debstar was campaigned to Small Tour by Maree Tomkinson and then ridden at Grand Prix by David Shoobridge; she’s a proven FEI horse.”

“New Star did the five- and six-year-old young horse classes and was always in the top six. Earlier this year at Bowral, she did her first Advanced test and scored 68%, which was a nice starting place,” says Riley, adding that the mare is really confident in the Medium work and cruised around for a 74% win in that class at Bowral. “That was probably the easiest test I’ve ever ridden; it was like putting on autopilot!”

“We call her Star in the barn. She’s the boss around here,” continues Riley. “She’s just that horse that walks into the barn and they all get out of her way; she’s a proper queen and has a lot of presence, she doesn’t have to act dominant to prove it. She’s really confident to deal with and has that ease of just giving everything a crack and she keeps trying.”

Glenhill Vivid

A five-year-old mare by Vitalis out of a Zonik mare, PrM Glenhill Vivid was purchased as a foal. “She’s out of a mare called Total Zensation that Victorian Michelle Williams owns. Total Zensation is also on the Victorian High Performance Squad, so another performance mare,” notes Christan.

“Vee – as she’s called at home, or Vivien if she’s naughty – is qualified for Dressage & Jumping with the Stars (DJWTS) with two 78% scores,” explains Riley. “We’re really, really happy with how she’s going. She’s a really elegant, powerful horse… she’s quite fine and very beautiful.

“She’s just stepped up from being the baby. She’s the little princess of the team… she’s really sweet, a little timid on the ground and absolutely hates making mistakes,” adds Riley, explaining that although the mare can still be a little introverted when out competing, she is a real powerhouse when she starts to relax and will be exciting to see progress as she gains confidence.

Glenhill Silhouette

By Sezuan and out of Christan’s foundation mare Glenhill Firefly (Ferrero Rocher [Florestan/Weltmeyer] x Stirling Sprite [Salute]), Glenhill Silhouette is a lightly competed six-year-old mare.

“She competed in the five-year-old classes last year, but she hasn’t done a lot,” explains Christan. “We’ve kept her at home this year as she’s such a big moving horse – she has a massive walk, trot and canter – and she still needs time to work out where her legs go.

“She’s the real powerhouse of the team,” adds Riley. “We think she’s going be so special if we take the time now. She’s trained through all the Medium work and we’re hoping she’ll push on nicely for the FEI levels with a little bit more time under her belt.”

Glenhill Fortuna

Christan also has a five-year-old mare by Fürstenball out of a Zonik mare of hers, who sadly passed away following an accident. “I bred and then sold her to a young rider as a foal. I only had her and one other foal from her dam; Zonik bloodlines are really hard to get in Australia because he passed away in 2021 and his semen isn’t available here anymore.

“Her young rider has now gone to flight school this year… as soon as I heard he was going, I jumped at the opportunity to buy the mare back. Riley’s now riding her and really likes her. She’s almost ready to get out and start competing; we’ve named her Glenhill Fortuna. Hopefully we’ll also pull some embryos from her for the first time next season.”

Glenhill Matinee

Christan’s affinity with ponies can be traced back to the US, where as an eventer she trained the well-known Theodore O’Connor to four-star level before Karen O’Connor took the reins and rode the 14.2-hand pony to team gold at the Pan American Games and two top-10 placings at the Kentucky Three-Day Event. Since moving to Australia, Christan has developed an interest in German Riding Ponies due to their temperament and prowess in the dressage arena.

 “I’ve got my five-year-old German Riding Pony mare, Glenhill Matinee, by Movie Star out of Sansannah Solar Flare,” explains Christan, noting the mare is a Westphalian approved perlino. “She’s such a doll… I hadn’t ridden her since the beginning of December and I just pulled her out yesterday, hopped on and she’s right where she left off, she hasn’t missed a beat.

“There’s no riding her down… that’s why I’m loving the ponies because you can just hop on and they’re just so willing and so much fun,” says Christan, explaining that her time is largely taken up with the breeding aspect of the stud and her riding time is therefore limited. “She’ll be either doing six-year-olds or come out and do Medium next year.”

While Christan hopes to find time to compete Matinee herself, generally the Glenhill ponies are competed by Alison Gill. “Alison has had lots of success and is very, very good with the ponies,” explains Christan. “She currently rides and trains Grand Prix pony Hilkens Denali (owned by Wendy Lorincz) and they are a stunning combination.” At Willinga Park’s Dressage by the Sea, held at the end of February, Alison and Denali were second in the Grand Prix CDN with an impressive test against all the horses!

“When I started at Glenhill, I couldn’t figure out how we were going to make it work with the ponies as I’m too tall to compete on them,” chimes in Riley, “and then I thought of Alison, who lives nearby. She’s the pony master!”

Glenhill Mr Hollywood

Glenhill Mr Hollywood is a four-year-old Westphalian licensed German Riding Pony stallion, by the imported Bundeschampion sire Movie Star and out of the imported Dutch pony mare, Nobis Juliette, who was owned by Arky Chisholm. Christan purchased him as an embryo in utero in a recipient mare, and has therefore had him from day dot.

“He’s coming down to DJWTS alongside Glenhill Vivid and will compete in the four-year-old pony class,” says Christan of the bay stallion, who’s one of only very few ponies ever born in Australia to be licensed back to Germany.

“As a four-year-old stallion who’s breeding and collecting, he’s so quiet… he gets ridden here at home and then Alison rides him a little before competitions and then basically catch rides him at the events. He’s got the temperament to handle that – and it’s also a testament to Alison’s skill. We intend to keep competing him up the young horse levels and he’s also standing at stud publicly.”

At Dressage by the Sea, My Hollywood was second overall in the Four-Year-Old Young Pony class at what was only his second time in the competition arena; with Alison in the saddle, he scored 74.8%. “He handled the atmosphere like an old pro and was a pleasure to be around all weekend,” says Christan.

Glenhill Faraoh

Mr Hollywood isn’t the only boy in the crew, with Glenhill Faroah recently returning to the fold. By Franklin out of Christan’s treasured Don Schufro mare, Tulara Schufretta II, ‘King’ is a three-year-old and has both competition and stud debuts planned for next year as a four-year-old.

“We sold him as a foal and then we bought him back because we were very much regretting having sold him!” says Christan. “There are not many Don Schufro mares around and the line is very hard to get here. Don Schufro has the temperament and the proven Grand Prix ability, and Franklin has just gone Grand Prix himself.

“King is pretty cool… he’s black with a lot of white, which you don’t find often with the Franklin or Don Schufro progeny, it’s a bit unique. He’s co-owned with me by a very good friend and supporter, Tracey Jansen, who has bought and owned horses of mine for years.”

Glenhill Demisante

By Deniro out of Negro mare New Beginnings (aka Blackberry), Glenhill Demisante is a three-year-old filly who was started under saddle at the end of last year and is currently out on a break before recommencing work in the next few months. “She’s such a good cross of Deniro and Negro. She’s strong, very swingy and loose, sweet, really laid back… really straightforward and easy,” says Christan.

“Being a direct Deniro daughter out of such a good mare, she’s particularly exciting to add to the breeding program,” adds Riley. “Deniro died quite a while ago, so obtaining a direct daughter of his is not so easy now. It gives you so many options when you’re breeding.” All going well, Demisante will commence her competition career next year in the four-year-old classes.

Glenhill Totil Star

The oldest daughter of New Star retained by Christan, three-year-old Glenhill Totil Star is by Totilas and was a gold medal foal with the Hanoverian society. “She’s very cool and is going to be a powerhouse and a pocket rocket like her mother,” says Christan. “They’re in a paddock next to each and they’re so much alike, genetics amaze me. She was an embryo transfer and not raised around her mother, but it’s just uncanny how much genetics play a role and how many similarities they have in terms of temperament and personality.”

“I think New Star is probably, for me, one of the best mares I’ve ever ridden,” says Riley. “Totil Star seems to be another level again, so it’s very exciting to get her going. We’ll be very, very careful with her!”

Like Demisante, Totil Star will likely commence her competition career next year in the four-year-old classes.

STRONG FOUNDATIONS

When not out competing, Glenhill’s team of horses spend their days outside surrounded by the picturesque Southern Highlands. “They’re out in the paddock 99.9% of the time,” explains Christan. “We like to keep them out and walking as much as possible; I believe it plays a big role in terms of soundness and joint health as they get older. Keeping three- and four-year-olds sound is not that hard – but keeping teenage Grand Prix horses sound, that’s a full-time occupation. So, if we can set them up young to have great legs and be really healthy, then we’re halfway there.”

Riley agrees, and says it’s a big advantage for Australian sporthorse breeders: “I think the way we grow our horses up here is superior to nearly anywhere else in the world, because we can have them out all the time. That’s lost a little bit in Europe because half the year they’ve got to be inside; it’s not so easy to go out and develop strong bones and strong feet when they’re locked up.”

Christan says being out and about is also an important aspect when it comes to managing stallions: “Our stallions live out and their paddocks are next to the arena, so they watch every mare walk past. They can touch each other over the fence and play and run. It helps keep them lovely, temperament and soundness-wise.”

“With the young stallions, if they can’t cope with that… they’re not for us,” adds Riley. “We like good citizens in this regard: if you can cope with other horses being around and mares and foals, then you’ve got a bright future ahead – if not, then you’re a fantastic gelding!”

Riley is adamant that temperament and rideability is of critical importance when breeding for the dressage arena. “We want to breed to the best in the world and produce the best in the world, but it only works if you’ve got the temperament as well. They’ve got to be good citizens along with being super competition horses, especially for the amateur market, and that’s really what we aim for more than anything else – fantastic horses that anyone can ride.”

For Christan, a large part of her breeding program is about having quality horses out competing with Aussie riders such as Riley and Alison in the saddle. “From a business perspective, I don’t necessarily need to be pulling lots of embryos and supporting a team of competition horses while breeding, however, I like giving back… I like putting these nice horses under Australian riders. That’s the point of it all.

“Hopefully over time we start seeing owners and riders that would normally go and look in Europe, start looking more and more to the horse being produced here; I think this is already happening now in some capacity. You really can find European quality horses here in Australia.” EQ

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How Glenhill Stays a Step Ahead – Equestrian Life, October 2022