FEATURE
disappointment very well. But I tell every new owner to the stable this: I can’t guarantee its ability, but as a racehorse owner you will have an experience unlike anything else.” Although he missed out on being a part of the Half Yours fairytale, OTI Racing co- founder and director Terry Henderson has enjoyed his share of success in elite races all around the world, as one of Australia’s greatest syndication success stories. “It would have been a lot harder to get a business like OTI off the ground anywhere other than Australia. Culturally, we’ve accepted shared ownership a lot better than other places in the world, and our sport really thrives because of that,” he said. With horses spread across Australia and Europe, OTI provides a rare ownership experience and consequently attracts people chasing something a little out of the ordinary. “The key is knowing your client and understanding what they want. Do they want to race a colt or a filly? Do they want to race in Europe? Is there a certain race they want to win, maybe a Derby or an Oaks? If you can put them in the right horse that gives them a chance to achieve that goal, you’ve got a much better chance of doing business again,” Henderson said. Winning Group 1 races is the dream for every racehorse owner, but Henderson acknowledges that there are plenty of wins to be had through horse ownership, and not all of them happen on the racetrack. “Watching friendships form through a horse is pretty special. One of our owners comes to mind. He recently turned 80, and four or five guys he’s raced with were there celebrating with him. They didn’t know each other until they raced together, so it’s a great way to meet people,” he said. “At the end of the day, the horse brings it all together – people from all walks of life. That’s the joy of racing in Australia.”
Winning connections celebrate. (Josh Chadwick/Getty Images)
Joining the partnership were former Glenelg Golf Club captain Gavan Fox; Brisbane fruit-and-vegetable wholesaler and long-time McEvoy client and friend Simon George; John Summers; and Ballarat hotelier Dave Canny, whose Red Lion Hotel in Ballarat had become a favourite watering hole for McEvoy Racing staff. The unassumingly named Terrace Syndicate took a share too, but their members were anything but unassuming, comprising a group of Australian business heavyweights, all members of the Adelaide Club based on North Terrace in Adelaide, from which the syndicate takes its name. Amongst the syndicate are Rick Allert, former chairman of Coles Myer; billionaire businessman Darren Thomas, whose Thomas Foods International exports meat around the world; and Thomas’ father-in- law and former Ernst & Young partner, Colin Durnsford.
The last five percent share was fittingly snaffled by Warrnambool local Paul Farley, a former local footy coach and mate of Half Yours’ breeder and original owner, the late Colin McKenna. In the months after the race, each owner had the chance to take both the Caulfield Cup and Lexus Melbourne Cup trophies home for a week. Farley revelled in the opportunity to show them to his community and toured Warrnambool’s primary schools, high schools and aged- care homes with the gold cups proudly on show. “None of them [the owners] had ever raced together. They were from all walks of life, but here they were, landing in the same horse – and what a ride he’s taken them on. They’ve shared an experience that most owners can only dream of,” said McEvoy. “It doesn’t always work out that way, of course, and some owners don’t handle
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