The Trainer
The trainer accommodates, cares for and trains the horses entrusted to him. His profession requires in-depth equestrian knowledge, as he has to bring his protégés to peak condition in an efficient manner. The top trainers have in excess of 150 thoroughbreds on their books, all of which must be taken out every morning.
The essence of a trainer’s role is the perfecting of the horse’s physical and mental condition. By means of regular morning exercise (hunting gallops, canters), he fine-tunes the racehorse’s form so that it will do itself justice on the racecourse. It is a task that requires a heightened sense of observation, as horses cannot tell us what they are thinking! Keeping close and measured control over the effort expended by the horse is essential. As an illustration of the complexity of their work, some trainers compare their profession to that of a chef: in judging the amount of heat to apply, there is no room for error, or the preparation stage quickly passes from perfection to disaster. It’s the same thing with a race horse. Once this delicate balance has been established, the trainer enters his horse in the race that best corresponds to his level and aptitude (sprint, middle or long distance, good, heavy or soft going). To do this, he consults the annual race programme published by France Galop, in which the precise conditions of each race are specified.
But the training of a racehorse doesn’t only depend on the talent of the trainer; it also involves the multi-faceted care and attention lavished on it by the training rider, head lad, and travelling head lad… The stable team is tantamount to a company boss, with up to fifty people under the trainer’s control in some cases. With horses, there is no possibility of man being replaced by machines. Training remains a profession where the human touch is paramount.