The colour of money

The associated costs with owning a horse are high – purchase, transport, training being the obvious examples. But if divided, the fun is not diminished

The Nad Al Sheba victories of Better Mix and Sir Edwin Landseer earlier in the UAE season, eclipsed by those of Jack Sullivan and Lundy’s Lane at the Dubai International Racing Carnival, have perfectly highlighted the potential of syndicate-owned racehorses.

Jack Sullivan runs in the colours of The International Racing Partnership, a syndicate specifically created for last year’s inaugural Carnival by UK-based trainer Gerard Butler.

They may not have managed a winner in 2004, but Jack Sullivan ran well in both the UAE 2,000 Guineas and Derby and excelled himself this time round by winning the prestigious Group 3 Maktoum Challenge II.

Three weeks later, Satish Seemar’s Lundy’s Lane won a mile handicap on the Nad Al Sheba grass sporting the colours of The Dubai Thoroughbred Racing Partnership, winning $71,500 and re-couping the majority of his 50,000gns purchase price, as well as providing his excited owners with a great night out.

And that is the beauty of syndication; it makes racehorse ownership affordable.

The associated costs with owning a horse are high – purchase, transport, training, feed and vets being the obvious examples.

Once your horse is in the UAE, a lot of this is subsidised and if you have a Carnival horse, the transport is provided. Insuring a racehorse attracts high premiums as, sadly, not everybody is honourable.

If you can divide these between say, 10 people, the fun is not diminished, just the financial side of the venture.

Many people who could afford a racehorse of their own would rather have shares in 10 different horses to give them a greater interest across a wider spectrum.

There is nothing worse than owning an injured, or plain useless horse but, chances are one will have ability and be fit. Some of the big syndicates in the UK, such as Highclere Thoroughbreds, are organised in such a way that your investment, which is not cheap, buys you into two horses.

They tend to be administrated in such a way that you make a one-off payment, which buys your share and covers all costs for two years. The horse is then sold and you receive the correct percentage back according to the size of share held.

Agreed premium

Other syndicates involve a regular monthly contribution, with no initial capital outlay, where you promise to pay an agreed premium every month for, normally, two years, before the horse is sold.

Better Mix, who has won twice this year for Musabah Al Muhairi, is owned by a group of Emirates Radio 2 listeners who were gathered together by the disc jockey who used to present one of their morning shows three years ago.

Anybody present at Nad Al Sheba earlier this season for either of the horse’s victories, could not fail to see the pleasure derived by his owners - all of them. There was quite a melee in the winner’s enclosure afterwards as genuinely excited owners celebrated their win.

Such a sight is sadly often missing at racecourses in the UAE when the winning owner is often absent and trophies are collected by representatives.

Most syndicate members are just thrilled to be in the paddock, talking to the trainer, meeting the jockey, living the dream through the race and celebrating or commiserating with one another afterwards at ‘the post-mortem.’

It was the same when Sir Edwin Landseer won just before Christmas for his excited syndicate. He is trained by Christian Wroe, who specialises in syndicates and has enjoyed similar success with the syndicated Ocean of Storms last season.

Both horses went to the UK last summer to give their owners a full season of racing and a real adventure. Such an expedition is expensive but, if only footing a fraction of the bill, it becomes affordable.

Expensive hobby

The majority of racehorse owners look upon it merely as an expensive hobby and in times of financial hardship, the horse is one of the first things sold, an unaffordable luxury.

In fact, when we syndicated our first horse, we stipulated ‘assume you will not receive a penny back so only risk money you can afford to lose.’ And that is virtually the essence of the sport; it is all a gamble.

South African training sensation Mike De Kock trains many syndicate horses, with golfer Lee Westwood listed among his many owners.

He feels there is a lot of scope locally for attracting more such ownership in the UAE: “I do feel the local authorities need to take steps to maintain and improve the local racing scene.

"There are an awful lot of expatriates who would be interested in owning horses but you cannot expect them to pay 12 months training fees for a three-month racing scene.

“I can see no reason why the Carnival cannot dovetail with the ‘bread and butter’ racing. The dirt track should be able to stand any amount of racing and racing should be on at least twice a week, or more often at Jebel Ali, which is a great course.”

Syndication is definitely the future of racehorse ownership, especially in the UAE, as it is the only feasible way that we can ever hope to compete with UAE nationals in their own backyard…

Robert Harrison, the man initially responsible for the majority of syndicated horses in the UAE – particularly those with Satish Seemar explains, “We actually feel our clients do have a chance to make money. We import horses with proven ability, be it from the UK or South Africa, which offers great value for money with the intention of racing them and selling them on at a profit.

“With the subsidised training costs and amazing prize money, particularly during the Carnival, Dubai is the place to have a racehorse, especially if you hope for a good return on your investment. And then, of course, there is the social aspect and superb lifestyle the country offers.”

That is a longstanding joke in the industry, but the old adage you need money to make money and/or money attracts money can be very true in the industry. Jon Constance, part-owner, in America of dual Group 1 winner Funny Cide, once famously told CNN, “Anybody who gets into this business to make money is a fool,” he said. “We were in it to have fun.”

Tony Cobitz is a syndicate manager in the US and sells the social aspect to clients more than the money-making potential: “The beauty and grace of the animals, the remarkable cross-section of people who are found in racing — professionals, owners and fans — and the incomparable thrill of being closely associated to a good class horse, are all invariably contributing factors,” he once told a journalist before adding, “And then, there’s the potential to earn money.”

Kathleen Jones, a partner in the successful Kentucky-based partnership Team Valor, who sold Crimson Palace to Godolphin last year and owned the aforementioned Ipi Tombe, agrees, “Investment in racehorses is an indulgence in a hobby that can have the cachet of investing,” she told an American website.

They have the exciting Becrux aiming at the UAE Derby this year.

The writer is an internationally recognised racing corrrespondent