By Teresa van Bryce, Sale Administrator

The 25th anniversary of the Canadian Warmblood Horse Association’s Fall Classic Sale was a great success. The arena at Westerner Park, Red Deer, Alberta, was standing-room only as the sale got underway at 6pm on Saturday, October 5. The decorations were outstanding, the food and wine offered were superior, and the horses set a new standard in quality and pedigree.

Of the 40 horses offered, 31 sold, with six going to out-of-province homes and one traveling to the US. The gross sales of $377,250 CAD is an increase of $90,000 from 2018, and the highest gross since 2007. There was also a $1,500 increase from the 2018 average sale price to $12,169 ($9,360 US).

The sale hit the ground running when Lot 0, the cover and poster art “Baby Steps,” a beautiful chalk pastel created by Rebecca Shuttleworth of Airdrie, Alberta, was hotly contested and sold for the sale-record price of $3,000 to Rosemary Church.

The energy remained high as the horses were brought through the sale ring. The cooler for the high-selling young prospect, sponsored by Sparks Innovations, went to O’Star de Chacoon (Chacoon Blue x Zeno H2), bred and consigned by Klondike Victory Farm. This excellent weanling filly sold to Rocky Mountain Show Jumping of Calgary, Alberta for $19,000 ($14,615 US).

Receiving the high-selling 2-Year-Old Prospect cooler, sponsored by Key Warmbloods, was Diamond in the Sky (Diamond Stud x MJ Fusion), consigned and bred by Shirley England and purchased for $11,250 ($8,654 US) by Annespohie Canut of Foothills, Alberta.

The high selling 2-year-old prospect Diamond in the Sky, with (L-R) Bernie and Doreen Kulcsar of Key Warmbloods (sponsor), Shirley England (consignor).

The high selling young prospect, O’Star de Chacoon, with (L-R) Kelly Hirsch of Rocky Mountain Show Jumping (buyer); Lorrie,  Ruth, and Coreen Jamieson of Klondike Victory Farm (breeder/seller); and Joyce and Allan Sparks of Sparks Innovations (sponsor).

The high selling performance horse and overall high seller of the sale, Diasandro, with (L-R) Montana Millar (buyer), Chris Starr, Jennifer Winkler (seller), Krista Mergen, and Marc Boyer of Quadriga Horse Transport (sponsor).

The high-selling Prospect Under Saddle, sponsored by High Thorne Equestrian, was the 3-year-old gelding Nobody’s Fool (Numero Uno x Contendro I), bred by Spruce Meadows and consigned by Tiffany Sullivan/Valleyfield Farm, selling for $19,500 ($15,000 US) to Jolinda Botha of Calgary, Alberta.

The high-selling Performance Horse and the high seller of the sale overall, taking home the cooler sponsored by Quadriga International Horse Transport, was the 9-year-old gelding Diasandro (Diarado x Santander H) consigned by Jennifer Winkler and purchased by Joco Trucking of Bentley, Alberta for $28,000 ($21,538 US).

A first for the Fall Classic Sale was the charity auction of a Rebecca Shuttleworth pencil sketch entitled “Frontier Freedom.” This lovely piece sold for $4,200 to Dave Jamieson with all proceeds going to the Canadian Cancer Society in the name of Tracey Ricard, a valued CWHBA member who passed away in the summer of 2019.

This year’s silver anniversary event was sponsored by many generous businesses and individuals with our sale title sponsor, Elite Three Inc., topping the long list of supporters. The hardworking volunteers of the CWHBA Alberta Chapter put in many hours to make this a sale to remember, and the consignors, once again, showed their expertise in breeding and raising truly superior horses for sport. We wish the buyers good luck with their new purchases and welcome your stories of successes in the coming months and years.

For more information, please visit the Fall Classic Breeders’ Sale website.

Photos by Nollind van Bryce.

Main Photo: The high selling prospect under saddle, Nobody’s Fool, with (L-R) Jennifer Arbuckle of Valleyfield Farm (seller), Rebecca Berndt of Valleyfield Farm (seller), and Jolinda Botha (buyer).