The Stuff That Dream Street is Made Of: Austrian Warmblood Stallion Desperado is One to Watch
Wellington, FL (August 15, 2013) – It’s the stuff that dreams are made of: A charismatic stallion, his devoted amateur owner, and a winning ride in a class of seasoned professionals. In this case, the rider and horse is Dawn Bernardo, of Equine Imports LLC, and her exciting new imported stallion, Desperado.
“Desperado is an extremely kind and gentle stallion. When he goes into the ring, he knows his job and performs,” says Bernardo, of Wellington, FL, about her 11 year-old, 17.1-hand Austrian Warmblood stallion. The European import is a grandson of Donnerhall (often referred to as “the most successful dressage horse in the world”) and the former mount of one of the greatest German Olympic dressage riders of a generation, Isabel Werth.
Desperado proved his winning ways for Bernardo with a 66.026% finish under judge Charlotte Trentelman in the Prix St. Georges: June’s Summer Sizzler dressage show at Canterbury Equestrian Center in Newberry, FL where Desperado was awarded 7 and 8’s. Bernardo adds, “Nice scores on four tempi’s, too.”
Rockefeller-Silvia’s Dream Street Stallions has a knack for finding horses in Europe and bringing out the best in them in the U.S. A USDF Gold medalist, he began to make his mark on the U.S. dressage world in 2006 with Lullaby, working with Olympian Lisa Wilcox to have the stallion available as an alternate for the U.S. dressage team at the Young Horse World Championships. A year later, the Dream Street’s Starlight took center stage, winning multiple USDF Horse of the Year titles and setting a record-breaking year-end score (86%) to earn a place in the USDF Hall of Fame and receive the Traveling Trot Perpetual Trophy. In 2008, he won the coveted Grand Champion title with Starlight at Dressage at Devon.
Canterbury marked a particularly significant competitive high for the only amateur entry in that Prix St. Georges, as the Desperado, only a few short weeks out of quarantine from his importation, rose to the challenge and turned in a score that bested a field of professionals.
Bernardo brought the Desperado to Dream Street for training and to begin to offer his exciting bloodlines to eagerly waiting dressage breeders. “We’re still getting to know each other. He has such a good nature. For an amateur rider, I’m in heaven,” says Bernardo, a 2008 USDF Region 8 Adult Amateur Third Level Champion who has earned her USDF Silver Medal and hopes to gain her USDF Gold with Desperado. She fully appreciates the rare combination of strong performance and gentle nature that she and Rockefeller-Silvia have found.
Desperado and his talented pedigree are raising test scores and expectations. His sire, Dream of Glory, was Germany’s 1999 best dressage sire in the Young Stallions division and PSI Auktionen Stallion of the Year. Desperado’s damsire is World Cup One.
“He’ll only get better,” Bernardo says with confidence. The team at Dream Street have planned a busy show calendar. Desperado will campaign in Florida throughout August at the Gold Coast Made in the Shade Show series in Wellington and the White Fences Summer Fun III and IV Shows in Loxahatchee.
“Then it’s on to Devon, Regionals in October and hopefully, Kentucky,” says Bernardo, referring to the Nov. 7-12 U.S. Dressage Finals, presented by Adequan, at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, which she is aiming for.
If Desperado continues to follow in the high-scoring hoofbeats of his prepotent sire, and legendary grandsire, the goals set for him shouldn’t be a problem. Expectations are that Desperados European foal crop will be of as exceptional quality as his European offspring and the Dream Street Team have high hopes for him influencing US breeding for many years to come.
For more information, contact Dawn Bernardo at 631 708 5266.