Cumbrian racehorse trainer Lizzie Quinlan is gearing up to take a team of horses to Cartmel races this weekend.
“We don’t normally have three or four wagons going to one meeting – but we do at Cartmel. It takes a lot of organizing and logistics with horses and staff,” says Lizzie who runs the Bolton Mill stable near Appleby.
“We look forward to racing at Cartmel every year and we have a nice team ready.”
Racing at Cartmel Racecourse is a family tradition for Lizzie with the third generation now keen attendees. Her mother Barbara Butterworth had horses win at Cartmel and Lizzie remembers playing on the famous racecourse funfair. Her own daughters – Sophia, three, and Isla, two – now love to go too. Her husband, jockey Sean Quinlan, will also be there riding her horses.
Lizzie has already notched up successes at Cartmel this season. “City Derby has won his last two at Cartmel, he loves it there, he comes to life round Cartmel,” she says. “He is a big horse but he’s very balanced in all of his paces and I think that helps him on the course. He just loves it.”
Racing at Cartmel is on Saturday 20 and Monday 22 July with a DJ set by Vernon Kay after racing on the Saturday.
City Derby, or Jerry as he is known in the yard, may run in the popular Cumbria Crystal Cup on the Saturday. “He is in great form,” said Lizzie. “He is the nicest horse you could ever wish to meet, lovely to ride, lovely to deal with and he always tries his heart out.”
Lizzie has been making an impact since launching as a fully-fledged racehorse trainer 21 months ago when she took over from her mother. While Barabara had operated with a permit for many years training her own horses, Lizzie took out a dual-purpose training licence so she can train horses for other owners.
She currently has 22 horses in the yard for 14 different owners, most being National Hunt horses plus a couple of flat racers. “It was a huge step going from having all our own horses and doing it
as a hobby to turning it into a business,” says Lizzie. The move included an investment in the yard including a new circular gallop, arena and schooling facilities.
“I’m really enjoying it and learning on a daily basis,” she says. “We are into a nice routine, we have a great team and have some lovely horses.”
Highlights so far included Getaway Luv who was Lizzie’s first winner, at Catterick, and winning the feature race the Bobby Renton at Wetherby. Also, stable stalwart Snowed In winning his final start
last year. “He retired as he crossed the line, I made that decision,” says Lizzie. “He’s still here and he leads the youngsters, he’s on the gallops and hacks round the roads.”
Among the current stars is Heritier. “He has been brilliant for us he finished second in the Go North Series at Carlisle,” says Lizzie. “Restandbethankful is another who has been brilliant for us. But my best one hasn’t run yet,” she says cryptically. “He will be out towards
the end of October.”
Her plan is to expand to have around 30 quality horses. “I don’t have any aspiration to go huge. We turn all of our horses out every day and can do things the bigger yards can’t. They get
individual attention and all the attention they need.
“They thrive on being turned out. It makes them so happy and settled and they are all very relaxed. All of our staff treat the horses like they are their own, and welfare is paramount.
“We have a relaxed atmosphere. We know every horse inside out. If anything is not right, we know right away.”
The team includes jockeys Sean and Peter Kavanagh who also lives on site.“Our staff are all local and all brilliant,” says Lizzie. “They are all show riders or eventers.”
Among Lizzie’s candidates for Cartmel races next weekend are Restandbethankful who finished second last time out there; Elogio, Ange Endormi who won at Cartmel last season and Minella Youngy.
“We run what we can run at Cartmel. There could be some others as well,” she says. Racing at Cartmel, and horses, are in the blood. She says: “A lot of years ago I can remember wanting to go on the funfair at Cartmel races and I can remember the old winners’ enclosure. Mum had winners around there and there are pictures in the kitchen.
“Our girls now love to go and watch daddy and mummy’s horses. Cartmel has a lovely atmosphere and they look after you really well. We love going and supporting them.
“They have a very good clerk of the course James Armstrong. I can remember Lord Cavendish for lots of years, he always makes a lot of time to speak to everyone. “I could ride before I could walk,” says Lizzie.
“I used to ride my Shetland pony everywhere, even into the house. “The girls have ponies now and are very keen. The youngster wants to be out first thing in the morning with the horses and off with her Shetland up to the gallops.”
Cartmel’s Racing Director Geraldine McKay said: “Our local trainers are the lifeblood of Cartmel races and I am always delighted to see them here, supporting our race programme and our place serving racing in the North.”
