Racing against the clock

Dubai World Cup is a highlight of the social calendar, both for residents and for those who follow the international racing circuit. Past events have seen visitor numbers in excess of 30,000, making it a feat of logistics and organisation. But what is actually involved in staging an event on such a scale?
Perhaps the most important elements of the day are the race participants themselves.

Seven races, each with up to 16 horses, take place throughout the day, meaning up to 112 horses need to be in the country, fed and watered, exercised and transported between stable and track on the day, before leaving after race day.
Safe delivery
Martin Brennan, flight transport manager for Dubai World Cup Quarantine, is responsible for the horses from the moment they arrive at Dubai International Airport.

"I will check what time a flight is coming in and organise a horse box to collect the horse and take it to whichever quarantine it has been allocated," he says. "Horses go into quarantine for six days, and they cannot be mixed."
According to Brennan, horses travel on commercial cargo flights, although some horses travel on a dedicated Boeing 747 capable of holding up to 62 horses.
Brennan's job of receiving horses is done once the animals are in quarantine, until race day is over and they require transporting back to the airport.

The airport, says Brennan, brings his biggest challenge. "The hardest part is the paperwork, and trying to get in and out of the airport. Security at the airport is very tight, as it should be. Because we have a lot of movement of horses, we have to get a lot of grooms and vehicles in and out of the airport.

Dubai Police are doing a very good job and I have a great rapport with them now, but of course if we have difficulties [in the early hours of] the morning it's hard to sort things out."
The horses come first
Once the horses are safely established in quarantine stables, Jim Cornes and his team take over. Cornes is stable co-ordinator and is the link between the ‘travelling lads', those who take care of each horse's wellbeing. "The travelling lad is the person in charge, caring for the horse during travelling and at their ‘home away from home'," he says.

"They are directly under the trainer's orders and they are responsible for daily care, feeding and preparation, daily routine, track gallops and any exercise or treatment the horse may need." Cornes' priority remains the equine stars of the racing, although his job also involves co-ordinating those who accompany the horses. "We take care of the horses first, then any equipment or people," he says. "We are concierges for the horses — whatever they need, we get for them."

On race day, Cornes works to ensure interaction between everybody involved is as smooth as possible. "I work between the different quarantines we have, and their managers, to assist them on the day of the operation when there are more demands [made of] them," he says. "Trying to keep everybody together and on schedule takes a lot of planning and a lot of people to get right. It's timing, more than anything, in getting the horses to the course for them to run the race and then return.

It's all the little things that go on behind the scenes that people in the stands don't see."
For Cornes, although organising the people involved in the event is the greatest challenge, seeing the horses cross the finish line is reward enough. "We want them all to finish and have a good safe race," he says. "That's what we all work for on the team."

Away from the stables and the race track, guests have their needs tended to by sponsors and the Dubai Racing Club (DRC) hospitality team.

Claire Walker heads the sponsorship outlets. "We began preparing for this year's World Cup at the end of summer 2007," she says. "As with most events, timing is the biggest challenge in organising everything. It is essential that all of the logistics are planned so that timing of delivery fits in with the overall plan."

And on the day, timing is just as crucial. "The biggest challenge is providing all of the services — the Bubble Lounge, the Irish Village, Scarlett's and Corner 3, among others — at the right place and at the right time to ensure the guests' expectations are exceeded."

As one event finishes, another begins
Hospitality options offered by DRC are the responsibility of hospitality manager Tarini Vosper and her team. According to Vosper, preparations for this year's World Cup began as soon as the last glass was cleared away last year. "We start preparing everything when one World Cup is finished, as that's when your memory is fresh with what you can do to improve [the event] for the following year," she says.

"The first job I start with is putting together the packages, then it's doing all the catering briefs and deciding which caterer gets what."

Drinks packages are next, before Vosper moves on to selecting menus. "We have four caterers this year — Jumeirah Hospitality, Madinat Jumeirah, Jumeirah Bab Al Shams and Jebel Ali International." Once the food and drinks are finalised, Vosper ensures ticket sales can begin.

"Tickets go on sale on September 15, as we have a lot of international clients," she says. "There is a massive community that follows racing and there are travel agents specifically for racing abroad." With an estimated 60 per cent of guests coming from abroad, Vosper needs to allow plenty of time for travel arrangements to be made. The hard work begins in March, according to Vosper. "We are then trying to put up the site, as [until the completion of the new Meydan project] it is all temporary structures."

And on the day, Vosper's mobile phone presents the biggest challenge. "It's just trying to keep up with my phone calls!" she says. "I generally have two phones and a walkie-talkie to keep in touch with key people. We have a DRC official in each area and all of them would call me if there were any problems."

Despite the sheer size of the event and number of guests, Vosper manages with just nine staff beneath her, although help is brought in from elsewhere.

"We also hire 200 hostesses, who represent DRC, to usher guests from the car parks to the gates and other areas," she says.

Gates open at 2pm on the day, by which time all the elements for a successful event will be in place. This is the reward for Vosper and everyone involved in the day; "It's the buzz of DWC – it's such an adrenalin rush to get this right," she says. "We want to make sure guests are having a good time. That's what we all try to do."