Tower and Town, March 2017

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Bonita Racing Stables

After operating from our previous yard near Andover throughout my training career, my husband Barry and I are delighted to have made the move last year to Bonita Racing Stables in Ogbourne Maizey.

It’s an absolute privilege to train racehorses from a yard steeped in so much history, and the gallops that we are so lucky to experience every morning, certainly make the 5am start worthwhile! We are delighted to have moved to Marlborough and hope that we will continue to send out plenty of winners from the yard, including at the Cheltenham Festival, for years to come on behalf of our owners.

I mentioned history, and I expect many of you reading this are aware of the racing heritage that surrounds Marlborough. For those who aren’t, here is a quick history lesson of Bonita Racing Stables. The yard was built in the late 1890’s and names such as former record breaking jockey Sir Gordon Richards, champion jump trainer Bob Turnell and more recently Peter Makin have trained from the yard. Bungalow gallop is one of our turf gallops and is named because there is a small tin bungalow located in the tree line that runs along beside it. However, this is also where Sir Gordon recovered from tuberculosis and I can see why he chose such a spot to recoup – not only for the abundance of fresh air but also for the views from that spot which are breath-taking.

We have 150 acres of grass gallops to train on, which have never seen a plough, providing excellent year-round footing for the horses. Furthermore, the great Lester Piggott declared the gallops were the best he had ever ridden on – so no pressure then! Last summer we also laid a four and a half furlong all weather gallop, which has been an excellent addition and proved very valuable during the cold snap.

Since moving in summer 2016, we have made some big changes to the yard whilst maintaining and preserving its heritage. This includes a complete refurbishment of the original stables, as well as building an additional stable block and American barn. Our aim is to create the best possible environment to train racehorses, as well as providing easier working conditions for our dedicated team.

Currently we have over sixty horses in training and since re-locating - touch wood - they seem to be running very well on the racecourse. In fact we have already trained more winners this season than in the whole of last season from our old base so it is very much full steam ahead. Sadly we will have no runners in the conditions races at Cheltenham this year but could well have a few in the handicaps which will be exciting, but we are amassing a strong team of youngsters for next year, so watch this space!

If you would like to find out more about us and the team at Emma Lavelle Racing, or are interested in owning a racehorse or part of one, you can find out all about us at emmalavelle.com. Or follow us on Facebook at Emma Lavelle Racing or on Twitter @ELavelleracing, alternatively please call us and arrange a visit – a warm welcome awaits!

Emma Lavelle