When groom driver Brian Taylor won the Tribute category at last year’s Godolphin Thoroughbred Industry Awards, it was not just recognition of his 40-year role, but also the important but invisible role played by this small group is not done. Both on the ground and at 35,000 feet. When racehorses are flown somewhere, the people who know them well fly them on ordinary planes, often at a cost of millions of pounds, transferred to professional flying horses like Taylor to fly them. As the horses move, the flying carriage becomes an essential cog in the wheel and can make the difference between victory and defeat. A good flight doesn’t necessarily make a horse faster, but some seem to look good on their rides. A bad flight can cost you a race.
Like those competing in the 41st Breeders’ Cup in Del Mar, California, the 12-hour flight was the first hurdle for all 44 European riders and 80 international horses who had signed up to compete against the Americans this weekend. It ended with total sales of $34 million. “The stables were open and you could stand there and see the heads of 45 horses looking out,” Taylor explains. “The problem was that sometimes someone would come out. Now the covered stables and stables for the guards have been developed and made habitable.
“When I started, planes were demonic. “You almost froze to death.”
“When I started, planes were the devil. You will freeze to death. One came off on the flight back from Australia and it was just a minor scratch.
“Modern airplanes are great. You can control the temperature and the air flow, but the problem is that since it’s a cargo plane, there’s no room for people, and the number of people flying has to be cut in half. There are seven people and two veterinarians taking 38 horses to San Diego for the Breeders’ Cup.Horses have been flying for nearly a century. In 1928, a racehorse named Wirt G Bowman flew 500 miles north of San Diego to race in San Bruno, California. The next step was the first transcontinental flight by horse from New York to California in 1946. In the same year, the first transatlantic flight on horseback took place from Ireland to California. It was a grueling 24-hour trip on a two-stop DC-4.
Horses were generally thought to have done well on the first transcontinental journey, but John McCabe, a flight engineer who later pioneered horse transport, thought otherwise. “It was a disaster,” he told the Thoroughbred Record in 1981, before revealing that he saw a future for horse travel. “No one knew what to do, no one felt horses, no one knew how to carry a horse, no one knew how to handle a horse. It was just bad business.”A professional flying groom was needed to take care of the horses, so to speak, and over time Taylor gained a lot of respect in the field. If his name sounds familiar, it’s because his father Brian won the 1974 Derby, beating Snow Knight at 50-1.
Taylor, 59, said: “I always wanted to be a jockey, like all jockeys’ sons, but I was 12 years older than him and although I rode horses, I didn’t have his talent,” says Taylor, 59 years old. . “But I grew up. Until I was 16, I thought everyone had a sauna at home!Taylor was on a breeding course for the stallion at Newmarket when his father, who was on his final contract in Hong Kong before retiring, collapsed and died at the end of a race.
“We found out he died via teletext,” recalls Taylor, who works for Lac Grayer, a thoroughbred stockbroker. “Two minutes later there was a knock on the door and Johnny Winter (the late Newmarket manager) came and spoke to me. “I was 19 and wanted to quit racing, so I started selling my house. It didn’t last long. I then met Robin Wakelam, one of the best Parisian grooms in the area, in the city center, who asked me to help him. “I was surprised to see that I could handle a horse at an auction.”Someone hands you a piece and says it’s fruitcake, but as the plane’s engine starts, it calms down.Taylor is now one of the best and most experienced flying bulls in the world, a sure couple in a flight full of fit, often nervous and high-value breeding horses.
“They fly in jet compartments on pallets that have been developed over many years, just like the interior of a modern truck,” he explains. “You can have three, two or one. They look forward or backward. If you let it fly, it will fall. “Probably the most difficult thing is to film and re-film. The jet carrier is placed on the aircraft using a hydraulic lift, just like regular cargo. It appears slightly to the side as we climb. Once it clogs, it starts to sink. “Sometimes someone gives you a colt and says it’s a fruitcake, but as soon as the plane engine starts, it calms down. “The funny thing is, if someone says it won’t be a problem, it usually won’t be a problem.”Horses ride on hay racks and feed under the guidance of their trainers. Otherwise, you could miss two or three meals during a 12-hour flight. It is very important to stay healthy and hydrated. Water regularly and monitor water intake.
“Horses can get motion sickness even in trucks, so the temperature and airflow are regulated,” adds Taylor. “A good environment with low head and plenty of moisture is essential. Our main goal is to keep the horses and our two vets on the flight stress-free.”In the 1978 film “International Velvet”, there is a scene where a horse runs wild and has to be shot. “That’s not happening.” Taylor said, rolling her eyes. “They had assassins with them, but they never used them. If someone panics, it’s important to stay calm around them. The trick is to catch it before it happens. Sometimes people panic on airplanes, and sometimes horses panic too. A comforting presence is probably a good thing for both of you. “I have sedatives with me in case the worst happens, but I haven’t sedated any of my 10 horses in five years. “That’s not possible when you’re racing, but when you’re charging you can tell when there’s a problem.”
“Since Brexit, I can’t put Irish or French horses like British, even if they’re on the same flight.
“Like many international trips, there are many bureaucracy in same areas. “I will sort all the plans, I decide where the horses go,” said Taylor. “Mares and stallions have to be separated, and since Brexit, you can’t put Irish or French horses on the same pallet as British horses, even if they’re on the same plane. And you have to use a different truck at the end.
“I recently brought two horses to Canada, one French and one English. They had to be transported to the track in separate containers and then transported on separate trucks. It was stupid, but we were able to combine them easily. Then there will be an English castle at Del Mar, and another for the Irish and the French.”
In Del Mar, Taylor isn’t just waiting for her flight home from a week ago. He lends a hand to the little one, gets him gear, helps him on race day and shares his knowledge with first-time overseas brides and grooms. “I‘ve made a career carrying buckets,” he jokes. “
But it will be a European team. It’s very cool. All the boys help each other, cover their horses and ride each other.
“It takes a certain type of horse that can fly for 15 hours, be quarantined for 48 hours and then compete in the race of a lifetime,” he added. “I flew here and there with my Ouija board and he always fell asleep during the flight. “When we first brought him to the Irish Oaks, they were a bit worried about him. They decided to bring a guide, but I wasn’t ready for that. Ironically, we had to appease him. Strange situation.
“I saw an elephant from a plane 40 years ago. But I don’t fly them , They’re just on the plane. These days you can often see fruit and vegetables, flowers, cars, jet engines and horses for Tesco. It’s just luggage, not a cardboard box that can be left in a warehouse for two days. As Valentine’s Day approaches, flowers are everywhere. you don’t believe
“The city of Troy will get on the plane, but if all goes well, one of Aidan’s [O’Brien] boys will take care of it. The Breeders’ Cup is my favorite competition. We (Great Britain and Ireland) have had success but have yet to win a Classic. “I made him the toast of New York, and if the city of Troy wins, I’ll take him,” he said.
