With love, spirit and determination Lucy Normile negotiates the hurdles of being a horse trainer, finds Graeme Macpherson

LITTLE fish are sweet. It’s a saying that dates back to the 19th century, but Lucy Normile thinks of Arthur Stephenson whenever she hears it. That feels entirely appropriate. Stephenson was a fellow horse trainer and, although he died in 1992, his life motto evidently still resonates with Normile. Little fish are sweet. Small is beautiful. Lesser gifts are always acceptable. Every win has its merits.

It is an ethos that chimes with Normile. Her Duncrievie yard isn’t one of the biggest in the country. It is not even the biggest in Perth and Kinross, situated just some seven miles north of the stables run by last year’s Grand National winning trainer, Lucinda Russell. Size, though, isn’t everything. Not when there is spirit, endeavour and willing in abundance.

All are evident on this bitterly cold December day. Duncrievie, Normile Racing’s base and also home to Lucy and her three children, lies in a remote, tranquil part of Perthshire, adjacent to the village of Glenfarg and its all-weather five-furlong gallop where later that morning a small pack of five or six horses will take the chance to stretch their legs by thundering around the bend and up the hill.

Two go back for a second run at it. From just a few feet away it is quite a spectacle to behold, the twin elements of grace and power operating in perfect tandem, the steam from the horses’ breath lingering in the frozen air. The run-out takes place a few hours later than expected. Not that anyone is working to a particularly tight schedule. Winter’s icy grasp has taken a hold on these parts, meaning work is required first thing to grit the yard to make it safe for animal and human alike. The local vet pays a visit to one poorly creature, while a few of the horses also need to be clipped, their shaggy winter coats shaven to stop them sweating uncomfort- ably. These duties are as important as training the horses for racing.

“There’s probably no such thing as a typical day as something different always comes along like we saw today,” explains Normile. “But ideally it would go as follows: you feed them, you muck them out, we’ll have breakfast and then we’ll ride them out. That’s the broad structure.”

Normile has a small but dedicated staff working with her and all pitch in to help. Some, such as Libby Brodie and Steve Freeman, have been with her for more than 15 years. Family is key, too. Her mum, Fiona Whittaker, owner of the 1978 Grand National winner, Lucius, hovers nearby at one point.

Lucy’s three children are encouraged to muck in too, and all have an interest in horses. Fifteen year-old Ben is an enthusiastic racegoer, while 12-year-old Sophie and eight-year-old Tom are both involved in pony racing.

Living this close to the horses and in such a rural setting, it would be hard to stay detached from it all.

“This has been the family home for a while, so the kids have always just been used to it,” adds Normile who grew up in Duncrievie, too. “And the guys and girls have always got on well with them and looked after them. The kids are involved and enjoy helping out.

“It’s a tough job because it’s 24/7. It could be a Sunday morning, Christmas morning or somebody’s birthday but things still have to be done. Horses don’t just need attention Monday to Friday, 9 to 5. It’s a real way of life rather than a job, especially when you live here.

“Unless you go away you never actually get a break as you might be in the house and then think, ‘actually, I’ll just go and check that’ just because you’re there and you can.”

Normile and her late husband Alan established the yard in 2000. It is a vocation not without its financial challenges, when winners can be scarce but the demands unyielding.

“Financially it’s always been a bit of a struggle,” she admits. “But you keep doing it as you always think your next big Saturday horse is just around the corner. You’re keen to see how good they can be and the promise of what lies ahead.

“Every time you have a winner you forget about the bad days; the days where your hands are so cold, and it’s raining, and you’ve got horses who have been lame or injured. All those heartaches … the winners just take that away. You forget all the bad bits on those days.”

Age and experience bring a fresh perspective. The younger Normile regularly yielded to an owner’s whim. At 47 and an old hand at this now, it is the animals that take priority. As she flits about from box to box, almost absentmindedly petting one horse and then the next, that becomes abundantly clear.

“The horses’ welfare is completely paramount,” she underlines. “When we were younger we were a bit naïve and owners would maybe take advantage of that. They’d want their horse to run in a certain race and we’d say, ‘well, it’s not really ideal’. And then they would mention that it’s granny’s 150th birthday and the whole family will be there, and you would go against your better judgment and go along with it.

“Now we just tell them the horses come first. And if they don’t like it there are enough people who will train for them everywhere else. Maybe that’s not always the smartest answer from a business point of view but I don’t want to come in here and see horses that are injured because we ran them on the wrong ground or they weren’t ready.

“That doesn’t do anyone any good. And if an owner is going to take his horses away he’s going to do that regardless. But we tell everyone: ‘the horses come first.’”

That attitude is part of the appeal for Craig McKenna. The managing partner of Crowd Racing, a syndicate management organisation, McKenna