Arabian Horses Flourish in Florida

Saudi Business

Arabian horse breeding in Florida has grown by leaps and bounds during the past two years. Two leading Florida breeders, the Lasma Corporation and Rohara Arabians, have farms in northern Florida near Ocala. The number of Arabian horse farms in this area, dotted with green pastures, rolling hills, and tall trees, has increased five times during the past several years, with more than 6,000 Arabian horses now pastured there.

The Lasma Corporation has come up with a unique concept for the development of Arabian horse-breeding farms that includes the raising, training, and marketing of horses across the United States. The firm is by far the largest breeder in the United States, with more than 450 horses, including 10 stallions.

According to data provided by the corporation and the Arabian Horse Registry of Florida, Inc., Florida ranks 11th in the United States in the number of purebred Arabians. California is first with 42,404, followed by Texas with 12,856.

Registry figures indicate that 10 years ago there were fewer than 82,000 Arabian horses registered in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Recent data, however, indicates there are now 237,000 Arabians in these countries. Meanwhile, the number of owners has risen from 28,019 to more than 100,000.

Ten years ago there were slightly more than 1,500 Arabian horses pastured in the Ocala, Florida, area. Since then, the number of Florida owners has quadrupled to more than 2,400.

Lasma's success can be attributed to the expertise of Dr. Eugene LaCroix, its president, and Alex Courtelis, its chairman. The firm, based in Scottsdale, Arizona, was founded in 1944 by LaCroix. The horses are trained and shown there. The firm also has breeding centers in California and Kentucky, as well as its 350-acre training farm in Ocala.

LaCroix is credited with giving Arabian horse breeding a big boost by importing Bask, a stallion from Poland, to improve the breed. At the time of his death in 1979, at the age of 23, the stallion had sired more than 1,400 horses valued at more than $500 million ($1 = SR3.33) by today's market standards.

Courtelis, who migrated to Miami in 1948 as a student from Egypt, is a well-known southern Florida realtor who owns several land development projects and shopping centers. He also is responsible for the development of a 5,000-acre equestrian-oriented community in Kentucky expected to generate $40 million in sales.

Recent Lasma Arabian horse sales aptly demonstrate how the breed has been appreciating in value. The first major auction held by Lasma was in 1971, when 26 mares sold for $517,000, for an average price of less than $20,000. At the 1983 Lasma V sale, however, the same number of Arabian horses brought $9 million on the auction block for an average price of $346,143.

A seven-year-old stallion broke records at a sale in Louisville, Kentucky, in July, 1984, selling for $3.2 million, more than double the amount ever paid at auction for an Arabian sire. At the same sale, 39 yearlings also broke records, bringing a total of $4,932,000, for an average price of $126,462. The same number of yearlings had sold a year earlier for $3,577,000, or $85,166 each.

Big Business, Entertainers Buy Arabians

Courelis told Saudi Business that many big names in the U.S. business and entertainment worlds have become major breeders, including Occidental Petroleum's Armand Hammer. Hammer's holdings include a number of fillies at the Ocala ranch. Also mentioned were Las Vegas entertainer Wayne Newton and film producer-director Mike Nichols.

A Lasma group comprising Hammer, LaCroix, Pacific Holding Corporation head David Murdock, and Courtelis, traveled to Russia in 1981 to purchase Pesnia, an Arabian of Russian stock, for $1 million. The horse was brought to Scottsdale, where the group was able to sell 120 breedings for $3 million.

Courtelis said he became interested in Arabian horses after his wife and daughter purchased a gelding called Fagmar in 1970 for $3,500, for riding and showing. He became intrigued with the breed, and soon the hobby had turned into a full-scale business.

Five years later, Courtelis owned more than 100 mares, geldings, colts and foals, keeping them at various stables in southern Florida. He also bought Gateway Farm, a 200-acre operation in Ocala, in 1974, because he had so many horses that he needed a full-fledged farm. Since then, the farm has been expanded to 350 acres. It is now valued at more than $2.5 million.

Bomarc, a stallion fathered by Bask, the best known and most successful of all Arabian sires in the United States, was the first major acquisition by Courtelis, who paid $65,000 for the animal. Some Bask offspring have since sold for as much as $200,000. Courtelis said that he more than made up for Bomarc's price by selling his colts for $200,000 each.

Courtelis became involved in Lasma in 1980 as a result of a merger. The deal combined Lasma's marketing, merchandising, training, showing and breeding expertise with Courtelis' expertise in management, finance, and land development.

Courtelis also made a wise decision when he purchased Scarlet Lace, a daughter of Bask, from Lasma for $100,000 in 1980. The sale proved to be quite rewarding: He sold her in 1983 for $1 million. Courtelis said that there is now an undeveloped market in Arabian racing horses.

"You can now buy this type of horse at a relatively low price," he said. "Stay with top quality and top trainers and you are pretty sure to make a good profit in the long run."

Courtelis indicated that several farms offer good programs and advised that if an owner has more than eight or nine Arabians it pays to get a trainer. He said that there should never be guesswork involved; it is essential to trace bloodlines and set up a good breeding program.