Trainer Jonathan Sheppard sensed his horse He’s A Conniver was in a bad position on the first lap of Sunday’s second steeplechase race at the Saratoga Race Course open house.
He’s a little too close to the lead, Sheppard said as He’s A Conniver sat in second place. `The pace is very slow, though.`
Sheppard’s concern didn’t fade after He’s A Conniver moved into a comfortable lead as the seven-horse field completed the first of two-and-a-quarter laps on the inner turf course. Sure enough, a group of four horses rallied from behind on the backstretch and passed He’s A Conniver. More Fascination managed to pull out the victory by a nose over Most Bossest, while He’s A Conniver wound up fifth.
Sheppard’s disappointment over his horse’s performance was tempered by his excitement over the way the race ended. `That was a great finish,` he said.
The 66-year-old Sheppard has seen his share of great finishes in his Hall of Fame horse training career. And while not all of them worked in his favor, he accepts every outcome.
`You have to be able to have the type of personality to deal with disappointments especially with steeplechase racing,` he said.
Sheppard has not had a lot of disappointments in his 43-year career. As a steeplechase trainer, his horses have helped him top the earnings list 23 times, including 18 consecutive years between 1973 and 1990. Six of his horses have been National/Eclipse steeplechase champions, including four-time champion Flatterer (1983-86). He’s won 12 New York Turf Riders Cup titles at Saratoga and three Breeders’ Cup steeplechase titles. The Saratoga meet opens Wednesday.
`I guess you could say there’s a lot of different ingredients that make up the whole,` said Sheppard. `(Finding good horses) is certainly one of them, but you also need a good team around you. You need good jockeys, and you need an owner who has very deep pockets.`
Sheppard has also had success with thoroughbreds. He has saddled numerous graded stakes winners, and he was the leading trainer at Saratoga in 1984 and 1985.
`Back then, the meet was shorter, and you had fewer races,` said Sheppard. `In fact, I don’t think I had more than 10 winners in any meet here, both steeplechase and flat (racers).`
Sheppard grew up in a family that was involved in horse racing. His father was a racing official in Great Britain, and at a young age, Sheppard expressed an interest in being a jockey.
`I wanted to be a flat course jockey, but I was too big for that,` said Sheppard. `So, I turned to riding steeplechase horses.`
Sheppard moved to the United States in the early 1960s and rode for legendary steeplechase trainer Burley Cocks for two years. Then, Sheppard started training his own steeplechase horses. His first horse, Haffaday, posted several wins in its career including a victory in the 1966 Maryland Hunt Club ` one of the biggest traditional steeplechase races in the United States.
`Not only was (Haffaday) my first horse and my first winner, he was my first big winner,` said Sheppard. `He helped put me on the map.`
It was the only time Sheppard won the Maryland Hunt Club, but it spawned a career that is still going strong today. He currently ranks third among steeplechase trainers in victories and second in money earned this season.
Sheppard said the secret to turning a horse into a champion steeplechaser is getting to know its personality before trying to teach it technique.
`You have to know your horse before you can train it so you know what you have to do,` said Sheppard. `If it’s the type of horse that requires positive reinforcement, you have to pat it on the behind and say it’s doing a good job.`
How quickly a horse learns how to handle the jumps that come along with a steeplechase course is not always an indicator of how quickly it develops into a champion, said Sheppard.
`Sometimes I’ve found that the ones that have a tough time early on turn out to be the better ones,` he said.
Sheppard is hoping to bring some more championship-caliber horses to the six-week Saratoga meet.
`I think (racing at Saratoga is) an opportunity for us to showcase our sport in front of a group of people who don’t get to usually watch it,` said Sheppard. `It’s sort of the highlight of the year, really.`
Any additional winners would be just another feather in Jonathan Sheppard’s cap. He’s already achieved more than he thought was possible.“