BBC SPORT | OTHER SPORTS | Dubai dreamin'

Racehorse trainer Luke Dace works 15 hours a day, seven days a week and has not had a day off in six months - BBC Sport Online's Matt Slater went to his stables to ask why he does it.

The farthest Sussex-based trainer Luke Dace has taken a horse to race so far is up the M40 to Wolverhampton.

But what sustains Dace during those dawn starts at the stables are dreams of an all-expenses paid trip to race at the millionaires row of horse racing, far away Dubai.

In the meantime, Dace has his sights set on the Boxing Day meeting at Towcester, where he hopes to pick up his second win as a trainer.

Dace brushes down Broguestown Boy
"I have had a run of seconds, so I need a break, that little something, to get the win," Dace said.

"Winning pays the bills and attracts owners, which enables you to buy better horses. And in this game you are only as strong as your horses.

Contacts and favours

Dace, who started out as a stable lad, turned his hand to training in 1996 when his opportunities as a jockey began to dry up.

With no family fortune or generous benefactor to lean on, Dace had to look for bargains in racing's equivalent of the Rymans League.

"Although I had contacts from my days as a jockey, nobody owed me any favours," he said.

"When one of the top jockeys moves into training he can normally count on someone giving him �70,000 to buy a horse. I had �200 for my first horse."

You can earn �250 a week at Tesco. Why would anyone want to be a stable lad for less with only a day and a half off in 14?

Luke Dace

From those bargain-bucket beginnings, Dace has now built a stable of 14 horses - the pick of them being an Irish grey called Keltic Heritage.

Having built a reputation for finding quality amongst cast-offs, Dace was given �30,000 to spend on Keltic Heritage. An outlay he is hoping to recoup soon.

Having impressed in two point-to-point races - normally a good indication of a horse's class - Keltic Heritage is a solid prospect, but Dace knows that is only part of the equation.

Racing Bible

"Preparing the horse is only part of my job," Dace said. "As well as all the work at the gallops, I have to think two months in advance to find races and jockeys."

That means hours spent poring over the Racing Post - horse racing's timetable, parish newsletter and tip sheet rolled into one - and countless phone calls to owners, jockey's agents and race course officials.

Luke puts one of his charges through its paces
"Finding the right races is vital. Of course, you are always going to get owners who just want to race at Cheltenham and the big meetings," he said.

"But you just have to be sensible. There is no point entering a race to be embarrassed."

Having selected the right race, Dace must then choose the right jockey.

"I know my horses the same way you might know your best friend," he said.

Money pit

"I know what makes them tick, what they respond to and what they don't.

"So if they're timid or aggressive, tall or short, I can match them up with a jockey."

What all these parts of the racehorse trainer job specification have in common is money. Racing requires barn fulls of the stuff.

Luke with his Irish grey Keltic Heritage
Dace's main outgoings are the rent for his yard, feed - a horse will munch through �4 worth of hay a day - wood shavings for the gallops and tack (riding equipment).

As well as these essentials, there are plenty of other bills to pay so a good relationship with the horses' owners is vital.

"Yes, money is a problem," said Dace. "But I do this because I love it. Very few people make their fortune from training.

Bottom line

"Asking owners or potential owners for money is not something I do well. Some trainers do, but I'm just not very comfortable about it.

"I prefer to let my work speak for itself. If you do something well people will hear about it through word of mouth. That is how I have found all of my backing."

Dace, however, is not the only person in the racing industry who has to worry about the bottom line.

I know my horses the same way you might know your best friend

Luke Dace

Despite the huge amounts of money that slosh around racing's higher reaches - flamboyant jockey Frankie Dettori has won �3m in prize money alone - far too little trickles down to the grass roots.

And for a sport that has recently been the subject of a feverish television rights battle, horse racing's finances are decidedly 19th century.

"Racing in this country is the best in the world," said Dace.

"If you ride, train or own a winner here you have the instant respect of racing people all over the world. But we do have real problems."

Poor returns

For Dace, the chief of those are finding staff and prize money.

"Nowadays, you can earn �250 a week working at Tesco. Why would anyone want to be a stable lad for less with only a day and a half off in 14?

Luke at work on the gallops
"I would love to pay more, but I can't afford to."

The issue of wages at racing's lower rungs is related to the other main problem Dace identified, prize money.

"We have the best horses, jockeys and courses, but prize money in England just isn't big enough. You can earn more racing in Germany.

"The top jockies and bookies do very well, but everyone else struggles."

The big three bookmakers - Coral, William Hill and Ladbrokes - still make 70% of their multi-million pound profits from racing. But Dace is not betting on them to plough more of those profits back into the sport anytime soon.

In the meantime, Dace will keep looking for those all-important winners in the hope that they may bring his ticket to the Dubai big leagues.


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