Championship winner Heinz explains why La Gazza Ladra is the one horse he always wanted to own on Raceclubs.com http://tinyurl.com/2v67zg4

One Trainer Ten Questions - Heinz

This week we catch up with long serving player and general all-round good guy, Neal, better known to us all as the claret and blue trainer, Heinz. 

You are one of the longest serving trainers at RaceClubs.com, what keeps you motivated day in day out? 

I love the challenge qualifiers culminating in the finals, I still get such a buzz when I win a final, don't get me wrong I also still enjoy the day to day racing but the qualifiers/finals are without doubt what keep me motivated.

Is there a point in your RaceClubs.com journey you would like to relive and share with the community? 

I think it would have to be around this time last year when Eastend Boy won the Classic Challenge Final, I knew he had a real chance but you still need everything to fall into place...it was a race I was desperate to win, I will now focus my attention on The Derby & The Oaks as my next big targets now.

Please tell us about your favourite horse that has boarded at your yard. Why is it so special?

It would have to be Cha Cha Cha, I had him quite early in my time here and he won the Cesarewitch twice (once off 138Lbs I think) and also finished 2nd once.

If there was one horse you could have owned through the years, which one would it be and why?

La Gazza Ladra, what can I say the No.1 horse of all time on RaceClubs.com and won 3 finals at distances ranging from 1400-2400...I would love one like that, an absolute machine.
What would you perceive as your breakthrough moment on RaceClubs.com?

I guess your big breakthrough is winning a final, I can't remember who my first one was though it was either Cha Cha Cha or River Queen winning the Nunthorpe I think, I only bought River Queen for around $300 a couple of months before the final.

You are the RaceClubs.com God for the day, what one thing would you do?

It would be great if we could get a proper handicap system in place.

A lot of trainers have a lot of respect for you, who do you respect and for what reason?

There are so many to be honest, some have left and some remain, I have a lot of respect for Ron & Lew who are real nice people, but when it comes to knowledge of the game then I would say Leon (Victor Consortio) Micke (shotgun Mike) & Frank (Sky Castle Stables) as I say there are many other shrewd owners on here but these 3 are at the top of the list for me, this is why it makes me laugh when people say this game is about pure luck yet I would be pretty confident these owners make a profit season after season...I would hazard a guess that it's the owners who say the game is pure luck are the ones losing money.

You've just taken a new player under your wing, what's the first thing you say to him about the game?

I always advise them to start in claimers, start with D grades and gradually work your way up to A grades, spend a minimum 3 months dabbling in claimers as your mistakes (which everyone ultimately make) will be less costly.

You love West Ham, where do you see the club in ten years time? 

According to our chairmen we will be in the champions league lol, I would hope still in the premier league but who knows in football...the good thing about supporting a club like West Ham is that you never have any expectations of winning anything but if you do win something it is so special, people still talk about the play off win against Preston a few years back lol 

Back in the day, I had a lot of respect for Frank MacAvennie, who is your all time favourite West Ham player?

Frankie Mac was a legend mate, other favourites of mine were Trevor Brooking, Paolo Di Canio & Julian Dicks but my all time favourite has to be Alan Devonshire he was sublime & without his injuries he would have been even more special...I have a current horse named after him who is currently in the top 14 of the Cesarewitch & the King George.

I'd like to extend a big thank you to Neal for his time. He has been by far the quickest trainer to return his answers to me this season. I can't see anyone getting close to the record now. Cheers Neal.

Member Submission: Moletown

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