ESTEBAN| 7 YEAR OLD KWPN GELDING | DRIPPING SPRINGS,TX

Esteban is a KWPN Gelding. His sire is Idocus, Courtney King Dye’s 2008 Hong Kong Olympic mount. His dam is Witaura by Flemmingh. Witaura was bred by the Century Ranch in Canada. He was bred by Ellen Day of Violet Crown Stables in Leander,TX.

Esteban is currently offered for sale. 

Esteban, who is also known as Bon Bon, Bano, and Bunny Toes at times, lives at Galloping Springs Ranch where he is in the care of Jennifer Jarvis and Ashley Shaw.  Ashley rides him and she trains with both Jennifer Jarvis and regularly clinics with Lars Petersen. Esteban is still owned by his breeder Ellen. Esteban’s bloodlines favor jumping, he actually went to the North American Stallion Testing and was approved by sBs and recognized with the KWPN-NA. He was kept a stallion until February of 2016, and actually have five foals on the ground.

In 2015 he and Ashley spent a year living in Southern California training with Jan Ebeling. 2016 was his first show season and he successfully competed at both training and first level. He is extremely intelligent and knows that when Ashley arrives at the barn it is time to go to work right away. He is loves to be scratched, especially with the muck rake, sometimes making it difficult to clean his stall because he just wants to be scratched. He also likes to nap regularly and will snack while laying down.   He is also a big lover, he grooms and licks all of the horses he is turned out with in the pasture and gets along with all of the horses.

Ashley Shaw, has ridden him for the past two years. Her favorite thing about riding him is… everything! She says he has a lot of natural ability to work and loves to do flying changes. This can be a blessing and a curse, as with most horses. But when he’s on, he REALLY tries and is very fit.

Ellen bred Esteban and has owned him his whole life. The first time Ashley met him was in July 2014 before she went to Belgium.

When asked to describe him in one word she used the word capricious. His favorite treats are Stud Muffins (which is pretty fitting for this studly guy) and Ice Cubes.

Esteban qualified for the 2016 Region 9 Training Level Championships in his first year of showing.

Ashley shared with us a little bit about how she got into riding horses and her history with horses, “I have been riding since I was 3 years old. I have always been a horse addict and love to ride. I got my first horse when I was 9, Te Totally Terrific, who packed me around to a bunch of 4-H and AQHA shows. I got my second horse, Frankie, when I was 12 and trained her from a 2 year old on by myself, competing in 4-H and going to the State and District shows, and even doing some dressage. The first horse I showed was Denmark’s Lady, who we later sold to Cheryl Crow. She was a National Show Horse that would only walk and trot when I got her, and showed through second level. I also rode a really cool horse named Arianna, owned by my longtime friend Jan Colley. We showed through second level as well, but she would ALWAYS come into season when we would go to a show. We also had an Anglo Arab pony who was a twin, named Chula’s Lil Biskit. I showed him and taught him to levade, much to everyone’s chagrin. One time at the Region 9 Championships in Oklahoma, she heard other horses being fed and escaped her stall, and wandered around the show grounds looking for food. That’s a pretty exciting way to start the morning at a horse show. I also showed my mom’s horse, Ben, and eventually fell into owning my first warmblood in 2009. I started him and showed him as a three year old, but then he had an injury and I went to college, so now my mom rides him. I got my USDF Bronze and Silver Medals on an amazing German Riding Pony named Ossborne in 2012 and 2014, and after went to Belgium to train with now team coach of the Netherlands, Johan Rockx. Before I left I bought a Trakhener filly named Sally and then went to California to work with Jan, and now I’m home and running a business! My favorite thing about my life with horses is that there is no better feeling than the partnership you have with your horses- I particularly favor mares. Plus, it’s a job that can take you anywhere in the world.”

Ashley’s favorite grooming tip is to curry your horse until your arm feels like it will fall off, and then continue currying. “It’s the greatest thing for their coat and you learn a lot about your horse when you focus on grooming it. Besides that, we feed our horses flax- if they’ll eat it, the cold pressed oil is easiest, but otherwise ground flax seems to do well. Also, I never brush my horse’s tails. Only if they’re cleaned, conditioned, and we are doing something important. I regularly deep condition and detangle them so that debris from the field doesn’t get caught in the tails, but otherwise I just give it a good shake before we go in the arena and that’s it.”

In September of 2016 Ashley rode with Lars Petersen at a barn Esteban had never been to. Ashley said, ” I was a little too relaxed about getting there and we were running a bit behind, so when I unloaded him, my mom held him and we threw the tack on, I mounted in the parking lot, and rode into the barn, not completely sure of what was inside, and Esteban went!…. it turned out to be one of the best rides I’ve ever had on him.”

Karinda K Equine Photography is a Dallas horse photographer located in Montgomery, TX. Karinda creates timeless portraits of you with your beloved horses, and other farm animals. Serving locally Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, and Austin, Texas communities. KEP also serves Wellington and Ocala, Florida, Lexington and Louisville, Kentucky, Aiken, South Carolina, Tryon, North Carolina, and Norco and Woodside, California and their surrounding communities.