Rob Ehrens, Team coach of the Dutch show jumpers, and his son Robbert Ehrens, who runs a jumping yard just over the Belgian border in Hamont-Achel, have as their joint goal to train young quality jumping horses of trusted owners for the more important work.

Rob Ehrens: ‘At present it is difficult to find quality young horses. The selected horses that are in the auction are all selected by professional horsemen. The Hendrix brothers give their customers fantastic service in the lead-up to the auction; these horsemen know instantly which horses are suitable for the future rider and owner. This gives the customer a trusted feeling that is extremely important if one decides to purchase a horse at the auction. The horses can be followed during the entire lead-up to the auction. A potential purchaser can view the horses on DVD, can try the horses out under experienced guidance, and can follow these horses at competitions for young horses such as the Stal Hendrix Competition and the Dutch Championship for Young Jumping Horses. For the purchaser this is important input; they can compare a horse on which they have their eye, with all the best horses in The Netherlands in the same age category, and as a potential purchaser they receive a lot of open and honest information before the auction begins.’

Son Robbert has at present the two young horses Barino (Larino x N.Aldato x Rigoletto) and Beksman (Cartano x Indoctro x Voltaire) in training. These two horses were purchased during Dutch Sport Horse Sales 2010 by Mr Walter van Aken. Rob Ehrens about these horses: ‘Both horses had received a very professional and fair training from the permanent riders of Dutch Sport Horse Sales. In this way we were able to offer these horses a short break immediately after the auction without setting the training schedule back at all. We started training Beksman and Barino intensively again at the beginning of this year and now both horses have easily qualified for the Dutch Championship for Young Jumping Horses’. Something which is certainly worthy of mention is Barino’s  recent third place during the prestigious competition for young horses held in Etten-Leur. The expectations for Barino and Beksman are high: ‘They are of course living animals and the road to the top is long, but in my opinion these are horses that in the future will grow to be true Grand Prix horses’, says Rob Ehrens.

The 2011 selection will also be carefully followed by the Ehrens family: ‘We are always looking for young talent; the horses for the auction are selected by horsemen who have an exceptional eye for scouting for talented young horses. They place these horses in the Dutch Sport Horse Sales showcase’, says the successful Federation coach of the Dutch Team.