Quarry Hill's Arabians earn top marks

LAKEVILLE — The paddocks  at Quarry Hill Farm on Route 41 might seem empty from the road. As snow blankets the fields and wind whips through the pines of the Litchfield Hills, it’s easy to imagine that all the equine occupants have fled, like migrating birds, to winter horse-havens such as Aiken, S.C., or Wellington, Fla.

But in fact, though it’s a touch quieter around the farm than in the warm weather months, this is the time of year when the serious work of training gets done.

Rae and Marshall Schwarz are dedicated to breeding, raising and training the highest level of purebred Arabian performance horses on their farm here. Through research, devotion to the breed and guidance from their trainer and farm manager, Bill Bohl, the Schwarzes have in  six years gone from a small farm to a nationally recognized producer of pedigreed Arabians.

Bohl has been involved with Arabians since he sat on his first one at the age of 10. That was in  Ohio in the 1960s. As soon as he graduated from high school he went to work for a local trainer, as a groom and an assistant trainer. Decades later, he is a nationally respected trainer, judge and exhibitor.

Rae Schwarz had been riding for years but only discovered Arabians when she decided to compete in the sport of endurance riding. Arabians are known for their stamina, and they dominate the field in this discipline. She bought an Arabian and quickly fell in love with the breed.

In 2003, she and her husband moved up to Connecticut full time and began not only training Arabians but also breeding them.

They now have a barn full of 3-, 4- and 5-year-olds, in various stages of training; eight yearlings; and five babies are expected this spring.

Quarry Hill owns several brood mares — and keeps several recipient mares. These are horses that have been selected to carry the fertilized embryo of a particular Arabian mare.

This allows younger mares to continue to compete in their peak years, and it allows older brood mares (the Schwarzes have one that is 23 years old) to produce pedigreed offspring without the trauma and danger of carrying a foal to term.

Schwarz said of breeding, “It’s a long-term investment. It takes 11 months before they’re born. We don’t get on their backs until they’re 3, and by the time they’ve been trained and have competed a bit, it can be four or five years.â€

Despite that, in a quiet and understated way, the Schwarzes have built an Arabian breeding and training facility that is generating quite a bit of “buzz†on the national scene.

One of their horses, a gelding named Centurion, placed in the top 10 in the US National Arabian Horse Show in Tulsa, Okla., last October.

To talk to Bohl and Schwarz  is to become converted by their passion and preference for the breed.

“They are athletic, high energy, versatile, strong, personable and just very, very friendly,†Bohl said. “Arabians compete in many different disciplines and they can be ridden English, Western or saddle seat. They are used for dressage, equitation, pleasure, jumping, racing and endurance.â€

They’re one of the most ancient breeds.  Arabian bloodlines have found their way into almost every modern breed. And they are, according to one Web site, the most popular breed in the world. This makes the Schwarzes’ placement on the national level even more significant.

As winter and a deep freeze settle over the Northwest Corner, the horses at Quarry Hill will mostly remain inside. But come spring, look for the sight of foals gamboling in the paddocks.

Visitors are always welcome. Call Quarry Hill Farm at 860-435-2571 or go online to QuarryHillFarm.com.