STORE SELLERS Norman Williamson (pictured right) with children Josh and Carla. Norman returned to the saddle for a charity race at Punchestown in 2017 which he won
When it comes to prepping, Mark takes each horse individually. “They’re all different and some need more time than others. We’re looking now at the three-year-olds who’ll be sold in the spring. The majority have a 10-week prep, others might need 12 to 14 weeks. As yearlings, we fetch them in and do a bit of lunging, so they’ve done some work. They’re still young and immature and you can only do so much.” It may be a gentle approach with the horses, but for Mark himself there is no taking it slowly. His is a year-round business and he’s on the go straight after the short Christmas break. “I’m flying out to America in the morning,” he tells us, in early November. “I’ll be looking at foals. Then I’ll be back for the Goffs Foal Sale and finish up in Newmarket. I’ll be living from a suitcase for the next month, then we’ll have the horses back in after Christmas and will be getting them ready.” He’s a great believer in allowing them to simply be horses and in giving them as much turn out time as possible. “We like to get them out all the time, at least for an hour or two on a daily basis when they’re being prepped; it makes them easier to deal with. It’s a bit of a risk when they’re so full of themselves, but it does them good.” The team at Oaks Farm is vital. “I’m very handson, so when I’m away I need to have people who are capable of doing the same things I can. My daughter is here and I have another girl who has been with us for many years. It’s important to have stability with staff and know-how, but we’ll spend a lot of time teaching new staff, too. If they’re keen enough, they soon pick it up.” By the time of the sale anything up to three years’ planning has gone into it. “If we have something by a flat sire with plenty of stamina in the pedigree and a big, good-looking horse then our focus is on the Land Rover Sale. It’s a sale that has come on leaps and bounds in the past few years. I would say there are probably more fouryear-old winners coming out of the Land Rover Sale than elsewhere.”
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NORMAN WILLIAMSON, OAK TREE FARM Another Cheltenham hero is Norman Williamson, who retired from the saddle in 2003 following 30 Grade 1 wins as a jockey, taking over Oak Tree Farm in Athboy with his wife Janet. “I first started with store horses while I was still riding, I had a few horses with Mark Dwyer to begin with and when I packed up riding I just got more involved. When you’re involved in jump racing you never leave it. “Buying National Hunt horses as foals, it was a bit of a wait. I started with three or four and every year gradually built up, to 15-18 now. Not having the numbers to start with, we were just really lucky and it’s working well. “I learned a lot from the people I hung around with while I was riding, especially my father-in-law Timmy Hyde, and Eddie O’Leary. I suppose what we’re all looking for is a nice horse with a fashionable sire and a nice pedigree.” Norman has been lucky with those he has bought, “Maybe it’s a bit small or not right on the day and people have walked past it. You can buy cheaply and it might make money two years later. I’ve probably walked past loads that have made money later for someone else.” It isn’t all down to luck, though, and judgement counts for a lot. “I’ll forgive a lot of things, there’s a lot of time for them to develop and come right, although things can go wrong, too,” he acknowledges. “But they have to have good movement, in a National Hunt horse that’s very important. They’re going to be galloping over long distances and jumping. “I wouldn’t forgive any horse back at the knee and the most important thing I’m looking for is athleticism and a bit of size, especially when you’re selling to the point-to-point buyers and pinhookers; they like a good sized horse.” Norman has done more selling with Goffs than buying and has been very lucky in that respect. Oscar Whisky went on to be a multiple Grade 1 winner and he sold the winners of the last two Goffs Land Rover Bumpers in Vision Des Flos and Couer De Lion, not to mention Three Musketeers and Noble Endeavour. “Out of the small numbers I’ve had, the good horses have all sold at Goffs,” he says. “It’s very important for anyone selling horses to have winners. “When buying foals, pedigree-wise I’ll have a sale in mind. With the Land Rover Sale people bought horses to win the Land Rover Bumper, but now it’s
Norman Williamson
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