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Trainer Magazine - the horse racing magazine for the training and development of the thoroughbred racehorse. Europe and North America.
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Dec
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Dec 17
Peter Fahey - the Irish racehorse trainer to watch
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THIS ARTICLE FIRST APPEARED IN -
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![The late appointment has been thoughtfully planned so that both Peter and Ber can provide their undivided attention, although a quick interruption by the phone assures them that Sunday first winner a year later and went on to be champion pony rider on a few occasions. I rode as an amateur for nine or ten years, from 1996, and I rode almost 100 winners while working for Jessica Harrington.” Ber, meanwhile, had grown up at Jessica Harrington’s, where her father, Eamonn, is head lad and looked after the great Moscow Flyer. It could be regarded as a match made in heaven and very definitely a perfect partnership, and Ber is involved at every level with the daily running of the yard. They went to America for a year as work riders, but Peter ended up serving his time as an assistant trainer to Golden Shaheen winner Big Jag’s trainer Tim Pinfield, which provided him with the basics when he returned home. Given a blank canvas – nothing more than a piece of well-situated land – the couple spent their evenings drawing out plans, “working at the table with a pencil and ruler,” as Ber says, until Roefield Stables emerged. “We had the main yard built before the house. Peter wanted the second yard built, but I thought we should wait, but when I came home from work the foundations were already laid!” The breaking yard is nearby, a separate entity to the racing yard, and both not only enjoy superb private facilities but also a close proximity to the Curragh training grounds and all they have to offer, as well as the equine swimming pool and additional gallops locally at Monasterevin. “We are very lucky to have the Curragh on our doorstep; its facilities are second to none and I use it to do our last pieces of work before a run,” Peter says. successful trainers in their own right, and nephew Mark has also inherited the family talent. Does this mean there’s a wealth of family expertise to call upon, or does sibling rivalry add an extra spike? “We all operate very separately,” Peter says. “We all have different ways of doing things, but there’s definitely no rivalry. We’re always really pleased for the others when one of us does well, and we’ve all been lucky enough to each have some good horses. We all do our own thing and no one begrudges anyone anything.” “I never really wanted to go training, but pre-training got quiet. Training was never the intention” The nurturing of young talent is one of the family traits, and Peter’s training career appropriately began with breaking and pre- training young horses, but his history goes back very much further. “The family always had a big involvement with horses, all the way along,” he recalls. “The family had a huge interest in pony racing, with my mother as secretary and my father as chairman (of the Horse and Pony Racing Association) I was always going to compete. I rode in my first pony race when I was only six, recorded my Serenade has arrived safely ahead of them and eaten up, necessitating a second call, this time to the promising mare’s enthusiastic owner, Michael Moloney. It’s clear that Peter Fahey has time for everyone except, quite possibly, himself, although sitting relaxed with his young family, even that tricky act of time juggling seems to have been successfully achieved. Ber is only just home from an evening as Scout Leader at the troop attended by six-year-old daughter Kate. Conor, aged two, is currently being tended by Aisling, the nanny who ensures long race day absences and trips to the sales by Peter and Ber pass almost unnoticed by the children. It’s a typical lifestyle for most trainers, and Roefield Stables in the heart of the ‘Thoroughbred County’ of Kildare is fairly typical, too. Modern facilities sit alongside a private circular sand and fibre gallop, with two traditional yards home to 50 horses at any one time, many in pre-training. The horses pull out at 7am and start with a little road work, passing by four other racing yards as they loop round back to Fahey’s own gallop. What isn’t quite so usual, particularly in a ‘one-horse town’ like Cloneygath village, is that the other yards are all home to a Fahey. Peter’s brothers Paul, Seamus and Jarlath are Nevertheless, as ideal as it all sounds, surprisingly it was never quite the plan. “I never really wanted to go training,” reveals Peter, “but pre-training got quiet. Training was never the intention. Shop Dj twisted my arm to train.” Shop Dj, a mare bred and owned by Arthur Craigie, retired with earnings of £123,222 and was a Grade 3 winner and Grade 1-placed, including a fine second to Sir Des Champs at Punchestown in the Champion Novice Chase in 2012, with seven wins to her name. “We won a point-to-point with her, but I didn’t have a licence so we sent her to Jarlath until I got it. He won two NH Flat races with her and she won her maiden hurdle at her third start for me.” The mare was a yard favourite but, as Ber reveals, she could also have her moments. “She was there from the start, as a three-year- old, and she was one of the first horses we brought to Cheltenham, and she gave us our first Grade winner [the Grade 3 ITBA EBF Mares’ Hurdle at Punchestown], so she’ll always be very special. She could be a madam, too, and before Cheltenham she dropped me on the road!” “Some owners sent us horses for breaking and wanted us to keep them in training,” Peter continues, “and the recession really affected the breaking and pre-training. Up until then we were used as an overflow yard by a lot of trainers. It went a bit quiet, which influenced the decision to go training. It was hard, only having a few horses and seeing them go off to other yards, so it made sense to keep them and take out a licence. All the horses we’ve been lucky with have all been started here.” The hardest part of the recession was the human cost, particularly in a small rural community. “We went from 30-40 horses down to seven or eight,” admits Peter. “It was terrible having to let people go, especially as they were local people. That was very hard.” Difficult though it must have been, setting up as a trainer in the depth of a recession proved a remarkably wise move. Numbers are back up and beyond, and the owners who had wanted their young horses to remain at Roefield Stables were amply rewarded for their justifiable faith. “Once we started it took off pretty quick and we had a great start,” says Peter. “Hopefully we can keep going at a higher level, and we’re building up better horses.” Higher profile wins provide Peter and his owners with better opportunities at the sales, but despite recent hard times the bloodstock market is again booming, making it very difficult for the smaller owner and trainer. “We’ll always be at the sales up and down, but we don’t buy on spec. We’re always looking for a horse for one of our existing, or new, owners,” says Peter. “We’ve got a lot of owners with just one or two horses. Some of them like to buy at the sales, but a good many are “Once we started it took off pretty quick and we had a great start. Hopefully we can keep going at a higher level, and we’re building up better horses” breeders and there are no major clients with a large string. The middle price market is so difficult and we’re all chasing the same type of horse. A lot of the horses we’ve been successful with have been sent to me, bred by their owner, so I’ve not gone by pedigrees.” Typical of Peter’s owners is Michael Moloney. “I came to Peter on the recommendation of equine osteopath Anthony Coyne. I would definitely be one of Peter’s worst owners!” he laughs, his horses very much a part of his family and doted upon like children. “I’m a worrier; but you have to trust yourself that, in sending your horses to someone you trust, you’ve made the right decision and he’ll look after them. Peter suits me perfectly. I wouldn’t last two minutes with a leading trainer with a large string – my horse would be tied to the gate with a note saying, ‘Come and get it!’” Other than the individual care and time devoted to the owners, as well as to their horses, there’s little difference between Peter’s establishment and that of a major yard, as Moloney is quick to point out. “Everything about Roefield Stables is professional. The staff are spotless leading up at the races, in a smart suit, turned out as perfectly as the horses. It’s that extra mile that makes all the difference. It doesn’t matter what level your horse is, Peter will always find a race for them, you’ll always have one winner, which reminds you why you do it and why you keep spending all this money!” While winners can’t be guaranteed – and Peter is the first to state, “I don’t like having bad horses; if they’re no good I tell the owner early on” – careful placing is as much a part of training as the fitness regime, and Peter is not alone in finding the Racing Calendar agains him, perhaps a problem peculiar to Ireland, conversely a country renowned for its racing. There are frequently to be found blank days throughout the year with no race meetings scheduled. “I’d definitely love more racing, more opportunities,” he insists. “It’s very tough and very competitive during the winter months, I’d love to see more opportunities for the lesser grade horses. They’re the races that are always divided and balloted; it’s hard to get a programme for those horses.” There are, of course, plusses, too, and the Irish racing community has pulled together to provide fresh opportunities for the former black sheep of the National Hunt world: the filly. “Enough has been done by the ITBA (Irish Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association),” Peter agrees. “That initiative was a very good call by the ITBA, but it will make the fillies and mares’ races very competitive.” Another factor making races for the fairer sex even more competitive are Peter’s own runners. Having a lot of owner-breeders in the yard means that he’s had a large amount of fillies and has done particularly well with them. Already this season Four Wives (owned by G. O’Dowd), Sunday Serenade (Moloney) and Queen Alphabet (Mrs Carmel Ennis & Mrs Catherine Burke) have each chalked up a win for the girls, following in the hallowed path of Shop Dj. When asked if there’s a knack to them, “Fillies are definitely harder. Just trying to plan a programme around their cycles, it’s so important” Peter admits, “Fillies are definitely harder. Just trying to plan a programme around their cycles, it’s so important. Shop DJ was as regular as clockwork and we planned her races accordingly. I think it is just as important to keep their mind right and keep them happy in themselves.” Being aware of a filly’s cycle is an important part of the daily routine, and it’s a simple routine that is the key element to keeping all of the horses happy and healthy. “We start at seven AM every morning and get everything finished by one PM in the yard here at home,” Peter explains, “then in the afternoon we do the breakers and pre-training, and finish up at 4.45pm, then feed up. We feed four times a day and they’re all on Red Mills Racing Cubes.” Most of the staff work in both yards and their feedback is invaluable. “I’m lucky to have very good staff. We have a youngish crowd so they’ve learnt as they’ve gone along,” says Peter. Ber adds, “Two of the lads are graduates from RACE (Racing Academy and Centre of Eduacation) and they’re young and brave!” Peter, having been such a successful jockey, also rode work up until recently, but he now finds that with such a large string it’s easier to watch the work and listen to the feedback from his riders. “Tuesdays and Fridays are our work days and on those days we go to the Curragh. We just do routine canters on the other days and we’ll use the swimming pool occasionally, as well,” he explains. “They’ll do three canters around the gallop, then have a walk round to relax, then four canters round. We try not to disappoint any horse – we always work them with a horse of their own level to keep their confidence. That’s what keeps their form for the year. It’s definitely harder to keep them mentally fit than physically fit. Routine is important, more so, and keeping things as simple as we can. They have walks down the road and a change of scenery. Weather permitting, I try to ensure they get a spell in the paddock after their work.” Peter doesn’t think it makes it easier for either himself or the individual horse that they’re often broken by him as well, but it does help him to bring them on gently in the manner he’d like. “When we’re first breaking the youngsters, we’re always schooling them and loose schooling them at home in the ring. The problem with young horses is they take so much time. When you’re given a horse and you’re not under any pressure it’s so much easier to get the best out of them, to do right by the horse. So what really helps is an understanding owner, and we’re so lucky, we’re just steeped, even the syndicates are very good. When owners are so enthusiastic the biggest worry is thinking jeez, I hope it works out for them!” One of those owners, equine osteopath Anthony Coyne, is also a vital member of the team, and he owns the promising Alton Bay. Of other promising horses Peter and Ber can look forward to, Siobhan and Anthony Callan’s Owega Star is currently shining brightly for the stable, his six wins including the Grade 2 Tara Hurdle. Ber describes him as having the kindest temperament, but “a bugger to ride!” Peter’s picks are: “Definitely Sunday Serenade. Frontline is one we definitely hope will be top grade and we have a nice Flemensfirth filly coming along, a half-sister to Frontline. Alton Bay is very good, he’s been unlucky so far.” Ill luck can often haunt a yard and periods of drought can be disheartening, but as Peter points out, “There definitely does be bad days, when you have a spell without a winner. But if you keep to the routine, it comes back.” Ber adds, “It’s kind of hard when you get a nice horse in and you’re looking forward to their future and then they’re sold. We were very lucky when Frontline got new owners and allowed him to stay in the yard.” At the opposite end of the spectrum are the good days and, for NH racing, Cheltenham represents the pinnacle. As Michael Moloney enthuses, “I’ve been to Cheltenham lots of times but I’d never had a runner there, until Sunday Serenade. She was my first runner, my first winner, and now she’s taken me to Cheltenham. Please God she’ll be going back there in March. The thrill of going to Cheltenham, win or lose, it’s what it’s all about. We had A.P. [McCoy] riding for us, and my three young nieces were with me. They’re only small, but they definitely know who he is and even with all the pressure he’s under he shook hands with them and made time for them. It was a wonderful experience; the staff at Cheltenham just couldn’t do enough for you.” Like most other trainers and nearly all owners, Peter contrasts this to Irish racecourses. “I’d like to see more facilities for owners. In most cases there’s nowhere in Owners And Trainers’ for a hot food option, or any food options for that matter. The social side would help owners to enjoy their day more and help trainers to engage with them. Consistency throughout all racecourses would help.” It really is quite typical that we began our interview with Peter’s consideration of the people connected to his horses, which is also how we end it. Ber, by her own admission, may not be happy working in the office. “I prefer to be in the yard. Even in the cold and the rain. I’d rather have wellies on and be out there than be in the office!” – but she willingly takes care of the administrative side of the business, which includes keeping all of the owners updated about their pride and joys. “Ber sent me a photo of Sunday Serenade on the morning of her arrival at Cheltenham,” Moloney tellingly reveals. “I’d promised myself they had enough on their plate and I absolutely wouldn’t pester them, so I didn’t phone to acknowledge it. The next thing Ber was on the phone to me, ‘Did you get that picture alright? We haven’t heard from you!’” It’s clear that the secret to happy horses and happy owners is, as Moloney rightly says, going that extra mile. In that, Peter Fahey has earned his Marathon Medal. ](https://static1.squarespace.com/static/517636f8e4b0cb4f8c8697ba/t/576d3206e58c62f9837c0631/1466774062619/Cover+profile-+Peter+Fahey%2C+going+the+extra+mile.jpg)