Spontano

Spontano is not the first racehorse to run in Stall " Lone Ranger " ´s colours, but he was (and is to the date) the most successful by far. Spontano is a brown gelding, born 1996, by Kondor out of Spontana, by Nebos, though representing really oldfashioned german bloodlines. He never ran at 2, and was restricted to just a couple of starts as a 3-year-old, due to injury. Nevertheless he managed to win his maiden and a Handicap III, raising some hopes. Another injury and the subsequent castration was followed by year to forget, but as a 5-year-old Sponti was back, repaying all the patience. He won a Handicap III at the prestigious Baden-Baden May-Meeting, scored back-to-back victories in a Handicap II in Hamburg during the Derby-Week, and has never looked back since. 7 more wins in Handicap II and even Handicap I (Germany´s highest Handicap-class) followed, as well as several places (and a heroic try in a Listed Event in Munich, where Sponti finished just under 9 length behind World Champion EPALO) on tracks all over Germany. Spontano even took us to France, to the historic track in Chantilly, where we finshed a honourable 5th, beaten 1/2 length of second place.
His Top-Handicap mark was 86kg (= 92 english rating). A try to bring him back to the track in 2006 failed as Sponti aggrivated his old injury, and he is retired for good now, enjoying a leisure life.

Sponti´s winning in Baden-Baden, May 2000, under a jubilant Martin o´Reilly

In Frankfurt, prior to a Handicap I
(Photo: Jochen Nass)

Thirst
(Photo: Tanja Dietzmann, with many thanks!)

Friends: Belle Fee & Spontano Hannover 2002