HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Bask, (February 9, 1956 – July 24, 1979) "Arabian Horse – Bloodlines – Polish Arabians" Arabian Horse Association. Web page accessed December 10, 2010
bred at the
Albigowa Albigowa is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Łańcut, within Łańcut County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It lies on the Sawa river, approximately south of Łańcut and east of the regional capital Rzes ...
State Stud in Poland, was a
bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a ''gulf'', ''sea'', ''sound'', or ''bight''. A ''cove'' is a small, ci ...
Arabian The Arabian Peninsula (, , or , , ) or Arabia, is a peninsula in West Asia, situated north-east of Africa on the Arabian plate. At , comparable in size to India, the Arabian Peninsula is the largest peninsula in the world. Geographically, the ...
stallion A stallion is an adult male horse that has not been gelded ( castrated). Stallions follow the conformation and phenotype of their breed, but within that standard, the presence of hormones such as testosterone may give stallions a thicker, "cre ...
who was imported into the United States in 1963 by Dr. Eugene LaCroix of Lasma Arabians and became a major sire of significance in the Arabian breed.


Ancestry and early history

Bask's sire was Witraz, by the famed Ofir, who also sired Witez II. His dam was Balalajka, a daughter of Amurath-Sahib,Carpenter ''Legends'' pp. 14–29 deemed one of Poland's finest broodmares. He was sent to the race track, as it was typical in the time for horses to be sent to race as three-year-olds in order to determine the horse's athletic ability and soundness. In 1961, Albigowa ceased breeding Arabians, so after his
horse racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its bas ...
career, Bask was sent to the
Janów Podlaski Stud Farm The Janów Podlaski Stud Farm () is the oldest state stud farm in Poland, established in 1817 in Wygoda, Gmina Janów Podlaski, Wygoda. The stud farm specializes in breeding Arabian horse, Arabian and Anglo-Arabian horses. It has been an importa ...
. Bask was a member of a "family" of considerable significance. All but one of Balalajka's progeny were by Witraz, and hence full siblings to Bask. His full sister Arfa was the dam of Argos, who was an important sire in Great Britain for Patricia Lindsay.Archer ''The Arabian Horse'' p. 44 His full sister
Bandola The bandola is one of many varieties of small pear-shape chordophones found in Venezuela. They are related to the bandurria and mandolin. Traditional varieties Instruments known as ''bandola'' include: *Bandola llanera: traditionally built ...
was a mare of significance known as "the Queen of Poland", and was the dam of Bandos, by Negatiw. Bask's 3/4 sister Bachantka (by Wielki Szlem) had been imported to the United States in 1961 by Varian Arabians, where she was a Top Ten champion and major foundation
mare A mare is an adult female horse or other equidae, equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more th ...
for the Varian program. Bask's name was chosen by Roman Pankiewicz, who was deputy manager of Albigowa at the time. Pankiewicz stated, "I always tried to give horses short, nice names, easy to translate – because their export had already begun in those times. And Bask n Polishis a courageous inhabitant of the Basque Country in Spain...the Basques are hard-working people. And so the horse became Bask. That name suited him like no other."


Accomplishments in Poland and America

Having
raced In sports, racing is a competition of speed, in which competitors try to complete a given task in the shortest amount of time. Typically this involves traversing some distance, but it can be any other task involving speed to reach a specific go ...
extensively in Poland, (4/40, 8/7/7) Bask was not evaluated as breeding stock until he was six. He never was put to stud in Poland, because the
Janów Podlaski Stud Farm The Janów Podlaski Stud Farm () is the oldest state stud farm in Poland, established in 1817 in Wygoda, Gmina Janów Podlaski, Wygoda. The stud farm specializes in breeding Arabian horse, Arabian and Anglo-Arabian horses. It has been an importa ...
already stood a number of Witraz sons. For this reason, the Poles were also willing to sell him.Bask Biography
, web site accessed October 30, 2007
He was actually scheduled to be gelded upon his return from the track, but instead was purchased for the relatively modest sum of $3000 by Dr. LaCroix, who initially intended to resell him to a Swedish breeder, but when that sale fell through, took the horse to America. Upon arrival in the United States, after a very rough journey by ship, Bask was put to stud and retrained for the show ring. Bask earned his Legion of Merit from the International Arabian Horse Association (now
Arabian Horse Association The Arabian Horse Association (AHA) is a national organization that registers Arabian horses in the United States. It also works with the United States Equestrian Federation to sanction horse shows and license judges for Arabian horses. The AHA ...
), and was the 1964 United States National Champion
Halter A halter or headcollar is headgear placed on animals used to lead or tie up livestock and, occasionally, other animals; it fits behind the ears (behind the poll), and around the muzzle. To handle the animal, usually a lead rope is attached. ...
stallion and the 1965 United States National
Park horse A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are green spaces set aside for recreation inside towns and cities. N ...
Champion, one of only four Arabian stallions to ever win national championships in both halter and performance. He was also 1967 reserve national champion in the harness driving equivalent of park, formal driving. He is the only horse to have ever won dual national championships in halter and park."Sculptures of the Park" Kentucky Horse Park. Accessed December 10, 2010


Influence on American breeding

Bask sired 1050
purebred Purebreds are cultivars of an animal species achieved through the process of selective breeding. When the lineage of a purebred animal is recorded, that animal is said to be pedigreed. Purebreds breed true-to-type, which means the progeny of l ...
Arabian
foals A foal is an equine up to one year old; this term is used mainly for horses, but can be used for donkeys. More specific terms are colt for a male foal and filly for a female foal, and are used until the horse is three or four. When the foal is ...
, most in the time before
artificial insemination Artificial insemination is the deliberate introduction of sperm into a female's cervix or uterine cavity for the purpose of achieving a pregnancy through in vivo fertilization by means other than sexual intercourse. It is a fertility treatment ...
was widespread in the horse industry, and 196 of these were United States or Canadian National Champions. His impact on American Arabian horse breeding has been described as "colossal".Archer ''The Arabian Horse'' p. 80 Bask died on July 24, 1979, from
colic Colic or cholic () is a form of pain that starts and stops abruptly. It occurs due to muscular contractions of a hollow tube (small and large intestine, gall bladder, ureter, etc.) in an attempt to relieve an obstruction by forcing content ou ...
. His body is now interred at the
Kentucky Horse Park Kentucky Horse Park is a working horse farm, international equestrian competition venue, and an educational theme park opened in 1978 in Lexington, Kentucky. It is located off Kentucky State Highway 1973 (Iron Works Pike) and Interstate 75, at ...
in its Champions Cemetery, and he is honored with a bronze statue in the lobby of the International Museum of the Horse.


Pedigree


Notes


References

* Archer, Rosemary ''The Arabian Horse: Allen Breed Series'' London: J. A. Allen 1992
Bask pedigree from All Breed Pedigree Database
accessed on October 28, 2007 * Carpenter, Marian K. ''Arabian Legends: Outstanding Arabian Stallions and Mares'' Colorado Springs, Colorado: Western Horseman, 1999 *
Aleksandra Ziolkowska-Boehm Alexandra () is a female given name of Greek origin. It is the first attested form of its variants, including Alexander (, ). Etymologically, the name is a compound of the Greek verb (; meaning 'to defend') and (; GEN , ; meaning 'man'). Thus ...
: ''The Polish Experience through World War II A Better Day Has Not Come'', Lexington, Books, Lanham, MD, 2013, 2015, *
Aleksandra Ziolkowska-Boehm Alexandra () is a female given name of Greek origin. It is the first attested form of its variants, including Alexander (, ). Etymologically, the name is a compound of the Greek verb (; meaning 'to defend') and (; GEN , ; meaning 'man'). Thus ...
: ''Dwór w Kraśnicy i Hubalowy Demon'' (The Krasnica Estate and Hubal's Demon ); PIW Warsaw 2009, 2015; . {{Use mdy dates, date=August 2017 1956 animal births 1979 animal deaths Individual Arabian and part-Arabian horses Janów Podlaski Stud