Stallion's Success Highlights Flaws in Iceland's Horse Breeding System

Guðmundur Jón Viðarsson, affectionately known as Mummi, expressed his satisfaction following the Landsmót, a national horse competition, where his stallion Skýr had an impressive 46 offspring participating. Adding to the success, Mummi's other horse, Kór frá Skálakoti, secured victory in the B-class quality gaits competition. Mummi dedicated this achievement to Skýr's dam, Vök frá Skálakoti, who is also Skýr's mother and Kór's grandmother.

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I dedicate this achievement to the mare Vök frá Skálakoti, who is the mother of Skýr and the grandmother of Kór and thus the grandmother of the 46 horses here at the competition.

However, Mummi voiced strong criticism of Iceland's breeding evaluation system, "Blupið." He argues that the system does not accurately reflect the breeding potential of mares, particularly those who consistently produce high-quality offspring despite receiving low initial breeding scores. Mummi cited Vök as an example, stating she was never given a chance within the system despite producing numerous first-prize horses. Her breeding score, he noted, remained average even after her highest assessment.

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She, my Vök, was not born fancy into this world and never had a chance in this system, no matter how many first-prize horses she produced.

Mummi elaborated on the flaws in the system, pointing out that mares are assigned the same correction factor as stallions. He believes that the offspring of a mare should count equally to those of a stallion with six to eight offspring, a calculation he feels breeding experts should address. He emphasized that if mares are to be honored, the system must be accurate.

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The advantage with him is that he has an incredible motor in his hindquarters, immense space and drive.

Regarding Kór, Mummi described the horse as having an "incredible motor" in his hindquarters, possessing immense space and drive. He likened Kór's energetic and tireless nature to that of a Border Collie, noting the horse's explosive power inherited from his sire, Konsert frá Hofi. Mummi also stressed the critical role of diligent follow-up and having the best people involved in training to achieve success in breeding, acknowledging his own good fortune in finding such individuals throughout his life. The farm has also recently opened an artificial insemination station and begun exporting frozen semen.

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If my Kór were a dog, he would be a Border Collie, always working and always cheerful.