‘I Didn’t Want To Die Wondering’ – O’Meara To Go It Alone At The Breeze-Ups

[Wandering Eyes]

Bars and taverns never seem to be lacking in high stool prophets willing to tell anyone who'll listen how they could have or even should have been something they're not. 

The well-trodden path is a tempting one. There is security to the predictability and comfort in knowing there will be a cheque in the post at the end of the week. But what if there was something more out there? A greater reward that required a bigger risk perhaps. 

The prospect of dying wondering about what magic lies outside of the comfort zone has proved enough for Dan O'Meara to take such a proverbial leap of faith. The 32-year-old will consign under his own Shortcastle Bloodstock, which is a nod to his home address in County Cork, at the upcoming breeze-up sales in the spring.

Operating from his new base in Newmarket, England, O'Meara can hardly be described as a new face on the sales circuit. He has spent the past five years working alongside leading breeze-up consignor Eddie Linehan of Lackendarra Stables, with whom he has nurtured the talents of many top-notchers, including Group 1 scorer Hotazhell. 

The pair have worked in tandem ever since O'Meara first offered to lend a hand breaking in the yearlings with his fellow Cork native when Covid first hit. The operation, and indeed the friendship, has grown organically ever since. In many ways, that made branching out by himself all the harder. 

But O'Meara makes no bones about the fact the change of landscape to the breeze-up game, in terms of rising costs and a bottom line, coupled with his own burning desire to make a go of the business in his own right, was enough to take the plunge. 

And make no mistake, O'Meara is not just dipping his toe into the market, he's gone full blown cannonball with two Havana Greys [a colt and a filly], a Hello Youmzain filly and a Perfect Power colt featuring among his debut Tattersalls Craven Breeze-Up Sale draft that cost the young consignor over €300,000 on hammer price alone. Talk about making a splash.

“It's an exciting new chapter for myself,” O'Meara explained. “Now, it wasn't an easy decision to make, but I thought it was the right time to give it a go and it was something I have always wanted to do. I am glad I have done it. It's been a big change and everything is very different. But different is good sometimes. You have new gallops, new horses, new riders, new everything. It takes a bit of getting used to and we'll have to wait and see does it pay off or not. But, as I said, I'm happy and I think I've a nice bunch of horses, which is the most important thing. Hopefully they can prove me right.”

He added, “I didn't want to die wondering. The last thing I wanted to do was to turn around in five or 10 years' time and say, 'Jesus, I should have given it a go'. So, I am giving it a go. And being here in Newmarket, it's incredible what's on offer. You have the best facilities within five minutes of your yard, not to mention access to top-class vets and farriers. It's a real luxury to have everything on your doorstep and it's just an amazing place to be based.”

It wasn't always horses that focessed the mind. O'Meara has had a taste of what life outside of the bloodstock bubble is like and it didn't take long to realise it wasn't for him.

He explained, “When I finished school, I went to University and did a commerce degree. I moved to London and worked in investment banking for a year but realised that I didn't fancy doing that for the next 40 years of my life. I always had a passion for horses and racing and, if I am being completely honest, I had planned to do the Godolphin Flying Start, but I didn't get on the course. When I wasn't accepted, I decided to make up my own Flying Start. I spent a season breaking in yearlings at Kildangan Stud and from there I went to Newsells Park Stud, where I did a couple of seasons before going down to Australia, where I worked the sales. I came back to Ireland when Covid hit and that's when I hooked up with Eddie.”

He added, “We had been friends for years and I just said to him that, if he needed a hand breaking in yearlings, I would be delighted to help. I spent five years with Eddie and we had a great time of it together. We had a lot of good horses through our hands and Eddie was extremely good to me. He gave me a chance to really get involved in the industry and gave me the confidence to go for it. He also provided me with the opportunity to invest with him and showed me how the whole breeze-up game worked because, before I joined Eddie, I had a very limited knowledge of that game. So I owe him a massive thanks.”

O'Meara hasn't been going around with his eyes closed, that's for sure. Even his draft for the upcoming breeze-up sales is a careful reflection of what he feels the market wants. There is no doubt that he is being brave given his outlay but he argues that operating at that level of the market, especially in the current climate, is possibly the safest bet of all. 

He said, “I said I'd start with a smaller number but I don't ever see myself having more than 10 or 12. If you want to do things right, it's hard to get into bigger numbers without having lots of extra staff. Going forward, I'd rather keep the numbers tight and concentrate on quality. Don't get me wrong, we have one or two cheaper yearlings, but, with the way the market has gone lately, you are nearly better off concentrating on quality.

“Last year, I tried to buy the horses I really wanted as opposed to stocking up on numbers. You have to take risks in this business and I think you need a couple of big stallions or very good-looking horses on your squad. That way, if you go to the sales and they can gallop, they have the potential to pay for all of the other ones that don't work out. Not every horse will make a profit so, when you have one that goes well, they have to have the potential to make decent money.”

On expectations for his debut season, he concluded, “I'm quietly confident that I have a strong bunch of horses, especially the four going to the Craven. I'd like to think they will stack up well there. We have the sires and, physically, they are all good-looking horses. When you take a step back and look at the breeze-ups objectively, it's the hardest game in town. I am aware that I am taking a huge risk going out on my own but I was never going to do this half-heartedly. There would have been absolutely no point in that. So I have made a conscious effort to give this absolutely everything and that's the approach I took at the yearling sales last year. The aim is to sell a few nice horses this year and hopefully that will propel me in the business.” 

Fortune favours the brave.

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