Fellowes: Kempton Sale An Opportunity

The following is an excerpt from the blog of Newmarket trainer Charlie Fellowes, reproduced here with his permission.

On a more political note, as a young enthusiastic racehorse trainer with an opinion, I feel it necessary to express my emotions and thoughts about the recent discussions surrounding Kempton Park and the well-documented lack of support behind the Jockey Clubs plans to sell.

I'm as disappointed as most that horse racing is in a position where it desperately needs to sell off a well-serving racetrack like Kempton Park. I wish British horse racing had the funds that Australia, Hong Kong or France have to play with it–but we simply don't. As a result of some poor historical decision making, many of us have found our backs against the wall financially. However, it is the trainers, yard staff, and studs who feel the brunt of this, and not the media and punters who have been largely critical of the Jockey Club's decision.

Sadly, most people are naive to the fact that the majority of racehorse trainers don't make a penny from training.

So you have to wonder: How many more trainers do we need to lose before the press realise that there are drastic decisions that need to be made for the long term benefit of the sport?

How many more British owner-breeders need to be forced out of the sport because it is no longer financially viable to own a racehorse?

It is all very well people reminiscing romantically about the glory days of Desert Orchid and other stunning jumps horses, but we are staring into an abyss. The opportunity to sell Kempton is a opportunity that racing simply must grab with both hands. The government is in desperate need of places to build houses, and in Kempton Park, horse racing is in possession of some incredibly valuable land (£100-million minimum) that is perfect for development.

The money accrued from its sale will safeguard racing's future, wipe out Jockey Clubs debts, and give those people who make racing happen on a day-to-day basis a chance to earn what they deserve. In Roger Weatherby, Simon Bazalgette and the rest of the Jockey Club board we have a team dedicated to doing what is best for our sport and whose mandate is to only act in its best interests. I wholeheartedly believe they have always and will always do this.

I would implore anyone reading this who feels against the Kempton plans to think twice before encouraging our sport to let history repeat itself. British racing is more competitive than any other country globally. British horses are more sought after than in any other racing jurisdiction, and yet the people responsible for this are not sufficiently rewarded or appreciated. We have a chance to improve this situation, not completely, but improve it none the less.

Please don't be part of the camp that allows another opportunity to slip through our fingers.

I have said nothing of the plans to build a replacement all-weather track in Newmarket quite deliberately. That is because on this subject I sympathise wholeheartedly with those racegoers who live in the London area, the owners whose travel costs will increase because their horses are trained down south, and obviously with the trainers whose lives will be seriously inconvenienced by the move up north. I haven't heard of any alternative locations for the racetrack but if there are other options, then it would only seem fair that these are given the appropriate consideration.

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