What Future The Small Trainer?

Is the environment for small trainers in South Africa becoming increasingly inhospitable?
“It always has been tough,” said one, speaking on condition of anonymity, “But of late, it’s been a real struggle.”


Andrew Harrison writes that small trainers barely making a living; ‘Battlers’ in racing parlance, are nothing new but many believe that of late, the disparity between the big, powerful stables has grown to a point where the economic stability of the industry as a whole is being affected. Dwindling attendances, fewer horses, shrinking revenues, stakes not keeping up with costs and the same collection of owners and trainers winning everything from Maidens to Gr1.

So what role does the small trainer play in the greater health of the industry? Is it healthy for the big yards and the same owners to go against each other race after race? Is it about the sport or turnover in a small pond?

The costs of running a yard are pretty much the same for a big yard as a small yard, but as in most businesses, it’s a case of economy of scale. Running a training operation is expensive. Feed and employment are the two major contributors to costs but there are a myriad of hidden expenses that the average owner is unaware of.
As Ashburton-based Gary Rich put it; “Running a yard is very expensive but doable if managed correctly,” quickly adding, “but owners need to pay on time.”


“There are no short cuts if you expect results. It costs a certain amount to train and maintain a horse properly not matter if you are a big yard or a small yard,” he said.

The difference here is that the bigger yards tend to attract the more well-heeled clients and consequently have access to a better class of horse so obviously they will get better results on the racetrack.

In KwaZulu-Natal, the bigger yards are restricted to barns of 100 given the limited space at the two training centres, Summerveld and Ashburton, and with out-of-province trainers clamouring for satellite yards, the less successful and smaller yards are struggling to hold onto what they already have.

Restricting barn sizes, reasoning goes, will lead to horses being distributed more evenly among trainers, including smaller ones, leading to bolstered field sizes and a more appealing product for gamblers.

In the distant past in KZN, boxes were restricted to around 60 and was a kind of filter where the big yards would get the best clients and horses and other owners would have to seek out the smaller, and often lower-profile, trainers.

The flip side of this coin are concerns about the free market. How much involvement should the industry have in artificially shaping the size of a trainer’s business?

A sore point for trainers, big and small, is that stakes have not kept up with industry costs. But as one pointed out, trainers should not have to rely on stakes to keep them going. Training fees alone should be enough to keep a yard financially viable and any money earned from stakes a bonus.


Yes, stakes are important as they are the incentive and reward that keep owners interested and a bonus for the yard but owners should be well aware that they are not a silver bullet in racehorse ownership given that most horses seldom recoup training fees or purchase costs.

Also damaging are the ‘deals’ being done with owners by struggling and often desperate trainers to stay in the game.

A standard ploy is reduced training fees but a bigger split of the stakes cheque.
The trap here is that if the horse does not earn, the trainer is hard-pressed to provide the necessary care to produce a healthy and fit racehorse so the chances of it earning any stakes are much reduced.

However, new owners could also be better educated on the more nuanced benefits that small trainers can afford their horses, like the individual care and attention that larger operations aren’t always able to provide.

There seems to be something alluring about ‘super’ trainers. Yes, they have worked hard to get to where they are so one should not begrudge them, but there are many smaller yards with the same expertise, just a lower profile.

Egos appear to be the over-riding factor here because the bigger, more successful yards generally charge above the norm for their services. But if it is results and best returns a small prospective owner is looking for rather than an ego boost, they should do their homework on the smaller yards.

Each small trainer, and big, I spoke to put a different emphasis on what they considered their greatest obstacle to running a successful stable but all agreed on one particular bane of their working existence: finding and maintaining quality help.

“It’s so hard to find good grooms and staff nowadays,” said one.

As fewer people grow up around animals and around livestock in particular standards of horsemanship have fallen among the new recruits headed into the industry.

“They used to be kind of ready-made, that’s not the case now. Today’s younger generation are not interested in working as grooms and the older generation work as grooms as a financial necessity rather than for any job satisfaction.”

“It’s a constant, constant struggle.”


Despite dwindling numbers, new trainers are still entering the sport even though the toughest aspect of building up a new stable is the month-to-month expenses that leave them counting out expenditures down to the very last rand. There’s an onslaught of bills from every direction, from feed bills, stable rent, salaries, equipment, vet’s bills – the list is endless.
But in spite of all the trials and tribulations it is a way of life ingrained in most trainers.

“I never thought about doing anything else in life,” said one.

“I started out with my father who was a trainer and have been in the industry the whole time,” he said. “I guess when I started out, I never thought about doing anything else in life.”

And, not surprisingly, there’s a tangible sense of grit and determination among those scraping together a living near the bottom of the sport’s food chain.

The “corporatization” of the industry, with greater emphasis placed on things like return on investment, and public branding, means that smaller trainers must look to the larger outfits to identify and mirror as best they can what they do that works.
“Things are changing,” said Rich. “You’ve got to change your business model and create value for the client.”

All of which is geared around that one thing that unites all trainers, large and small: the horse and discovering that twinkling diamond in the rough.

“We’re just waiting for the big horse to come along,” he said. “At the end of the day, I wouldn’t have chosen to do anything different with my life.”

Without the ‘battlers’ the sport would be so much the poorer.

Originally published in Parade

Explains why Gary & Dean Alexander choose to rip off their new/small owner... Losing 400k in a few months is no joke.
But I gues that's his strategy to keep his head above water. Baracuda!!

Trainers I'm involved with now are showing me a different side of the game. They actually care about the smaller, newer owner. Kudos to them.

The "smaller" yards are bigger at heart and look after ALL their owners. We need them to keep this game alive.

It is stables like the Alexander's that are killing this amazingly wonderful sport!!

I have heard many stories from owners that have left the game and one of the most constant is the lack of honesty to owners from trainers about their horses ability. As easy as it is for trainers to say pay your bills, it is for owners to say don't charge me for 18 months before showing me that I have wasted my time. The proof of the pudding is in the eating and owners numbers are dropping and have been dropping each year for many years now.

20 to 1 wrote: Explains why Gary & Dean Alexander choose to rip off their new/small owner... Losing 400k in a few months is no joke.
But I gues that's his strategy to keep his head above water. Baracuda!!

Trainers I'm involved with now are showing me a different side of the game. They actually care about the smaller, newer owner. Kudos to them.

The "smaller" yards are bigger at heart and look after ALL their owners. We need them to keep this game alive.

It is stables like the Alexander's that are killing this amazingly wonderful sport!!

Sorry to hear that 20/1 - Just a question did you buy back your horse form the sale or do you have other horses with your new trainer ?

I didn't even bother going to the sale. I did my homework prior, had some feelers on the ground, heard about his plan and decided to just let it be. I've cut my losses, started afresh, enjoying the little moments of joy and I'm moving on. I sincerely hope that nobody else has to ever go through the same.

20 to 1 wrote: I didn't even bother going to the sale. I did my homework prior, had some feelers on the ground, heard about his plan and decided to just let it be. I've cut my losses, started afresh, enjoying the little moments of joy and I'm moving on. I sincerely hope that nobody else has to ever go through the same.

Well done great move - Karma is a B.tch and as they say Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.


I am still shocked with the 400k - Nothing shows me including fees Vet Costs etc . Start fresh the results will come.

Biggest joke of all... Read this story below:

I had a mullins bay filly with him out of a jet master mare. His marketing strategy to get my buy in was that she was purchased at the CTS sale and "will" qualify for Emperors Palace R2.5m RTR cup.

He gives her, her 1st run in April in the same race with their other first timer, Effortless (partially owned by Dean Alexander) and guess what... They openly tell me in the parade ring that "they just giving her a run" and then Gary focused on the Jock riding Effortless and gave him clear riding instructions... Completely ignored the jock on my one. Effortless placed in that race... My filly ran last. Note, this is the very first runner I've had.
Her next run came up in May. They again say 'we just giving her a run" and she finished last again. Absolutely no effort from the jockey to even give her half a chance.

Then he sends her for African Horse Sickness and after her first run back declares that she must be sold for horse jumping.

He only informed me that she has been sold. I don't know to who and till today I don't know for how much. I wouldn't be surprised to find her not sold. I kept checking the NHRA website to see if she has been "retired from racing" but there's nothing till now.
I'm sure that after a horse is retired from racing that it needs to be declared with the NHRA. Or I could be wrong.

Anyways... That's how he treats his new or small owner. No communication, no transparency and clearly doesn't care. Gary & Dean Alexander are in it to milk as much as they can, as quickly as they can and don't care a dam about the long term implications their selfish behavior has on the industry

To be honest I can write an entire article on my first experience as an owner in the Gary Alexander stable.
In fact I want to post an article in the Sporting Post and any other racing publications about this experience.

Anyone care to direct me to someone I can speak to from the Sporting Post? :whistle:

This is the story of many small owners , it sounds par for the course . I have no pity for any trainer although I have been blessed with great success. You have to love them even though they treat you like sh.t because they are looking after your asset.

One thing we must remember is that all trainers "Own" between 7 and 10 % of every horse in their stable with no cost . Because all the expenses are absorbed by the owner , so Expenses vs Charges to the Owners - balance each other out . If the horse becomes a success or earns a cheque there is no cost to the Trainer but he earns.

I a couple of weeks ago went to Turfontein , a group of elderly people came into the ring to see their horse , all excited they headed up back to the stands to go watch the race. Anyway the horse run no where, the next thing I see one of the Party a lady come back into the parade ring to obviously see her horse after the race , mean while the horse was at the back being unsaddled. The Trainer and his wife who where there had not explained to this lady where to go or how things work. Very Bad communication . I felt so bad for this lady she looked liked she had just lost her child in a shopping centre . But be guaranteed that the Trainer will make sure she finds her bill at the end of the month

20 to 1 wrote: To be honest I can write an entire article on my first experience as an owner in the Gary Alexander stable.
In fact I want to post an article in the Sporting Post and any other racing publications about this experience.

Anyone care to direct me to someone I can speak to from the Sporting Post? :whistle:

You have no chance Sporting Post do not as a ploicy lately write or comment on any thing that is "Conceived as ) - Negative in Racing . They have been captured . As someone said the other day, They have bills to pay . We must only tell nice stories .

Some pretty damning stuff above, are we going to back it up when the lawyers call?

Maybe sign this thread

Wow this is going to escalate thats for sure.

When I read posts like 20/1 has written, I pat myself on the back and say well done boy you never fell into that trap. I have heard too many similar stories involving other trainers.