This article was written and submitted to the ACPS Magazine by Pattie Stalder...

JEF Sir Lancelot

At the Irish Gate Farm outside Westmoreland, Kansas, we knew we were going to raise Connemara ponies. The Flint Hills are made for it. The dilemma was how to find the right stallion for us.

Knowing what breed you’re looking for is the first step. Having a mental picture of your perfect pony is the second, but the third and most difficult step is finding your real-life, perfect pony.

For Bob and me, the search began with watching lots of videos of colts with “stallion potential,” which is a wonderful educational experience. As it turned out, our perfect pony was almost in our backyard. There is only one purebred Connemara stallion in Kansas, and at the time he stood at Eileen Berkley’s farm outside Bennington, just 90 miles away. We decided to take our Quarter Horse mare, Princess, to be bred to him. As we stood on a hillside watching a bold, beautiful, black stallion running across the prairie with his herd of mares, we knew he was the one for us. As the saying goes, “He had us at hello.” Fortunately for us, Sir Lancelot was for sale.

That’s how Lance, who was bred on the Winkler’s farm in Gardiner, NY, became ours. Wanting a Connemara stallion and actually finding the right one took about 18 months, proving correct the “Be Patient” advice we had gotten from other Connemara owners during our search. Lance moved to our farm in June of 2004, and as far as we’re concerned this will always be his home.

In the past, we’ve raised a few Quarter Horses and Paints, but for us they can’t compare to the docile nature and easy-going attitude of Connemaras. Lance has moved us forward in many ways, especially regarding our knowledge and appreciation of stallions.

One of the most pleasant aspects of living in Kansas and owning an exceptional Connemara is the opportunity to introduce him to folks who have never heard of the breed. I recently took Lance to the Kansas State University Vet School to be collected, and the vet students working with us were smitten by him. They said they couldn’t figure out if he was a mini-draft or some kind of warmblood pony, but whatever he was they thought he was awesome. One thing about Lance is constant, and that‘s his charming personality.

I had been learning to show hunter/jumpers for about a year when we bought Lance. Before we could promote him as a stallion, we needed to prove he had something to offer. After attending a few local shows, we hauled him to St. Louis for the 2005 Connemara Region VII Show, where he won the 2005 Region VII Hunter/Jumper Championship. What a thrill that was! He is always quiet and relaxed, but neither of those words would have accurately described our emotions at that first Connemara show.

Other than the videos we had watched, Bob and I had only seen the handful of mares at Eileen’s farm and although we liked them, we didn’t have anything to compare them to. We drove to St. Louis with no idea of what to expect. By the end of the weekend, Champion ribbon in hand, we smiled all the way home in spite of our truck breaking down on I-70 on Labor Day.  Winning was a real affirmation for us that we had a wonderful stallion, but along with that, meeting and getting to know the other Connemara owners that weekend was a special treat.

Lance did so well with a novice like me showing him that Bob and I were eager to put him into training. This past year, Lance began his first season of Eventing, another educational experience for us. He went into full training mode at Ann White’s Vermillion Valley Equine Center in Belvue, KS, with Dehlia Burdan becoming his new trainer/best friend. I have to admit, at times I’ve been a little jealous of the relationship they share. 

Dehlia and Lance have shown at five USEF sanctioned events this year in Illinois, Kansas City and Wichita.  Each time they have won the dressage phase and thrice gone on to win the Beginner Novice Championship. The other two times they took second place. They finished the year competing in Illinois at the Regional Championships at Hill ‘n Hound in October, winning the 2007 USEA Area IV Beginner Novice Championship.

As Connemaras become more common in this part of the United States, Lance continues to be a great ambassador for the breed. Whether he’s trail riding, driving, competing at dressage or galloping over a cross-country course, he’s proof positive that Connemaras really can do it all!