Highlight of the Quarter

FOR SALE

GVF Meeka
Meeka comes from highly evaluated bloodlines in the United States. Excellent riding horse with dressage potential. She is currently being ridden in lower level Dressage and would make an outstanding show horse. Three quality gaits and an easy going disposition.
$10,000
GVF Greta
Greta is a very feminine Fjord mare with a great start. Ground drives and rides. Just being started under saddle this summer, she has a lot of potential to make a well-rounded all around horse. Both her sire and dam are proven in the Norwegian Fjord Horse evaluation program.
$7,000
Thorvald H-980614
Imported from Holland as a weanling, Thorvald is an extremely talented gelding trained in all disciplines. He holds one of the highest conformation scores in the United States. Thorvald has accomplished a lot within the Norwegian Fjord Horse Evaluation system as well as Norwegian Fjord Horse Breed Shows. Easy going disposition yet still spirited, aims to please and would make a great show horse. Three solid gaits, clips, loads, bathes, ties, etc.
$10,000

MEET OUR STALLIONS

PEDIGREE

View the pedigrees of any of our horses [ clicking here ] and typing FIEDLER in the "owner" box.

The Power Of Determination

Quite often determination can be displayed by an individual, but in Green Valley Farm’s experience determination is definitely a team effort. This year we picked up right where we left off at the end of 2010 and were able to build on our already strong foundation.

At Green Valley we celebrated a shared milestone for Howard, Sophie and Mac—they each turned 70 this year! All three of them work extremely hard on the farm and bring a lot of energy and knowledge to the table every single day. Mac started two more colts this spring. Not too many seventy year olds still have the courage, soft hands and finesse to start a colt. Mac did, and he has plans to start one more next spring. Howard and Sophie celebrated their birthdays by spending ten days in June in Alaska with their family. Included in their very full Alaska adventure was flying in a small plane onto a glacier, a five mile hike to another glacier and a trip on the historic Alaska Railroad. Howard and Sophie are both a testament that age is just a number as they appeared to have no problem keeping pace with their kids and grandkids!

We have added Kathryn Barry to our Green Valley Farm team. Kathryn (Kt) is a well-recognized Dressage instructor from Freeport, Illinois. Starting last winter, on occasion, as weather permitted, MeMe Samuelson and Samantha Poirier took lessons with Kt. Kt is a considerable asset to Green Valley Farm and our training program. She has helped both Sam and MeMe gain a great deal of knowledge in Dressage and has put some nice basics on several of our horses. We look forward to Kt’s guidance as we continue to build on those advances this fall and winter.

Over the summer we were fortunate to have help all the way from the Denmark. Louise Mandrup came to the States for her first visit from her home in Vejle, Denmark. Louise proved to be very easy going and a great addition to the Green Valley Farm team. Sam was able to teach Louise driving and proper show ring etiquette. Sam’s lessons also included methods used in training a horse to drive from the ground up. Louise worked with many of our horses and ended up taking two to the MWFHC Breed Show. GVF Maja was her main horse, while she also showed GVF Mette in halter. Even with only a couple of weeks of driving lessons, Louise placed consistently well in her first show in the open classes and took firsts in all of her green/maiden classes. Congratulations, Louise, and we hope to see you back again next year.

This was the first year that the annual breed show was held at Kirkwood College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The college provided a wonderful facility including an indoor arena and very nice stalls! Green Valley Farm took four horses to the Show--two performance horses and two halter horses. GVF Maja was driven and ridden by Louise Mandrup. Together they achieved several victories in driving, and other numerous ribbons in riding classes. Louise also showed GVF Mette in halter for mares 4 and 5 years old and came in first place. Sam showed GVF Rolf in many driving and riding classes and the pair consistently placed high, winning all of his driving games classes which made them the Grand Reserve Champion. Sam also showed GVF Sjokolade’s full little sister, two year old GVF Troika. At her young age we were really excited to see what she had to offer and were thrilled to watch her win her class for two and three year old mare’s halter. Despite the hot temperatures the show was fun and a great success for the GVF team.

GVF Sjokolade (Hershey) also had an outstanding year. Hershey competed in the ADS Driving shows and it was his maiden year in the real dressage world of the USDF. Sam and Hershey attended the Columbus Carriage Classic where they were the Large Pony Open Champions as well as Best of Show. It was like winning an Emmy for both of them—a feat that made the farm very proud! A picture from that show graced the summer cover of The Whip magazine which was another huge honor for everyone involved. Hershey and Sam also competed in the Villa Louis Carriage Classic in September. Once again, they were the Large Pony Open Champions in a tough division of 14 competitors and in addition won the Drive and Ride class. Hershey and Sam made their debut in recognized dressage in the Open division for training and first level. Not only did Hershey win the All Breeds Award for the Norwegian Fjord Horse for both levels, he placed 11th in the nation for training level Horse of the Year and 2nd in his region! Not too bad for a first year dun pony competing against warm bloods! He continues to amaze us with his athletic ability and successful partnership with Sam. Hershey and Sam will continue the dressage training with plans to pass the driving reins over to a new horse next year. We look forward to working our way up the Dressage building block.

On a more challenging note, at the end of July we were struck with a small, yet mighty storm that destroyed the valley. Galena received 14 inches of rain in only two hours. The entire valley flash flooded and while our ponies were high and dry many of our close neighbors lost their houses, cars and animals. We definitely count ourselves among the lucky as we did not suffer the loss of any livestock, buildings or lives. On our farm we had to contend with the damage to many fences, gates, driveways, and hay wagons. Unable to get the trailer off the farm due to the many washed out roads, Sam and Hershey ended up missing one of their scheduled Dressage shows—a minor price to pay in light of the area devastation.

This spring Sophie had her hip replaced and was riding a horse within three months! She is unstoppable now and is well on the road to recovery riding her five year old mare Mette several times a week. We are also relieved to share that Howard was diagnosed, and beat prostate cancer this fall. The determination from both of them is an inspiration throughout the farm. Whatever the obstacles they encounter their positive attitude and work ethic enables them to keep marching forward side by side.

We are expecting our first GVF Rolf offspring as well as another foal from the golden cross of Sabrine (Chocolate) and Kastanjegardens Fernando that produced Hershey. We are anxiously awaiting the arrival of both foals next spring. On our website we continually update our sales and have horses available in all age groups and price ranges. The training process is ongoing as we handle our horses every day. Please feel free to schedule a visit to Green Valley to experience our farm for yourself. We have also created a Facebook page to share updates throughout the year. It is always exciting for us to post new pictures and show results to keep everyone in the Green Valley Loop.

A very proud first for Green Valley, is that Sam and Hershey were selected to participate in the ”Through the Levels” Symposium with internationally known and respected dressage clinicians, Steffen Peters and Janet Foy. The Symposium will be held November 19th & 20th in the Chicago area. Over 100 horses applied and only 22 were selected. Sam and Hershey will be demonstrating first level movements. We are honored to be the only Fjord among Hanoverians, Oldenburgs and other Warmbloods.

As the show season comes to a close, we are already planning our training programs for next year. This winter our team finds itself, once again, determined to insure that everyone and every horse remains on the road to optimal health and maximum achievement. The Green Valley team is as strong as ever and we will remain cohesive through all of life’s challenges. We look forward to this winter and next show season and are grateful that you take the time to read our newsletter.

Sincerely,

The Green Valley Team

Designed by Samantha Poirier ♦ Developed by Jeanne Poirier