‘I Went to Coolmore From School and Didn’t Come Home’: David Bowe’s Life in Bloodstock 

“I was speechless,” says David Bowe of being presented with this year's Wild Geese Award at the ITBA's National Breeding and Racing Awards on Sunday night. 

The award recognises Irish men and women who have forged successful careers in the bloodstock industry worldwide, and its recipients to date have included those working in Australia and America. Bowe didn't fly too far afield, though he did serve a stint in the States early in his career. For more than a quarter of a century he has been based just across the water in England, with the last 22 years spent as manager of Jeff Smith's Littleton Stud in Hampshire.

“I was humbled, absolutely blown away, the fact that I was chosen, especially when you think about all the previous recipients,” he adds. “I can't understand why, but it's just wonderful to be acknowledged by the ITBA, being an Irishman. Well, it's phenomenal, absolutely, I couldn't ask for better.”

He may not be able to understand why but plenty of people who have worked with Bowe over the years can vouch for the skills and horsemanship that put him in the running for such an award. The video of tributes shown on the night included one from Bill Dwan, who said, “He's an absolute gentleman. I don't know anyone in the business who has a bad word to say about him. It's not ever about David; it's about the horses, it's about Jeff.”

Smith himself said, “Year by year he has improved the stud from what it was.”

Growing up partaking in all the usual pony endeavours during his schooldays, Bowe's real education began in a nursery famed not just for its equine graduates but for plenty of two-legged graduates as well.

“I went to Coolmore from school and didn't come home,” Bowe says. “I think my father hoped I was going to go on to academia but it was never going to happen.

“Coolmore was just the best training academy in the world. If you rose to the occasion, they let you and enabled you to do everything. So they sent me to America, and I came back from America and ended up managing Abbeyleix estate for Lord de Vesci for five years.”

Bowe eventually found himself in England, with his early time there spent working at the National Stud and at Longholes Stud in the days of the Hon. John Lambton when it still stood the stallions Komaite and Wolfhound.

“And then I came to Littleton Stud and met Jeff Smith,” he continues, “and really, I guess, all the graft and work I did previously at Coolmore and Abbeyleix and in America, I was able to put it into practice here. Jeff is a unique man. He's probably going to be the most influential person I've ever met, in that he enabled me to be able to go and do what I've been lucky enough to do. It's been brilliant.”

Smith is of an increasingly rare breed of owner-breeders running a select operation. He is loyal to his trainers, many of whom have had horses for him for decades, and he races his homebreds, which are supplemented from time to time by the odd foal purchase.

On top of his regular stud management duties, Bowe has been key to this element of the Littleton operation in selecting the foals at the sales, and with some notable success, headed by the four-time Group 1 winner Alcohol Free (Ire). The daughter of No Nay Never was bought from her breeder Churchtown House Stud for €40,000 and was resold following her four-year-old season for 5.4 million gns at the Tattersalls December Mares Sale. 

“We had land here, we had staff, and sometimes we came up short on numbers, so Jeff let me go off and buy a few. It's going back a long time ago now, but the first horse we bought as a foal was called Dream Eater. He did very well for us,” says Bowe of the son of Night Shift who was a Listed winner and was placed eight times in Group races, including finishing third in the G1 Queen Anne S. behind Goldikova (Ire) and Paco Boy (Ire).

“We've done that ever since, really. We never buy any more than maybe three or four every year. We've been lucky. We buy them from good nurseries and you know that they're in good shape when you buy them,” he adds.

“I would go out there and spend the money as if it was my own. You're looking for value. But basically, I'm lucky enough that I can go and buy an individual and I don't have to worry about the fact that the sire is not fashionable. I like the horse and I'll buy it, and Jeff and myself are on the same page. It's about the actual individual rather than what it's by or what it's out of. Equally, that's very important for the residual value afterwards if you're going to breed or resell. But primarily, the first thing is the physical specimen.”

Casting his mind back to the halcyon days of Alcohol Free, he says, “Honestly, nobody could tell me or anybody else that she was going to be as good as she was. I liked her and I hoped, like we all do every time you buy one, that she was going to be good, but for her to be as good as she was, was beyond our wildest imagination.”

The old imagination was fired up again last year thanks to another foal purchase, Ghostwriter (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), trained by Clive Cox. The colt finished his unbeaten run of three last year with victory in the G2 Royal Lodge S. to leave Smith and Bowe dreaming of the 2,000 Guineas. 

“Again, one of the important things is buying from good nurseries and we bought Alcohol Free from the Gaffneys, and they're just proper horse people. And the same with Ghostwriter. We bought him from Norelands. They always produce brilliant stock. You're ahead of the game already because you're bringing home healthy stock,” he says. 

“The lovely thing about buying foals is we can bring them home here and then we have them for the next 14 months until they go into training. We're at an advantage because we have such good relationships with everybody, and it is about the bigger picture, it is about the team. It is about the girls here on the farm, like our head girl, Kelly Stevens, and the trainers, the pre-trainers. It can't be put down to one person, but it's wonderful to be credited by it anyway.”

Ghostwriter is not alone in fuelling the Classic dreams of the Littleton Stud team this year. Of arguably greater importance to a breeding operation is to have a talented homebred filly, and Smith looks to have just that in See The Fire (GB), who won her maiden last August and was then second in the G2 May Hill S. and third in the G1 Fillies' Mile. But then again, she was bred to be good, as the Andrew Balding-trained filly is by Sea The Stars out of Smith's G1 Juddmonte International winner Arabian Queen (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), making See The Fire a fifth-generation Littleton homebred. 

“We've had a really, really good winter,” Bowe says. “We're dreaming about what we're going to do. See The Fire has done so well and we're hoping to go to the Guineas without a trial because she ran so well in the Fillies' Mile. It was a good test of stamina and she saw it out well.

“So we hope she'll do the fantasy stuff: Guineas and go to the Oaks and maybe the King George, who knows?

“Ghostwriter, he loved that hill [at Newmarket] and he was seriously impressive. So we're chuffed to bits with him also. Clive is delighted. I was speaking to him the other morning actually, and he doesn't think he'll go for a trial with him either.”

Arabian Queen, Alcohol Free, Ghostwriter and See The Fire are just the latest names on a long list of classy animals to have carried Smith's purple and blue colours over the last four decades. From the speedball Lochsong (GB) to the high-class sprinter/miler Chief Singer (Ire) and the people's favourite stayer Persian Punch (Ire), the owner has been rewarded for his investment in the sport with plenty of days in the sun. To hear Bowe describe his boss is to understand that there would be few people more deserving of such success. 

“Jeff  understands the game intrinsically,” Bowe says. “He understands that, one, it's a sport. Yes, there is a lot of money involved, but he takes bad news as well as he takes good news. 

“Jeff said to me a long time ago, 'If you don't trust your trainer, why would you have a horse in training? So why would you interfere with the training regime?

“We discuss things with the trainers but, fundamentally, the trainer makes a decision and it makes life an awful lot easier. Sometimes we might say, 'What do you think about dropping back in trip?' But the upshot is they're the trainers, we're not. So trust your trainer, let them get on with it. Let them train the horse. And then if it doesn't work out, it is not for the want of trying.”

He continues, “Jeff is in it for the sport. There's a huge aspect of enjoyment in it, and it gets you over the dark days when it doesn't go so well. 

“He is a purist and we are looking to win the Derby. We love speed and going back to Lochsong, a lot of the families were speed, speed, speed. And we weren't trying to breed the speed out of them, but daughters and what have you, have gone to proper Classic-type sires that may not fetch you a fortune in the ring if you went there, but they could breed you a Classic winner.

“We have a nice boutique stud with some lovely mares that we can breed to whoever we like. We've had some fun.”

With hopefully plenty more fun in the offing, Bowe concedes that he has enjoyed his decades in England. “Don't, whatever you do, say that I've become anglicised,” he says.

Right, so we won't say that then. But this particular wild goose admits that he may well be called home eventually to Ireland, where he has land of his own. Bowe's advice on Sunday night for younger folk wishing to become involved in the industry was, “Immerse yourself in it, get involved in it, and stick with it.”

They are words to live by, whatever your passion in life, and as he acknowledges, when you find that passion, a job becomes simply a way of life.

“I would imagine I'll retire back to Ireland,” he adds. “By retiring, I mean buying and selling a few, walking around the farm. I would love it, but I also love England so much, and my kids are here, so going back would be difficult, but it's only over the water.

“I'm here for the time being, though, and enjoying every minute of it.”

 

The post ‘I Went to Coolmore From School and Didn’t Come Home’: David Bowe’s Life in Bloodstock  appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

David Elsworth Retires From Training

David Elsworth, one of the greatest dual-purpose trainers of all time, has announced that he will not renew his licence next year, and thus retires after more than six decades in the sport. The news was first reported by Racing Post.

Elsworth's name will forever be entwined with two of the most beloved horses of the modern era, the legendary steeplechaser Desert Orchid (GB) and the hugely popular stayer Persian Punch (Ire), and in his handling of these two durable stars Elsworth demonstrated both his innate horsemanship and versatility as a trainer.

“If you go to a party, there is a time to go home,” said Elsworth on Wednesday. “I'm not upset or downhearted about anything. It is just time to move on. I've had a great time.”

The trainer, who turned 82 earlier this week, was last month awarded the Cartier Award of Merit, marking an extraordinarily successful career which began with him riding over jumps between 1957 and 1972 before taking out his licence to train in 1978.

Among the top-class horses to have emanated from his stable was In The Groove (GB), who won the Irish G1 1000 Guineas in 1990, making Elsworth one of the few trainers to have trained a Classic winner as well as a Grand National winner. In The Groove also won the G1 Juddmonte International S. and beat Linamix (Fr) in the G1 Champion S. during her high-flying 3-year-old season, as well as returning at four to win the G1 Coronation Cup.

While the great grey 'Dessie' will always rank as Elsworth's greatest jumping star, with his emotional victory in the Cheltenham Gold Cup as well as four King George VI Chase victories and an Irish Grand National triumph, the Grand National was secured with Rhyme 'N Reason (GB) in 1988, while Barnbrook Again (GB) landed back-to-back runnings of the Queen Mother Champion Chase in the following two seasons.

“I've progressed over the years and we have had a degree of success, for which I feel very fortunate, and we have been associated with some good horses,” he said with some understatement.

“It creeps up on you. You are just doing your job and doing what you enjoy and when you win, it's good. I've been very grateful and lucky. I feel very fortunate to have been doing this for a long time.”

An early star who exemplified Elsworth's range of skills was Heighlin (GB), who won Cheltenham's Triumph Hurdle and the Ascot S. at Royal Ascot in 1980 before also landing the Goodwood Cup two years later.

Following Elsworth's move from his long tenure at Whitsbury in Hampshire to Newmarket's Egerton House Stables in 2006, the biggest name to emerge from his yard was Arabian Queen (Ire), who defeated Derby winner Golden Horn (GB) in the 2015 Juddmonte International for owner/breeder Jeff Smith, a long-term friend and patron of the trainer. Smith's colours were also carried by the 20-time winner Persian Punch, whose major victories included two Goodwood Cups and the Doncaster Cup.

Elsworth's most recent group-race success came with Sir Dancealot (Ire), whose four Group 2 wins included the Park S. and Lennox S. of 2019, the year in which the trainer also sent out Dandhu (Ire) to win the G3 Fred Darling S.

Paying tribute to his staff, who have included Godolphin Stud and Stable Staff Employee of the Year Peter Maughan, his former long-time head lad Rodney Boult, and former assistants Jeannie Brown and Paul Holley (who also rode for him over jumps for many years, including guiding Oh So Risky (GB) to victory in the 1991 Triumph Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival), he said, “If you are a footballer, you need to be on a good team and racing is a team effort as well. I was surrounded by lots of people who were with me and they shared the ambitions and the hopes, and the success we had. I may have been at the helm, but you don't get to be a successful racehorse trainer unless you are surrounded by good horses and good people. I have had them in abundance over the years and I have been very lucky.”

He added, “I feel I've been a very, very lucky man that I've been doing a job all my life and it has not been a job. It's a sport really, and I have been a participant in various ways.”

The post David Elsworth Retires From Training appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Trainer David Elsworth ‘Honored And Privileged’ To Receive 2021 Cartier Award Of Merit

The Cartier/Daily Telegraph Award of Merit for 2021 goes to David Elsworth, one of the most successful dual-purpose trainers Britain has produced.

After watching a video tribute to his career, Elsworth said: “Well, what can I say? I've never heard so much bullshit in all my life! Having said that, I'd like to thank Cartier and those misguided people who've got me up here. I am very flattered to be considered for this award when I look at my predecessors. And here I am, a 20/1 shot. It happens, doesn't it? I'm very flattered. I feel like a bit of an imposter, in fact. But it is a great honour and when I think of those predecessors…. it is something I shall treasure and appreciate those people who have supported me.

“It's a well-known cliche that the success one has as a figurehead, the trainer or whoever he may be, we all need the support of the staff and everybody. And I've been very lucky in that department. In fact, I've been very lucky everywhere. Thank you very much, I'm very honored and privileged. Thank you.”

During a career spanning 67 years, Elsworth has scaled the heights of both Jump and Flat racing, enjoying Classic success alongside victories in the Cheltenham Gold Cup and the Grand National. A self-made man with a brilliant affinity for training, he has been responsible for two of the most popular horses in racing history, Desert Orchid and Persian Punch.

David Raymond Cecil Elsworth was born into inauspicious surroundings at Salisbury Infirmary on Dec. 12, 1939. An illegitimate child, Elsworth was raised by his grandparents in a council house just a few miles from the village of Whitsbury, where he would later enjoy some of his greatest training successes.

His schooling at Tidworth Down Secondary Modern was far from prodigious – “the only subjects I did well at were cross-country running, religious knowledge and history” – although a girl who sat next to him in class brought about his introduction into racing. Her father worked for Alec Kilpatrick, who trained at the Herridge stables now occupied by Richard Hannon. Elsworth rode his bike over to the yard and enquired about a job, securing an apprenticeship that would start on January 3, 1955.

After overcoming initial second thoughts – “for the first couple of months, I only stayed because I didn't have the guts to tell the guv'nor that I wanted to go home” – Elsworth ended up completing his three-year apprenticeship with Kilpatrick. He enjoyed his first winner as a jockey on Rathrowan in a 35-runner novices' hurdle at Cheltenham on November 15, 1957.

Elsworth's career in the saddle failed to hit the heights of some of his contemporaries with 31 wins in total, although he claimed he had to ride “a lot of bad buggers” against the likes of Tim Moloney, Dick Francis, Michael Scudamore and Fred Winter. A bad fall saw him briefly quit the saddle until he fell back in love with racing under the guidance of Toby Balding, a trainer who, like Elsworth, excelled in both Flat and Jump racing.

By 1971, Elsworth had set his sights on becoming a trainer but having no money or facilities proved problematic. A solution presented itself when he joined up with Lieutenant-Colonel Ricky Vallance, who trained in the village of Bishop Cannings near Devizes. Vallance would hold the licence but Elsworth would help in the yard, as well as bringing in two horses – Willoblige and Indulgent – that he already looked after for bookmaker John Duffy.

The arrangement paid immediate dividends as Elsworth rode Willoblige and Indulgent to win both divisions of a maiden hurdle at Newton Abbot on Easter Monday, 1971. Further significant success soon arrived for the yard with Red Candle winning the 1972 Mackeson Gold Cup and 1973 Hennessy Gold Cup, although the partnership hit an abrupt end following the victory of Well Briefed at Exeter in 1974. The stewards refused to accept the explanation of Well Briefed's improvement following his previous lacklustre run at Fontwell and Vallance promptly lost his licence. “I think our professionalism with that particular horse was misinterpreted as dishonesty,” Elsworth would later say about the first of several brushes with authority.

Denied the opportunity to take over the licence by the Jockey Club and told to reapply in a year's time, Elsworth undertook a variety of jobs outside of racing, including selling fabrics at the local markets as well as working as a security guard at Stonehenge.

Elsworth continued to ride out for Jim Old and spent a winter working as an assistant to Richmond Sturdy before striking out on his own again in 1977, setting up a pre-training establishment in a cattle yard in the village of Figheldean on the outskirts of an army firing range.

After successfully applying for a licence in June, 1978, Elsworth returned from Newmarket sales that November with three horses – Raffia Set, Skyline Drive and Cumberland Reel. All three ensured that the trainer would hit the ground running as they notched eight victories between them in 1979. Raffia Set, purchased for 1,650gns, would become Elsworth's first Flat winner when scoring at Salisbury on April 8, 1979. 2,500gns buy Skyline Drive captured five races, including the Great Metropolitan Handicap at Epsom Downs.

Elsworth moved to surroundings more conducive to training horses, Luckham Park Stables, near Calne in late 1979 and continued to burnish his reputation as an astute handler over both codes with the exploits of Heighlin.

Bought for 14,000gns with the express aim of winning the Triumph Hurdle, Heighlin duly provided Elsworth with the first of nine winners at the Cheltenham Festival in the 1980 renewal of the juvenile contest. The son of High Line would also provide his trainer with a first success at Royal Ascot in the same year's Ascot Stakes – one of eight handicap wins on the Flat for the horse that season – before going on to win the 1982 Goodwood Cup.

Relocating to Whitsbury Manor Stables in 1981 heralded the start of a golden period for Elsworth. Mighty Fly became the first horse to complete the Lincoln/Royal Hunt Cup double in 1983. Melindra, who cost 400gns, captured another of Royal Ascot's most fiendish handicaps, the Wokingham, the same year.

Mighty Flutter finished third behind Secreto and El Gran Senor in the 1984 Derby, while Miss Silca Key, purchased for just 8,000gns, won the Jersey Stakes at Royal Ascot the following month.

Elsworth's reputation of being a superb judge of a horse was further enhanced by 16,000gns buy Naheez, who would place in both the Prix du Jockey Club and the Irish Derby in 1987. Princess Athena, who would go on to produce leading stallion Acclamation, would also more than repay her 25,000gns outlay with victory in the Queen Mary Stakes the same year.

His third Group winner at Royal Ascot would continue the theme. Indian Ridge cost just 22,000 Irish punts but the son of Ahonoora captured the 1988 Jersey Stakes before establishing himself as a top-class sprinter with further Royal Ascot success in the 1989 King's Stand Stakes. Indian Ridge would go on to more fame as a stallion, siring several G1 winners including Ridgewood Pearl and Indian Ink.

But it was over the jumps that Elsworth really excelled during the 1980s. Lesley Ann, Combs Ditch, Ghofar, Cavvies Clown and dual Queen Mother Champion Chase scorer Barnbrook Again plundered major prizes over fences, while Robin Wonder, Sir Blake and Floyd all enjoyed significant success over hurdles.

Rhyme 'N' Reason's victory in the Grand National helped Elsworth clinch a first Champion Trainer title in 1987/1988, although one horse – Desert Orchid – would enter the public consciousness like no other since Red Rum.

With his bold front-running style, “Dessie” became a national treasure thanks to a host of victories, including four wins in the King George VI Chase and an emotional success in the 1989 Cheltenham Gold Cup. The brilliant grey found his way into the nation's heart with his durability as he tackled every race with exuberance, winning 34 times over distances from two miles to three and a half miles.

On the Flat, speedy filly Dead Certain became Elsworth's first G1 winner in October, 1989, when scoring in the Cheveley Park Stakes at Newmarket.

Six weeks in the spring of 1990 epitomised Elsworth's talent as a trainer over both codes. Desert Orchid defied top-weight to take the Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse on Easter Monday, while In The Groove also headed across the Irish Sea the following month to provide her trainer with a first Classic success in the Irish 1,000 Guineas.

In The Groove, who cost 20,000gns, would establish herself as an outstanding filly with further G1 victories that season against colts in the Juddmonte International and the Champion Stakes, before adding a fourth success at the highest level in the following year's Coronation Cup.

Seattle Rhyme also earmarked himself as a Classic contender as he ended the 1991 season as favourite for the Derby after winning the G1 Racing Post Trophy, only for injury to rule him out of the early part of his three-year-old campaign.

Having enjoyed success over both jumps and on the Flat, some were keen to compare Elsworth's achievements with those of the great Vincent O'Brien.

“I'm flattered by it but I wouldn't think it's accurate,” he commented in 1993. “Perhaps some of my achievements compare with his, but he has won a lot more than I have. What I will say, and I'm not trying to knock him in any way, is that racing, like all sports, is much more competitive these days. By the time I jumped into the sea, the current was moving faster.”

Elsworth relocated to Dorset in 1993, taking over half of Whitcombe Manor Stables, but the move coincided with a relatively quiet spell for the trainer, and he headed back to Whitsbury in 1996. The same year he returned from Kentucky having spent $25,000 on a son of Lear Fan. Lear Spear would go on to win the 1998 Cambridgeshire before beating Fantastic Light in a thrilling climax to the 1999 Prince Of Wales's Stakes.

Persian Punch proved another astute acquisition. Costing just 14,000gns as a yearling, the giant son of Persian Heights endeared himself to the racing public with his stirring performances throughout a career that spanned nine seasons.

The winner of 13 Group races, Persian Punch forged a reputation as a stayer with a never-say-die attitude in both victory and defeat. Owned by Jeff Smith, his roll of honour included two Goodwood Cups and a Doncaster Cup, together with three wins apiece in the Henry II Stakes and the Jockey Club Cup.

The near-misses included a head defeat by Royal Rebel in the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot, as well as two battling third places in the Melbourne Cup. A life-sized statue at Newmarket, funded by many of his fans, honours the great horse, who tragically collapsed and died during the 2004 Sagaro Stakes.

Victory in a British Classic continued to elude Elsworth, although The Geezer finished a length behind Scorpion in the 2005 St Leger and both Norse Dancer and Stubbs Art finished third in the 2,000 Guineas. He did part-own and train a subsequent Classic winner in Island Sands, the 1999 2,000 Guineas winner who was sold to Godolphin following an unbeaten juvenile campaign.

After deciding to focus almost exclusively on Flat racing in 2000, Elsworth moved to the historic Egerton House Stables in Newmarket in 2006. He continued to enjoy significant success with his long-standing ally Jeff Smith, including his homebred filly Barshiba, who would win back-to-back renewals of the G2 Lancashire Oaks in 2009 & 2010.

Barshiba's first foal Arabian Queen would progress to greater heights, becoming the most recent of Elsworth's seven G1 wins on the Flat when gamely defeating Derby and Eclipse winner Golden Horn in the 2015 Juddmonte International, 25 years on from In The Groove's victory in the same race.

The number of winners may have lessened, but Elsworth continues to be a trainer who warrants plenty of respect, with Desert Skyline, Master The World, Sir Dancealot and Dash Of Spice, the latest of 16 Royal Ascot wins, capturing significant prizes over the past few seasons.

As he approaches his 83rd birthday, talk has inevitably turned towards Elsworth's retirement. “You don't realise it but when you are young, you do things in a hurry and you are more aggressive. I'm still pretty aggressive but, when you get old, you slow down a bit. You've been there, you've done it before,” he told Sky Sports Racing earlier this year.

“It's still fun. I've had a wonderful time and really enjoyed it but I think a lot of the romance goes with increasing years. I don't know if that's just me – we are all made differently – but personally I still enjoy it. Staffing is a problem and the fixtures and the travelling. I wouldn't say I fell out of love with it but I'm happy to slow down a bit.”

The post Trainer David Elsworth ‘Honored And Privileged’ To Receive 2021 Cartier Award Of Merit appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Verified by MonsterInsights