Simon Earle Racing: Red Not Blue retired

It was a sad, as well as a happy day when we dropped off Red Not Blue to his new home. We were sad to see him go but also happy to find such a good place for him with lovely people who really care for their horses.

We are very proud of what he achieved considering he was on the verge of retirement when he came to us from his previous trainer unraced as a 6 yr old. He ran in 36 races and was in the money 22 times and won 9 races. He started with an official rating of 92 and improved 51 pounds to a rating high of 143.

Whilst he was here, for over 5 years, he only had one set of shoes on for 4 weeks. He always ran barefoot and never had an inkling of leg trouble and ran on all types of ground. He ran in NH flat races, over hurdles and over fences and won in all disciplines barefoot. After training Saucy Night as the first barefoot racehorse, Red Not Blue tops the bill as the most successful barefoot racehorse and gave his owners some fantastic days racing.

I have always learnt something new from every horse I train and he certainly taught me a lot. There is a lot of stress and strain on the horse’s body and mind to be a racehorse and we are constantly pushing them to the limit. We did a lot of things individually for him to keep him going and trying to keep ahead of the game. He didn’t have a lame day so it is great credit to everybody here and the team of practitioners that we have built up; in particular Anita Miles (physio) and of course Buffy Shirley-Beavan and her veterinary team who were always there if needed. My view is that we did well with him but I will always think we could have done better and if we had him back again as a 6 yr old, from what I have learnt by him, I think we could have done even better.

He is the most tough and genuine horse who is also the perfect gentleman. You could leave a baby in his box with him and he would look after it – probably guard and lick it - which is how kind he is. Our little girl, Mollie, often was in with him whilst Katie groomed and looked after him and he would check her out and leave her be. He was also the first horse she sat on at 6 months old. He is intelligent, cheeky with a great character and is a lot of fun to look after. He never stopped loving his work making it a hard decision to retire him. He was retired sound and happy.

Red Not Blue has gone to Sarah and Michael Bell’s in Dorset where they all ride including their 3 daughters, Olivia, Rosanna and Sasha. They have a fantastic place and it is certainly a five star home for him of which he greatly deserves. Sarah keeps her horses barefoot and treats her horses very naturally which he will love. We put him in a paddock there on his own when he arrived and one of the daughters Olivia went to get a companion for him and came back galloping bareback up the path with just a head collar on; it was wonderful to be able to see the great environment he is now in. His companion, Tiger Lilly, fell in love with him immediately so he hasn’t lost any of his charm! We hope to be seeing him from time to time as he is not too far away but for now we say thank you and good bye old friend.