Arko or Milton

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Rambo

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So Arko is to retire at the end of the year. A fantastic career behind him and hopefully a long and happy rest ahead....and a few laaaaaddddiiieeessss too of course
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He won over £1m in prizemoney and some prestigious titles along the way.

Clearly there are some similarities here with another great...Milton
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But who was better and why ?

Discuss...
 
No competition. Milton was and still is the best of the best. He won £1million when prizemoney wasnt as high as it is now, the equivalent today would be alot more I am sure!! He was also alot more charismatic IMHO than Arko... but then I'm not an Arko fan....
 
milton, he won that money when the prize money wasnt as high. also he won more prestigious titles. arko is very popular but milton was a phenomenon. both amazing horses though, shame milton wasnt a stallion but maybe if he was he wouldnt have been the same horse.
 
Milton - sheer class. And the most beautiful horse I ever saw.

Arko may be hugely successful - but, sorry, has never impressed me - and looks like a pug (ugly).
 
Milton! As KatB says he had far more personality than Arko and really played to the crowds. Although Milton had his quirks, I cannot remember a time when he was naughtly whilst Arko has definitely had his moments. Arko also makes me nervous when I'm watching him jump and I feel i have to keep lifting my leg to get him over the fences
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!!
 
Milton all the way.
Because back in the day there wasnt the prize money, the surfaces and the welfare like there is now.
Milton proved he was as sound and tough horse.

Take nothing away from Arko, he has been an amazing horse, but he will NEVER be Milton
 
Milton
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Arko is a great horse but Milton was something special.
He was Fabulous to watch & had so much charisma. I used to love seeing him jump.
 
Milton's groom actually severed part of his front tendon with the clippers when he was a young horse, to have come back from that and have remained sound for the rest of his life is amazing.( I think that he had a year off then 2 easy years after that so thank god that the bradleys/John Whitaker gave him the time he needed!)

It would have to be Milton, not only because of his consistency toughness and charisma but also because I love his stamp of horse- not keen on Arko ( small pug face and very much a warmblood!).
Milton could have easily have been a top eventer as well as a showjumper.
 
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MILTON... But then I am biased because he is my girl's great uncle
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That's quite impressive..........for a GELDING
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I would have to say Milton on natural talent and determination as he went head to head with some of the greatest showjumping horses such as Ratina Z in major competitions. He had some fantastic contests in the volvo world cup series.

Arko has been brilliantly managed by the Hales and Nick and achieved some great results in major GP's, but somehow I almost feel cheated with what he didn't do and that is why I would put him behind Milton. Putting him to stud now is a very shrewed move (as well as Russell).
 
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MILTON... But then I am biased because he is my girl's great uncle
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That's quite impressive..........for a GELDING
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No it isn't - someone does not have to have offspring to be an uncle??! I am sure Jetset means Milton is full brother to her horse's grandsire?

Milton for me too BTW - amazing horse. In fact so amazing he was the only SJer to get a place on my wall of posters when I was a kid - the rest were eventers!
 
for me, it has to be Cruising. Never seen a horse jump like that, ever. Unfortunately he never really got over his ability to throw in a dirty stop, so I don't think he ever fulfilled his potential. But what an amazing technique.

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Interestingly I think it comes down to the rider. Milton was always beatifully ridden and given every chance to jump whereas poor Arko was asked some almost impossible questions and somehow he managed to answer them. Therefore, I think Arko is the better horse but Milton will always have a special place in everyone's heart - a grey can do that I think.
 
Have to say i'm not overly surprised at the overwhelming vote in favour of Milton as I would tend to veer that way myself simply for his charisma if nothing else.

I think a few points in Arko's defence though...

- Yes, there is bigger prizemoney available today...but there are also more top class horses competing for it as breeding is considerably further advanced these days.

- In terms of pure technique, I think Milton was some way behind Arko. He certainly wasn't classical in front
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- Arko has achieved what he has as well as performing stud duties...a distraction that Milton never had to contend with.

- Arko had a year off in the middle of his career due to his pedal bone injury thus limiting his earning potential by a factor of about 20% (Based on 4 to 5 years competing at the top level).

- Milton competed until the age of 17 so had more opportunity to win money. Who knows how much Arko might have won if he were allowed to compete longer.

- Milton was a Warmblood too......
 
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MILTON... But then I am biased because he is my girl's great uncle
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That's quite impressive..........for a GELDING
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No it isn't - someone does not have to have offspring to be an uncle??! I am sure Jetset means Milton is full brother to her horse's grandsire?

Milton for me too BTW - amazing horse. In fact so amazing he was the only SJer to get a place on my wall of posters when I was a kid - the rest were eventers!

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Yes... Grace's grandsire is Greeton du Rezidal out of the same mare as Milton, Aston Answer
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If i have to choose between Arko and Milton it would have to be Milton but for my all time favourite show jumper ever would be Marion Mould's Stroller. He had retired by the time i got interested in ponies but he was still a legend. He was amazing and only 14.2hh.
 
ffgl1 - now you are talking - if I could have one other then the two mentioned then Stroller would be it. What a worker he would have made! Also I have a terrible soft spot for dear old Penwood Forge Mill. Anyone who saw him win that big class at Wembley all those years ago could ever forget it. We were at home but I am sure we heard the cheering and we certainly were all lifting him with every fibre. Has showjumping lost a few of it's real characters now or am I just getting old! (don't answer that)
 
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Interestingly I think it comes down to the rider. Milton was always beatifully ridden and given every chance to jump whereas poor Arko was asked some almost impossible questions and somehow he managed to answer them. Therefore, I think Arko is the better horse but Milton will always have a special place in everyone's heart - a grey can do that I think.

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Very good point Bundle- would have been interesting to have seen how he had got on with another rider, for example someone like Beerbaum. Did I read that Arko also had to contend with robert whitaker on his back for a year or so while Nick was out of action?! He sure is genuine!
 
Milton without a doubt.

Arko has an incredible jump but I'm just not a big fan. He can be great, but at the same time I've watched him disappoint a lot of times. I just don't think he has the same heart and character that Milton did.
 
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Yes....sorry....I saw 'sire' when I read 'uncle'....DOH!
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Te he... I was quite impressed when I looked up her breeding
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It's a shame she is destined for the dressage world
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I really can't believe that anyone is suggesting that Nick Skelton isn't among the best riders in the world
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I think if i've seen him miss once i'd be surprised.
 
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