The Founding Dam: Vechtzicht’s Henol

Willard Leeuwis had been breeding Welsh Section A horses for about five years when, in 2004, he had the opportunity to purchase the then 27-year-old Vechtzicht’s Henol. She became the foundation mare of his Stal De Weyerd stable. She is the dam of many champions, including the studbook stallion Winaldahiem’s Henschel and national champions De Weyerds Hello Showstar. She is the grandmother of, among others, the studbook stallion De Weyerds Hello Mr. President.

Willard Leeuwis: “We started breeding Welsh ponies in 1999/2000. We’ve had several ponies, but unfortunately, none of them were the right ones. Then, in 2004, we had the opportunity to buy Vechtzicht’s Henol. Vechtzicht’s Henol’s sire is Vechtzichts Harmony and his dam is Revel Hibiscus. A proven combination that Mr. Dobber of Stal Vechtzicht had devised. He has used this combination several times, and Henol consequently has several full sisters, such as Vechtzicht’s Honey and Vechtzicht’s Helena.”

CV

Name: Vechtzich’s Henol
Welsh section: A
Color: Mold
Date of birth: May 19, 1994
Father: Vechtzicht’s Harmony
Mother: Revel Hibiscus
Maternal father: Revel Hummingtop
Breeder: W. Dobber
Predicates: Keur, Preferent, Elite.

Offspring

Winaldahiem’s Henschel, approved stallion, best 3-year-old of the new crop, and bronze medalist.
Henriette of Winaldahiem, certified mare, multiple-time champion at regional inspections
De Weyerds Helsinki, Foal Champion, CMK Kootwijk Best Colt Foal
De Weyerds' Hello Showman, Foal Champion, CMK Kootwijk Best Colt Foal.
The Weyerds Hello Showstar, Star Mare, champion of regional inspections and the national CMK Kootwijk.
The Weyerds' Halloween, Foal Champion, Best 3-Year-Old, Star Mare
The Weyerds of Houston, Approved stallion in Germany, multiple champion stallion.
De Weyerds Hunique, star mare.
De Weyerds Havenly Joy, star mare

Five Questions About Vechtzicht’s Henol

1 What are her main achievements?

1995 National Youth Champion in Kootwijk
2005 Section A Champion and Overall Day Champion in Vught
2006 Section A Champion and Overall Day Champion in Heteren
2006 Section A Champion and Overall Champion at the International Welsh Dragon Show in Oldebroek.

2 How and when did she come to you?

“In 2004, we had the opportunity to take it over from the Visser family of Stal Winaldahiem.”

3 How many generations have you bred from her? Tell us a little about her offspring.

“We now have the fourth generation from this line: Vechtzicht’s Henol – De Weyerds Hello Showstar – De Weyerds Hello Sanctos – De Weyerds Skyelar. Every single one of them is a children’s and all-purpose pony. Each of these ponies has an incredibly lovely, friendly, and cooperative temperament. They have an ”on/off’ switch in the ring, where they give it their all. Once outside the ring, they take it easy.”

4 With which stallions did she combine well? And why?

“Well, that’s a tough one, because we always used to say, ‘Even if you put a donkey on it, you’ll still get a good one out of it.’ We tried out several stallions, and some of them definitely clicked. Among them were Springbourne Compas, Springbourne Capricorn, Vollenhofs Hynod, Lacy Brigadier, and Vechtzichts Hywel.”.

5 What made Vechtzicht’s Henol so special?

“Henol was our first pony with that X Factor. She was a really great broodmare. I love showing, and when you had Henol on your lead, you really had something to show off. She didn’t waste a moment—she gave it her all right up until the end of the day. Even when she was allowed out to pasture, she still had to prove herself and would compete with the other ponies to see who could put on the best show. And she still does that today, at the young age of 27.”

Name: Willard Leeuwis
Stable name: De Weyerd Stable
Number of years you have been breeding Welsh ponies:
I started breeding Wesh ponies in 1999 using various ponies, and then in 2004, when Henol came into our lives, we were able to bring together several bloodlines that we already had at our stable.