76 SIDELINES JANUARY 2013
FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE
By Lauren R. Giannini
In 1986 in Santa Ynez, California, Priscilla Tamkin established
China Blue Farm, naming it for her show hunter: “He was your
classic amateur horse. He was perfect everywhere. On the trails,
in the show ring and at the barn.” A gelding of unknown breeding,
Tamkin’s horse of a lifetime more than 25 years ago remains the
standard for what she wants to breed.
“We are dedicated to producing high quality animals that can
be enjoyed and ridden by juniors and amateurs,” said Nancy
Frost, breeding manager and trainer at China Blue. “Through the
stallions we stand, our goal is to breed horses which will improve
and further the sport.”
The farm’s program shifted its emphasis from breeding a small
band of mares to outside stallions to standing several of their
own. In 2000 Priscilla bought the stallion Baccarat, son of Quidam
de Revel, whose show jumping genes endowed 10 offspring
competing at the 2002 World Equestrian Games. Rounding
out the current sire roster alongside Baccarat are Ragtime and
Samoan Chief.
“A primary focus has been to stand a top quality hunter stallion,
Ragtime, on the West Coast,” Nancy said. “Ragtime’s offspring
have had great success across the country, both in hand and in
the performance ring, creating a top quality line for the junior and
amateur hunter.”
Ragtime, the pre-potent star at China Blue, is a 1996 bay
Hanoverian by Raggazzoni (grandsire is Rosenkavalier) out of
Griseldis by Grande. As a three-year-old, he received the highest
marks for rideability and top scores overall in the 100 day test.
A consistent champion in regular working hunter and regular
conformation working hunter, he also recorded wins in the jumpers
and equitation. Ragtime was the 2010 and 2011 USEF Hunter
Breeding Sire of the Year. He was again at the top of the Hunter
Breeding Sires in mid-November (when Sidelines went to press).
Nancy has been with China Blue Farm for 10 years. She does
most of the training and puts a foundation on the young stock,
which is key to their success in the show ring, both in hand and
under saddle. She also runs Sapphire Ridge, her hunter-jumper-
equitation program based at the Los Angeles Equestrian Center.
Her own list of mentors reads like an equestrian Who’s Who.
“I grew up riding with Jimmy Williams, Bert de Nemethy and
Gordon Wright,” Nancy said. “The best advice I got from Jimmy is
‘think like a horse so you can work with them effectively.’ It’s true
– you have to understand their psychology to train them.”
Nancy gets along very well with Priscilla’s vision of China Blue
Farm. The mares aren’t bred every year: they get rested from the
rigors of producing foals. They do not sell the foals out of China
Blue mares: they keep them and compete them or lease them
to qualifed riders. They compete out of Nancy’s Sapphire Ridge.
They know where all their foals are and where they will end up:
back at China Blue Farm. Their horses can look forward to a
pleasant retirement.
“We want to stand quality stallions and ship semen to the
breeders in the USA and Canada,” said Nancy. “Part of our goal
is to help mare owners and breeders to produce outstanding
animals that are conformationally correct, athletic and have good
minds. Through this, we hope to improve the sport. We try to make
matches that will be successful for juniors or amateurs to ride. But
really, what we do at China Blue, it’s all for the love of the horses.”
All photos by Capture the Moment
China Blue Farm –
Living Up To Its Namesake
Ragtime at
The Oaks in
the Regular
Conformation
Hunters with
Carol Wright
in the irons.
Rendezvous, a Ragtime
progeny by Misty View, is
show here competing in
hand at the International
Hunter Futurity West
Coast Championships
and the Sallie B. Wheeler
Championship at the Show
Park Summer Show.