Andersonville, TN | October 30, 2006 -- "When the auction was complete, we were informed that our horse Cubito was the first Verband Grand Champion Stallion to ever be sold to someone in the USA!

Husband and wife team and owners of GK Performance Horses in Andersonville, TN, Greg and Kimberly Watkins, accompanied by their stable’s Manager and Trainer Jocelyn Williams, flew to Hamburg, Germany then drove to Elmshorn, home of the world renowned European horse auction, which is commonly referred to as “The Verband.” The group stayed in a nice little Bed and Breakfast in Elmshorn, where they met up with Mary and Carl, veterans of the three-day auction process.

Their days began with chilly weather, including rain showers off and on. This was the couple’s first trip to the auction, and Greg says, “We had no idea how busy we were going to be. It is about a 45-minute drive to Nuemunster where the Auction is held, so everyday we woke around 6:30 am and didn’t return until after 7:00 p.m.”

The first three days, the group researched and studied the horses, focusing mostly on the stallions. “I had no intentions of purchasing a horse,” comments Greg “I was there to learn about the Verband auction process.” During the first couple of days, however, Greg discovered a gelding that he really liked. He continued to see the gelding throughout the auction, and ultimately, decided to purchase him.

“After I decided on the gelding, it only seemed fair for my wife Kimberly to get a horse. She really wanted a Stallion. We both knew that a good Stallion would really help the business get going. After seeing the high quality level of the stallions available at The Verband, we soon realized that a superior stallion would give our business the momentum it needs.” says Greg.

After careful consideration, the GK team narrowed their choices to three stallion prospects. Their three finalists were chosen prior to the stringent approval process required at The Verband. Ultimately, two of the three GK choices were not placed into the auction because of approval status.
“We only had one left to go, and that was our Cubito. At that point, we understood that if Cubito did not pass the strict requirements, he would not be available for sale. We nearly resigned ourselves to the fact that we might be going back home without a stallion.”

As it turns out, Stallion number 63, “Cubito”, was not only approved, the stallion received “premier” status. Cubito would now be one of the 7 premier stallions competing to become The 2006 Verband Grand Champion. The GK team was a bit nervous because Cubito: 1. had already reached premier status, 2. was in the running for champion, and 3. was priced at a level that was destined to climb.

“When they skipped his number during the championship, I had a feeling we had picked the Champion Stallion, and we did,” continues Greg, “Then, the bidding for Cubito commenced immediately after he won.”
GK Performance Horses didn’t enter the bid until after 150,000 euros and, as Greg puts it, “We hung on for the ride.”

The German-speaking auctioneer was very talented and quite skilled at amusing the crowd. The bid process was exhilarating, and when the bid went over 250,000 euros, the crowd began to applaud at every entry. A late bidder stepped in around 300,000, and Cubito’s price continued to climb.
Auction tensions were at an all-time high as Greg describes the moment, “I knew the opposing bidder was getting close to his limit when he started splitting the bid. He went to 370,000 and I thought to myself, ‘this is it, I’m going to my limit and hopefully scare him off.’ I held my book up and went up another 30,000 euros to 400,000. The next several minutes seemed like hours as the auctioneer kept begging for another bid. Then all of a sudden, we heard the auctioneer say the phrase “SOL…,” and we jumped to our feet and began the celebration. Then we quickly realized the auctioneer was bluffing, and the gavel had not been thrown! It was only another short moment when he finally threw the gavel down and the auction was final. We had just bought The Verband Grand Champion on our first trip! The celebration afterwards is just too difficult to explain; the clapping, the music, and the rush was just unbelievable.”

He continues, “When the dust began to settle, Kim and Jocelyn and I were informed that Cubito was the first Verband Champion Stallion to ever be sold to someone in the USA!

The following day Greg bought the gelding “Connery” he had eyed earlier and followed throughout the auction. GK Performance Horses also decided on the purchase of a mare “Loretta”. With no intentions to buy a horse, the GK team returned home to the United States with the following: a Champion Stallion, a Gelding, and a Mare.

The annual Stallion Licensing and Stallion Market is held at the Breed Society headquarters in Verden, Germany over a three day period. When they arrive the young stallions first go to a veterinary inspection. They start with the presentation before the panel of judges and are shown both on a special "walking lane" and on the "triangle", so that each can clearly be seen both approaching and going away from the judges. They are marked for conformation, presence and masculinity as well as for correctness of paces together with a supple, ground covering stride. A total score of "seven" is required for a stallion to pass.

On the second day the young stallions are tested in their free-jumping. After the presentation of the walking ring, the results are announced. This is one of the high spots of the year for breeders, and a real tension crackles round the packed ranks of spectators as the president of the judges stands up to announce the results: "Licensed" or "Not Licensed"! On these simple words, hangs the result of over two years of work and careful preparation by the colts’ owners: no wonder that the tension is so great!

Of the hundred or so colts sent for licensing, only about half will pass the judges scrutiny. Colts which fail the licensing are not allowed to stand as stallions. Even so, being very high quality animals, most "failed" colts will have, when gelded, an important future as riding and competition horses.
The third day is the day of the "Stallion Market". The licensed stallions are sold at auction in the Niedersachsenhalle. The non-licensed stallions are sold during the stallion parade on Saturday. This is an excellent opportunity to buy a carefully raised performance horse prospect. The parade program includes the prize-giving ceremony of the stallion licensing.

The annual Stallion Licensing and Stallion Market are held at the Breed Society headquarters in Verden, Germany over a three day period.
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