How did you get into racehorse ownership?

I got involved with a few friends at first and then went on to breeding for the flat. I now breed to race and hope to build up some broodmares.

What was your best day at the races and why?

Dundalk, and our first winner with a group of friends a long time ago stands out but there have been many.

The Galway Festival is always a highlight for me every year.

Our winner last Monday with Miss Amulet at Naas was special. Even though we were not at the races, watching it at home with the kids was just as exciting.

What is the biggest drawback about being a racehorse owner?

The biggest drawback would be the costs and fees involved in owning a horse. And of course when things don’t work out for whatever reason.

Flat or jump racing, which do you prefer and why?

I like both but everything I have is aimed at the flat because you have a global market for those horses.

What qualities do you look for in a trainer?

Honesty is the most important thing for me. I think every horse owner is an optimist and we all think we have the next superstar but you need a trainer who will tell you straight how good or bad they think your horse is and after that you can make the right decision.

How do you think the current crisis will impact on racing in general and on ownership in particular?

This crisis is something none of us has seen before and it is having an effect right across the industry. Prize money is down and a lot of the sales had to be postponed and so on.

I think smaller owners will be more cautious about making any new purchases which will have an effect on everyone down the line.

In saying that, when we all get over this and can go racing again, I feel it will bounce back.

What significance do your colours hold?

I am a proud Meath man so green and yellow are my colours.

When buying a horse, what do you look for?

Good pedigree, a correct individual. We are always looking for an early type two-year-old and if it’s a filly we would be looking at how she would fit for us as a broodmare after her racing career.

I always engage Mick Donohoe from BBA when purchasing; he has a good eye for picking them and they are a big help to me right across the board.

What horses do you currently have in training?

I have a nice selection in training and pre-training all at different stages.

Miss Amulet is a Sir Prancealot filly trained by Ken Condon and Ken also has a Starspangledbanner of mine.

I have two Foootstepsinthesands, a filly (Majestic Steps) and a colt (True Conviction) with Johnny Murtagh.

Conor Hoban, who makes a great job of breaking and pre-training all our young stock, has two Iffraaj colts in pre-training at the moment and is very happy with them.

Using Connor to break and prep our horses for training is a big help. He gives us a very good read on what we have at an early stage.

What’s next on the agenda for your horses?

Miss Amulet is our most exciting prospect so far this year and, after winning her stakes race last Monday in Naas, we are looking at stepping her up again. (Listed Arqana Irish EBF Marwell Stakes.

Ken had mentioned the Lowther Stakes (York) or something like that so hopefully that will work out. He has picked them well so far so I will leave it up to him and we have nothing to lose with her and we will keep pressing on.

Johnny has my two Footstepsinthesand and we would be hoping to get a race for the Footsteps filly soon.

As I mentioned, we are always looking to add to our broodmare band so getting form into our fillies is important for us.

Have you any horses to look forward to? (i.e. young/unbroken horses?

I have a good selection of homebred foals and yearlings at home right now and you are always looking forward to seeing them on the track someday.

A few are standouts like a Gleneagles colt and a Mastercraftsman filly I have but they can change that quickly – you just never know.

What advice would you give to someone thinking of becoming a racehorse owner?

I would say get some good advice and ask around when it comes to buying. After that it’s mainly just to enjoy it win, lose or draw.

There are plenty of disappointing days but when you get that winner it makes up for them all.

Colm Griffin was in conversation with Olivia Hamilton.