Daisy Brown

January 1, 2025

How do OGR Stable Visits Work?

Everything you need to know about Old Gold Racing Stable Visits.

Stable Visit FAQs

What is a Stable Visit?

A stable visit is your chance to see your horse at the trainer's yard and experience a behind-the-scenes look at how professional racing yard operates.

A typical visit lasts between one and two hours and may include:

A welcome from the trainer or the Old Gold Racing Team
Watching the horses exercise on the gallops or in an arena
Seeing your horse in the yard or outside their stable
A walk around the yard and the training facilities

Every trainer runs their yard slightly differently. Some may show the horse working on the gallops, while others may bring the horse out for a parade in the yard instead.

Organising Stable Visits

How Dates Are Chosen

We aim to organise at least one stable visit during each syndicate term.

Stable visits are arranged around the trainer's schedule, which is always our top priority. Trainers and their staff operate extremely busy yard, so visits only take place when the trainer confirms a suitable date.

Occasionally a visit may need to be cancelled or postponed at short notice due to:

Racing commitments
Horse welfare considerations
Weather conditions
Other yard priorities

When Visits Usually Take Place

Most stable visits take place during the week.

Where possible, we try to organise visits later in the week so that owners who work can combine the trip with a long weekend.

Weekend visits are very rare because:

Trainers are usually attending race meetings with runners and owners
Major race fixtures usually take place on Saturdays
Sundays are usually rest days for both horses and stable staff

Time of Year

We try to schedule visits when your horse is in full training, so that owners can see them exercising on the gallops or in the arena whenever possible.

Group Sizes

Old Gold Racing syndicates have large numbers of owners, and stable visits can sometimes involve 100 or more attendees.

Some racing yards are smaller, however, so we may occasionally need to:

Limit the number of attendees
Run balloted visits to ensure the yard can safely accommodate the group

Getting To The Yard

Parking arrangements vary depending on the yard and time of year.

Sometimes parking is available at the yard or in nearby fields. In other cases we may organise coach transport so that:

Everyone arrives and leaves at the correct time
The group can be managed safely
Parking pressure at the yard is reduced

Full travel and parking details will always be provided before the event.

Tickets and Booking

Owners Tickets

Stable visit tickets are generally free of charge.

Guest Tickets

Owners are usually allowed to bring one guest (Plus One).

Guest tickets typically cost £10, payable when booking.

Limiting guests helps ensure that as many owners as possible have the opportunity to attend.

How Stable Visits Are Announced

Stable visits are usually announced 6-8 weeks before the event.

You will receive a dedicated email containing:

The date and time
Location and travel details
Instructions on how to book your place or enter the ballot
Any additional activities or extras

Where possible, these emails are sent at weekends so everyone has a fair chance to book regardless of work commitments.

We will usually mention an upcoming launch in your weekly update emails beforehand so owner know to keep an eye out for the announcement.

Booking Your Place (Ticket Tailor)

We use an external booking platform called Ticket Tailor.

When you click the booking link in our email, you will be taken to the Ticket Tailor website to register for the event.

After booking, you will receive:

A confirmation email
A PDF ticket with a unique QR code

Please keep your ticket available on your phone or printed out, as Old Gold Racing staff will scan the QR code on arrival.

If you lose your ticket, please contact us and we can reissue it.

Without a valid ticket, we may not be able to admit you to the event.

Reminder Emails

Because timings can occasionally change, we send reminder emails before the event.

You will normally receive:

One reminder one week before the visit
A final reminder the day before the visit

All reminders are sent by email, so please keep an eye on your inbox.

Stable Visit Etiquette

A stable visit takes place during a normal working day at the yard. Trainers and stable staff will still be carrying out their usual duties, including exercising horses, preparing runners, and managing deliveries.

We ask all visitors to:

Be respectful of the trainer and stable staff
Follow all instructions from yard staff and Old Gold Racing team members
Avoid distracting staff while they are working

This helps ensure visits run smoothly and that yards continue to welcome owners in the future.

Important Safety Rules

Racing yards are working environments, and horses can be unpredictable. Please follow these rules at all time:

Do not feed the horses
Do not enter a horses' stable
Do not walk or stand behind a horse
Do not touch horses unless specifically invited to do so

Some trainers may have additional rules (for example, not touching horses at all). These will be explained in the reminder emails.

Arrival and Check-In

All visitors must check in with an Old Gold Racing team member on arrival.

This is essential for safety reasons. For example, in the unlikely event of an emergency such as a fire or medical incident, we must ensure that everyone attending the visit is accounted for.

Please also follow these important arrival rules:

Do not arrive early
Always follow the timings provided the event itinerary

Arriving early can disrupt the yard's routine and create safety risks while horses are being exercised or moved around the yard.

Anyone arriving significantly early will be turned away or refused entry, and repeated breached may affect eligibility for future events.

Accessibility

Racing yards can include:

Uneven surfaces
Gravel paths, grass paths or muddy areas
Slopes or hills leading to gallops

If you have accessibility requirements, please contact us before the event so we can discuss the practicalities.

We will always do our best to accommodate, but some areas (such as hilltop gallops) may unfortunately have limited access.

Thanking the Stable Staff

At the end of most visits we collect a voluntary cash donation for the stable staff.

This is simple a way for owners to say thank you for their time and hospitality.

All donations go directly to the yard staff and not Old Gold Racing.

Travel and Accommodation

If you are travelling long distance, we strongly recommend booking refundable or flexible accommodation.

Occasionally visits may need to be postponed or cancelled due to circumstances outside our control.

Refunds are only available if the event itself is cancelled by Old Gold Racing or the yard.

Balloted Stable Visits

Sometimes demand for a visit is higher than the yard can safely accommodate. In these cases we run a ballot system to allocate places fairly.

How The Ballot Works

Owners will receive an email explaining the ballot process and timeline.

You can enter the ballot using the link provided.

When entering, you will be asked to confirm whether you would attend:

Just yourself, or
Yourself and a Plus One

This helps us allocate the correct number of spaces.

Ballot Results

Only successful ballot winners will be notified.

If you do not recieve an email, it means you were unsuccessful in that ballot round.

Ballot winners normally have one week to confirm and book their place. If a winner does not book within their deadline, their place may be reallocated in a later ballot round.