Editor’s note: Tickets for the 2015 Breeders’ Cup, which will be held for the first time at Keeneland Race Course this year, go on sale today. The Lexington track is already getting ready for the big event. And halfway around the world, so are possible contenders. Freelance writer Tanya J. Tyler traveled to Dubai with Commerce Lexington in October, and as part of the trip received a special invitation to tour the Zabeel Racing Stables of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, as well as Meydan Racecourse. Here, she shares some of her observations.
By Tanya J. Tyler
Special to NKyTribune
The Breeders’ Cup always attracts horses that race and train in other countries, such as those at Zabeel Racing Stables in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. In the shadow of the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world, trainer Satish Seemar preps a lineup of Thoroughbreds that belong to Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
Seemar is a top trainer in the UAE, having been a four-time champion trainer there. He has been at Zabeel for 23 years, practically from its beginning, but he has strong Kentucky ties. He worked for several different organizations when he was in the Bluegrass, including Taylor Made Farm, learning the ins and outs of racing, training and equine psychology.
“Good years, good times in Lexington,” he said.
But he has made a home and a name for himself in Dubai and is proud of Zabeel, a top-notch equine establishment. Currently there are 150 head in training there, including some horses from Europe and some from the United States.
The facility’s 200 acres are immaculate. Sheikh Mohammed al Maktoum’s wife, Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein, also keeps her Arabian horses on site. The grounds include a 9-furlong (1 1/8-mile) track and a 100-meter pool where the horses swim after their daily exercise. All the barns are air conditioned and there are outdoor stalls as well; after all, Dubai is built out of the desert. It takes some time for horses to get used to the change in environment.
“American hoses need to be here three months before they race to acclimate,” Seemar said. “European horses acclimate better. We work hard to acclimatize the horses. Their feeding changes due to the heat and humidity. It takes 10 to 12 days for a horse’s body and system to adjust.”
A carefully planned, individualized nutrition program further helps the horses by providing necessary nutrients and replenishing the electrolytes they sometimes lose. Probably the only drawback at Zabeel is the lack of good grazing grass, such as one finds at Keeneland, but special hay imported from Washington state more than compensates, he said.
The horses live and train in a spa-like environment. This includes a whirlpool bath where they receive a daily 30-minute treatment in sea salt water.
“The spa helps the wear and tear,” Seemar said.
Stellar racing showcase
Not far from Zabeel Stables in Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum City is a facility that has soared from humble beginnings as a camel-racing venue to become a stellar showcase for world-class racing. Meydan Racecourse is a jewel in the desert.
The first Thoroughbred race meet in Dubai was hosted at the Camel Track in October 1981. In early 1992 the Dubai Racing Club was established, but it would be several years before Meydan became the center of racing in the UAE.
“In 2005, Meydan was not even in the picture,” said Frank Gabriel, vice president of racing at the Dubai Racing Club. He was formerly vice president of racing at Arlington Park in Chicago and racing secretary at Belmont Park in New York.
“We had a meeting about starting a racetrack in 2006,” Gabriel said. “We started building Meydan in 2008 and opened in 2010.”
Now the track is home to the world’s richest horse race, the Dubai World Cup, and boasts features not often seen at American racetracks. Attached to it is the Meydan Hotel, the world’s first five-star trackside hotel, with 280 suites all facing the track.
The grandstand at Meydan is as long as the Burj Khalifa is tall. The track is a mile and a half in circumference, like Belmont Park. But Meydan’s turf course is on the outer part of the track, and the dirt course is inside it. Since many of the horses that race at Meydan often travel to the United States to compete, the track is an American oval rather than a European triangle.
When Meydan was built, it had a synthetic Tapeta surface. But because several American tracks – such as Keeneland – have reverted to a dirt track from a synthetic track, Meydan is now in the process of replacing the Tapeta surface with dirt. This is a nod for the horses who might try their hoofs at racing in the States, so they can get used to running on a natural dirt surface.
Many well-known American horses have done well at Meydan, including Dubai World Cup winners Cigar, Roses in May, Silver Charm, Curlin and Animal Kingdom.
Many people make the pilgrimage at least once to spend a day at the races during Keeneland’s spring and fall meets. But Gabriel says the turnout for Meydan’s meet, which runs from November through March, rivals even Keeneland’s.
“We offer free admission, so we get 65,000 people nightly and 80,000 for World Cup Day,” he said. “The World Cup is a sporting event like Oscar night. Everybody dresses up.”
And to top it off, Meydan attracts the numbers even though gambling and alcohol are not part of the package. Dubai, remember, is a Muslim country, and gambling and drinking are prohibited.
“We also have concerts and exhibitions here,” Gabriel said. “This is a great meeting place. There are suites on the third through seventh floors and premium seating galleries.”
The sheikh’s box is especially ornate, with gold accents and high-backed upholstered seats.
Meydan is magnificent, but no doubt Keeneland will hold its own when it stages the 2015 Breeders’ Cup races. Seemar, an honorary Kentucky Colonel, knows who has the final say about racing anywhere in the world.
“It all starts in Kentucky and ends in Kentucky,” he said.