A Fine Line

Thoroughbred ownership requires involvement, opinion, and cooperation from many groups.  Owner, trainer, vet, farrier...all people have an integral part in contributing to the success of the investment. 
Owners perspective:  An owner can have many different levels of understanding and education in the game.  Some owners might just have deep pockets and consider the ownership of thoroughbreds a luxury, as if collecting art.  A luxury owner will often request an agent to find the most fashionable sire, famous trainer, and biggest race venue, regardless of actual potential of the athlete.  This type of owner often will not care what vet work is performed, how much they are charged for frivolous obscurities, or what a trainer is actually doing by meeting race conditions.  Most trainers and agents dream of this type of owner however, they can sometimes do the sport more harm than good.  Dumping good money in to fashion without researching the value is the equivalent of buying a Porsche with a Kia in the engine. 
The complete opposite side of the spectrum for ownership is the obsessive, compulsive, "think I know everything" owner.  The OCD owner will demand full page spread sheets of daily activity, insist that they know more about horses than any owner or trainer alive, and believe that even though they own a Kia it should be a Porsche.  The OCD owner can also be bad for the sport because it can cause a ripple effect of negativity and slander for individuals working hard.
Point:  All ownership and participation in this sport is appreciated.  A common balance and fine line will hopefully be achieved with the general idea being to find the right team. 
Trainer perspective:
The high profile trainer:  The profile trainer often has a stable of hundreds of horses.  A stable this large requires many assistant trainers in all different states.  Essentially, the assistant is really the trainer so you need to know all about that individual and not just the headline name.  Some assistants are actually better trainers for many reasons.  Trainers can be extremely hot headed and evasive or very submissive.  A certain trainer will comply with an owners request of daily updates whereas, some are old school and just don't want to be bothered.
The "pay the bills" trainer:  A trainer has a small string (very few horses) for many reasons.  If a trainer has a small stable they either A; prefer it that way so they can keep a close eye on each athlete they represent B; have not made a name for themselves yet or C; they do bad things and as a result, have a revolving door of clients.  A small time trainer can be your best option or worst enemy.  The cost is often times cheaper but for what reason? Believe it or not, some trainers (and agents and vets) still believe in doing things the right way.  Often times the results do not end in high end celebrity status or income.  However, if you choose wisely it could be a slow and steady income potential.     
But on the other end, you could think you are getting an honest person and in reality they just can't get the clients and will lie through their teeth, run your horse in to the ground, and pad the bills just to pay the bills.
Point: Find the right team.
Agent perspective:  A common scam among Bloodstock agents is dual agency.  The practice involves an agent making money off both buyer and seller.  It is a common practice and completely unethical because the agent should be dedicated to servicing one need or the other.  Dual agency allows for to much gray area and untruthfulness. 
The fashion agent:  Bloodstock agents have usually spent years developing a reputation for having an eye to select talent.  However, many people put there faith in the stereotypical third generation, male prototype.  An agent with a big bank roll can be your worst nightmare because it allows a facilitation of laziness.  A large bank roll means an individual does not need to work quite so hard to find true talent, they can just select "pretty".  Pretty pedigree, pretty body...done and bought.  An agent of this caliber is not always doing wrong however, they might be the best in the business.
The low end agent:  The small time agents are small time for a reason.  It takes years to establish a reputation for spotting talent, market trends, and proven return on investment.  The agent is either small time because they haven't established reputation, haven't achieved a famous winner, or just don't know what they're doing.  An agent can also be small time if they have a reputation for scamming clients. 
Point:  Find the right team.
A general summation.  The world of racing is more of a team sport than most realize.  Although we lack a general united leadership as found in most organizations, the sport lies heavily on teamwork.  Until we can achieve one governing body,  all involved must understand and be educated about the needs and demands of all parties involved so we can succeed!  It doesn't matter if your motivation in this sport is for luxury and status, a lifestyle, paying the bills or love of the animal.  At the end of the day the most important thing is finding the right thing for your investment so you get what you want!!  The examples  I mentioned are at extreme opposite ends of the spectrum on all ends simply to demonstrate how many variables there are in this game.  The thoroughbred, owner, trainer, etc. are all living souls with their own unique thought process.  It is imperative that you select the right team for your investment. 
Horses really do have a personality.  You have the jock club which includes the likes of Cigar, Kip Deville, and Service Stripes...they only know how to run, will not bond.  And then you have the old mans club:  Brass Hat, Perfect Drift, Well Armed, Lava Man....they only want to run.  And then there is the diva club, boys that act like girls because their mood is a pain in the ass....perfect drift, any Roman Ruler baby, Quality Road.  And finally you have the superstars that don't really need trained, just a place to hang out until they hit the track:  Zenyatta, Blame, Ruffian, Secretariat, Man O War, etc....
Pay attention, invest wisely, ask questions, and enjoy!!!

Posted by: Jessica Maciejewski

Thinking About Cost

So another thing you have to do is to honestly figure out what kind of money you want to spend on this deal. As an example it is about 1/3 to 1/2 of the price for a trainer in Arizona than it is in Southern California. Trainers have what they call a Day Rate, this is what they will charge you every day of the month for your horse. It covers all the basics such as feed, works and everything to do with the daily routine. It doesn’t cover vets, shoeing any special supplements or medications or anything to do with the actual race day, we’ll get into those later. Another way that some trainers do business is to not charge you a Day Rate but to charge you a percentage of the win money that the horse makes. Now I personally am not a fan of this method, and I don’t think many trainers are either, since the trainer carries all the cost and that can mean the owner doesn’t really have much say about what goes on with the horse let alone make much off of any money earned. As an example I know of a man that had such a deal with his trainer, the owner got 25%of the winnings with the trainer getting 75%. So just think if your horse does do well that means you see very little return on your investment. Anyway, so in Arizona you could pay a good trainer $40-$50 a day and in Southern Cal that could run you around $90-$100. Now keep in mind that the difference between the two is like the major leagues and a farm team, so some of that jump in price is completely justified. Some of it has to do with things like Workman’s Comp and fees that the trainers have to pay, and of course those are going to get passed to the owners, some states are just much more expensive to deal with.

Another option to cut down on your cost is to go into a partnership. Again there are several ways to go on this, you can get with some friends and all buy in on a horse and split the cost, like the partnership that was started by six friends in New York and purchased Funny Cide, or you could buy into an already established racing partnership. Usually you buy “shares” like a stock. If you go this way you want to have a very defined agreement with a clear understanding of how many shares there are and what responsibilities and benefits are part of this partnership. Remember if you don’t own the majority you’re really just along for the ride and may have no real say so about anything. However, this is a good way to get your feet wet and to go out there and just have some fun without the bulk of the responsibility. No matter which way you take make sure part of the deal is to get copies of all the bills that affect your horse, such as vet bills and such, so that you have a complete accounting of what your percentage of liability is.

Things to Think About Part 2

One of the things to consider is where do you want to race? If you live in a town where there happens to be a track then it is kind of a no brainer. But what if you live in say Vegas? Well we don’t have any tracks here, at least not anymore, and that makes it a little tougher. You could go to Arizona or California, if you want to be close enough to go see your horse run, so which one do you pick? In certain states they have what they call Breed money, this is extra cash that is put into the purse for a horse that wins, or in some cases for lighting the board, that is bred in that stat. This can end up being a big deal thru the course of the year if you have a consistent horse, in the case of my first horse that I owned with my father it was several thousand dollars in the year. As an example in California if a horse wins its Maiden, first win, race in what is called a Special Weight race they get extra money straight to the owner. If the win is in Northern California or a race at the fairgrounds in the state it is $10,000, if it is a win in Southern California, Hollywood Park or Santa Anita, then it is $20,000. Now keep in mind this is for Thoroughbreds only and us something sponsored by The California Thoroughbred Breeders Association, so you may want to know about these possible extra awards before choosing where you want to race.

Things to Think About Part 1

One of the things to consider is where do you want to race? If you live in a town where there happens to be a track then it is kind of a no brainer. But what if you live in say Vegas? Well we don’t have any tracks here, at least not anymore, and that makes it a little tougher. You could go to Arizona or California, if you want to be close enough to go see your horse run, so which one do you pick? In certain states they have what they call Breed money, this is extra cash that is put into the purse for a horse that wins, or in some cases for lighting the board, that is bred in that stat. This can end up being a big deal thru the course of the year if you have a consistent horse, in the case of my first horse that I owned with my father it was several thousand dollars in the year. As an example in California if a horse wins its Maiden, first win, race in what is called a Special Weight race they get extra money straight to the owner. If the win is in Northern California or a race at the fairgrounds in the state it is $10,000, if it is a win in Southern California, Hollywood Park or Santa Anita, then it is $20,000. Now keep in mind this is for Thoroughbreds only and us something sponsored by The California Thoroughbred Breeders Association, so you may want to know about these possible extra awards before choosing where you want to race.

Getting Started

I’m going to start off writing about different aspects of horse ownership for those that are just starting out in the business, or are thinking about getting involved. There’s a lot to it but one of the biggest things to remember is that this is a business so you need to treat it as such. I’m not saying to avoid getting too attached to your horses, because goodness knows in my home we’re all about spoiling them, but what I am saying is to research and go into this with some sort of plan. You need to budget for yourself and find out what the rules and requirements are for your area. You’re your best advocate. Don’t trust anybody else to be watching out for your best interest except yourself. This can be a very cutthroat business at times and it has driven away many a new owner. Go into this deal knowing that. If you can get past that then know that this is one of the oldest and greatest sports you could ever get involved in. People have compared this to being like an addict, the more you get the more you want. Instead of sitting on the couch and talking about “my team did this..” you are the owner of your team!
So you want to own a racehorse? Well there are some things you need to think about before you go out there and try to buy your Seabiscuit or Secretariat. You need to think about; location, what you can afford, are you going to own your horse 100% or in a partnership, taxes and even try to look down the road to when your horse no longer can race.