Multiple Ownership Groups

A friend asked about an opportunity he was offered to join a racehorse group where multiple owners have a small portion of horses, and a managing partner makes decisions. I've offered quite a bit of insight on these groups on this website already. I generally suggest these groups be avoided unless your investment in the group is irrelevant, and you are simply looking for a good time. (Kind of like throwing money in a slot machine.)

If you want education on ownership most of it is very superficial with multiple ownership groups. Trainers really don't want to spend any time with a whole group of small percentage owners, and they simply BS the uninformed. Shaking hands with a few jockeys and backside tours teaches you nothing about "effective" racehorse ownership. Consistently losing between 20% to 100% of your money annually teaches you nothing about ownership economics. My 3 year old grandson and a decision dartboard can teach anyone how to lose money, and claiming pretty cheap horses which you drop down in class to try to get a win picture on your wall is plain silly. Even worse, disposing of those horses for much less than you paid for them, "does nothing for the horse", unless you think it is somehow noble to upset the animal by changing stables a couple more time during it's career because of you! It does even less for you as an owner.

Of course these groups abound and I have been approached by many over the years. Even the top end nationally public groups claim great wins, but you never see their complete stable profit metrics, and all the losers that went into gettting that one or two big winners. I even had one once try to get me and some other executive into a horse for $200,000. The horse did win one race, but was eventually retired, so the owners were told. Everyone lost 100% of their money......except for the managing partners who took their fees every month for doing such a great job!

Simply stay clear of these groups unless you investment is irrelevant. If you are in Minnesota and want to be educated on how to be an "effective" owner, let me know. I'll give you all the help I can, introduce you to honest people, show you how to detect the "knuckleheads in racing" who don't know what they don't know (and they are everywhere), dispell some of the myths you've been told, and you can be my guest in the paddock and the backside. I'll do it all for free. Why? Because I love racing but I hate the BS perpetuated by numbskulls, which only hurts willing new owners by eventually disillusioning them.

Racing needs to honestly nurture new owners and people interested in racing by sheltering them from the unaccomplished, the bull shitters and charlatans. Today racing churns through good people and then they wonder why interest, breeding, foal volume, handle, revenues and consumer interest continues to decline. A pity to say the least. 

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