BALMULLO FARM
6494 Charles City Road, Richmond, VA 23231 Phone: 804-507-0269 e-mail: balmullofarm@gmail.com


above: Balmullo's Liffey Lad

BALMULLO FARM

DONNA DUCKWORTH, OWNER AND MANAGER

Breeding fine Connemara and Connemara-TB crosses since 1980.
We specialize in quality horses and ponies with good conformation, movement, and type.

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News 8/1/11

Champion Bruiser!!

Region IV of the ACPS held its annual show at Canterbury Showplace in Newberry, Fl on June 25 and 26. Foothill's Field Marshall (Gun Smoke x Foothills MayBee) was the winner of the stallion class and Champion In-Hand! He was bred by Vanessa Morgan and is owned by Donna Duckworth and Balmullo Farm. Field Marshall, known to his friends as Bruiser, also won the prize for the highest dressage score with a 71% in Training Level Test 2! He is trained and was ridden by Luke McLaughlin. It was the second year in a row that Luke walked away with the High Score Dressage Award. Last year he won with Balmullo's Liffey Lad.

Shortly after the show Bruiser left Florida for the long, hot trip to Virginia. He is now living in domestic bliss with Hillside Emily aka Mimi (Aladdin X Tre Awain Balefire) at Balmullo Farm in Richmond and we are hoping for a Bruiser/Mimi foal next June.

Travelling with Bruiser from Atlanta was Balmullo's Uproar, now known as Pinkey. Pinkey had been in training with Peggy Allen at Lake Oconee Equestrian Center in Eatonton for six months and is now ready to make someone an adorable pony hunter (pictured below).


In late May, six-year-old Summer Fraughnaugh made a big leap in her show career….she entered her first Walk class by herself!
She was riding Balmullo's Katydid, owned by Mattison and Susan Hearn, who behaved impeccably.

We now have a fairly large number of purebreds and halfbreds that are ready to go to new homes, either as sales or as a lease.
See our sales list to find that pony of your dreams!!

 

BALMULLO FARM MOVES TO VIRGINIA:
The big news from Balmullo Farm is that we have moved!! We are now located on the east side of Richmond, VA, just minutes from daughter and number one helper, Alexandra Duckworth. We said good bye, somewhat sadly after 30 years, to Balmullo Farm, Alachua, on December 16, 2010, and arrived at Balmullo Farm, Richmond, with four ponies, to join the three already here, and two dogs, just in time for six inches of snow. Bruiser (Foothill's Field Marshall), Roary (Concord River Roaringwater Bay) and Minnie (*Belle Dawn) were lucky to have stayed in Florida with friends so missed out on all the white stuff!! Bruiser is with Jim and Nancy Kilcrease where he can continue his training with Luke McLaughlin, before coming to Virginia in the Spring. And Minnie is staying with Kristen Sealy for her stepson, Ty, to ride, while Roar is with old friend Janet Wootten and her two mares, one a daughter of Roary. But snow or not, all transplantees seem healthy and happy, with Balmullo's Isabelle, Balmullo's Belladonna, and Biscayne Bay joining Balmullo's Miss Emma, Hillside Emily, and Courtney's April Frolic. Balmullo's Katydid also recently came to stay, while Wondy Pierre, a half Percheron by Balmullo's Liffey Lad, has gone on to his new home in Maryland. Katydid will be ridden by 5 year old Summer Fraughnaugh.

above: Balmullo Farm, Richmond, without the snow

ROARY WINS TOUREEN LADDIE AWARD:
Before packing up to leave we attended the ACPS annual meeting in Alpharetta, GA, where Concord River Roaringwater Bay, Balmullo Farm's long-time resident stallion was awarded the prestigious Toureen Laddie Award for a stallion that has contributed to the breed through his offspring. Roary has been a superb sire of performance ponies and also broodmares. He has produced over 75 foals, and from Balmullo Bay, born in 1985, to Roar's Last Fancy, not yet a year old, there has not been a bad one. These 75 have produced some 67 sons and daughters, who have, in turn, produced at least ten in the third generation. These are working on the fourth generation with two, a colt by Windy Isles out of Foothills Faithfilly and a filly by WH Top Gun out of Balmullo's Matilda having already arrived. As Deb Norman's daughter, Allen Clare, has said, "if you want one to ride, get one by Roary." All have superb temperaments and are extremely tractable. Plus, ahem, winsomely beautiful…and talented. We were very pleased to have Roary so honored before we left his long time home.

Roary is now enjoying his retirement

FOOTHILLS FIELD MARSHALL MAKES HIS SHOW DEBUT:
Also before leaving coming-3-year-old stallion Foothill's Field Marshall aka Bruiser (*Gunsmoke X Foothill's Maybee) made his show debut (as well as off-the-farm debut) at the Canterbury Two Phase, Three Phase, and Schooling Dressage Show in Newberry, FL. Behaving perfectly, Bruiser earned a first place for Intro Test B with a 66% and a second for Intro Test A with 60%. He was ridden by Luke McLaughlin (pictured below).


Spring of 2010:

Roary has had his last foal (photos below) and it is one for the ages!! She is a brightly decorated paint filly out of a paint mare. She has been named Roar's Last Fancy and belongs to Tricia Starnes of Alachua.

*Belle Dawn aka Minnie gave birth to her third filly on February 15, this one the first foal of *Fernville Matchmaker. Matchmaker was imported in 2006 and is co-owned by Balmullo Farm and Glendale Farm in Virginia. The filly, Balmullo's Belladonna, somehow rolled under the fence as she was trying to stand, and was 'kidnapped' by a barren mare...however, when Minnie's owner found Minnie alone with the afterbirth, she was let out and quickly reclaimed her foal. Bella was, thankfully, none the worse for wear.

Balmullo's Liffey Lad (Concord River Roaringwater Bay X Balmullo's Miss Emma) has had a busy Fall and Winter going to two competitions where he was shown in the Novice Division by Donna Miller. The first was in November, the Ocala One-Day Horse Trial, a USEA recognized horse trial where Donna showed him for his first time ever at Novice. He did fabulously, coming in 8th out of 24 BIG horses. Then he went to the Poplar Place Schooling Horse Trial, where he did the Novice combined test (Dressage and Show Jumping) and came in third having had a perfect show jumping round.


above: Balmullo's Liffey Lad


Luke McLaughlin, a professional dressage rider, has been a great addition to our training program, helping get the ponies ready to go to new homes. He has started Balmullo's Dixie Chick (*Gunsmoke X Elphin Chickadee) - photo left - and Balmullo's Uproar (Concord River Roaringwater Bay X Wildwych Clio). Both will be super pony hunters.

 

 

 


Balmullo's Isabelle (Seven Hills' Grey Ghost X *Belle Dawn) is doing some first level dressage movements and has started jumping. And he has kept Liffey Lad fit and ready to go for the Horse trials that Donna Miller has ridden him in.


above: Balmullo's Isabelle

Luke has also started formal training of Foothill's Field Marshall (*Gunsmoke X Foothill's Maybee) and pronounces him fabulous! (photos below). Field Marshall (aka Bruiser) is a big, stocky, beautifully moving colt who was two in January. He will likely take the place of Roary who was recently gelded.

Others still enjoying a carefree adolescence are Balmullo's Jezebelle (Kilfenora Windy Isles X *Belle Dawn ), an exceptionally beautiful coming 2 y.o. filly, and Balmullo's Blue Water Bay (C. R. Roaringwater Bay X Thurman's Irish Peach), born on the same night as Jezebelle, a very handsome gelding. Blue and Bruiser pal around with Balmullo's Wondy Pierre (Balmullo's Liffey Lad X Percheron), a big, sweet yearling.

Concord River Roaringwater Bay (Whitewood Galway Bay X Lynnfield's Proud Hope) aka Roary came to Balmullo Farm when he was six months old, and except for brief stints at Foothill's and Glendale's Farms, has been here ever since. He is now 27. He has sired well over sixty foals that have been successful in dressage, combined training and the hunter ring. One of his daughters, Balmullo's Miss Lucy (o/o Balmullo's Miss Emma) was the first ever winner of the Connemara breeding division at the prestigious Dressage at Devon show. Balmullo's Azalea (o/o Courtney's April Frolic) won the Clifden award for the highest scoring Connemara Pony Hunter (at USEF rated shows) several years ago. It is hoped that Roary will be able to spend his last days running with the other ponies. His last foal is due next summer out of a paint mare and everyone is hoping for a paint!


above: Henry Casanova (grandson of Roary)


Courtney's April Frolic, who was here for about 8 years and had four foals while here, most notably Balmullo's Azalea who is shown on the A Pony Hunter circuit as Ooh La La, is in Virginia where she is being used by Alexandra Duckworth as a lesson horse for Ashley and Taylor Loving. Ashley and Taylor had never thought about riding until April moved into their front pasture, rented to Alexandra, but, after just a year, have won many ribbons at local shows.

 

History:

Balmullo Farm was established in 1978 for the purpose of breeding high quality Connemaras and Connemara crosses for competition in combined training events, dressage, and the hunter ring. Our motto is "handsome is as handsome does" so that temperament is of the utmost importance in creating animals that are personable and tractable.
The first purebred Connemara to come to Balmullo Farm was Rosehill's Glenconi, aka Speckles, daughter of the famous imported stallion Marconi. She joined two Thoroughbred mares living at the farm. The second Connemara was Oakhill's Sweet Ashley. They were both ridden and competed by young children for years, doing double duty as brood mares in their spare time.

In 1982, a weanling colt from Concord River Farm in New England, Concord River's Roaringwater Bay (a.k.a. "Roary"), came to join these mares. Roary's dam was the American Connemara Pony Society's Broodmare of the Year awardee, Lynfield's Proud Hope; his sire, also a society awardee, Whitewood Galway Bay.
Approved by the ACPS at his first presentation to a group of Irish and American inspectors, Roary has turned out to be the epitome of a kind and gentlemanly Connemara.
In 2001, Roary won the Stallion class at the ACPS Region 4 show in Atlanta. (pictured right)
He has sired over 50 foals out of Balmullo Farm mares, as well as a number of ponies at Vanessa Morgan's Foothills Farm and Deb Norman's Glendale Farm. In addition, he both rides and drives and has competed in a number of local horse trials. He has has spent many hours on the trail with both beginning and experienced riders wanting a day in the lovely North Florida countryside.

Roary is the perfect example of "handsome is as handsome does."

Click here for more photos and link to Roary's pedigree.

The stallion, Aladdin, well-known Connemara stallion from Virginia, also resided for one winter at Balmullo Farm (winter vacation in Florida!) and produced the beautiful Balmullo's Miss Emma (out of OakHills Miss Independence) as well as the well known stallion, Balmullo's Beacon (out of Tullymor's April Fool).

Roary and Emma have proved to be a great 'nick' producing two fillies and two colts so far.
Balmullo's Gallagher is standing at Erin Terra Farm in Missouri and Balmullo's Miss Lucy just produced her first foal by Bluebeard in Virginia. In November 2004 Miss Lucy was crowned Champion of the first-ever Mountain and Moorland Class at the Devon Horse Show in Pa., winning out over 35 Welsh, Dartmoor, Shetland and other Connemaras, and in 2005 became the ACPS's Connemara of the Year!

 

Seven Hills Grey Ghost (Fieldstream Nicholas X Tullymor's Heather Lass) has also produced a number of foals for Balmullo Farm. He is now owned by Mike Edwards of Ft. White, Fl, although he comes to visit alot.

Besides, Speckles, Ashley and Emma, Balmullo Farm has had a rotating band of broodmares. Some memorable ones include Tullymor's April Fool, Grand Champion at the Region 4 Show in 199X, Balmullo's Veronica (Roary X Tullymor's April Fool), Courtney's April Frolic (Custusha's Cashel Rock X Aillte Mhuire), Ballywhim Candace (by Dallen McMor), Twinkle Too, and her daughters by Roary and Fieldstream Riley, Balmullo's Little Star and Tullymor's Shandora, respectively. Both Twinkle and Shandora have rather unusual bloodlines very closely related to bothTully Lad and Toureen Laddie. Shandora is expecting a Grey Ghost foal, from an oops-a-daisy breeding, this August.



2002 started a slightly new trend at Balmullo Farm, the international trend. Our first imported pony came to Florida from Clifden, Ireland in 2002. This is *Belle Dawn (Cascade Dawn X Lisabelle). "Minnie" (pictured above and below) has proven to be a real joy, winning classes and championships at the Reg III and Region IV shows in 2003 and 2004. Minnie is in foal to Seven Hills Grey Ghost for an August 2006 foal. Because we have only produced colts for the last three years, in 2006 two fillies with international ties were purchased, a filly by Hohnhorst Branni, Ballencrief Sea Breeze, out of Aladdin's Winter Promise (whose lineage traces to Strongbow!) and Erin Terra Morning Star, out of the imported Hohnhorst Madeline by Balmullo's Gallagher. Also two brood mares, one bred in Canada and one bred in Australia will be coming to stay for awhile and hopefully reverse the trend on only colts. And as Roary is now 24, we will be scouring the world for a stallion to take his place.

Minnie (below R photo, courtesy of Megan Harris)

Congratulations to Balmullo's Miss Lucy, winner of the 2005 A.C.P.S. Connemara of the Year ! This award is presented to a pony that has done something special to bring positive attention to the breed. Lucy was the all-breed champion of the Mountain and Mooreland class at Devon in 2004. Lucy is by C.R. Roaringwater Bay and out of Balmullo's Miss Emma by Aladdin and is owned by Cindy O'Flaherty of Middleburg, VA.

And 2008, Balmullo’s Azalea, aka Ooh La La, went to the Pony Finals in Lexington, Ky.  Azalea qualified for the Green Pony Hunter Finals, The Pony Finals, as well as the Medal Finals with very young rider, Katherine Woodruff.  At the competition she was tenth out of 73 in the Green Ponies!

Location:

Balmullo Farm is located just east of Richmond, Virginia, in Enrico County, about 10 miles from Richmond's airport.
It is easily accessible from I-64 or I-295 and, of course, the Richmond airport. Visitors are always welcome!

 


Come and visit, we will find something for you to do!