With the pinnacle of the jumps racing season, the Cheltenham Festival (14-17 March), just days away, we went behind the scenes with one of the country’s leading trainers, Dan Skelton, who is hoping to build on his tally of four previous winners at the showpiece event.
Lodge Hill in Warwickshire is home to around 100 horses in training and the team have been firing out big race winners already this season. A raft of strong contenders will be heading to the Cheltenham Festival, but Dan is particularly bullish about his Gold Cup hope Protektorat, who finished third in the race last year.
You can read the full interview with Dan Skelton in this week’s Cheltenham Festival preview issue of Horse & Hound, in the shops Thursday 9 March. But in the meantime, let’s take a look around…
Happy horses galore
Enjoying the spring sunshine are just a handful of the 100 or so racehorses in training at Lodge Hill in Warwickshire. Dan Skelton and his hard-working team have been building their string with impressive results over the past 10 years. “If you want to go to Mars, you have to prove you can go to the moon first,” says Dan, who took out his licence in 2013.
Ready for the Cheltenham Festival: Gold Cup contender Protektorat
Team Skelton’s star player for this year’s Cheltenham Festival is Gold Cup contender Protektorat, a stunning eight-year-old owned by John and Lisa Hales, Ged Mason and Sir Alex Ferguson, who is bidding to step up from his third-place finish behind A Plus Tard in last year’s race.
“He’s a better horse than last year – that’s not up for debate, so I’m entitled to think he’ll be a big player,” offers Dan.
On a cold and frosty morning
Dan Skelton’s string enjoy morning work-outs on a network of pristine gallops, including a deep sand canter and the hill gallop above, which also offers breathtaking views across the Warwickshire countryside.
No place like home
The team at Dan Skelton Racing clearly adore their horses and five-star accommodation and facilities are offered to all the equine residents. The main hub features a warren of stabling, including barns named after some of the yard’s most successful horses, such as the Superb Story Barn (above).
“I’ve been very proud of the team this year,” says Dan Skelton
Earning the moniker “The Saturday Skeltons” after firing out big race winners this season, the team are now shifting their focus towards the upcoming Cheltenham Festival and on to Aintree in April.
It’s not just the equine athletes who keep fit…
The 50 full-time staff at Dan Skelton Racing have access to all the latest gym equipment and patriarch Nick Skelton is said to be one of the first customers of the day.
Keeping a watchful eye
“Paul Nicholls sets the bar high and it’s great for everyone else,” says Dan on his bid to become champion trainer; he currently sits second behind his former boss in this season’s title race.
From the Olympics to the Cheltenham Festival
After decades spent looking after Nick Skelton’s showjumping horses, super groom Mark Beever is now part of the team at Nick’s son Dan’s training establishment.
Welcome to the spa
An acute attention to detail is paid to every horse at Team Skelton and as part of their regular routine all the horses have treatments in the hydro spa as well as the Equusir BEST-box. They also use specially designed vibrating floor plates to help ensure these equine athletes are kept in peak condition, both mentally and physically.
Racehorse paradise
The main hub at Lodge Hill houses some 100 horses in training, with younger horses kept on satellite yards. The neighbouring Alne Park Stud, managed by Dan’s wife Grace Skelton, is home to their three stallions Dink, Ocovango and Midnights Legacy, as well as a fleet of thoroughbred broodmares and foals.
Shades of grey
The French-bred five-year-old hurdler L’Eau Du Sud is one of the more recent additions to Dan’s string.
Ready for action
Stable jockey Harry Skelton, younger brother of Dan, has ridden more than 80 winners already this season. “There was a lot of satisfaction in Harry being champion jockey,” says Dan of one of his brother’s many crowning achievements. Harry was crowned champion in 2021 and Dan is hoping to make it an incredible sibling double by being crowned champion trainer too.
One of the hardest working teams in the business
Dan has sent out more than 100 winners each season for the past eight years – the pinnacle came in 2019 when he surpassed a landmark 200 winners, becoming only the second jumps trainer after Martin Pipe to achieve such a feat. There has been a recent shift towards quality over quantity, however: “Your owners have to understand the importance of patience with these better horses and that patience isn’t free – owners are putting in thousands of pounds,” says Dan.
Girl power
Dan’s sister-in-law jockey Bridget rode one of the stable’s tally of four Cheltenham Festival winners to date, Mohaayed in the 2018 County Hurdle. Their other Festival successes came with Superb Story (2016) and Roksana and Ch’tibello in 2019 with Bridget’s husband Harry in the saddle.
Wheely good
Have you ever seen such a neat collection of parked wheelbarrows? Team Skelton we salute you!
Work hard, play hard
It’s not all hard work at Dan Skelton Racing – the team can enjoy their down time, or even perfect their riding technique, in the staff quarters.
Happy horses, happy trainer
Dan is pictured with one of the horses enjoying the heat lamps. There has been so much to celebrate already for this high-achieving team and every success is richly deserved, but they clearly have their sights set on so much more. “Champion trainer? That’s the goal,” says Dan.
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