Hurricane Run

Applying the core principles of breeding to stallions who were top racehorses while enhancing their own core families, Dietrich and Annabel von Boetticher's Gestut Ammerland has forged a reputation as one of the best owner-breeder operations in Europe.  The results of the Bavarian farm speak for themselves but let us offer a reminder here. At one stage Ammerland was home to around 50 mares, but generally the average number has been closer to 30: not quite boutique but also not behemoth.  Over the last 30 years or so, 60 group...

Dietrich von Boetticher's famed Gestut Ammerland is undergoing a reduction in scale but is not, as reported this week in the German press, ceasing business completely. As part of that process, the owner/breeder's neighbouring farm on Lake Starnberg, Gestut Bernried, will close from the end of May. "It's very much an official reduction, he is not stopping breeding," said an Ammerland representative. "He's been selling more yearlings and reducing the stock over a number of years. The idea is to bring the operation down from around 50 to about a...