1.         Introduction

The Scottish & Northern Ex Racehorse Club is a non profit organisation whose aims are:

·        To promote responsible re-homing of ex racehorses;

·        To offer emergency homes to ex racehorses;

·        To provide guidance and assistance to ex racehorse owners and prospective owners;

The Club’s patrons are top Scottish trainers Peter Monteith and Lucinda Russell and Champion Jockey Peter Scudamore.  We achieve our objectives in a number of ways and hope the following will give you a good feel for what we are all about.

2.         Promoting the responsible re-homing of ex racehorses

The Club organises various events to promote the versatility of ex racehorses and we work hard to dispel the undeserved poor reputation these horses have. 

Many ex racehorses go to inexperienced homes because they are cheap or even free.  In inexperienced hands they can become very difficult because the owner’s lack of experience creates a downward spiral of failing confidence for both horse and rider.  We will cover this more in the guidance and assistance section.

3.         Parades and talks

We organise parades and talks to show what can be achieved with ex racehorses.  The parades are a very useful medium for advising exactly what is involved in taking on an ex racehorse, and the level of commitment required to make the partnership a happy success. 

In our work we have met a number of people have given an ex racehorse a home out of a desire to ‘rescue’ them with the best of intentions but their lack of experience or suitable facilities have resulted in a loss of confidence for the owner and the horses gaining a reputation for being difficult.  The horses often end up being passed on from home to home.  It is so sad when this happens because it is not the fault of the horse or the owners who take these horses with the best of intentions. 

By giving informed talks at the parades we can make people aware of the highs and lows of ex racehorse ownership, the level of skills and knowledge required and help them to make a fully informed decision rather than one based purely on emotion and good intentions.

Here is an example of some of the parades and talks we have given to promote ‘responsible’ re-homing and ownership of ex racehorses.

·        Racecourses in Scotland and The North of England

·        BHS equine extravaganza at The Scottish National Equestrian Centre

·        Contour events equine fair at the Royal Highland Centre

·        Thirlestane Horse Trials

·        Hopetoun Horse Trials

The parades have been a huge success in promoting ex racehorses and, equally as important, ensuring potential owners assess their own ability to give an ex racehorse a permanent home.

The parades also show the versatility of ex race-horses.  Not only do they make great show jumpers, dessage divas and brave cross country horses they can also retrain to the sheer elegance of side saddle, not something one would normally associate with ex racehorses because of the temperament and discipline needed to do this.

	Liz Kettle and Coeur Du Lion Competing side- saddle at the 2008 festival of the ex racerhose at Thirlestane Horse Trials where they won best turned out.

4.         Showing Classes and Best Ex Racehorse Awards

In addition to the parades and talks we work with riding clubs, county shows etc to host ScotNorth in hand and ridden ex racehorse classes or to award highest placed ex racehorse rosettes in mixed classes such as dressage, show jumping, hunter trials and endurance/pleasure riding.

The judging criteria for our showing classes is very different from normal classes as any blemishes from racing (such as bowed tendons, fired legs, capped hocks or big knees) are ignored by the judge. 

Any tack, including running martingales, and any type of bit is allowed.  We understand that some horses are no longer ‘snaffle  mouthed’ and may need extra brakes and steering!  The judging criteria takes into account the horse and rider partnership and how ‘relaxed’ the horse is in whatever attire it is wearing.

 Similarly, because horses are not judged on how ‘clean’ their legs are, brushing and over-reach boots are allowed for owners who are concerned about their horse’s legs.

Our classes are very well attended and attract a lot of attention from the spectators at shows.

The highlights of our showing season are the ScotNorth Festival and Championship Show. Clive Storey presenting the 2008 Festival winners, held at Thirlestane Horse trials, with a beautiful bronze trophy donated by top Scottish trainer Peter Monteith.  The class was won by Amanda Creedon and Skipper’s Cleuch. 

The 2009 Festival was held as part of the Hopetoun One Day Event and was judged by Champion Jockey Peter Scudamore and top Scottish trainer Lucinda Russell.  The event was sponsored by top Scottish owners Ray and Anita Green and Ashleybank Investments.  This reflects the hard work undertaken by the Club to encourage racehorse trainers and owners to take an active role and interest in the future of the horses once they leave their care.  

The 2009 Masterclass was won by Victoria Clarkson and the stunning Glen Tanar.

The 2010 Festival will be at Hendersyde Park Horse Trials.

As well as ridden showing classes we also host In Hand classes to encourage people who are

not quite ready to ride at shows to still come along and take part. 

For many ex racehorses shows are so similar to going racing that for the first few times it is best to show them in hand and then just ride them around the show to get them used to not having the galloping element !!

We hold In Hand championships as well as ridden ones because just as much effort goes into producing horses for none ridden classes, and we want to encourage participation at all levels. 

The one over-riding thing every spectator takes away from these shows is the obvious bond between horse and owner, the pride shown by both horse and handler and the labour of love to get there.

Owning an ex racehorse is special and something to be proud of.

We also award ‘Best Ex Racehorse’ rosettes at many shows.  This encourages our members to try other things as well as the ex racehorse classes and helps us to achieve one or our aims which is to encourage ex racehorse owners to try everything!

Show jumping is becoming more popular.  Teaching an ex racehorse to show jump can take a lot of time, effort and patience.  Whilst they bravely galloped over hurdles and fences teaching them to lift over poles, rather than through them, can take a lot of work!     

5.         Clinics and Training

A key element of our support for owners is to organise clinics and training, where possible with the top instructors available.  We have organised clinics with:

·        Les Smith, Olympic coach

·        David Gatherer, one of Scotland’s top eventers

·        Peter Gunn, Top County Judge and ex jockey

·        Caroline Powell, Olympic team member

The series of flat, jumping and eventing clinics with Caroline Powell (New Zealand 2008 Olympic Equestrienne and one of the top eventers in the word) was a great success and attracted over 20 participants over the 3 weekends.  This is a reflection of the demand for the kind of training that we can organise.

This reflects the standing of the Club in the equestrian community and the support from top riders for what we are doing.  The clinics give access to the best support and experience that our members would not be able to gain by themselves.  The Club does not charge any extra for clinics to raise funds and we are often able to negotiate reduced rates with the instructors.

6.         Points Series and Special Awards

In order to recognise the efforts of our members, and to encourage them to take part in the various events we organise, we run a points series which consists of

·        Overall points champion

·        Best Veteran (for horses aged 14 and over)

·        Best Dressage (for horses that earned the most points in this discipline)

·        Best jumping (for horses that earned the most points in this discipline)

·        Best endurance/long distance

Points are awarded not only for being placed, but also just for taking part, and for attending clinics, parades and training sessions.

We also make special awards in the following categories, to ensure the club is not just about winning but also about taking part.  The categories are:

Most progress throughout the year

Special achievements

Most ‘selfless’ act

Best support (to recognise those who come and help with events, or provide support to other members)

7.         Why Sponsor ScotNorth?

We appreciate that there are a number of charities out there focussing on the retraining and rehoming of ex racehorses.  However, few of them focus on what happens after the horse leaves their care nor do they provide the level of support to the horse owners, or events to attend that this Club does.

Some of the existing charities, such as the Retraining of Racehorses charity, run a series of shows based mainly in the South of England. 

We have attracted some high level sponsors:

·        Top Spec 

·        Premier Equine International

·        Equikro

·        Scottish & Northern Equestrian

·        Trainers Peter Monteith, Lucinda Russell and Peter Scudamore

·        Owners Mr and Mrs Raymond Anderson green and David Stevenson of Ashleybank Investments

·        Likit

·        Buccleuch Estates

We hope that other businesses will consider sponsoring our classes in order to help give the high level exposure that these horses and their owners deserve.  Sponsors receive a high level of publicity from a number of venues:

·        Links on our website www.scotnorthexracers.co.uk

·        Links on our club forum, where many members visit to discuss various products, goods and services and are always favourable to the businesses that support the club.

·        Names on rosettes and show schedules

·        Named in all publicity material, examples of which are at the end of this document

·        Positive publicity for supporting ex racehorses, which have become increasingly popular over the past few years.

Our sponsors receive a certificate to display, and are very welcome to mention their support for the club in any material.  We are happy to provide photographs of sponsored events to use in publicity material and websites.

We do hope that this comprehensive booklet has given you sufficient information about the club.  However, if you require anything further please do not hesitate to contact us at scotnortherc@aol.co.uk or calling Lisa Hamer (Scotland) on 07742 685370