WILOMAWILOMA PLANTATION PLANTATION
TRADITION WITH A FUTURE
WP Corporate Image and David Bandy.
by THERESA CARDAMONE with DAVID BANDY
Consistently breeding, raising and showing top English pleasure horses is a difficult thing to do, especially on a limited budget. But if one is persistent, diligent, and studies hard; it can be done. Such is the case with David and Cindy Bandy and their farm, Wiloma Plantation. This year at the United States Nationals, in the very prestigious AEPA $100,000 Arabian English Pleasure Futurity, the Bandys bred two of the top four horses in the class, WP Fashionista and WP Corporate America. They both put on stellar performances, with Matthew Siemon and Gabriel DeSoto, respectively. WP Corporate America was fulfilling the promise he had shown the prior year when he was named the 2016 U.S. National Champion in the English Pleasure
Futurity. WP Fashionista made her debut at Nationals with only 10 months of training with Matthew. The stands were abuzz with talk and the phone was ringing with offers. So how did this breeding program get started? It all began when David and Cindy were looking for a farm to raise their two small children, Joshua and Rachel. They found what they were seeking in the Virginia countryside near the town of Fincastle, which is steeped in American history. Thomas Jefferson designed the courthouse and William Clark married a local girl and made a home there after his expeditions with Meriwether Lewis. In fact, many pioneer wagons began their journeys into the unknown from this Gateway to the West.
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The Bandys were also attracted to the region by its proximity to the Virginia Horse Center. They fell in love with the 130-acre property known as Wiloma Plantation, part of an original land grant issued by King George III. It boasts a house that is 175 years old which is on both the Virginia and National Registers. David, an architect, has his own firm. His background in horses was with Saddlebreds. Like his award-winning designs for buildings, he believes that in breeding horses, “Form Follows Function.” This initially led him to the Crabbet bloodlines and particularly to U.S. National Champion Park, Formal Driving and Formal Combination horse Oran Van Crabbet (Oran x Serafina). The Bandys bought a mare bred to him and based their initial Arabian breeding program on the result, Oran Van Bandy, a good breeding horse particularly successful siring Half-Arabians such as multiple champion WP Rosanna Orana and Wham Bam Oran. Continuing that Crabbet line is his son, Orans Continuo. A successful country English horse, he impressed legendary trainer Gene LaCroix with his elegant neck, tremendous impulsion, upright tail carriage and outcross potential. David explains, “We knew we had a great foundation, but we also knew that we had to carefully incorporate the Varian and Lasma horses as well.”
Oran Van Bandy, by Oran Van Crabbet
WP Rosanna Orana (Oran Van Bandy x Rose {Hackney Pony})
Their big break came when Lindsay Rinehart called David and offered two mares, Play Girl MSC, by Traditio and Barbarys Angel. Another opportunity came in the purchase of IXL Saphire (Aploz x RY Fire Ghazi), and YS Mashs Jewel, by Mash. They remain the foundation mares of Wiloma’s breeding program. Fortune smiled when Play Girl MSC delivered WP Corporate Image, a splendid colt by Afires Heir who was destined to become the current centerpiece of the Wiloma Plantation breeding program. Joel Kiesner was correct; Afires Heir is a King Maker, and he predicted WP Corporate Image would be a great breeding stallion. WP Corporate Image is a very exciting stallion who holds the key to future generations of champions for Wiloma. Endowed with exceptional conformation, breed type and uncanny performance talent, he has tremendous power and strong impulsion from the hocks, balance, cadence, and a second to none flexible poll and neck, which he passes on to his foals. David also appreciates the stallion for his intelligence and personality. “Corporate Image’s strongest aspect is his attitude and connection to people,” says David. “He looks at you, he acknowledges you, and works with you. According to both Siemon and DeSoto, this trait is carrying through to his foals, who are extremely trainable.”
FORM FOLLOWS FUNCTION
Orans Continuo, by Oran Van Bandy
Acquiring these four different mares to add to the Bandys breeding program proved to be a great decision. Play Girl MSC
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produced WP Corporate Image. Barbarys Angel produced WP Corporate America, and IXL Saphire produced WP Fashionista, both by WP Corporate Image. These mares have also been bred to the Crabbet sire, Orans Continuo, and have all produced daughters which will be bred to WP Corporate Image for that complete English horse. “We are determined to keep alive strong Crabbet lines in the English division, which will maintain a great frame, high tail carriage, a strong rear end with high hock action and a trainable attitude,” continues Bandy. “In order to breed for the future, these classic lines need to be reintroduced into our English breeding industry.” The Bandys bred yet another stallion to help as well, WP INXS. He is sired by Anza Padron, who David considers to be at the top of the list of English pleasure performance horses. WP INXS is out of Lubyanka, a pure Polish daughter of the brilliant mover, El Ghazi. WP INXS is already showing that he, too, will be an outstanding sire. He has no Varian or Bask breeding, but he has four lines to Comet. His first foal, WP A New Sensation, competed at the U.S. Nationals and went Top Ten in the HalfArabian Country Pleasure Maturity, with amateur owner Alex Butterfield making her U.S. Nationals debut.
WP Corporate Image (Afires Heir x Play Girl MSC, by Traditio)
Wiloma has a very strong Half-Arabian program due to the innovative ideas of the Bandys. In addition to their Saddlebred mares, which include three Nutcracker mares, they are creating a strain of genetically-charged “super-mares” to cross with WP Corporate Image and WP INXS. They are blending exceptional American Saddlebred, Dutch Harness and some of the world’s finest Hackney lines to do this. Those first crosses with WP Corporate Image are coming two-year-olds. David is very thankful for the mentors who have taught him so much over the years; particularly Wade Edwards (a close Saddlebred friend), Dick Dady, Clarke Vesty, Lindsay Rinehart and Mark Burke. Their generosity in sharing their knowledge is deeply appreciated. “When they talk, I listen,” says David. And just how did that experiment in child-rearing on a horse farm begun 30 years ago turn out? David and Cindy’s daughter, Rachel, learned how to judge horses in 4-H, and became the 4-H/FFA National Champion at U.S. Nationals. She carried that talent to the collegiate level, entering the judging competition at the U.S. Nationals as a one-person team, competing without a coach against full teams from other universities. Against all odds, Rachel won the title again. She recently applied for her “R” card and is eager to follow Peter Cameron’s goal, “My purpose as a judge is to encourage, not discourage.” That is exactly the spirit with which the Bandys carry on the traditions of Wiloma Plantation.
WP INXS (Anza Padron x Lubyanka, by El Ghazi)
WP Corporate America (WP Corporate Image x Barbarys Angel)
2017 U.S. National 4th Place AEPA Arabian Horse Times $100,000 Arabian Futurity 2016 U.S. National Champion English Pleasure Futurity
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FIRST IMPRESSIONS …
WP FASHIONISTA (WP CORPORATE IMAGE X IXL SAPHIRE)
2017 U.S. National 3rd Place AEPA Arabian Horse Times $100,000 Arabian Futurity
WILOMA
PLANTATION
1317 Botetourt Road, Fincastle, VA 24090 David and Cindy Bandy | 540-798-8461 | dbandy@spectrumpc.com www.Wiloma.com Ar abian Horse Times | 158 | Volume 48, No. 6
… MAKE LASTING IMPRESSIONS!
WP A NEW SENSATION (WP INXS X SASSY)
2017 U.S. National Top Ten H/A Country English Pleasure AAOTR Maturity 2017 Region 13 Champion H/A Country English Pleasure Junior Horse 2017 Region 13 Reserve Champion H/A Country English Pleasure AATR
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