Ex Racers

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kandm

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Hello :).

I read a lot on here, however I don't usually post. I thought this would best place to post this. However just for my pure curiosity, could you please tell me everything there is to know about retraining of ex racers. I hear so many different reviews and comments of them either being complete saints to little ***** bags...

What's your experience with them? Would you recommend spending your time and effort on them? Good stories, bad stories? Hit me :).

Curiosity killed the cat eh ;).

Thanks :).
 
Honestly? I don't think they are for everyone.

I personally love TB's, but am well aware of their quirks! They can be very labour intensive, and many people see the racehorses, then the retrained ones and think how wonderful they are, without realising the things you have to teach them.

It is easier to have an unbroken youngster, than to retrain a horse that at times feels like it has been programmed all wrong!

If you are looking for a challenge and are realistic about your abilities and aims, then you could do a lot worse.

In the area I live in there are a lot of ex-racers. Some people just like the fact they are getting a cheap (or free) horse, and have very little knowledge about retraining.

Good luck!
 
Also would you say there is a difference between those who have been in racing longer? Let's say a 3YO proven too slow to race rather than a 6YO?

Thanks for your reply :).
 
My friend has just taken one on. He is 8, ran this season on the the flat and spent a couple of months at a dealers mostly being stuffed with stud cubes! He is very green to school but he is a saint. I'm have a terrible opinion of TBs but he is changing my mind. She has had him 2 months and has done a couple of W&T tests and scored nearly 70% and the first time she took him on her own. I went with her for a jump lesson last week and he was good as gold in a strange place and tried his heart out over things he had never seen before.
I would add my friend is very experienced, worked as a groom for some top level riders and worked with pointers so knows what she is doing.
The only thing that has been an issue is finding a diet that suits him, trying to avoid cereals but keep the calories up.
 
This may be long, we have had 6 exracehorses.
Bugsy was too slow for racing and was started by someone else before we got her, she did novice eventing but she had her own mind, sometimes she would go and sometimes not.
Sam- I first rode Sam on my interview at Roger Curtis yard, he was a three year old then, he didn't really like racing so only had 6 runs, before coming to me at the end of the year, he has had his ups and downs, didn't really know how to jump, and could only go in straight lines, as I was still working for Roger I could only ride him at weekends, so the retaining took along time,when he was 4, I had a nasty car crash, I could ride him with my arm still in a sling,(I had ripped the tendons out of my arm)I can't remember when it all fell together for me and him, but he now 12 and is my horse of a life time, he events, team chases, hunts either at the front or behind and plays polo crosse, he will never be a world beater, but he safe and will always give me 100%.
Larry - we got from the ascot sales.he had raced over jumps, but wasn't good enough, everything was so easy for him in his retraining, took to showjumps and cross country as if he had been doing it all his life,he also had lovely paces but we sadly lost him last year eventing.
Wes- had been started by at 15 year old, before we got him, he had raced 98 times, but he is very nappy, won't hack out, won't go anywhere on his own, and we have tried everything to stop the napping but nothing has worked.
Roo- had raced 17 times, he has only just started his retaining, but isn't brave at all, you really do have to hold his hand with anything new, but his flat work, he finds everything easy, and his lovely paces, but he just been diagnosed with hind foot navicular, but this was caused but racing, he is on his third week off box rest, and his been fine.
Quam had 16 races, but only liked it wet, so wasn't really a summer horse, he hasn't really done a lot, as he was given to my sister after she lost Larry, Quam has done a full season hunting and took to it very easily,he did his first showing show last weekend with him and didn't put a foot wrong ( it was the first time I had ridden him). He a lot like Sam, no world beater, but will try his hardest for you.
The one thing you need with exracehorses is time,
I thought Roo was going to be like Sam, easy and quick,but I found out very quickly that it will be a long time until Roo the horse I would like him to be.
Now we have had these 6 lovely horses, I really wouldnt want any thing else, other than an exracehorses.
 
Is there a difference between a young horse that only raced a little, and one that is older?

I think it depends on the horse. My TB was rising 7 when he came out of training, a flat yard he had been in since a yearling. Some things he took to straight away - travelling in an old trailer for example, he hated being in a big box as it was associated with racing, but the trailer he was really relaxed in. Also he loved living out, and prefers to be tied up outside instead of in the box. These are all things that ex-racers are supposed to hate.

We gave him 6 months in a field to unwind physically and mentally, then pretty much started hacking him out with his friend. Lunging was difficult in the beginning because he really couldn't bend. So quietly hacking with his girlfriend at his side was the best start. Unfortunately I had a nasty accident so he then had to have a further 7 months off, which I think really helped him. i could lunge him after this holiday without difficulty.

Feed wise he cannot be fed cereals. He eats a mountain of hay (that took a while, he just wasn't used it) and I now have him on simple systems with a magnesium calmer.

He is a stress head, but a very athletic horse with good paces and willing to please, he desperately wants to do as he is told, but gets flustered easily. Technically he is for my husband, and the thing they love to do the most are pleasure rides and low level endurance.
 
I love my x racer so much i am paying to fly him to California as i can't bear to leave him in England now i have moved! Mine is an amazing horse and very easy. He's talented, kind, safe, beautiful the whole package really. I had him as a 4yr old and trained him myself. He is 8 now and he has given me so much confidence and pleasure over the years, he is one in a million.
 
They're wonderful!!! There's pictures of mine in my signature, he's the best horse I've ever had.

It took about a year for his personality to come through, he was very withdrawn up until that point, whereas now he has a big character - he is very cuddly and quite the chatterbox. So don't be surprised if you come across an ex racer who seems a bit

I won't lie, you have to take everything very slowly. A lot of the thoroughbreds I know, they don't have the 'can do' attitudes of some other breeds, and therefor are easy to over-face. It has been a slow and sometimes frustrating journey with mine, but they have moments of brilliance that not only make it worthwhile, but massively rewarding!
 
i just posted about taking my race horse hunting :D he was a loon to hack 3 years ago but now i can take him hutning :D takes hard work and determination! and most of all trust! i found racehorses need that bond and the trust there before they will even remotley work for you :)
 
My ex racer was a saint on the ground and to hack. Put him on any green stuff though, and he didn't have a break in his head.

I would have another one like a shot, and have known quite a few settle well in to life as a leisure horse. We've had a few through my yard who at various times were quite successful and turned in to the most wonderful little horses for owners looking for sane, safe hacks.
 
I love my ex racers - given me a lot of great times and also a lot of heart ache.
My first is the love of my life - Dylan 17hh ginger giraffe :) has allowed me to do some amazing things - first county level ride,riding in demos etc ,jumped me over somethings I would never have dreamed of - he is precious,demanding,spooky and sometimes just out right infuriating but I wouldn't change him for the world. He is currently at Rockley undergoing barefoot rehab due to damage in his front feet - whether this is as a result of his early years I don't know but I cant wait to potentially have him back and rideable again.
Second was a unseen project - he arrived from Yorkshire was meant to be 15.3hh but was 14.3hh if I was lucky - complete little dude was only 3 and just took everything in his stride - not a natural jumper so we mainly showed and dressage but was as bold as brass and just awesome apart from shoeing - he is now with a family living the life of riley.
Third was my little mare - purchased for £50 from a family where she had terrified the life out of the daughter - hardest horse I have ever had to ride - fell off a lot ,stropped a lot and generally came very close to chucking in the towel but then all of a sudden the switch got flicked and she was amazing - great flatwork,awesome cross country and generally a complete babe. I put her out on loan and she basically came back very broken - kissing spines,suspensory damage and everything else under the sun - I lost her on the 17th July - again whether these issues had been rumbling on sinc eher racving days I don't know but I wouldn't change any of the them. Get them on side and they will give you the absolute world :)
 
A lot of people like the idea of re-training a TB but tbh unless you are prepared to work hard and know what your doing it can end in disaster.
Sadly if seen many take on a tb thinking that they can do it, their friends have why not! For it to go horribly wrong, and not ask for help!

I love my TB, but accept that yes we do it on her terms, I cant fool her but we have respect for each other. Plus she is a chestnut mare so its a double whammy, but when we goes right she is a world beater! When it doesn't, at least I can send the video to you've been framed :-)

I heard the best saying ever the other day that sums us up perfectly
Its a 49% / 51% relationship, we just don't say which is who!
 
Our current ex-racer is a right old mix. He came to us at 5yo having only raced 8 times. Built and bred beautifully, he came with a sore back and a very depressed demeanour. Having turned him out for a few months, my 14yo daughter has been reschooling him and is now eventing at PC Novice/BE90 level.

He is complex - loves living out, probably needs a busier yard than ours, adores jumping, although his flatwork can be stunning, you have to be very careful not to put too much pressure on him mentally, does not like cuddles (although that is changing) but will follow my daughter around like a dog, can be tricky to handle for shoeing/clipping, and isn't keen on change or upset - he will hide in a corner and get very distressed. He is a delight to hack and doesn't get lit up on grass. He self-harms to a ridiculous degree in the field. He would probably take to hunting but we are cautious given the amount of injuries he keeps collecting. He is too sharp for me to ride (as a rusty 50yo self-employed mum with strong sense of self-preservation).

He is big - 16.3 and now 6yo - so I expect is still growing. We have worked very hard with him to understand him and get him used to us and his new life. It is a constant work in progress and has caused us no end of worry. However, he has the biggest heart and will do anything for Teen 2, and neither of us would get rid of him.

We would get another like a shot :D
 
Mine is the most fantastic little ginger mare. Got her as a 4 yo in November having raced 27 times and let down for a few months to chill out in a field and chill out she certainly did- she is safe in all situations when I'm on board and never really puts a hoof wrong (touch wood frantically!).

We started completely from scratch. Took her out to her first walk and trot test after about 6 weeks. Obviously thought she was going racing as came out of the lorry in a muck sweat but chilled out as soon as we got there. Competing and going to competitions/ warm up arena's hasn't phased her. Dressage white boards, SJ fillers and XC jumps have all been taken on her stride. She's been placed every time out unaff dressage, won at unaff SJ and been placed at a BE80 eventing at only her second ODE. I'm hoping to build on everything over the winter and start eventing her properly next season.

It's not all smooth sailing though and anyone who says it is is lying. You need to be experienced and have a hell of a lot of time and patience. As someone has said before, having an ex racer is not as simple as starting a normal youngster- they've picked up every habit in the book and getting them to forget these is not easy. I'm an experienced rider yet I've had weekly lessons, both on the flat and jumping and have never been afraid to ask for help and advice.

She's slightly more manic on the ground though. Can get silly in the stable if her neighbour leaves her etc etc but not when I'm on her.

She's the only ex racer I've had so I have nothing to compare her to but from my experience so far, I'd definitely have another.
 
toomanyhorses26 said:
I love my ex racers - given me a lot of great times and also a lot of heart ache. QUOTE]

This for me, ex racehorses are my absolute favourite horse, I love my horse to bits and do a fair bit of racehorse retraining BUT they are such heartbreakers, mine is likely to retire, aged 10, (I bought him as a rising 5yo) his retraining was not a problem, he is well conformed and moves/jumps like a dream but he was diagnosed with KS last year, explained a lot, that was ok, came out of the other side of that, then he was diagnosed with navicular, heartbroken :(

I think if luck is on your side they are the BEST horses but you do need a LOT of luck!
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Thank you for all your replies :). Keep them coming.
Re choosing the right ex racer, how did you choose/come across yours? Did you take an instructor with you? Did you just have a feeling that would be the right horse? How did you go about choosing your ex racer, when especially there are so many available nowadays?
 
there are just so many variables, you cannot generalise. some will change completely out of racing, others will remain much the same and it takes a clever eye to work out prior to purchase.

i think conformation and brain play more of a part, than how long they raced-Fig ran 28 times over 3 diff countries and 5 years, and is much easier to deal with than CS, who ran 4 times over 2 years!

They will both go to the ends of the earth, the diff being fig always wants to do it FOR you, CS needs a bit more encouragement/reminding to stick to his side of the contract and he will then go to the ends of the earth, as long as i go too! They are both very complex little horses in their own ways:
Fig may be a super loving, keen little bean but he is HOT, and would get very worried if his rider wasnt able to ride quietly off their seat and keep his confidence up.
CS is more idle but quirky in a nappy/sharp way.............he's spent the past 4 years not really interested in being my *mate*, albeit thats changing a bit now and i feel we have more of a bond.

I think you need to be very clear in what you will and wont accept/compromise on/work around, in a worst case scenario and you must not expect them to change shape, brain and attitude just because now you want them to do a diff job!
Unless you KNOW they hack alone, jump etc, you need to be aware that you might have to give up on some things in order to re-train the areas that REALLY matter. I know loads of ex racers that do everything, happily, safely and soundly, but equally plenty that are really not in any way straightforward and need very specific handling/riding.

dont get all romantic over them, keep your eyes open and use your brain! we looked at a LOT of them, and rejected a LOT when looking for fig-dont be swayed by a pretty head or the idea that you can change the world, you probably cant (generic you, no slur on the OP).

ETA, specifically Fig is now competing elem (soon to make his medium debut) and schooling adv/towards PSG. He hacks, jumps a little and is generally a lovely cuddly try hard chap.
CS is competing PSG,schooling all the GP work. He hacks a bit now but isnt massively safe and wont jump at all.

They are both hard as nails, never sick or sorry and are gems to wash/trim/catch/clip etc.
 
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I found mine on Horsemart. I was looking for an ex racer and she was advertised. I got her from an ex jockey with connections with Newmarket who buys sound racers to sell on.

I did take a very experienced friend (who's also my trainer and yard owner) with me. Saw her on the Friday, fell in love with her (even though chesnut isn't my ideal colour for a horse), went to see a gelding the next day but knew the little chesnut mare was the right one and bought her- picked her up a couple of days later.

As PS says though, there are so many variables, you definitely cannot generalise them as a certain 'type', they're all so different. Mine is very affectionate and I do think we bonded quite quickly. She is very attached to me but not in a bad way- she tries her hardest with everything you ask of her and doesn't get wound up/ stressed if you ask more of her. You can put a bit of pressure on and she will just try harder, she won't throw her toys out of the pram like some can.

When I got her I was very conscious of keeping the discipline instilled in her, not to try and be soft to try and make myself her best friend as she wouldn't have been used to it but she's a real affectionate girl and has become a real cuddler as well as being as bold as brass to ride and as brave as anything. She really relishes having one owner rather than just being one of the pack.
 
Tbh to the person who said that if anyone says they are easy that is a lie. Bringing my current one on WAS easy. He is the easiest horse I have had! However the one before that was a little tricky. My mums had two and one was 8 out of racing and again he was as easy as pie, the 2nd one had a few issues and he did take a bit of unravelling.
You just cannot generalise they are all so different! I chose mine on gut instinct. He was scrawney, stiff and cheeky.. he was a non entity bit of scrappy fluff but I loved him the moment I saw him. Got him home wondering what on earth I was doing taking on another 4yr old ex racer when the previous one had not been easy.
However from the moment he stepped off the lorry it was like I had died and gone to heaven, he was an absolute pleasure. First day I rode him he had not been ridden for weeks and he didn't put a foot wrong. Went out hacking the next day with friends and he was perfect. We hit the ground running with clear rounds straight away, placings BD, RC, clinics. Only 2nd time XC I took him BE and he went clear. Of course it hasn't been perfect all the time, he isn't a machine and he is a blood horse but I have had him 4 years and I can count on one hand the times I wasn't happy.
I think it helps that we are the right match. He makes me smile everyday. He is a powerful, beautiful, athletic horse now but he is always on my side, always wants to please and I don't thinkyou can put a price on that :).
 
theres easy and theres easy though, work wise CS has been easy to school/work/train-been doing tempis since a 5yo and is now 8yo and doing all the GP work. The only thing he struggles with is the piaffe (and how many horses find that really genuinely easy!)
he's probably given me a bit of an unrealistic view of just how easy it is to school a horse to this level TBH, but in terms of staying on top of him-easy he aint!

ive had nice easy going, super safe warmbloods that were gutless and thick and impossible to teach anything to quickly, id rather have CS than safe but stupid, but again it all depends on where your ambition lies :)
 
I bought my first TB 10 years ago, he came off the track at 9 and did 60 odd races.

He was a NIGHTMARE! My mother begged me to sell him as she was convinced he was going to kill me, luckily of course he didn't but it took a lot of blood sweat and tears to re-train him. One of his biggest issues (there was many) was loading and unfortunately we never solved it enough to be able to compete although resolved all the rest! It may or may not be connected to his racing career but at 19 we now just hack out and pop the odd jump.

He's the apple of my eye and I adore him, there's something special about re-training them yourself and we have a great bond. Would I do it again? My honest answer is no, I put a hell of a lot of hard work into him and the loading issue devastated me, from that point he wasn't the right horse for me anymore but as I said that bond was too strong to sell him. I did however buy another TB that had never raced it always amazes me how much easier she is compared to him. You may argue it's his character (which he has oodles of) rather than the racing career that made him the quirky horse he is, luckily I love him regardless!

He started to slow down at around 15/16 and in the last year has a sharer that came to me as a virtual novice, I take great pride in all the things he has taught her and how well she is progressing in her riding and stable management. I taught him and now he's teaching her, very rewarding.

Enough of my waffling! To sum it up for me I would aim for a younger or failed racer, look at the breeding and research. (Mines strong as an ox but defiantly has the stubborn personality connected to his sire.)

Anyways hope that helps :)
 
ceecee-just on the loading, mine was also a complete git as a 4yo, would stop about 5 foot from the ramp and run backwards rearing and boxing if you pushed him.

we solved it by moving him side to side, making inches of progress forward until he was close enough you could pick up one front leg and put it on the edge of the ramp(so he knew where it was), we then blindfolded him with a towel.......................he would walk straight up, and i would whip it off just as he go to the top so he could see to step up and turn.

had to do that for nearly a year but now he loads like a pro 99% of the time and if he does ever stick, just the sight of a towel has him walzting up the ramp lol.

he was never scared, just nappy and awkward.
 
Prince33Sp4rkle said:
ceecee-just on the loading, mine was also a complete git as a 4yo, would stop about 5 foot from the ramp and run backwards rearing and boxing if you pushed him.

we solved it by moving him side to side, making inches of progress forward until he was close enough you could pick up one front leg and put it on the edge of the ramp(so he knew where it was), we then blindfolded him with a towel.......................he would walk straight up, and i would whip it off just as he go to the top so he could see to step up and turn.

had to do that for nearly a year but now he loads like a pro 99% of the time and if he does ever stick, just the sight of a towel has him walzting up the ramp lol.

he was never scared, just nappy and awkward.
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Thanks for the tip prince33sp4rkle :)

You name I've tried it, some things work for a time and then he wises up and that trick will never work again, the crunch for me was when he had to be boarded overnight after not loading to go home. Fine if you 5 miles from home but not if you're 30! I had numerous pros work on him (not to mention the "physics" and massagers, pure desperation!) and again would work for a time and then he'd point blank refuse (too clever and stubborn for his own good!), for the safety of him, me and anyone else involved it was better to call it a day, he's getting on a bit now and although it would be nice to take him to the odd fun ride, his competition days have been and gone.

I'm lucky enough to have a lovely TB mare who loads herself, she was very confused to why I was crying and the round of applause from friends and family when we took her to her first show!
 
One thing about buying an ex racehorse is they have been handled properly by people who don't mess about....I have never known a racehorse who wouldn't load and if your horse had raced 60 times then of course he did !
 
bonny said:
One thing about buying an ex racehorse is they have been handled properly by people who don't mess about....I have never known a racehorse who wouldn't load and if your horse had raced 60 times then of course he did !
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I absolutely agree, they got him there somehow. Although i'm not quite sure what you mean by people who don't mess around?

I won't hijack this thread as to the ins and outs of why he doesn't HAPPILY load, he's in a forever loving home and that's the important thing.
 
bonny said:
One thing about buying an ex racehorse is they have been handled properly by people who don't mess about....I have never known a racehorse who wouldn't load and if your horse had raced 60 times then of course he did !
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this is true, but not many people have a loading bay and upteen sets of hands to encourage/bully said horse on to the lorry like they do on race yards (i have seen horses virtually carried on by a group of blokes).
if the horse raced 60 times he must have been half decent thus worth a bit of a scrum to get him loaded, mine ran 4 times and was last/last/pulled up/pulled up and then they gave up, so its not like he just decided not to load for me, he was awkward as buggery to get in the stalls (and to get out!) so id bet money he was awkward for them to load too.
i dont fanny and faff around mine either but the only way was a blindfold.
 
As PS/FW says they are all different and once they are in a diff environment some change and some don't! It's a bit like generalising cobs as all being ploddy (OH's cob is defo not that...)
I bought mine by semi-accident as he was a real confidence giver when I hopped on board after trying something else in the same yard (had my confidence shaken a lot prior to this). He wasn't what I was looking for and I ummmed and ahhed, but his nature sold it to me. He isn't always easy - sometimes he can be an absolute darling to handle and other times he will an absolute nightmare. What I love about him is that is he is clever and when in work is quick to learn and thrives on praise, plus he has a cheeky character :D

He is can be accident prone but has managed to learn how to avoid some of them recently and I have also learnt alot along the way. He is much better with something to do, the boyo is no good being bored - that doesn't mean ridden work, just 'something to learn and do'. He has taught a great deal about patience thats for sure!!!
 
Thank you so much for all your replies. There's just so much variation between everyone's experiences and it's great to read! Again purely out of curiosity where would you say are the best places to buy them? Straight off the track from the racing yards, or from a private seller that buys and sells on the likes of sound ex racers that were too slow/not appropriate for racing?
 
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