From Little Things Big Things Grow

MICHAEL COX

How a trip away for four childhood mates led them to a horse of a lifetime ... and started a racing experience that hasn’t ended yet.

Imagine the first horse you buy into wins a black type race at his very first start. It then takes a Group One at three and the Australian Horse of the Year award at four with multiple wins at top level, before being purchased as a stud prospect.

A lot of trainers would tell you that this type of dream scenario for a group of first-timers –while obviously amazing – can only end up in disappointment, after all, where do you go from there?

Well, for a group of high school mates from country Australia, buying a horse of a lifetime at their very first try has since been parlayed into more success and the rollercoaster of racehorse ownership has continued.

For the “Wheninrome” syndicate, made up of four friends from Wodonga, the best part of their success hasn’t been the financial returns – even though they have been substantial.

The biggest rewards have been mostly intangible, as the Wheninrome members stay connected through the common thread of racing.

That first magical foray into ownership for a group that includes a tradie, an accountant and a physiotherapist, was a horse called Dissident, a $210,000 purchase at the 2012 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale that went on to become 2014-15 Horse of the Year.

For owners Ryan McEvoy, Scott Clancy, Colby O’Brien and Brendan Goonan, buying into Dissident was just the start of a whirlwind experience that hasn’t finished yet.

“It was an amazing ride with Dissident, and one that we often look back on. There are some great memories there but it went very quickly,” said McEvoy, whose expertise as Stallions Nominations Manager at Widden Stud has provided the yearling selection guidance for the group.

“We leave the horse decisions to Ryan, we would not know what we are doing” jokes O’Brien, an accountant by day. “He picks the yearlings, and we simply say yes! We haven’t had any disagreements yet. The thing is, unlike an agent, Ryan invests his own money and targets only one horse a year so he places great importance on getting it right’”

Dissident, who McEvoy watched develop at Widden, was certainly an inspired choice. The striking brown colt won five Group Ones in a glittering career and every time he went to the races the build up was intense for the Wheninrome syndicate.

“That’s the best part, the banter in the days leading up to the races is unbelievable...and hilarious” McEvoy said. “Actually, the banter goes on for months before a race.”

“That pre-race chat is all about planning the horses’ programs, the trips we might go on, all of that speculation and hoping it comes through,” O’Brien said. “And yeah, nearly every conversation we have now is about horse racing, which is an interesting turn. We all went to the races before but we have developed a deep passion for racing since we started with Dissident.”

“Career-wise we all went our separate ways after high school, and although we stayed in touch and were great mates, you do lose touch a bit,” McEvoy said. “These experiences have kept us tight as far as friendship goes and that is the best part, to see the enjoyment the guys get out of it. We all have our day-to-day jobs, but when we catch up all we really talk about is racing and breeding. It really is quite cool.”

“It’s the common link between us,” Clancy said. “We are always on the group chat, we nearly always have a horse running and if we don’t then there is another coming into work. We would have always been close but it keeps us talking and our lives intertwined. This has definitely kept us in touch and brought us back to where we were as schoolmates.”

For Clancy, a plumber, a day at the races provides quite a contrast as he changes from his work wear into raceday finery. “One day I was in the trenches digging a hole, and the next day I was in a suit rubbing shoulders with the likes of Peter Moody and some of the world’s best jockeys, just having a yarn with them,” he said.

Even the wives and girlfriends have developed their own keen interest in the sport.

“They might not have been too happy with us getting in a horse to start with but when we got a good one and then we started taking the trips away to the big Group Ones at Randwick and Caulfield, it changed a bit,” Clancy said. “They are claiming it was their idea now. After Dissident we had some points in the bank, and we kept reinvesting.”

“We are having a great time and making the most of it.”

Re-invest they have, with great success.

Twelve months after purchasing Dissident at the Magic Millions, McEvoy & Moody purchased another Sebring colt. Named Ulmann, he has won over $600,000 and is a multiple stakes winner in Melbourne. Now, they have two more exciting talents on the track.

The syndicate’s most recent purchase is Magic Millions graduate Sun City, a son of sire-of-the-moment Zoustar that showed off his potential with a second in the 2018 Listed Maribyrnong Trial Stakes, yet the group’s most exciting prospect is another superstar son of Zoustar.

Zousain, purchased at the 2017 Magic Millions Sale, is a sprinteron-the-rise and his stunning looks, temperament and on-track performances have many comparing him to his exciting sire.

The Chris Waller-trained colt boasts Group One seconds to The Autumn Sun and then went close to emulating Zoustar when second in the Coolmore Stud Stakes.

The name Wheninrome and the idea to get into horse ownership sprang from a bucket list trip across America for the quartet that culminated in a weekend at the Breeders’ Cup in Kentucky.

“It was the catch-cry of the trip, When In Rome, and that decision to get into a horse together has led to this,” McEvoy said.

Despite the instant success, and those concerns that it can’t get any better, it seems like things might just be getting started, especially given the passion Wheninrome’s members bring to the sport.

“I think we all acknowledge that getting a horse like Dissident for a first horse was pretty long odds, so to enjoy the success we have since then is amazing,” McEvoy said. “We are having a great time and making the most of it.”

One of Australian racing’s great strengths is syndication, and the affordability of ownership for the average person, and Wheninrome has taken full advantage, buying smaller shares of high quality acquisitions with bigger spending groups like Qatar Bloodstock.

“I think our experience really highlights that you don’t necessarily need to be a big owner to enjoy success at the top level,” McEvoy said. “We target specific yearlings with a certain criteria and the beauty of the Australian ownership system is that we can form partnerships. We might buy a quarter or half of a nice colt and split that between us. In Australia, you can still enjoy the experience of racing a horse just like anyone else at any level.”