Andrew Nienaber and Paschendale (photo: Andrew Watkins)
Luck. It’s a funny thing. We’re either in luck or having a bad run of it. Gary Player famously said “The harder I work, the luckier I get” and Oprah Winfrey feels that “luck is preparation meeting opportunity”. In racing, they say it’s better to be lucky than good. Whichever way you feel about it, one person who has been incredibly lucky is Andrew Nienaber, the young Cape jockey who has been in Dubai caretaking Variety Club through his international campaign.
Andrew had always dreamed of Dubai and when he got there, on the back of Variety Club in a manner of speaking, he vowed to make the most of it. “I was there as a work rider for Variety Club, not as a race rider and the chances of getting rides was pretty small as each stable has their own stable jockey, but I really wanted to get my papers. If someone asked me if I could ride I wanted to be able to say yes.” And so he did. Despite a crammed programme looking after the de Kock string, Andrew used his days off to ride work for other people. And it paid off. Basil Ferreira’s wife is an assistant at the Al Muhairi yard, she put in a good word and Andrew got a ride. It didn’t look like much on paper – the horse was a 7yo, coming off a 280 day rest, lugging top weight and the yard had 2 other runners to boot, but Andrew grabbed the opportunity with both hands. And when Paschendale carried him to a 3 length victory, on his very first race ride, on the track he’d been dreaming about all his life, well, it was a sight to see !
Andrew is back in Cape Town for a brief visit and I managed to pin the busy young man down for a quick chat about Dubai, dreams coming true and his plans for the future.
Working in Dubai
I landed on the 5th of December, and basically started work the next day. Things were obviously already going by the time I got there, so there was a lot for me to take in. Working as a jockey in South Africa and then going there to do that is almost like going back to the Academy. But if the Academy can be considered school, then Dubai is like University! You help with the horses and around the yard wherever you can obviously. It’s much more hands on and you do a lot of the work yourself – brushing down, saddling up, warming up, taking horses to the track, working them, bring them back, untacking and washing down and then you start again with the next horse. One never stops learning about horses obviously, but the team was fantastic – always happy to help and to take the time to explain and teach things. You absorb so much without even realising.
The facilities are fantastic. Things are well thought out, and it’s very horse and user friendly. There are tunnels underneath the racecourse for horses to get to track and on course. They’re always looking after the place, everything is done nicely and properly. There are lots of normal, local trainers who race at all the other meetings. The Carnival just makes it exciting because you get to see all the other horses from around the world. The Carnival horses stay in a massive international quarantine area – they use on the main track early in the morning and then the local horses work after them. It’s really well organised.
Riding in Dubai
Aerial view of Meydan
Meydan is a breath-taking racecourse. It’s really big, but for World Cup night, it needs to be that size – it’s a really spectacular event. The grass track is very well looked after and is probably the best grass track I’ve ever ridden on, which is weird when you think it’s in a desert. Some people don’t like the dirt track, but the temperature makes a big difference and it’s better when it’s warm.
It was amazing riding on the different courses. I rode at Meydan, Jebel Ali, Abu Dhabi and Al Ain. There are generally only 6 races on a card, so it goes quick, but getting to talk to and ride with different jocks from around the world is an experience that can’t be bought. I met people like James Doyle, Richard Mullen and Richard Hughes. I got to ride with Christophe at work and see the way he worked with horses. He’s a big name obviously, but it’s nice to meet the guy and understand his thinking and get to know him a little bit. He’s an unbelievable horseman and it’s nice to work with guys like that and to race against them. He’s quite a friendly guy and quite prepared to help and tell you things.
I ended up having 28 rides for the season in total of which about 50% were Arabs and 50% Thbs. I had a bit of success on the Arabs – I never had any winners, but ran 3rd and 5th in 2 different Gr3’s and a whole bunch of places and I also rode some places on Thbs. I rode Paschendale again on his next start and we came 3rd. He broke down at the track later on. That was very heart sore and probably the low point of the trip. He was one of the nicest horses of my career for what he’d meant and done for me. You have to understand that it’s part of the job and what we do, but it’s still very hard.
Dream come true
Andrew and Variety Club
I look at the whole thing as a journey and it’s been like a fairytale. Variety Club is such a professional and it makes the job so much easier when the horse works with you rather than against you. That first race that he won I was pretty confident. That second one, we knew he was well, but there was a bit of doubt. Maybe he did hit a flat spot, but the filly that beat him is an out and out dirt specialist and she’s a really good horse. Obviously it’s upsetting because you want to win every race, but you know you can’t and one has to remember that that wasn’t the goal. In the end, it all went to plan. I knew he was spot on when I worked him the week before the Godolphin mile. Normally he relaxes and I canter him around that track, but that day he cantered ME around the track and I thought ‘now he’s stepped up to the plate’. In the actual race, Capital Attraction was supposed to lead, but missed the break and I saw Variety Club get to the front and then switch off and that was it. I was shouting ‘Come on Variety!’ all the way to the line. I was standing next to Stephen Jupp and he was telling me “he’s won, he’s won” but I just kept shouting. There really were tears of joy. I can’t explain it. It was a feeling of mission accomplished. I don’t think there’s a greater feeling of all that work coming together and paying off. All that blood, sweat and tears. For Joey and the whole team. It was surreal.
I was asked to go with Variety Club to Hong Kong, but I’ve been offered a job in Dubai with the Al Muhairi yard. Obviously it wasn’t a very easy decision – I could either follow the greatest horse I’ve ever worked with or work on my own career. I spoke to Derek and said I’d love to go with him, but I’ve been offered a good opportunity and I’ve got to take it. They’re only too glad to see me improve in my career and happy that we achieved what we set out to do. So I had to say goodbye to Variety Club when I left. He will be leaving for Hong Kong shortly and then on to the UK, I think.
Moving on
A lot of the horses are taken out of work now and get a bit of a holiday and go sit out on a farm, which is actually quite nice. You prep from July to October and then racing starts again in November. Things only get going there again in July because of the heat, so I’ll head back over in early July.
I’ve been offered a permanent job as a work rider for the Al Muhairi yard, but it will be mornings only, so I’ll get to race as well. I’ll get to freelance and hopefully be their second string jockey. They’ve got a about 100 horses which is quite a big string and they’re a nice yard to ride for. It’s a good opportunity for me and obviously I’ll be making the most of it. You go through a 2 or 3 month probation and then qualify for a permanent visa which runs for about 3 years at a time and then basically you can get a bit more settled.
The riding fees are very similar to South Africa. You get about 500 Dirams a ride and an average handicap is worth about 70 or 80k Dirams, with riders getting 10% of wins and places. It’s about the same as in South Africa, but times 3 because of the exchange rate. And they supply you with just about everything other than food – housing and transfers to and from work, so basically most things are paid for. So you may not be riding as many times as you might be elsewhere, but you can earn a decent living. And they’re increasing the amount of racing. I think there were 54 or 56 meetings over the past season and after opening Al Ain they’re planning on having more.
I want to carry on building on the foundation I started these last few months and build a successful racing career over there. I’m quite determined to get there as well. I’ve had good friends and good support there which made my stay there a lot easier and helped with getting things done. As they say, it’s not what you know, it’s who you know. It’s not always a bad thing! Some people have your best interests at heart and I’m really grateful for the help.
Proudly South African
Having names like Joey and Mr de Kock behind me helps a lot. I’ve never considered myself particularly patriotic, but having been there and had that experience, I’m really proud to be able to fly the flag and say that South Africa kicks ass ! We have a good name over there and I think that’s largely thanks to Mr De Kock. Not just us, but our horses too.
A prophet is honoured everywhere except in his own hometown
Do you know that Barbara Sanne has bred 2 Dubai World Cup runners? That’s huge! We were discussing it one evening and Mike says it’s sad that there’s no real recognition for something like that back home. It’s the biggest race in the world and she’s someone who’s achieved the pinnacle of breeding. There should be more credit where credit is due. Something like that should be much more exposed to the public so that people can benefit from the success that they’ve achieved.
Moving forward
‘Always cast your hook’
I’ve got a few things to sort out here before I go back. I realised I haven’t had a break from racing since I broke my wrist in my 4th year so I’m just taking it easy and having a holiday. I know when I go back it’s head down and there will be serious work to be done. I’m looking forward to it.”
As Andrew is famously fond of fishing, I will finish off with a quote from Ovid. “Luck affects everything; let your hook always be cast; in the stream where you least expect it, there will be a fish.”
