20 years on still looking to future

And Nicky

NICKY RICHARDS is in ebullient mood. His yard is banging in the winners, he has a team of lovely young horses waiting to be unleashed and he has his eye on the big Saturday prizes.

Nestling amidst the beautiful Cumbrian fells, Richards has recently completed 20 years as a trainer.

He has continued the legacy of his famous father Gordon – known as “The Boss” – who is buried in the corner of the churchyard overlooking the famous stables in the village of Greystoke. The two decades have flown by and it has been a rollercoaster of of a ride for Nicky, 62.

His father trained the peerless One Man, winner of the Queen Mother Champion Chase, Hennessy Gold Cup and the last northern-trained horse to win the King George VI Chase – and he did it twice.

Nicky’s best horse was also a flying grey, Monet’s Garden, winner of the Grade One Ascot Chase on two occasions, but who recently passed away.

Monet’s Garden was the flagbearer, both for Nicky and northern racing as a whole, and there have been plenty of other highlights among more than 800 winners and £5m-plus in prize money.

But the yard has had to cope with circumstances beyond its control. The foot-and-mouth crisis of

2001 was devastating; the

post-2008 financial crash catastrophic.

However, very much in the mould of his toughas-teak father, Nicky has had enough fire in his belly to “get on with it”.

“We were down to 35 horses after the recession and I even knocked down a few boxes,” recalls Nicky. But when asked if he ever consider packing it in, he barks: “My second name is Richards. Father was a very hard man and he put a bit of fire into me. You buckle down and get on with the job.”

Nicky’s yard lost about 50 horses after the financial downturn. He could no longer rely on the patronage of “great men” like Duncan Davidson, David Stevenson from Ashleybank Investments and Sir Robert Ogden.

Nicky, who is about as hands-on as you can get and rides out every day, says: “Most of the owners were absolutely fantastic supporters of northern racing and I think it was their moment to get out of National Hunt racing. Everything moves on. With those owners I had financial power at the sales, which I suddenly didn’t have.

“So we had to change our model. We used to go to France and buy a few ready-made horses which we stopped doing as we did not have the financial muscle.

“We went back to how father used to do it and bought unbroken three-year-olds and it seems to have worked. You have to train them the old-fashioned way and send them through the bumper, hurdle, chasing route.

“You need lots of patience. But you can buy a horse for £30k and turn it into a

£200k horse if you’re lucky. We have done that a few times.”

Nicky did buckle down and is now enjoying a resurgence in fortunes. His 75 boxes are pretty much full and he recently had seven winners in a week, a feat he had never previously achieved. The future is bright at Greystoke.

And although those heady days of the late

1970s and early 1980s when northern trainers dominated jump racing are unlikely to return, there is a slow but sure revival in the fortunes of the north.

Resurgence

“There are some good trainers in the north and I’m one of them!” says Nicky. “There are some younger trainers keeping me on my toes too. The main thing in this job is to keep training winners – and good quality winners.”

Another sign that his resurgence is complete was Rich Ricci – owner of Faugheen, Douvan, Min and Annie Power – sending a horse to Greystoke. Wilhelm Vonvester may have disappointed his trainer on his debut but it was a huge moment for the whole yard.

“It was absolutely magnificent for myself and my staff for Mr Ricci to send a horse here. It is a great gesture and I hope one or two other of those larger owners can support the north.”

While Monet’s Garden death has left a huge hole at Greystoke, the search for a horse as good will go on. Guitar Pete, Baywing and the exciting Reivers Lad will warm the hearts of the Greystoke staff during the cold, dark winter nights. And there is plenty of other young talent waiting to be unleashed.

“I have about 15 bumper horses to come out yet. I’ve got some nice ones.”

Two of the unraced youngsters, Glenduff and Marown, are owned by Trevor Hemmings, a stalwart supporter of jump racing in the north. Nicky trained Hemmings’ Turpin Green to finish third in the 2007 Cheltenham Gold Cup behind the great Kauto Star.

“Mr Hemmings was nearly doing backflips when Turpin Green was third. Four days later he rang me and I thought, ‘what have I done wrong?’ He said, ‘Mr Richards, we’re going to win the Gold Cup one day.”

That dream will remain – as long as the legend of Greystoke lives on…