My 142cm New Forest pony Samsons Sparks ended his first season competing at Riding Club level eventing and dressage, as well as Working Hunter classes, by recently winning the South Western Dressage Group Riding Club Mountain & Moorland Performance Perpetual Trophy. This trophy is named in memory of another very good performance New Forest pony, Trenley Pacific Adventure, who, owned by Karen Martin competed at BE Novice level. In addition, in 2004 the trophy was won by one of the three 2007 Olympia competitors, Crabbswood Forget Me Not - so “Mr Sparks” has two great acts to follow. In a riding club where most of the adult members (and a lot of the younger ones) are on big sports horses – the New Forest pony is once again making its mark. I hope Samsons Sparks will become just as famous as these other two ponies named on the trophy!

I purchased Mr Sparks in April 2006 from a lady in Kent who had bought him from his breeder Pauline Black as a 3 year old. He had been backed as a 4 year old but his owner never really had the time to ride him – his main occupation was therefore eating and it showed! He was a very overweight 6 year old. Prior to this his first three years were spent in part running on the forest and he was kept entire until he was 2 or 3 years old.

I call him Mr Sparks as he is a great grandson of the famous Slipper who was bred by the late Mr Sparks. He is by Randalls Fire and out of the graded Forest bred mare Blue Secret of Samsons. (Both his sire and his dam are Slipper descendents). Secret is also the dam of Samsons Maiden who is the dam of the stunning Applewitch Magister by Applewitch Magic who is also a Slipper desendent being a grandson of “Frank of Crabbswood”. I have always been a fan of the “Slipper line” in particular,  the Frank of Crabbswood line, having had the pleasure of partnering Frank of Crabbswood’s half brother a half bred called Driftwood for a couple of years in the early 80’s. It was my search for another Driftwood which lead me, in September 2004, to purchase from Pauline Black, a 6 month roan colt foal also out of Secret and I liked him so much I then went hunting for one I could get on and ride while waiting for my colt to mature. Pauline had mentioned he had a half brother by Randalls Fire, and having known and loved  Randalls Fire a little voice in my head said, “I want that pony too”. The odds of that happening were of course rather slim - but sometimes things are meant to happen. Having viewed 16 colts before buying Mr Spark’s half brother - the search for an older version had already been going on for about a year and another 16 viewings when there was an ad in Horse & Hound. The ad began in bold print - Samsons Sparks, 14hh bay roan New Forest… and of course with a name like Sparks it just had to be the one by Fire. Two days later I drove 3 hours to Kent to meet my new pony, a rather obese, not quite 14hh roan pony, branded KO. The branding alone made me gulp, as my first ever pony partner, when I was a child, was a bay roan also branded KO. This was meant to be. I bought him on the spot.

Mr Sparks arrived in Dorset a week later and I soon realised he was a very special character with a most wonderful quiet peaceful temperament with a willing and forward thinking attitude.  He also had lovely paces for dressage and a scopey jump. By May 2006 I was riding Mr Sparks out, and by July we were competing and getting placed in prelim dressage. Our first jumping and WHP was September that year – we jumped 3 clears and were placed in both classes. We then went on to do our first 2 hunter trials. 2007 started with concrete ground at the Welsh Pony Society Show at Yeovil, so we did a swop from the NPS Novice MM WHP to the Novice ridden and won it! By June better ground and we were placed in our first NPS Novice WHP at Brockenhurst. By this time we had also been placed SJ, CT, and lots of prelim dressage placings – averaging 65% - accept when I forget the test. 

In July we competed in our first one day event,  we were leading after  the first 2 phases with a good dressage score and a fantastic clear round SJ with some very bright spooky fences and sticky going which left a lot of the big horses floundering.  Then clear cross county – he hadn’t forgotten a thing from the autumn before – sadly I forgot a fence. I waited for the results thinking I had won the competition to be told I’d missed out a jump. He loves cross country and is proving to be brave and scopey.  By September we were going clear over 2ft9ins courses, he does water, skinnies, ditches, drops, banks, steps etc etc. In September we were placed 8th at the South & West Wilts Hunter Trial in a class of 56 horses.

In August 2007 we went up to Malvern, to the NPS Championship Show, just the two of us, to do MM WHP classes, Malvern was a fantastic experience,  although being on my own meant I missed out on the opportunity of getting placed. I didn’t realise one did their show etc in another ring – after going clear in the Novice! Next day we went in our first Intermediate and he jumped like a stag, some of the fences were 3ft.  We just tipped the stile on top of the bank.  Two weeks later we were third at the New Forest Breed Show and then 4th at Dorchester. This winter Mr Sparks has been proving to be a fantastic hunting pony, has taught a novice 11 year old to ride and has been escort to my youngsters round the roads. To sum up, in under 2 years he’s turned from being an overweight eating machine into a promising event and dressage pony and an outstanding Working Hunter Pony who really does go hunting – and in the Dorset Vale. 

Mr Sparks is so peaceful and quiet he hates confrontation from other horses and although he’s very much liked by the mares for he is gentle masculine charm, he really prefers people, (especially ones with treats and Polo mints). I am not one to give my horses titbits – but Mr Sparks quickly became exempt from this rule! I have a suspicion that during his time spent on the forest he may have gate crashed various picnic parties as he always checks out car boots that have been left open and recognises picnic boxes. With me on board he’s more likely to be seen “gate-crashing” the Blackmore & Sparkford Vale, Portman, or South Dorset hunts – when they turn up next door to his field what can you expect! Another party trick we have is, at shows, if the grass is good I simply let him eat round my trailer without tying him up. The times I’ve had worried on-lookers tell me my horse is loose is too numerous to count! I seldom have any help at shows so his easy nature is very much appreciated.

To sum up, this pony is very, very special. For me he has been the pony I never owned as a child, and in the last 18 months I have won more rosettes than ever before! My first show would have been in 1973 aged 14 on “Toby” branded KO – who I never owned. I evented in the early 80s on other peoples horses including Driftwood – who I never owned.  Having not had much opportunity to compete over the last 20 years my nerves sometimes caused lack of concentration and navigation errors particularly in the dressage arena – but however nervous I felt Mr Sparks simply got on with the job and has far exceeded my expectations. I feel very lucky to have owned this very special pony.  Sadly I now know what its like to outgrow one’s first pony as being a compact pony with a special temperament he would really like a child. As I move on to his half brother (who is a lot like Driftwood) – Mr Sparks is looking forward to a much younger lighter rider – to take eventing, dressage and hopefully to HOYS!