This multi-faceted book on horse racing is unique – written, as it is, from an owner’s perspective.
In the racing game much is credited to jockeys, trainers and of course horses. Hardly a ‘name’ in either category lacks newspaper features, full blown biographies or TV exposure – and quite right too.
As for the owners...
They get their names printed on the race cards and appear at racecourse presentations – but that’s about it. Not a lot, considering they pay through the nose for the privilege of owning, training and often breeding the horses.
My Racing Certainties does its bit to redress the balance – and in a most entertaining way. The author has been an owner since the 1950s and although he says he’d a much richer man if he’d never caught sight of a racehorse he, like so many other owners, would not have missed the roller coaster ride for anything.
This then is a view of horse racing through the eyes of someone who has experienced most parts of it. Its history, its close connections with Royalty through the ages, the ups and downs of being an owner, trainers and jockeys he has been involved with, the important courses, the punters, management of racecourses and the challenges of being a Steward.
Altogether a bright and breezy read which should appeal to all who have an interest in the noble sport and are looking for their own Racing Certainties.
Hardback.