Iron-Strong Foundation Key to Stal Roelofs' Success

• text : JENNEKE SMIT
• photo’s : JACOB MELISSEN
Iron-Strong Foundation Key
to Stal Roelofs’ Success
After 38 years, Herman Roelofs still does not see himself as a horseman, despite the huge success of his
business Stal Roelofs. His systematic approach to breeding, which combines the great stallions Joost and
Abgar xx with solid Groningen-lines, has greatly benefitted international sport and breeding. Roelofs’ progressive
vision, which considers performance genes, quality, and health paramount, has resulted in the breeding of
first-class jumpers. Over the years, Roelofs’ status has changed from “a breeder with peculiar ideas” to a
respected topbreeder, for which he was rewarded last August with the title KWPN Breeder of the Year.
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Breeder of the Year
Herman Roelofs with the valuable dam of sires,
Eamelusiena. Namelus R is one of her sons.
In April 1972, Herman Roelofs purchased
five hectares of land in Den Ham for his
road construction business. “Back then, I
didn’t know what to do with all that land,
and someone suggested that I should
breed jumpers because there was money
in it”, laughs Roelofs, who now knows
exactly how much of an illusion that
advice was. “Our kids rode ponies, but
that was the extent of our involvement
with horses. Nevertheless, I studied the
idea and learned that Wagner was a good
stallion,” asserts the 78-year-old breeder.
Wagner
Wagner was an NWP-approved Holsteiner
stallion that turned out to be a true sire of
dams. The Sterndeuter son is found in the
dam-lines of many leading sporthorses
and top lines. Roelofs explains: “Wagner
was at the Vleems Stallion Station in
Wachtum, and the man there recommended
that I look for mares out of old lines
because those were the best. I ended up
with practically all young Wagner
offspring: foals and yearling fillies. I also
got advice from Harm Brunsting.” The only
outsider was the yearling filly Marleen. She
was by the Gelder stallion Wachtmeester.
Roelofs bought the mare from Tinus
Bosch, who eventually became manager
of Stal Roelofs after it was started.
The young mares grew up in Den Ham and
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One of Stal Roelofs’ star horses is Arthos R, who was the champion of the stallion
selection in 2008. He is now excelling in the sport.
participated in the studbook inspections at
age three. “At the mare inspection, they
were put in the division for all-around
horses. Back then, they had a riding horse
division, but the judges thought our horses
were too old-fashioned to compete in it.
The following year, the all-round division
was scrapped. The Gelder horses did the
best at the inspection, usually daughters by
Le Faquin xx and Wachtmeester. Our
Groningen mares were selected for their
willingness, temperament, and smaller size
for farm work. They were far different from
the more elegant Gelder horses, so there
wasn’t any reason for us to keep going to
the inspections,” according to Roelofs.
A ‘Crazy’ Breeding Comparison
The stable of horses grew steadily. From
the start, Roelofs had a clear goal: to
breed very good jumpers with the best
bloodlines. He explains: “We bought
mares from old and dominant Groningenlines,
and we needed a lot of ‘stallion
power’ to produce riding-type horses. The
Groningen horses had been selected for
generations for traits conducive to farm
work, which is why health and durability
are really established in these lines.”
Roelofs went in search of a good
Thoroughbred stallion to breed modern
and athletic foals out of the classic, somewhat
heavy mares. “Back then, Abgar xx
offspring were winning jumping classes at
different national and international shows.
Of the 70 registered Abgar xx offspring, I
found 17 that were international jumpers.
That piqued my interest!” exclaims
Roelofs. To acquire reliable comparison
horses in his breeding program, Roelofs
bred his entire stable of mares - which
then numbered 25 - to Abgar xx. During
breeding season, Tinus Bosch, Stal
Roelofs’ former manager, spent much time
on the road transporting the mares
between Den Ham and Vorspaget Stud
Farm in Knegsel, where Abgar xx was
standing. Roelofs: “People thought I was
Velusinus R, ridden by Christine Tribble, competed in Grand Prix show jumping
under the name Vegas (s.Voltaire). He is a KWPN-recognized stallion.
crazy to breed all my mares to the same
stallion. Fortunately, I never paid attention
to them. I’ve always had faith in Abgar xx
and our mares.” In 1976, Roelofs became
the co-owner of Abgar xx, and the distinctive
gray stallion came to live in Den Ham.
A Crucial Link
The young Abgar xx offspring grew up in
Den Ham, and when the oldest were
ready, Roelofs went looking for one stallion
to breed to the mares. Roelofs: “I had
Rigoletto in mind and went to talk to Harm
Brunsting about my idea. He was someone
whom I trusted a lot, but he recommended
a different stallion: Joost, who was
out of the strong Holsteiner-line 242 and
had very modern breeding, with Consul in
the sire-line and Anblick xx in the damline.
Besides that, he was an international
jumper under Franke Sloothaak. ‘What
more could you want?’ Brunsting asked
me. I took his advice and bred all the
Abgar xx daughters to Joost.” As the son
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Among the horses bred by Stal Roelofs is Taizo Sugitano’s Olympic show jumper
Lamalushi (s.Calando I, out of the Melusiena-line), whose previous rider was Molly
Ashe (photo).
The keur stallion Mermus R (s.Burggraaf) was sold to a buyer in Ireland, where the
stallion covered more than 200 mares over the past two breeding seasons.
of two Thoroughbred-cross parents,
Joost, with his high Thoroughbred percentage,
was a good match for Abgar’s
Thoroughbred-cross daughters. By the
time Joost was awarded the keur predicate
in 1977, he was owned by Brunsting,
Vrieling, and Roelofs. Three years later,
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Joost received the preferent predicate.
The same year, Abgar xx became keur.
The combination proved to be the golden
touch, and no successful horse bred by
Roelofs is without the links Joost and
Abgar xx in its pedigree. Nevertheless,
Roelofs decided to breed his mares to
KWPN Approved stallion and
international showjumpers
The succesfull breeding of Stal Roelofs has brought several approved
Stallions. Crown on the work was the championship in 2008 of Arthos
R (Namelus R out of S.Adermie stb s.Mermus R) who is completely
bred by the Roelofs Philosophy. Other approved stallions are the keur
stallions Namelus R (Concorde out of Eamelusiena prest s.Joost)
en Mermus R (Burggraaf out of Dwermie pref prest s.G.Ramiro Z) ,
Odermus R (Calido I out of Dwermie pref prest s.G.Ramiro Z), Germus
R (Joost out of Zermie ster s.Abgar xx), Rash R (Cash out of Zarah
s.Rebel I Z), Sam R (Mermus R out of Amelusiena prest s.Abgar xx),
Tolan R (Namelus R out of O.Termie s.Aramis), Zahros R (Sam R
out of Zarah s.Rebel I Z) and Zazou R (Tolan R out of O.Ruberth prok
s.Cordalmé Z). Besides that Velusinus R (= Vegas, Voltaire out of
Dulisina prest s.Joost) is recognized for KWPN breeding.
The following horses have jumped internationally:
Anuberta (Mermus R out of Danubertha s.Joost)
Balaboeska (Germus R out of I.Buberth ster pref prest s.Nimmerdor)
Barquillo (= Bonius, Joost out of Vonia pref prest s.Abgar xx)
Cantus Anuberth (Cantus out of J.Anuberth s.Ladalco)
Cantus Umonia (Cantus out of J.Umonia ster sport-(dres) s.Ladalco)
Eurocommerce Monterey (= S.Adermie, Namelus R out of Adermie
prest s.Abgar xx)
Febo’s Idalco (Ladalco out of Damelusiena prest s.Joost)
Gadermie (Joost out of Adermie prest s.Abgar xx)
Jogger (= Conius, Joost out of Vonia pref prest s.Abgar xx)
La Belle de Jour (= M.Adermie 9, Libero H out of Dadermie prest
s.Joost)
Lamalushi (Calando I out of I.Amelusi s.Ladalco)
L.Umonia (Concorde out of Gaumonia s.Ladalco)
M.Buberth (Prince Paradiso out of I.Buberth ster pref prest
s.Nimmerdor)
Moon (= M.Adermie, Prince Paradiso out of Eadermie prest s.Joost)
Nathos R (= U.Adermie, Namelus R out of O.Adermie 18 s.Calvin)
N.Ulisina 54 (Burggraaf out of Bulisina prest s.Joost)
Ommen (Abgar xx out of Orona keur s.Joost)
R.Rubertha (Caretino out of N.Ruberth s.Voltaire)
Roelofs Dublin (= Daumonius, G.Ramiro Z out of Aumonia pref
prest s.Joost)
Roelofs Equador (= Eaumonius, G.Ramiro Z out of Aumonia pref
prest s.Joost)
Royal Beach Cupid (Calando I out of Fcubertha s.Ladalco)
The Gruns (= T.Adermie, Namelus R out of O.Adermie 8 s.Aramis Z)
Udor (= U.Amelusina, Germus R out of P.Amelusiena prok s.Coriander)
VDL Groep W.Zermie (Celano out of S.Zermie s.Contender)
Vegas (Voltaire out of Dulisina prest s.Joost)
VIP (Joost out of Rubertha ster prest s.Abgar xx)
other stallions. He used the best European
jumper sires to improve his breeding
program, among them Almé Z, Burggraaf,
Concorde, Voltaire, Caretino, Contender,
G.Ramiro Z, Zeus, and more recently,
Mr.Blue, Chin Chin, and Indoctro. Roelofs:
“We’ve tried several times to breed a lot of
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Stal Roelofs recently sold a 50% share in the keur stallion Namelus R (s.Concorde)
to Stal Eurocommerce. The sire is known for passing on abundant jumping talent
and “blood.”
our mares to the same stallion, but it didn’t
do us much good. For example, the stallion
Ladalco, who initially seemed very interesting,
didn’t much improve the health and
jumping talent of our mares. That’s why we
got rid of all our mares with his blood and
went back to the foundation, and then we
moved forward from there.” This philosophy
characterizes Roelofs’ breeding vision,
for he immediately makes a correction if he
feels his breeding program is veering from
the right path, and he never lets emotional
ties or other personal preferences hold him
back.
Strict Selection
From the start, Roelofs practiced strict
selection for jumping talent, bloodlines, and
health. “At the end of the 1970s, we began
selecting very strictly for health, and we
had the horses radiographed. We started
with very healthy lines, and up to now,
we’ve had very few losses. We let the
young horses free-jump a few times, beginning
when they’re five months old, and
again when they’re yearlings and two-yearolds.
This is how we’ve selected horses for
their jumping talent for generations, and
we’ve gained a lot of insight doing it this
way,” asserts Roelofs. Stal Roelofs’ former
manager, Arnold Kootstra, who recently left
after 19 years of service, played an important
role in selecting the young horses for
their traits. His successor is Roeland de
Kruijf, who has worked for Stal Roelofs for
19 years. Selections are based on repeated
evaluations of the young horses on traits
such as the canter, balance, reflexes, and
jumping form. Although horses are not
expressly selected for conformation, a
glance at Stal Roelofs’ current horses
reveals that almost all have modern and
correct conformation. In any case, durable
conformation is functional conformation,
which facilitates a horse doing its job.
Furthermore, many Stal Roelofs horses
have qualified for the Championships at the
KWPN Stallion Show in ‘s-Hertogenbosch.
“Beautiful conformation is nice, but it has
never been a goal,” remarks Roelofs.
Captured Twice
Stal Roelofs has bred several KWPNapproved
stallions, including the keur sires
Namelus R (s.Concorde) and Mermus R
(s.Burggraaf), thus making it possible to
capture the successful Joost x Abgar xx
combination twice in a pedigree if these
Stal Roelofs stallions are bred to dams with
Joost x Abgar xx blood. (See sidebar.)
“That’s our goal: to capture these two stallions
twice. We’ve had a lot of success with
that in recent years. For example, Rubert R
is a Mermus R son out of a Joost x Abgar
xx dam. And Mermus R is a Burggraaf x
Ramiro x Joost x Abgar xx, so we can
breed him to a Joost x Abgar xx mare. Our
stallion Arthos R has that combination three
Stal Roelofs has reduced its herd of broodmares to eighteen, including these three
genetically valuable mares: W.Termie (s.Contender), U.Rubertha 15 (s.Contender),
and N.Ruberth 14 (s.Voltaire).
times in his pedigree. He’s a Namelus R
(Concorde x Joost x Abgar xx) son out of a
Mermus R daughter with Zeus, Joost and
Abgar xx in her pedigree. Another good
example is Zazou, a Tolan R son out of a
Cordalmé Z x Abgar xx dam. Zazou has the
great stallion Almé Z twice in his pedigree.
I’m convinced that’s the future for us:
doubling these successful combinations in
pedigrees,” explains Roelofs. “This is how
we establish the valuable traits of these
stallions.” Last year’s pairing with the
highest in-breeding percentage was Tolan
R (s.Namelus R) and Eamelusiena, the dam
of Namelus R.
Hans de Roover of Strijbeek is a good
example of a breeder who shares Roelofs’
vision of doubling Joost x Abgar xx. “He
has a Mermus R mare that he has successfully
bred to Namelus R several times. It’s
simply a good combination! The horse he
bred, Boemerrang, is a very nice example
of this philosophy,” according to Roelofs.
Last year, Boemerrang won the VION Cup
under Chantal Regter, and recently, he was
sold through the Expo Talent Sale for the
handsome sum of €260,000.
World-Class Sport
Over the years, Stal Roelofs has bred many
outstanding horses that have excelled in
world-class sport, such as VIP (s.Joost),
Ommen (s.Abgar xx), Lamalushi (s.Calando
I), Balaboeska R (s.Germus R), and Vegas (s.
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Voltaire). “We’ve bred horses for the World
Cup, the Olympics, and the World Championships.
That’s fantastic because that’s our
goal. In the past, we had our own riders train
the horses, but not anymore. It was always
difficult for us to get the horses to Grand
Prix, so now we breed expressly for the
market – not to have our own jumping
stable. Several of our horses are in training
at BWG Stables with the Schröder brothers,
and that’s how we try to achieve success in
the sport, whether it’s now or in the future. In
the past, Ben did really well in the show ring
with Rubert R, and I have great faith in him,”
asserts Roelofs. Other horses in training at
BWG Stables include the KWPN-approved
stallions Zazou R (s.Tolan R) and Arthos R (s.
Namelus R). Rubert R (now a gelding), who
Roelofs sold, is proving to be great advertising
for Stal Roelofs as a Grand Prix jumper
under Peter Charles. Thanks to the outstanding
sporthorses Stal Roelofs has bred, forty
mares have earned the valuable prestatie
predicate for the performance of their
offspring. (See sidebar.)
Down-Sizing
Over the years, Stal Roelofs has had many
broodmares. In 1993, 122 foals were born
on the property - a record number. Two
years ago, Roelofs decided to down-size his
business. “I made that decision for several
reasons. First, I’m getting older, and my
children Hans and Hetty wanted to make the
business more manageable; they have no
interest in a big stable. Second, we have a
couple of very good broodmares with which
we can continue breeding on a more
modest scale,” Roelofs explains. Two
months after his decision, Roelofs suffered a
brain hemorrhage, which prevented him
from working for quite some time. Miraculously,
he is now completely recovered. “We
had already made the decision to down-size
with Arnold Kootstra before I had the brain
hemorrhage. We want to sell the property in
Ommen and modernize the stable here in
Den Ham. The new shed for the young
horses is almost ready, and then we can
have everything in one location again. We’ve
carefully selected the horses we want to
keep and have decided eighteen mares out
of seven different lines,” says Roelofs.
Eighteen Mares
Roelofs speaks with due pride about those
eighteen mares, which are his prized
possessions: “I take my hat off to these 18
mares. They totally fit with our breeding
program and our vision. They’re mares out
of the Melusiena-, Dermie-, Rubertha-,
Monia-, and Wellie-lines and out of the
Holsteiner-lines 242 (Zarah) and 104a (Alba).
All the mares have the Joost x Abgar xx
combination in their pedigrees, so we can
really go forward with them. They also inclu-
Herman Roelofs’ brother is the breeder of Rubert R (s.Mermus R), who is among the world’s top jumpers under
Peter Charles (photo) and, previously, Ben Schröder.
de mares that produce sires, such as Eamelusiena,
the dam of Namelus R; and S.Adermie,
the dam of Arthos R. We’ve been breeding
horses for almost 40 years now, and
one thing has become clear to me: the foundation
horses must be outstanding. Everything
depends on that foundation!” Stal
Roelofs recently started using the ability
tests again in order to keep selecting the
best mares in the future. “Right now, several
of our mares are participating in the EPTM.
They’re off-site being prepared for the test
and independently evaluated. Now that we
no longer employ riders, the mare tests are
very useful for us,” remarks Roelofs. One of
the best horses of the mare test in Sleen is
the Stal Roelofs mare B.Rubertha 11 (Namelus
R out of U.Rubertha 15 s.Contender).
Advice from Experts
By viewing horses and their results independently,
Roelofs has always been able to
select strictly and intervene quickly. He
explains: “I don’t think I can judge a rider or
a horse, and I don’t have to learn how to do
that because I’ve always surrounded myself
with skilled people. I’ve always tried to figure
out if we should keep something in our own
hands or turn it over to experts. In the past,
there were people like Vleems and Brunsting,
who gave me very valuable advice;
now there are people like the Schröder
brothers with whom I enjoy collaborating.”
Roelofs has also started collaborating with
Stal Eurocommerce. “Stal Eurocommerce
bought Sam R from us and a 50% share in
the keur stallion Namelus R. Those stallions
have the job of supplementing the stud
farm, and with their high percentage of
Thoroughbred blood and ability to add more
jumping talent, they’re definitely valuable
assets,” notes Roelofs. Two years ago, the
keur stallion Mermus R was sold to a buyer
in Ireland, where he covered more than 200
mares over the past breeding seasons.
Stal Roelofs is gaining recognition both
domestically and abroad for its successful
breeding formula, and an increasing number
of breeders know that Stal Roelofs stallions
pass on performance genes to their
offspring. The horses that Herman Roelofs
has bred prove that his vision has achieved
the desired result. The doubling of his
successful Joost x Abgar xx combination
will ensure that the future of his performance-oriented
breeding program is just
as successful as its past.
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