Sad news has shrouded the South African showjumping industry today with the news of another top showjumping horse that has left our world for horsey heaven. The gorgeous black stallion, Equistro van de Mispelaere, has had a successful journey in South Africa with both Neriske Prinsloo Hill and Lorette Knowles-Taylor but sadly, his time has come to an end as the stallion is no longer with us.
Born in 2004, the 16-year-old stallion was a big, bold, striking horse that had a lot of presence when he stepped into the arena. By Querlybet Hero out of a Quidam de Revel mare, Equistro first started his showjumping career in South Africa in 2015 with Neriske Prinsloo Hill in the 1.25m classes. With the FEI Database tracking his competitions back to 2013, Equistro made his 1.50m debut in the middle of 2013 at just 9 years old with the Belgian rider, Donaat Brondeel. Subsequent to his step up into the big leagues, Equistro was then imported to South Africa where he acclimated and reclimbed the ranks quite quickly, debuting in the 1.50s on SA soil at the 2016 Erreplus President’s Cup.
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Neriske was his partner for the best part of 2 years at events such as the Outdoor Grand Prix, Midrand World Cup Qualifier, and S.A. Derby. The partnership came to an end when the stallion moved on to Barry Taylor for a short period. Barry and Equistro took part in 3 CSI1*-W competitions before the stallion changed hands once again, but this time, he remained within the Farnham family, becoming the ride of Barry’s wife, Lorette Knowles-Taylor.
The duration of the competitive season in 2019 saw Lorette and the striking black stallion appear at every major event across the country including the Midrand, Brits, Shongweni, and Polokwane World Cup Qualifiers. The partnership looked to be the best one yet as the great stallion, despite his size and strength, was a great team player and enabled Lorette to remain active in the top heights.
The loss of this gentle giant is a tragedy for both Lorette and Neriske but also for the rest of the equestrian community as we’ll never be able to see his striking figure and powerful jump in the competition arena again. Our sincerest condolences go out to all his connections. Rest easy Equistro.
-The JumpOff-
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