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Featured Farm of the Month
REDWOOD LODGE EUROPE
By Samantha Mattocks
Turning onto the long, gently-curved driveway affords you the first
glimpse of the Château de la Bernardière. Standing proudly in the
Loire
Valley, this 18th century château is
now home to the legendary Redwood Lodge Arabians and the location
provides the perfect setting for the beautiful herd of white horses
which grace the paddocks. With deer running free in the forests which
surround the paddocks and the sun shining through the New Year gloom,
Trevor and Sue Patrick welcome you into their home.
 Redwood
Lodge needs little introduction: established in 1980 and one of the
most successful studs to come out of Australia, the stud took the
world by storm in 1997 when they brought the impressive stallion Om
El Abadan* (Carmargue** x Bint Estopa) to Europe and took
the Reserve Senior Male title at both the Salon du Cheval, Paris, and
the All Nations Cup, Aachen. If anyone wondered whether this was a
one-off, Redwood Lodge returned to Europe the following year with
their homebred colt Espano Estopa* (Om El Abadan* x Malikah
Estopa). Having taken the Junior Male title at the All Nations
Cup, Espano went to Paris and added the World Champion jewels
to his crown.
With such unequivocal success two years’ running, a worldwide star was
born: Redwood Lodge set up a European base while continuing their
presence in Australia and Espano Estopa* went onto become one
of the most impressive stallions in Europe. His offspring include the
2000 Junior Female Reserve World Champion Redwood Lodge Romantik*
(ex Camrbiaaa) and her full sisters, Redwood Lodge Angelikaa
and the multiple-champion Redwood Lodge Antiguaa, as well as
the UK’s own Junior Male Reserve World Champion LVA Maximus*
(ex Challon Salana), owned and bred by Andrew and Virginia
Brown of Lillyview Arabians. Described by Sue and Trevor as the heart
of the stud, Espano should have been the stallion to take the
stud well into the 21st century. Fate thought differently,
however, playing a cruel hand when the main artery to his heart
ruptured tragically cutting him down in his prime last August, leaving
the world in a brief instant and a huge hole in the stables of Redwood
Lodge.
With grief packaged up into boxes, Sue and Trevor’s son, Steve, and
his long-term partner Jenni May moved into the Château de la
Bernardière in November, with just enough time to prepare the house
for a family Christmas and arrival of Sue and Trevor for the 2006
World Championships. Now settled into their new home, Redwood Lodge is
open for visitors and I was delighted to have the chance to be one of
the first.
There are two things that strike you most about a visit to Redwood
Lodge. The first is the atmosphere of the house and its surroundings:
no matter whereabouts in the estate you go there is calmness and a
tranquillity which is difficult to express on paper. The environment
is so soothing, the horses so relaxed, that it is impossible to
imagine anything other than peace and happiness occurring there. The
second is the standard of the horses. There is such a high level of
consistency between them that they really could have come from the
same mould. All ethereal-white sisters, mothers and sons, a visit to
the newly-finished stable block confirms that the new home for Redwood
Lodge really is like a little piece of heaven on earth.
“I spent a long time looking at horses in my search for the right
stallion and right result” explains Sue. “I always knew what it was
that I wanted to do – to breed a world champion – and I liked the
Spanish and Egyptian lines. I find that the Spanish blood adds a
calmness and serenity to a horse.
 “In
1994, during one of my regular trips to the USA, I identified a fine
young stallion – Om El Abadan who had impressive
bloodlines which I knew would compliment the exceptional pedigree of
my pure Spanish mare, Malikah Estopa (AN Malik x Estopa).
After importing him to
Australia
the result of this breeding, my first serious attempt to breed my
world champion, was Espano Estopa. It was just amazing.”
This was the beginning of the European journey for Redwood Lodge and
Europe is where their story will continue to unfold. With the stud in
Australia dispersed, their new base in the Loire Valley will provide a
home for the Redwood horses for generations to come.
“I think that, really, we have always bred a European style of horse,”
reflects Sue. “So when we first came to Europe with
Abadan,
we wanted a fresh opinion on the stock that we were breeding and on
the type of horse that we have. Our beliefs were vindicated with
Redwood Lodge horses being awarded major championships in Denmark,
Germany, France, Belgium, the UK, Italy and Holland. So it was a
natural progression for us to end up here.
“Trevor and I are semi-retired now and the Château de la Bernardière
will be our second home. Steve and Jenni do a great job with the
management of both the farm and the horses, so we know that the future
of Redwood Lode is in good hands.”
And set in 51 acres, Château de la Bernardieré is an impressive home.
From the cellar where the Polish hid during the Second World War
through to the servants’ quarters on the top floor with their slanted,
secret view of the driveway, the Patrick’s new family home has a lot
to offer.
As beautiful as the house is, for an equestrian property it is a
dream. Outside is a 17th century hunting lodge and annex
where coach horses were once stabled, complete with an intimate chapel
next door. The annex will be converted into a stable block with rooms
above. “It has been used as a cow shed somewhere along the way,” said
Trevor. “We plan to turn it back to its former glory and make a focal
point of the courtyard hidden on the other side. The lodge was built
in 1604 so there is a lot of history there and we want to keep that.”
Work has already started on the renovations with an old barn being
converted into a peaceful stable block, currently home to the Redwood
herd until the hunting lodge conversions have been completed.
“The plan is to have visiting mares and maybe some youngstock in the
barn and then our own horses in the lodge,” explains Steve. “The barn
is more secluded and will provide a relaxing setting for the horses
stabled there.”
Entering the barn, you can only agree with Steve’s thoughts on the
atmosphere. Despite having only been in the barn for a short time, all
the horses are happy and content, looking at each other through the
bars that separate the stables, eager for a pat or a word.
 The
jewel in the barn for Sue is Espano’s dam, the very beautiful
Malikah Estopa. Now 19, this mare has a gently gracious air
about her, befitting her position as queen of Redwood Lodge. With
youngstock either side, Malikah is a precious part of the
stud’s history and Sue, in particular, loves this mare with a passion.
“She takes my breath away every time I look at her,” says Sue. “She is
simply the most amazing horse that I have ever seen and she passes her
characteristics onto all her children and grandchildren. We have had
problems getting her in foal at various points in her life, but we
would love to have even just one more foal from her. Her lines run
through the stud and it will be a sad day when she leaves us.”
Stabled opposite Malikah is her two-year-old son RL Maalik
Shah (by Al Adeed Al Shaqab). Heir to Espano’s
throne, Maalik is similar to Espano. “I am sure that he
will grow up to be a beautiful, functional horse with correct, even
paces,” says Jenni. As with all the horses in the barn Maalik
is happy to be brought out of his stable for inspection, following
Steve’s instructions and standing up for the selected audience.
Steve has long been a handler of Arabian horses, his enthusiasm for
the horses developing as he watched his mother handle Warmbloods and
later Arabians. Having trained in the US, Steve was one of the top
handlers in Australia and it was he who brought
Abadan
to Europe, showing him to second place at Menton. Once in Europe,
Steve quickly realised that with the competitive nature of the
European show scene, a professional trainer who was more well-known in
Europe was needed for the visits to the All Nations Cup in Aachen and
the World Championships in
Paris
later that year. The results achieved at these and subsequent shows
prove this decision to be a wise one. Steve himself is happier
training and doing the groundwork with the horses at home and has
little desire to return to the show-ring. “Steve’s a natural
horseman,” says Sue proudly. “He really bonds with his horse and the
bond he had with
Abadan
was remarkable. He was a very difficult
horse and Steve ignored all that and got on with the job in hand –
with great success.”
“He would even breed on command,” adds Steve smiling. “All you had to
do was say ‘up
Abadan’
and he would! It was a very sad moment for me when he moved on.” Sold
to the Royal Family of Saudi Arabia in 1998,
Abadan
was crowned Supreme National Champion and he
sadly passed away in 2005.
 As
we walk down the barn, with mares and fillies either side of us,
eating their hay, Sue explains that three of the Redwood horses are
still at different training centres. “As a management team, Steve,
Jenni and myself plan the show career of our horses very carefully and
we identify the trainers who will most suit the individual character
of each horse. This means that we are not aligned with one particular
trainer or facility. During 2006, Redwood Lodge Romantik and
her son RL Poetic Justice were with Tom and Glenn Schoukens and
Redwood Lodge Artique was with Erik Dorssers.”
Redwood Lodge Artique
(Al Adeed Al Shaqab x Redwood Lodge Romantik) is a striking
grey two-year-old colt who has already had great success as a
yearling. As well as taking the Junior Male Champion title at the
Lowland Arabian Cup, held at Exloo in the Netherlands, he went on make
the Junior Male Top Ten line-up in Paris last December among strong
competition. A grandson of Espano, Artique is sure to
continue making his mark not just on the show-ring, but also in the
breeding barns.
RL Poetic Justice
(by WH Justice) is a three-year-old colt, as yet unshown. “We
may geld him,” says Sue. “We have a very strict policy with our colts
and even if they are out of the best mare, they are often gelded.”
Dam to both boys, Redwood Lodge Romantik, is another of the
stud’s horses who is known the world over. Herself an Espano Estopa
daughter, Romantik is out of the beautiful El Shaklan**
daughter, Camrbiaa. With many titles to her name at home in
Australia, Romantik hit the European scene in the year 2000
when she took the champion title at the All Nations Cup and reserve at
the World Championships. Now nine years old, Romantik has
continued to enjoy success in the show-ring and with the stud now
settled in France, she will certainly contribute to the legacy created
by Sue’s insightful breeding plans.
 Romantik’s
sisters Redwood Lodge Antiguaa and Redwood Lodge Angelikaa
also deserve a mention. Antiguaa is the dam of two WH
Justice daughters, Redwood’s own Redwood Lodge Saffron and
RL Cotton Candy, the current British National Champion Filly
and Reserve Supreme, now owned by the Tyzack family in the
UK.
With her amazing nature, Antiguaa is one of those horses it is
a pleasure to spend time with. Having spoken to Redwood Lodge fans
since, it is obvious that this mare touches everyone she meets, such
is the power of her gentle expression.
Angelikaa
is, like most horses here, ridden and Jenni in particular enjoys
taking her on the trails around the estate. Like peas in a pod, these
mares epitomise the fruition of Sue’s vision 13 years ago when she
bred
Abadan
and Malikah.
All the horses have a very distinctive look and the consistency
between them is incredible. “I knew the bloodlines that Espano
had,” explains Sue. “The stud was always going to be framed around
him. He has passed onto his children strength of substance in both
body and character.
“I have found that his offspring have a natural, effortless panache
and there is just so much energy that goes into each stride. Even when
they stand still, they command your attention; and Espano was
just the same. When he died, it felt as if the heart of the stud had
been ripped out and it left all of us absolutely devastated.”
Did they think about quitting, I wonder. “No,” responds Trevor firmly.
“Quitting is not part of our character. We have been in the lucky
position of enjoying the good times with all of our horses and we know
that with the good times, there are bad times which need to be
endured.”
With the New Year barely a week old, however, now is not the time to
talk of quitting and Sue smiles as she talks about the plans the stud
has for 2007.
“We have two foals due this year,” she says. “We knew we were moving
so we didn’t plan to have too many mares covered, but this year we
will put the three Espano daughters in foal to a Straight
Egyptian stallion.
 “2007
is also all about Artique: he is the next stallion in our
programme and we very much like what his sire, Al Adeed Al Shaqab,
has brought to the stud. Artique has inherited his sire’s
extreme movement and our dream would be to breed Artique to
Malikah, combining the bloodlines which we have based our stud on.
Whether or not we do that breeding remains to be seen!”
Sue adds that she first saw Al Adeed in Qatar when he was a
yearling and she knew straight away that she was going to breed to
him. The resulting foal, Maalik Shah, was planned 10 years
before he was conceived and by using Artique on Malikah,
Sue is hoping to develop the stud’s lines into the next phase.
“Of course, there is a lot of work to do to restore the chateau and
the hunting lodge to the grand style of its original heritage,” says
Trevor. “But we are committed to developing the horse facilities to
rival the best establishments in Europe. Steve and Jenni designed the
layout of the paddocks and we know exactly what we are going to build.
“Things have gone full circle for us now: it was almost 10 years ago
when we first came to
France
with
Abadan
and many of our Australian friends wondered just why we were bringing
our horses over to Europe. The success we have had so far has
vindicated that decision and we thoroughly enjoy the vibrant Arabian
horse community which is so evident in Europe.”
There is someone, however, who is very obviously missing from the new
home: Espano Estopa. His ashes will be permanently interred as
pride of place in the chapel, ensuring that while he can’t be there in
person, Espano’s spirit is there to watch over the legacy he
has created.
Managed by:
Redwood Lodge Europe, Steve Patrick & Jenni May
Ph +33 (0)549 63 03 96, Mobile +33 (0)631 177 479
www.redwood-lodge-europe.com
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