Marginal Gains

HOW DO YOU UNLEASH THE POTENTIAL OF YOUR HORSES?

ERNST OERTEL: MARGINAL GAINS

THE KAHAYLA CLASSIC, A CLASS 1 RACE FOR ARABIAN HORSES IS AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE DUBAI WORLD CUP, AND THE MOST PRESTIGIOUS RACE IN ARABIAN RACING, THE WINNER RECEIVING $1M. CAVALOR HAS HAD THE PRIVILEGE OF INTERVIEWING ONE OF THE MOST SUCCESSFUL ARABIAN RACE HORSE TRAINERS OF ALL TIME, ERNST OERTEL.

His story is a remarkable one of triumph and success, but also hardship and adversity, not least due to an injury in 2013 which led to an above the knee amputation of his left leg. Despite this life changing ordeal, Ernst returned to training and also riding, a unique display of determination and strength which was the focus of the award winning documentary “Leg Up”, in 2017.

Ernst, since the “Leg Up” documentary what have been your highs and lows? I continued to train in Dubai for Khalid Al Nabooda, I achieved Champion trainer for the third time in 2019, and then runner up for the last 2 years. The top moment was when I won the £1m Kahayla Classic in March 2019 with AF Maher, and finished second in the same race last year (2021). Having quality horses is a big factor in the success – I had a reinfection of my leg about 3 years ago. I had to have IV treatment for 6 hours a day. That was quite stressful and I couldn’t wear my leg. I got back in the saddle last year and was back to riding 9 lots per day.

How do you ensure that each horse is fulfilling his potential? I think the main thing is to keep them healthy and sound. A horse is limited to how fast he can run and if they’re healthy they are going to give you their best. If they have a problem I back off. I think the older (and more experienced) you get I think you tend to look after them better – if you don’t give them time, you will wish you had – injuries don’t get better by working them, they get better by rest.

< AF Maher winning the Kahayla Classic – fighting back after being headed at the furlong pole – a true example of a champion beating another champion. Could you give us some insight into your sustained success and longevity? You’ve just got to get on and do things, if you leave things, they build up but if you face them, then it’s like one problem’s gone and there’s one less problem to solve. Consistency is probably my best trait. I like to keep things simple and do things correctly.

What drives you? I like winning! I love the horses, but mainly it’s that I enjoy getting the best out of them. I have a competitive nature, it’s great when you win!

How important is recovery in your approach to training? Horses are like people, some recover quickly after a race and others come back and won’t eat for a couple of days. It all depends on the horse. I ensure horses get plenty of time off. It is very rare that I would want to have a horse back out running the week after a race. We give them electrolytes and I think it’s important that they eat naturally for good recovery.

What have you found most beneficial in terms of feeding strategy for your horses? We have a basic feeding strategy, and I check the horses condition twice a day to assess each horse individually. I keep things consistent because this is easy to manage. It’s about giving them the best quality nutrition and if I identify the need I will give them extra nutritional support. Feeding supplements for the sake of it doesn’t work for me. How do you make sure training schedules are optimized for each horse? To be honest, training on the track is less easy, I don’t enjoy galloping them hard on the flat dirt tracks, I prefer English-style training where you have the open heath like in Newmarket and use of all-weather surfaces, you can train the horses in a variety of ways and use hills to increase the intensity whilst reducing stress on their legs. It’s not as easy here in Dubai, dirt tracks are known to be harder on the horse. I like to keep things low intensity on the track, get them to the Jebel Ali, which has a short hill and then vary things on the treadmill. I tailor the training based on whether they’re sprinters, long distance or if they need to build stamina. I vary things between the dirt track, some hill work (which sadly is limited here in Dubai) and the treadmill. Being able to control exercise on the treadmill is a big help. We do lactate tests on the treadmill and use HRM so I can track recovery rates so I can ensure each horse is being trained optimally. I’ve got quite a good system!

What would you say to anyone who is facing a challenging time? The important thing is to get out there and face your challenges bit by bit. Ignoring the problems only makes them bigger and before you know it you have a problem that is too big to handle. Create a way of tackling things that is simple and where each day can be the same as the day before, something that creates consistency – consistency and persistence are key to success.