The Novotomnikovo stud farm

      The stud farm in Novotomnikovo played a large part in the history of domestic horse-breeding; it was founded by count Illarion Ivanovich Vorontsov-Dashkov in 1860 and still exists now. In short time he bought up the best orlov’s stallions and dams, paying no attention to the prices.

His new stud farm in Tambov area got famous after his bonded jockey Oblopokhin on the stallion Zadorniy beat all capital jockeys on the horses from the best prize-winning stables in St. Petersburg in 1861. Zadorniy made three versts for 6 minutes and 6 seconds.

Vorontsov-Dashkov opened a new era in horseracing after he became in 1882 a state manager of horse-breeding at tzar Alexander III request. At that time he was the defense and domestic minister in the rank of adjutant general.

 He turned the horse-breeding from lairds’ merry-making into real commerce. The prices on the private stud farms were raised up. The owners of stud farms in Moscow or St. Petersburg could be lucky enough and win whole bags in one racing season.

In the last quarter of 19th century in a pursuit of high prizes the american jockeys began to appear in St. Petersburg and Moscow more and more often on theirs so-called “two-minutes” trotters – they cover a mile (1600 meters) for two minutes and some seconds.

One of the first to Russia from America came Clayton’s, the well-known jockey family – the father and sons with their own trotters. They established the prize-winning stable and began the manufacturing of modern very light carts with rubber wheels. Very soon they were unrivalled on the racecourses of Moscow and St. Petersburg. One year Clayton and sons won almost all prizes and earned more than 300,000 rubles. The horse-breeders got agitated and began to repine. Some of them rushed to buy the very expensive American trotters. Other protested demanding to forbid the performance of American trotters in Russia.

In such conditions Vorontsov-Dashkov, as a head of domestic horse-breeding, had to make a decision. He found a compromise. The prizes were divided into two groups. One was for the horses of all breeds, other only for Oryol trotters. But nevertheless, the count preferred American trotters. «The only criterion of quality of a horse I consider a prize pole», - he told later. With such reasoning Vorontsov-Dashkov made vigorous efforts buying American trotters, not only for his stud farm and prize-winning stables in St. Petersburg and Moscow, but also for state stud farms.

Vorontsov-Dashkov was interested in cross-breeding more than anybody else. He always was present at horsing, sitting under a glass cap at center above one of the stables. The count considered it to be so important, that often forced his spouse Elizaveta Andreevna (Shuvalova before marriage) to be present on it with visitors, which were in Novotomnikovo that time. The visitors were only grand people: the members of tzar family, which arrival was marked with planting of one more tree in oak alley of ancient park. Such as relatives of four daughters married off in families of Shuvalov’s, Sheremetyev’s, Musin-Pushkin’s, and Demidov’s.

The conversations about horses touched common interest, as all aristocracy had stables and stud farms. This kind of private business was considered to be almost the only activity that is not derogating dignity of a true aristocrat.

By the end of 19th century on private and state stud farms in Russia there were 20 trotters prizewinners of an American origin. In the mass order there was a crossing of blooded Oryol dams with American trotters.

The most given was Vorontsov-Dashkov. Even two victories of “oryols” over “americans” in summer season of 1898 didn’t cool him. The Oryol trotter Boets broke the record on three miles established by American trotter Monnet. His own mare Krylataya broke the record of Monnet on three and three quarters of second in the same season. But he had made the choice, « his knight's move », and was not going to back up. Soon the count accepted on a service all jockeys of Clayton’s family with the fantastic salary 300 thousands rubles per year.

 The outstanding scientist hippologist prince Sergei Urusov engaged in controversy against Vorontsov-Dashkov. Urusov considered cross-breeding «as a medicine not by illness». «The only developing of ability to quick trot, as they have made with the trotter in America, - he wrote, - will result in quick but narrow, boneless, long-legged horse without rib and quite often without a back and completely useless in agriculture. It is necessary to improve inside the breed. Bad can be born even from good but never good from bad ».

Many years have passed since then and this dispute has not finished yet.

After the death of the count Vorontsov-Dashkov in 1916 his heirs, going to leave the country, arranged cut-price sale of all horses’ elite of the farm. In Soviet time it became only a branch of state stud farm in Morshansk.

By 1918 in Novotomnikovo left only three blooded mares of Oryol breed. Horses were taken from stables both by “red” and “white”. The very nice farm before now it fell to desolation and, as the saying goes, the farm was going. For long time it was existing only as horsing point, on which only a dozen of mares were blissomed per year.

By a lucky chance among the three left blooded Oryol dams there was the young mare Opora. Later she was bound to play the outstanding role in domestic horse-breeding and to save the breed of Oryol trotters from complete oblivion. In a 1934 she gave birth to a colt named Otboy. His father was stallion Burelom born in 1927. The Moscow scientist hippologist S. Kalinin liked this streamlined trotter after the Moscow races in 1930 and advised to pay the special attention to him.

Meanwhile stud farms kept cross-breeding of Oryol trot horses, what was started before the revolution. Only now they cross-breed blooded Oryol mares not with American trotters, the state did not give money to buy them, but with crossbreeds’ posterity. At first they were called “american-oryols”, then just Russian trotters. They were propagated on six stud farms, mainly on Lavrovsk farm in our region.

The big work was performing continuously on creating and developing of that new breed of thrifty trotters. The care for Oryol trotters was paled into insignificance. The majority of the experts believed that this breed had reached the limits of the further perfection. And, as it turned out, they were wrong.

Today in stalls of Novotomnikovo stud farm stay the good-lookers of Oryol breed restored by the efforts of horse-breeding enthusiasts. The farm fosterlings have reached friskiness, which once was considered possible only for American trotters. Now the Russian troyka, made from Oryol trotters revives abroad as the mode. The customers from abroad readily buy them in Novotomnikovo.

One cannot name the work on cross-breeding of Oryol trotter with American one as reckless step. If due to Oryol trotter Russia gained the improved breed of working horses in place of bow-backed hacks with bangled stomachs, then the cross-breeding of Oryol horse gave the new breed of Russian trotter of distinct sportish type.

There is no other animal like horse the mankind is so indebted to. Without the count Aleksei Orlov we would not have Oryol trotters, which bring glory to Russia for many years, making an ornament to our nation. We would not receive a trotter, which is used for breed improvement of trotting horses almost in all countries of Western Europe, and also in Asia and America.

For the revirescence of beautiful Oryol trotter we are obliged to S. Kasimenko. It was him, who managed the farm and choose the dams for Burelom. In such selection the ancestry of dams is very important, down to their great-grandfathers and great-grandmothers and even deeper into a family tree. All their features and qualities are taken into account. All was clear with Burelom, the son of distinguished Oryol trotter Lovchiy. Maternally his bloodline ascended to the famous stallion Zadorniy, who brought the first glory to Novotomnikovo farm of Vorontsov-Dashkov. But the mare Opora, born even before October revolution, was in declining years for horses and seemed to be not a suitable bride for young beauty Burelom. However Kasimenko took chances. As we mentioned, stallion Otboy was born from this unequal march. The careful godfather to him became A. Samoilov, who replaced Kasimenko in a 1934.

At first Otboy didn’t show anything special in posterity. They have from him just common trotters and dams not distinguished by high friskiness, only their exterior was faultless.

The farm decided to part with Otboy. He was sent to other stud farm. And here we should say thanks to A. Popov, who was the head of horse department during the Great Patriotic War. Popov decided to return Otboy in Novotomnikovo. But the new head V. Remizov received him there. Popov went to the front in 1943 and did not come back on farm, as well as other 36 workers of farm - hostlers, jockeys, foragers, tractor operators, smiths didn’t return here after war.

Remizov had been working in Novotomnikovo till 1965, and in his time a new line in breed of Oryol trotter was born and appeared the new branch on his family tree. The grey colt Otklik came into being after Otboy and mare Konventsiya on Zaporozhye stud farm in 1952. Konventsiya had arrived on this farm from Novotomnikovo already pregnant. So all palms for a new line of Oryol trotter belong to the stud farm in Novotomnikovo.

The posterity of Otklik appeared to be marvelously quick. The stallions Vodovorot and Borets ran a mile for two minutes and four tenths of a second.

 The interest to Oryol trotter has revived today all over the world. Horses from Novotomnikovo have purchased the stud farms of Czechoslovakia, Hungary, China, Germany, and Sweden. All America and Canada have got acquainted with troika of Oryol trotters, where the thiller was a trotter from Novotomnikovo farm. The millions of televiewers in these countries admired them. Many newspapers of Old and New World enthusiastically wrote about them.

The Lavrovo stud farm

The Lavrovo stud farm is located in Mordovian area of Tambov region and stands out against other trotting stud farms because of the achievements of its fosterlings.

Established by the good judge of horses V.P. Voeykov 170 years ago, the Lavrovo stud farm is one of «big fishes» of domestic trotters. Ii is the birthplace of the well-known grey Oryol trotter Lebed 5.44 (Atlasniy - Pobeda), born in1829. He is on the pictures of the artist N.G. Sverchkov and on the tapestry made by bondmaids from village Lavrovo. These things are kept in the museum of horse-breeding of TAA.

Till the end of 80-th the farm in Lavrovo kept the path of cross-breeding.

During the civil war the facilities were ruined, the horses were plundered. They could save only one mare Margaritka 2.16,1 (Fatalist - Binyonia), born in 1918, who later became a founder of dams family and was the great-grandmother of Pervenets 2.00,4. During the acquisition of the farm (1922-23) not only “Oryol-Americans” got there, but also the Oryol trotters.

Since 1930 all Oryol dams were excluded from Lavrovo stud farm. Together with mares half-breeds, which were brought on farm instead of Oryol mares, also came the studhorse Aloisha 2.14,2 (Aloisha - Kreolka) from the line of Peter The Great. There was started the line of Aloisha and the line of Trepet – together with Smolensk farm. In January 1935 from Aloisha and mare Paguba (the grand daughter of Peter The Great) appeared the red stallion Podarok 2.02,1; 3.09,4; 4.17.4 – the pride of Lavrovo and the founder of one progressive line in Russian trotter breed.

The important part in the stud activity of the farm also played then the lines of Iris (through Khorovod, Khor Kalinych, Interes), Nalim (through Lunatik and Otprysk), Aksvort (through Viktor Vorti, Vampir, Vzriv). The main was the method of cultivation ”in itself” of the horses of desirable type using cross-breeding and in-breeding. The crossing with lines of Aloisha and Gildeets had become one of the bases of Lavrovo complex creation.

The returned cross-breeding was also applied with Oryol stallions for the improvement of horses exterior. The Oryol lines in remote ancestors are traced in the best horses of the farm.

Through the Oryol trotter Bunt 2.14.3 (Metsenat - Budushnost) the lines of Podaga and blooded Boyar were enhanced. The daughters of Bunt could be met in family trees of Vasilyok, Pervenets, Lazutchik, Pavodok, Vopl.

All-Union prize horse and founder of the line Podarok was selfed on Oryol trotters Zadornov and Petushok. His best get: the sons Pervenets 2.00,4, Pryatel 2.03,4, Lazutchik 2.05,6, Park 2.10,4, Vopl 2.09,2, Azot 2.06,3, Pereryv 2.07,6; 6.44,6, Lotus 2.09,9 and daughters Povilika 2.09,3 (the mother of Prologue 2.06), Aplikatsiya 2.14,7 (the mother of Atlas 2.07,6) and Atmosfera, Podarok gave with dams, who had the similar Oryol ancestors.

Only from Podarok the farm had more than 298 colts. 20 among them are of class 2.10 and even thriftier. The children of Podarok have won 17 international prizes: Priyatel, Pervenets and Lazutchik – 5 prizes each and Park - 2 prizes. No other stallion from our stud farms had such a successful offspring.

The all-Union records of Podarok were broken only 13 years later by his son from Masandra the Derby racer Pervenets 2.00,4 р; 3.11,4 р; 4.11,2 р; 6.52,3 who was born in 1949. Podarok also gave from Argentina the all-Union prizewinner Pryatel, born in1954 and the winner Lazutchik (from Lazur); born in1959.

On Lavrovo stud farm was brought up the all-Union prizewinner among two-year trotters Protalinka - 2.13,1 (Lucifer - Parallel), born in 1948. The prize of Protalinka is the standard for two-year trotters.

During the period before the war on Lavrovo stud farm was created the type of a trotter distinguished by the harnessry forms, pedigree, good top line, depth, strong dry limbs but which is a little craggy.

The hybridists of the farm were constantly selecting by the type and friskiness.

The big job of creating the famous trotters on Lavrovo farm was made by zootechnicians Y.N. Sarantsev (1920-1934), A.K. Brinken (the author of selection, which gave Podarok), V.N. Zhardetskiy, K.V. Voskresenskiy, R.I. Kalinin, who had been working here for 14 years and was one of the founders of line of Podarok. Also he was the author of the farm plan of line breeding in 1976-1975. On the racecourses the trotters of Lavrovo stud farm were driven to the victories by such jockeys as A.V. Zotov, A.A. Sorokin, N.R. Semichev, M.G. Chudnenko, V.T. Novikov, A.P. Kreydin, V.Y. Kochetkov.

To its 150-year jubilee the farm had 5 Derby trotters. These are Pobeditel 2.11,7, Vecher 2.06,7, Arzamas 2.06,4, Pervenets 2.00,4, Albom 2.03,9. In 1965 by the number of 2.10 class trotters the Lavrovo stud farm was on the fourth in the country, and on the second place in class 2.05. The first was the stud farm in Dubrovskiy.

However, the period of success was followed by the long period of decline. Mainly it could be explained by the fact, that the group of studhorses didn’t have the appropriate stallions. Otprysk 2.09,3, Zheton 2.09,7, Zabiyaka 2.09 could not give a class horse in 60-es. And also the technology of breeding was inadequate. The horses were not supplied with high-grade forages as many natural pastures and the hayfields were ploughed up.

The new progressive stage of selection began in 1971 with the coming of standard breed stallion Low Hanover 1.59 (Bolshoy Star's Pride – Lynd Deen). From this outstanding studhorse the farm gained 253 horses. Among them are: Ligatura 2.04,2, Velonia 2.03,2 r, Lan 2.05 r, Ghilka 2.07, Leeter 2.04,4 r, List 2.04,9, Vlastnyi Zhest 2.05,5, Alt 2.06, Alzhir 2.07, Valezhnik 3.12,2 and other class trotters. Such intensive use of the studhorse for the insemination of mares with the dilute semen deserves attention of the horse-breeding experts.

The work with Low Hanover allowed to half-complete the dams group of the farm with his daughters and grand daughters and improve the average frisky parameter of dams on 3,6.

After the use of Minion 2.11 (Napor – Mudraya Poslovitsa) and Low Hanover in 60-es, the type of Lavrovo trotters was also changed. They became more blooded and dry, lost roughness of a head, became less massive but more vigorous and good-tempered.

The descendants of Low Hanover showed the high results in a 1983. His great-grandson Gopak 2.04,2 (Parket - Glubokaya) had become the sixth derby trotter of the farm when he won a Grand all-Union prize. The Low Hanover’s great-grandson Lepetun 2.07,6 (Parket - Lesostep) won a Big three-year prize, and grandson Peak 2.03,8 (Kolchedan - Programma) became the winner of World international prizes (in Moscow) and «Villam» (in Hungary) and was the second in the Elite prize.

On January 1, 1984 195 trotters of 2.10 class and more frisky (the third place on this parameter after the stud farms in Dubrovskoe and Elyan) are brought up. 19 of them are of class 2.05 and friskier. The trotters from Lavrovo won 33 international prizes.