The Ownership Experience
If you own a racehorse trained here at Kingsclere, you can expect to gain an insight into the training of your horse and the running of the yard, and to feel a part of the team.
You will be kept up to date with the progress of your horse and are welcome to come and visit the yard and see your horse exercise on the gallops.
On race-day will be entitled to all the owners’ privileges offered by the course. If your horse wins prizemoney you will be entitled to the owners’ share (around 75%), but most people own racehorses for the fun and enjoyment that such close involvement with the sport can bring – prizemoney levels are such that few people make money out of owning racehorses.
Our involvement at Park House started with Kingsclere Racing Club and it didn’t take us too long to have our own horse. Ownership at Kingsclere is great fun and a super way to get into the game. We thoroughly enjoy our visits and other aspects of having a horse in training – indeed we feel part of the huge racing family that is Kingsclere.
Martin & Valerie Slade
What we love about Kingsclere is that every member of the team, whatever their role, is focused and professional but also very approachable. We are always made to feel very welcome. We always look forward to those summer mornings on the top gallops – the views are spectacular and it is a joy to be up there in the morning sun to watch the horses doing their work.
Mick and Janice Mariscotti
Sole Ownership
If you purchase a racehorse on your own, the horse will run in your name and colours, and you will receive the owner’s share of any prize money and bonuses won. Of course, you will also be solely responsible for all of the racing and training expenses.
Co-ownership
There are two main forms of co-ownership. In a partnership, all the co-owners (members of the partnership) are registered owners with a defined percentage share. Costs and prizemoney etc. are split according to this. In a syndicate, individuals pay to join the syndicate which is managed and administered by the syndicator(s) who are the registered owners. Different syndicates operate using different models – some offer an ‘all-in’ fee for a share in the horse(s) and the running costs for a defined period, others sell shares in the horses and bill for the costs on an ongoing basis. Commercially run syndicates have managers who deal with all the administration of the syndicate in return for a management fee.
We train horses for a number of commercial syndicates, set out below. We are also happy to help set you up your own partnership arrangement with friends or family, or to put you together with other like-minded Kingsclere owners to share a horse.
Syndicates
Racing Clubs
Membership of a racing club does not involve actual ownership of a racehorse but enables you to be involved with one or more horses owned or leased by the club and to experience many of the benefits fo ownership for a lesser financial outlay. The Kingsclere Racing Club has 25 members and leases at least twelve horses per year in training at Kingsclere.
Buying a Racehorse
Most racehorses are bought through public auction at bloodstock sales. They can be bought as foals, as yearlings, as young two year olds which have not yet gone into training (known as ‘breeze-up’ horses as they gallop or ‘breeze’ in public before the sale), or as older horses which are already in training and in many cases have a race record.
Most of the horses Andrew trains (aside from those bred by their owners) are bought as yearlings, and Andrew and his team attend all of the major yearling sales, which happen from August to October each year. They will buy horses specifically for owners but also usually buy a few horses they like ‘on spec’ which will then be available for purchase from the yard. Previous purchases by the team include Grade 1 winner Blond Me (bought for 65,000gns), Group 2 winner Dashing Willoughby (bought for 70,000gns), Derby second Khalifa Sat (bought for 40,000gns), St Leger second Berkshire Rocco (bought for 50,000gns) and the Stakes performers Goldoni, Zanetto, Signposted, Ormito, Perfect Angel, Master Of Wine, Le Don De Vie, Symbolize and Recovery Run (all purchased for 70,000gns or less).
If you buy a yearling in the autumn it will not race until the late Spring the following year at the earliest, and many take longer to develop sufficiently to be ready to run. It can be both interesting and fun to watch young horses progress and to dream of future glory(!), but Andrew also buys older horses from the major horses-in-training sales in July and October, and/or from the breeze-up sales in the Spring. There are also other horse sales throughout the year, and horses may often be purchased privately.
If you are interested in getting involved in racehorse ownership at Kingsclere, please contact Andrew via the office on 01635 298210 (or admin@kingsclere.com).