Sandy's first experience with horses started when she was eight years
old. She stayed the summers with her grand-parents in Carmel Valley, CA. She worked in the yard and around the house, earning
enough money to, twice a week, walk the mile and a half to
Rancho Carmello,
a dude ranch owned by K.D. Mathiot, where she
rode one of his half-Arabian trail horses for an hour each day. Mathiot was leasing an
Arabian stallion from E.E. Hurlbutt, to produce palomino horses used by his trail riding guests. That stallion was
Aulani and Sandy thought he was the most beautiful horse she had ever seen. A proven athlete with
quite correct conformation he would, in later years, let Sandy ride him and to this day she thinks he was one of the most
comfortable and elegant horses she has ever ridden. At the jog, he had such spring and lightness with each step, with no
bounce to the rider. He was light and very well mannered in the bit. It was hard for Sandy to realize that he had been such
a successful race horse. One of his parade outfits was an almost solid silver saddle with a drape behind the saddle, also
almost solid silver. Combined it weighed over two hundred pounds. Another parade costume was a lovely charro design.In the
ranch house there was a huge trophy case, at least eight feet tall, filled with huge trophies that Aulani had won.
AULANI was a wonderful racing, performance and parade Kellogg bred
stallion. He was bred by H.H. Reese. Aulani's dam
Follyat was given to Mr. Reese by W.K.
Kellogg at the time Reese left the management of the Kellogg Ranch to start his own Arabian establishment. Bred to Rifnas,
Follyat produced Aulani; champion show horse, popular parade horse especially leading many Columbus Day Parades in San
Francisco, CA. and along with his half brother Ziyadi, won all the early day Arabian horse races held in Southern California.
They were unbeaten.
Aulani lived in a paddock about 1/4 acre in size with a twelve foot
high board fence surrounding it. It was a very lonely existence. Aulani would stand on his hind legs with his nose touching
the top of the fence, trying to see something, anything. At times Sandy was allowed to go into his pen and groom him.
That was always a special time for both of them. Sandy remembers while taking a trail ride, Aulani was being ridden by a
ranch guest. They crossed over a cement pad, put in a creek, to drive through. Aulani was ridden to close to the edge of
the pad, slipped off and fell into the rocks, on his side. At the time he seemed sore and was taken back to the ranch. A few
years later, the extreme pain and stiffness from this injury, would be the reason that he was put down.
Sandy got her first horse,
a TB
mare, at the age of fourteen. At sixteen, she bred the mare to Aulani. How could she be aware of the historical
significance of this first experience in horse breeding? In the years to come Aulani was to be the basis of our breeding
program. Aulani sired only sixteen pure~bred Arabians in his lifetime.
Our story begins in 1960, when Sandy and I were married. In 1972, our
neighbors were bringing a couple of horses in from Wyoming. They mentioned a starving mare, Naulana, an Aulani daughter was
available. Sandy bought the mare, sight-unseen!
At the same time, another friend, made plans to buy the mare, Alarieha.
(dam of Aulrab, Aurieha & Magic Alarieha) Sandy and her friend went to long-time breeder, Ralph Oakley, in Northern CA. to
pick up Alarieha. Alarieha just radiated class and style! She was a mare of outstanding quality who had brilliant natural
floating action which she passed onto her offspring It would be almost three years before Sandy could lease this mare.
At the 1973 All-Arabian Horse Show, we met Grace Baker, new owner of
the Aulani son Aurab. Aurab won the Park Horse Championship that day. Aurab had been isolated at
the rapidly declining Rancho Carmelo Guest Ranch, home of Aulani, for his first fourteen years. To date, he had only one
purebred, now the famous Ben Rabba. The new owner,
Grace Baker and Aurab made history, in a few short years. Sandy's friendship with Grace was cemented when she
told her about her experiences at Rancho Carmello and showed her pictures of the
horses that had been there. Grace went on to
be Sandy's mentor. Aurab sired three horses for us. Aurik, Aurieha and
Aulrab, which became our foundation horses and the basis for our breeding program.
On a visit from England to California, Lady Ann Lytton stated,
AURAB is the most nearly perfect Arabian I've ever seen. He represents the type and quality that Crabbet Stud tried to
breed for 100 years, but never themselves achieved to such a degree as seen in Aurab.
Grace introduced Sandy to noted author and Arabian horse historian,
Carol Mulder, who became instrumental in directing Sandy to the history and horses of the Kellogg Arabian Horse Ranch. They
met while Naulana was a visiting mare at Aurab's court. Naulana's qualities are best described by Carol Mulder; Naulana is
absolutely gorgeous! She has captured my fancy more than any mare I have seen for years! She is so beautiful she just takes
your breath away as she walks towards you. Then when you see the rest of her, the impression only grows. She just radiates
class, quality, style and Arabian breed character.
Another dear friend that Sandy met about this time was Michael Bowling,
author, breeder and historian of the CMK (Crabbet, Maynesboro & Kellogg ) Arabians. He has been a great inspiration to us.
Warren Park Stud is a 25-acre ranch located in the picturesque and rural
Sanger river bottom 20 miles east of Fresno on East Kings Canyon Road,on the route to Kings Canyon National Park and Sequoia
National Forest. We moved here in 1974. The land was grassland with not a tree. All of our efforts were directed towards
building, home and areas for the horses. At the same time we were building our breeding herd, with little time or money for
promotion.
About 1982 , Sandy's dear friend, Georgia Cheer and Sandy purchased
GF Silver Mystery by *Silver Vanity and out of a Ga-zi daughter.
Mystery gave us Aur Vanity (exported to Australia), Aur So Vain
(dam of top foals), Aur Mystic, and Aur Mystique (and his first son,
Mystic Aulrab, exported to South Africa).
In 1983 it seemed only natural, then, to participate in the
World Symposium on Crabbet Breeding in Denver, CO. We decided to take Aulrab. Sandy was in charge of bringing an Aurab
contingent of horses for the Family Group Presentation. It took a full year to coordinate all that needed to be done.
Sandy prepared a photographic exhibit of the ranch horses, pre-advertising had to be arranged and Sandy designed and printed
an eight page ranch brochure.
Our experience at Denver was overwhelming! We had no idea that Aulrab
would spark so much interest and excitement. He was a gentle horse that turned into a real ham, in front of the crowd.
He just seemed to sparkle! Carol Mulder's comment in The Crabbet Influence Magazine, about Aulrab, There is no question but
that this horse was one of the biggest attention getters at the whole Symposium. He has overall brilliance and just radiates
sparkle and presence. His trot (natural) is electrifying. From a conformation standpoint he is outstanding as well.
We received many offers to sell or lease Aulrab. They came from back
East, the Midwest, Canada and England. Sandy was moved to tears. The most that we had hoped for was that Aulrab would be liked
by some of the folks attending. As a young breeding farm with only two Aulrab sons on the ground, Sandy wasn't letting
Aulrab out of her sight.
Several people we met became important to us. We spent quite a bit of
time with Beatrice Paine from the Bowdel Stud in Kent, England, who expressed a serious interest in leasing Aulrab. After
we arrived home, Beatrice flew out to spend two marvelous days with us. At the same , the Owen Wagstaff's of the Australian
Arabian Stud, also arrived for a visit. We had met at the Symposium. Truly an International get together. We chatted all
night! The Wagstaff's and the Garner's of Kalnara Arabians took Aur Vanity to Australia. The second son of Aulrab and his
first foal crop of two, Aur Samari, was sold to the Aur Samari Partnership. Good thing we kept Aulrab !
Sandy possesses an uncanny ability (some people including her husband
consider it a gift) to predict the outcome of a mating of a mare and stallion. Certain characteristics are important to
preserve when breeding which includes: athletic ability, good conformation, a good disposition and most important, the ability
to pass these traits to their offspring. Early in her career she decided to create a breeding program that was based on the
preservation of CMK bloodlines. The fact that many of these horses came from Crabbet Park Stud originally and included stock
imported in the early part of the 20th century by the Maynesboro Stud has coined the appellation CMK. Her dedication and the
use of Aulani as a foundation sire has produced a breeding program that is unique in the world.
