Russian Arabian History
Meeting the Russians at Kale's
About Russian Arabians - History
My husband Phil and I were some of the first visitors to see the new Russian imports. I'd been a frequent visitor to Kale's Arabians since I was 14 years old. I loved brushing the horses, playing with the foals, and leaving my fantasy Arabian horse drawings on the chalkboard for Dr. and Mrs. Kale's enjoyment. We knew the Russians were expected soon. When we heard the Russian-bred horses had arrived safely, we were ecstatic. I called Kale's, (close to us in Kirkland, WA,) and made an appointment to see the new imports as soon as possible. Dr. Kale's son, Howard, had achieved the impossible; he'd imported choice Arabian horses from behind the Iron Curtain. After he'd been at the barn for about six weeks, we were invited to come out and see w
hat the fuss was all about.
Dr. Kale's son, Howard, was there to greet everyone, and he told us the Russian horses weren't even abled to be registered yet, but he wasn't worried. Howie was sure *Muscat would be the next Scottsdale Champion, and even the United States National Champion that fall. My eyes must have showed my skepticism, as he laughed out loud, and smiled so broadly, and said, "come on, just stand right here, and I'll show you!" And he led out his chestnut horse. He turned him lose. "Now, you think he might win a few ribbons?"
*Muscat was so balanced; big, red, with elastic motion like a cat. There was simply nothing that could prepare me for the site of this horse. I was speechless. Off he went at the trot! Time seemed to slow, and become suspended. Everyone went still, and very quiet.
Howard's voice animated the entire barn, and while a few more admirers arrived, Howard spoke to them, he "shooed" *Muscat around the indoor arena. "Howie", as he's affectionately called, was absolutely delighted, watching our reaction to *Muscat. He just kept grinning. Eventually, he called softly to *Muscat, and the horse came right over to him, stopped, and lowered his head into the halter. Howie patted him on the withers, and rubbed his long, arched, stallion's neck. Everyone began to ask Howie questions at once. He handed the lead rope to me. "Here, you said you wanted to groom him? Take him, and brush him, he's just a kitten." I was all eyes, and probably an open mouth, too. My husband and I walked the big horse around the corner, and into his stall. Phil handed me some brushes, and I quietly brushed that big, red Russian horse. His shoulders and withers were a revelation. His legs were absolutely plumb. His girth was very deep, and his chest was of a perfect width. Howard stood right outside the stall, chatting with more visitors, and Phil gave me brushes as I needed them. Everyone's eyes were drinking in the big horse. Howard Kale Jr. continued his amazing narrative to a an enthusiastic and wide eyed group.
The guests were eventually shown all the mares and foals in the big barn, and Howard talked about his trip, driving *Muscat in a big truck over the borders from Russia. Everyone listened with stars in their eyes - we knew the arrival of these horses had changed everything.
After I was done with *Muscat, I brushed the exotic *Nariadni, and as my heart rate began to slow down, *Nariadni and I became friends. I was able to look back at *Muscat, and compare the two stallions. They were ideal complements to each other. The great mares of the Kale program were finally going to have the caliber of stallions they were bred for. All of us began to talk about the foals. Howie told us, my favorite mare, the Ga' Zi daughter, Miss Century, was already bred to *Muscat, that's how sure he was these horses would be registered soon.
He was right on all counts. *Muscat became the first "Triple Crown Champion". He won Scottsdale, then Canada, and then the United States National Championship, and he and *Muscat's victory lap brought down the house.
Renowned horsemen from around the world agreed. *Muscat was simply, "so much more perfection" than they'd ever found in one horse before, regardless of the breed. *Muscat affected you like that. He had so much balance, symmetry, and correctness, all at once. He was quickly became just as famous for being genetically prepotent; he was generous in sharing with his first foals, and all generations going forward.
*Muscat became a large part of why American breeders were so "on fire" about breeding world-class Arabian horses. We had imported some of the finest horses from around the world; Egyptian, Ferzon, Polish, Spanish, CMK, and foundation American bloodlines were essential parts of a larger puzzle. The breeding of the perfect Arabian, depicted through the centuries, could be approached from many directions. New ideals were possible for a new generation of breeders. The first wave of Howard Kale's Russian horses lit a deep, burning fire inside thousands of Arabian horse lovers. Howie Kale taught time-honored breeding theories with enthusiasm, and conviction. Every bloodline group was included in the quest for perfection. Howie's ideas, coupled with *Muscat, was like an accelerant to dedicated breeder's imaginations everywhere.
Breeding fine horses is lifelong endeavor. New foals were planned, and new crosses debated. Each spring the dreams were born, watched, and evaluated. Kale's Can. Reserve National Champion mare, Miss Century, foaled a deep red bay colt that next spring they named Muscastar. The crowds were wowed all over again by several different winning *Muscat yearlings. Muscastar went on to win his huge two-year old colt class at Scottsdale, and was among the first examples of Kale's successes with his own mares. A *Muscat son foaled out of a Ga'Zi mare, he was ideal structure mated to more type; in this case, just as *Nariadni was matched to *Muscat with that same idea in mind. Muscastar became more than they hoped for, and developed into a popular sire in his own right, while his daughter was shown in Paris, and was named World Champion Mare.
For those of us that met the vanguard of Arabian horses from Russia, and watched the first foals mature from the initial CMK, Polish, Crabbet, Egyptian, and Spanish crosses, there will always burn a retinal echo from the *Muscat years. The success of the Russian horses gave validity to every bloodline group. He showed us that excellence could be achieved, through the diverse and complementary families available at the Tersk Stud. He proved it was a formula that could be repeated, despite the challenges of any breeding program. That red stallion could suspend time, by presenting the pieces of perfection, one floating moment at a time.
I can still feel that fire, and his silky red mane in my fingers.
Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites
