ILONA BAX

1. Who is Ilona Bax? 1. Born in the south of the Netherlands, I grew up with common sense and a no-nonsense attitude. I think I best describe myself as a person with integrity, and hard-working, I love a good joke, I like to think I'm pretty tough but I am also very sensitive. At our farm Just Arabians, I spend all of my days taking care of approximately 20 horses, 5 rescue dogs, 2 cats and a little sparrow that we saved that keeps coming back lol. My partner Matt is the most patient man with a heart of gold and I couldn't do it without him. Our whole life revolves around Arabian Horses. 2. Whence this love for horses? When have you first met an Arabian horse? 2. As long as I can remember from a very young age I was obsessed with horses. Any spare time I had was spent at the local riding school and I worked there during the holidays from early in the morning until five on the weekends, in exchange for riding lessons. I did anything to be with the horses," I have ridden since the age of 5 and as my mother was a single mother with 3 kids we were unable to afford a pony so I begged, borrowed and worked for rides on any and every horse I could. Usually, this meant the naughtiest and most difficult horses I got to ride. My commitment and determination paid off over the years and I got better horses to ride. Eventually, I got myself a job with a famous Grandprix rider where I got the opportunity to ride top schooled horses. After working for a few more trainers I became a base rider for a top-quality Warmblood stable until in 2006 my fire for the Arabian was ignited. It was then I got to train an Arabian stallion and I got hooked immediately on this highly intelligent breed. I saw an opportunity to stand out from the crowd, as there are dozens of Warmblood riders, but not many high-level Arabian riders. I threw myself into developing a deep understanding of this breed, and over the years have perfected my technique in training them. This resulted in winning numerous prizes and titles in many disciplines, with different horses, mainly stallions. All these wins such as 4 times Dutch National Champion, Gold European Champion and 2 times European reserve Champion Ridden Class, 6 times top 5 All Nations Cup, Aachen, Arabian Futurity Gold Champion had earned us a Sports Award by the ECAHO. 3. Tell us everything about your current occupation at Just Arabians. How did it all start? Who else is involved in the business? 3. After training horses for clients for several years we found that it was time for our own facility. My partner Matt Smith pointed out a little boutique farm in the south of the Netherlands. At the start, I had reservations because it was further away from my friends and family and the farm wasn't set up as a horse business yet. However, after some persuasion from Matt's side we ended up viewing the property and as soon as we turned on the drive I JUST knew it was JUST perfect. Two years further and with much blood, sweat and tears we managed to turn the farm around to a successful horse business. Just Arabians are now fully established as a breeding, training and sales centre with numerous clients worldwide. Being a small but selective horse-breeding operation as we are our focus is on quality, By necessity, we take a personal, hands-on approach to every foal we breed, and we focus a tremendous amount of care and attention on the individual needs of each horse in our care. 3. What bloodlines do you breed at Just Arabians? 3. Like many in the horse world, I believe that a great breeding program comes from great mares. So when I plan to breed, I look at the strengths and weaknesses of each mare based on what I hope to produce. I research what these bloodlines have produced and if they will fit my expectations. My philosophy is not focussed on particular bloodlines, however, I like the mixture of solid older blood combined with the modern-day lines. 4. Who is the cornerstone stallion of your breeding program? And your foundation mares? 4. Just Arabians have evolved in quality since purchasing the breeding stallion Wadi Kahil. WADI KAHIL is without a doubt a son of the legendary World Platinum stallion Kahil Al Shaqab. With his flamboyant carriage and mind-blowing elastic movement, Wadi Kahil is a head spinner everywhere he goes. Bred by the famous Michalow stud in Poland Wadi Kahil successfully raced for four seasons to then be schooled as a successful show halter horse. In the show ring, Wadi captivates by his commanding charisma and magical connection with his handler. In a trend focused on a dish and face, Wadi Kahil is one of the very few stallions in our breed that is not lacking in type but still has incredible athletic movement, strong legs and super body. This is a stallion that is bringing back some balance in modern-day breeding! In the early beginnings, Just Arabians made several important purchases to start our breeding program on a high note. This includes a top-quality heterozygote black mare by Magic Magnifique. In 2021 she gave us a stunning black filly by Avatar AT we named Just Monrose. Monrose is for sure one of the most exotic black fillies in the industry at this time. She will remain at Just Arabians to follow in her mother's footsteps as a future breeding mare. For 2022 we are expecting a foal from Magic Monroe by the famous El Rey Magnum and are very excited about this extraordinary combination! Besides black mares, we have some exquisite foundation mares with bloodlines leading to Ajman Moniscione, BJ Thee Mustafa, True Colours, Justice and Monogramm and of course our own stallion Wadi Kahil (Kahil Al Shaqab x Wadi Halfa by Ekstern). All are selected for beauty, strong bodies, and elastic movement, but also temperament play a huge role in our selection. As a rider, I still want to be able to work with an eager-to-learn, calm and collected horse. Not all offspring make it to a top show or breeding horse and will end up with amateur riders, so good character is very important. Basically, all of our horses have done well in the show or riding ring. 5. Do you also offer training facilities? What other services do you provide on the farm? 5. The main focus at Just Arabians is on our breeding program. As we are a small facility we like to keep our standards high, therefore we only have a limited amount of boxes available for training horses. We feel very privileged to train Arabian horses from all over the world for many great breeders. More and more people see the value of their horses being ridden and find their way to our facility. Besides training, we offer to board sales horses. We take care of the whole sale process for the owner. This includes marketing, communication and showings. We also have horses in mediation on our website and we offer a high-end quality of our private sale list. 6. Which Arabian Horses' Show is your favourite? Why? 6. Oh, a difficult question to answer as all shows have a different ambience. The ALL NATIONS CUP in Aachen is definitely one of my favourites as this is one of the few last shows that combines show and riding. Also, we had an amazing time at the Sopot Arabian Horse show this year where we experienced an old-school show that was all about friendship in the Arabian horse community. 7. Have you competed in one of the shows held in Europe most recently? 7. On 23rd and 24th July at the III Sopot Arabian Horse Show, we brought along our stallion Wadi Kahil and he achieved spectacular success. On the lead of Tom Oben, our charismatic stallion and his wonderful performance enchanted not only the audience but also the international panel of judges. On Saturday afternoon, Wadi won his class with 92.45 points (highest scoring stallion), including 2×20 for type and 3×20 for movement, and on Sunday he became Gold Champion Senior Stallion. Also, we joined the Arabian Futurity Europe show one week later in Germany in the ridden Masterclasses. Wadi Kahil made his debut in the dressage ring with me and became two times Bronze champion. This stallion proves again the Arabian can do it all! 8. Ilona, what else do you do when you're not with your horses? Any particular hobbies? 8. I do not understand this question (laughs) My biggest and only hobby really is horses and dogs (we have 5 rescue dogs). In all seriousness, there is not a whole lot of spare time when you own horse business. Matt and I like to make time for each other and go out for a nice meal every now and then to discuss horses' business (laughs). 9. From riding boots to high heels. What is femininity to you, Ilona? 9. Riding boots are the pillars of hard work and the everyday grit that leads to success. They have also become an icon of sexuality, although as equestrians we view them as tools rather than a representation of fashionable trends. High heels come in many forms - from shorts to stilettos, they change with our mood. No matter the heel, femininity is rather the authenticity of being female and nurturing ourselves, those around us and the goals we have determined. 10. Who is your favourite photographer? And fashion designer? 10. Photography is a very subjective topic. I admire the strength of a photographer to portray women as the embodiment of power, humility and nurture. There are many great photographers of women as power figures - Helmut Newton, Peter Lindbergh and Ellen Von Unwerth - each with their own interpretation of how women are pillars of strength and determination. Fashion design also tends to celebrate the male representation of women. I admire those that have carved out a space for women without bowing to the traditional model society places upon them. Celine, Hermes and Yves Saint Laurent are figureheads of clean lines, strong silhouettes and female equestrian power. 11. Where do you see yourself in five years? 11. Five years down the line I see myself in a position with improved knowledge and achieved bigger goals with our farm and offspring. I hope to develop and refine our breeding program and for our offspring to be successful in many different areas. Perhaps in the future, I may consider taking on a judging course, but for now, I like to participate myself still. 12. Ilona, what's something you want less of in your life? What about more? 12. Although I am not naïve that you can hide from reality… I would like to see less news. There is so much going on in the world that I can't keep up with and is making me sad. What I want more in life is easy to answer: MORE Arabian horses! 13. Is there anything else you would like to tell the readers of Arabian Horse Magazine? 13. We like to connect with the readers of Arabian Horse Magazine! Share our Arabian Horse adventures and add us on social media: https://www.instagram.com/ilonabaxarabianhorses https://www.facebook.com/JustArabians www.justarabians.com