Small Owner-Breeder-Trainer Focus - Steve Blackwell

2022 UK Season Preview - Small Owner-Breeder-Trainer Focus Steve Blackwell

Aloof (GB) with Steve Blackwell and Aljawaaher (FR)

© Debbie Burt

Based in Lewistown, near Bridgend in South Wales, Steve Blackwell keeps his Arabians on the small holding he has developed with his partner Rachel Thomas and been racing and then breeding them since 2014.

Despite not coming from an equestrian background, Blackwell has been involved with racing for most of his life. He showed an interest in horses from about 4 or 5 years old, nagging his father to buy him a pony, but was always told it was too expensive. Then when he was about 10, his father gave in, getting a 13.2hh thoroughbred pony in lieu of a debt.

Blackwell laughs saying: “It put me in hospital four times, so after that he realised he didn’t really want to kill me and he should get me a more sensible pony!”

He started pony racing when he was 12, alongside future jockeys like Tyrone Williams. Blackwell continues: “We’d go up to Scotland once a year and we raced a lot round here in the Valleys in Wales. Every week, my mum used to drive me around on a Saturday (to be fair she had no choice), and off we’d go. I’d often have four or five rides a day. I briefly went to (thoroughbred trainer) Ian Balding’s at Kingsclere, but I didn’t think that was much fun to be honest and was pleased to leave.

“However I carried on pony racing and then during the holidays when I was just 15, I went to Guy Harwoods in Pulborough in 1975. I’d not been attending much school, and I never really came home after that. The school knew and I think they were happy to see the back of me to be honest.”

In the 1970s, Harwood had developed his Coombelands stable to become one of the most modern in Britain, introducing such innovations as artificial gallops, American-style barns and a computerised office system. Whilst Blackwell was there, Harwood had horses such as the Prix Jean Prat Group 1 winner Young Generation in his care, and the youngster got to back many of the later to be well-known thoroughbreds when they arrived as yearlings.

“Because I’d been pony racing, which was rather frowned upon in those days, I went with Guy Harwood to Portman Square to get my licence issued and with him doing all the talking, it was fine. My first winner came at Brighton, not long after I got my apprentice licence, but I was always going to be too big to take it much further, though I did ride one of their better horses that year in the November Handicap at Doncaster. It was the good horses that I rode at home that stood out more than the winners I rode really.”

George, Steve and his brother Paul, a long-time supporter of Blackwell's varied racing career, in the paddock at Chepstow to watch Aljawaaher run

© Debbie Burt

Aljawaaher (FR) keeps watch from the stables

© Debbie Burt

Blackwell also possessed other ring skills, becoming British Stable Staff Boxing Champion in 1977. He says: “I struggled with my weight because of that and in the end I left. I came home and did other things, but when I was 24 I decided I’d have a go over jumps, as I could still claim until I was 25. I went back to Harwoods to get fit and get back into it and worked with Chris Reed, who had ridden for Guy Harwood over jumps. I got on with him really well and went to Peter Cundell’s just outside of Newbury for a spell as a conditional jockey. I had a few good outside rides, including getting placed on one for Martin Pipe, but it I was never going to get anywhere with it, so I stopped.”

“I was kept busy with a young family and business commitments, but horse were never far from my mind so, I was back at the Jockey Club again, asking for an amateur licence in my late 20’s. As I’d had a few winners under rules, I got turned down, but kept on at them and eventually my amateurs licence arrived in the post, out of the blue. So I rode out for Richard Lee. We got on really well and he gave me some great rides as an amateur, it was a pleasure to go there. I rode in point-topoints and a few hunter chases. Later I had a few pointers of my own and we had a syndicate with Craig Roberts, a Newport trainer, having a great time with horses like Picot De Say.”

Reviewing his riding career on thoroughbreds, whilst he may not have broken any records, it’s clear Blackwell has recorded a few interesting milestones along the way, some good, some bad, as he says: “In all I rode 2 winners on the flat, 2 over jumps, 2 winners hunter chasing and about 70 in point-to-points. Highlights were riding a hunter chase winner at Cheltenham and I rode a fourtimer at Teme Valley point-to-pointing. I also broke my back twice. I rode in the All Weather hurdles trials at Southwell along with Steve Smith-Eccles, and I was one of the first jockeys to ride on a Sunday, when the rules were relaxed in the UK.

George Blackwell and Spirited Game (GB) to go post before winning at Royal Windsor

© Debbie Burt

Blackwell’s progression from thoroughbreds to Arabians started with his son, as he explains: “George wanted to learn to ride. So we got him started and then one day he fell off and I laughed - which I shouldn’t have done, as then he didn’t want to ride anymore. After about two years he decided he wanted to have another go, but I’d had to call in a few favours to get him into the last riding school, so I said if he wanted to try again, it would have to be on one of the racehorses I had in the syndicate. Fair play to him, he did, he never moaned or complained, and he helped out in the yard and did everything. Then we got a racing pony for him and had a bit of fun with that.

“From the pony and riding out the racehorses, he progressed to racing Arabians. I knew Delyth Thomas from my own pony racing days, she’s just down the road from us, so we took George there a few times to ride and then bought Spirited Game from a place up in Cheshire. She’d been backed, but not done anything really. She’d originally been part of the Sheikh Mohammed dispersal, her dam Keen Game had been trained by Bill Smith to win three races for him.

“We didn’t know if she was any good or not, she wasn’t at all keen to go forward in the beginning, but when the penny dropped with her she was fine.”

In their first season together, George and Spirited Game won over a mile at Windsor, rallying well under pressure to gain him the ‘Ride of the Season’ award.

She also as placed three times which earned Spirited Game the UK Owned Mares Championship and a free cover to Kahayla Classic winner, Seraphin Du Paon. From her 18 starts, she was ridden in all bar two of them by George (the other two by Blackwell senior), and along with that win, was placed six times from 6 furlongs to 1m1f.

In 2016 Blackwell purchased a six-year-old gelding, Aljawaaher from Shadwell, with him taking over from Spirited Game when she was retired to stud in 2017. Aljawaaher and George were third to a subsequent Group 2PA winner in the opening premier handicap on Dubai Day, but with George heading off to be a conditional jockey with Tim Vaughan, Blackwell was back in the saddle. They made the frame again on UK Arabian racing’s premier day, this time in the closing handicap, having slipped down the ratings as increasing years had blunted his speed.

However, true to his own life experience, Blackwell has been keen to use ‘Alan’ as he’s known at home, to support young riders, whether they be amateurs, licenced apprentices or conditionals.

“Alan has paid his way most years, he’s a proper gentlemen, but he’s a bit lazy and looks after himself and he’ll always need his first run. He came close to winning a decent prize at Lingfield, in the Sheikh Mansoor Festival apprentice race, but the jockey was too inexperienced, he should have kept going and we got beaten a neck.

Keith Moriarty and Aljawaaher (FR) just get beaten on the line in the HH Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak Apprentice series race at Lingfield Park

© Debbie Burt

George Blackwell, Rachel Thomas, Aljawaaher and Steve Blackwell after finishing third at Dubai International Arabian Races

© Debbie Burt

“I like to support the young riders and Aljawaaher is perfect for that. I made enough mistakes when I was riding that I can understand what went wrong and explain it to them, in what would be a less pressured situation, than when riding thoroughbreds.

“Daniel Ellis rode him last season, but he’ll be best sticking to point-to-points, so I’ve got another young amateur who’s hopefully going to ride for me when he can, Lewis Saunders, who is attached to Tim Vaughan. He rode Aloof for me at Wolverhampton last year and gave her a good ride. I know Joshua Bryan, he’s an apprentice who also rode her last year and there’s another lad we might use if he’s free, so we’ve got plenty of options.”

With Aljawaaher well into the veteran stage, Blackwell is realistic about the 13- year-olds’ chances saying: “We’re keeping him going at the moment so we’ve something to work with our homebred fillies, he’s the perfect lead horse. If next year Aloof’s going well, he’ll be retired and Aloof can work with Sassy.”

Aloof is the product of Spirited Game’s winning cover from Seraphin Du Paon, and though a first foal, is certainly not on the small side and always seemed last season, as if she’d be better this year.

Spirited Game (GB) and her daughter Sassy (GB)

© Debbie Burt

“She looks the part now, she’s come well in her coat and her mind is growing up, but we won’t know til we run her. I would imagine she’ll want a 1m to 1m2f trip, but it’s difficult to know just where we are with her, as we don’t have a huge range of horses to work her with, but I’m aiming to run her at Brighton.”

His three-year-old filly, Sassy, resulted from another free cover, brought about by Al Shahania’s generous worldwide offer of their HH The Amir Sword winning Amer son, Assy, when he first retired to stud.

“Aloof has lots of bone, Sassy is lighter. She had a little setback, but we’re about three weeks away from getting her back into work. Even if she doesn’t race this year, she needs to get going again, as she’s starting to get a bit heavy on top, but if all goes well there’s a chance she might be out at the end of the season.”

Blackwell doesn’t rule out breeding again from Spirited Game, but laughing he says: “We needs to see if what she’s produced is any good, there’s no point in breeding rubbish.”

Given that Spirited Game is a half-sister to the Group 1PA placed Mehdaaf Athbah, to the dual UK PA Group winner Bayan Athbah and to that stable’s most likely UK Derby runner, Mlatem Athbah, all of which are by Amer, or Amer sons, the prospects look good. Particularly for Sassy.

Aloof (GB) and Aljawaaher (FR) enjoying their Sunday down-time in the outdoor school

© Debbie Burt

T H E A R A B I A N R A C E H O R S E - Spring 2022