Thompson Hoping For An Edge At Rosehill
- Wednesday, 25 November 2015 07:31
Trainer Brett Thompson is hoping to continue his extraordinary rise into racing at Saturday's Festival Stakes meeting at Rosehill with consistent gelding Slate On Edge.
The six-year-old has given the country NSW trainer exposure on the national stage with two wins during Victoria's Subzero Challenge series in as many years, the latest on VRC Oaks Day at Flemington earlier this month.
Slate On Edge's success mirrors Thompson's speedy assent through the industry since he started training fulltime four years ago.
Thompson is currently leading the NSW country trainers' premiership by 10 wins and is sixth in the state premiership.
Before he made the leap into training racehorses, the 48-year-old was a shearing contractor and a publican.
And before that, he farmed sheep and managed a cattle stud.
Living on the land, Thompson has loved horses since childhood but didn't consider a career in racing until he realised he was overweight, prompting him to train a horse to drop some kilos.
Fortune followed as the horse won country races, and so his hobby grew.
Thompson bought a few more cheap horses and syndicated them.
Within two years he had sold the pub and left shearing behind him.
"I love it because it was my hobby, now I'm living my hobby," Thompson said.
His business has grown to 45 horses and 11 staff and Thompson has just employed a secretary to battle the administration duties at his property Toikan Park in Gulgong near the NSW town of Mudgee.
"It's grown that quick I can't keep up with it all," he said.
Thompson says getting on with his owners is an important part of the business.
"You've got to be liked. If your owners don't like you, you don't get owners," he said.
Thompson has big plans to grow and a source of inspiration is a fellow country trainer from humble beginnings.
"Darren Weir - that's what we want to try to do," he said of the leading Victorian and Melbourne Cup-winning trainer.
Thompson hopes to eventually expand his team to 75 horses but he has no plans to move to the city.
"I would sooner stay in the bush myself, because I love the bush atmosphere," he said.
Luckily for him, Slate On Edge enjoys the metropolitan bustle and the horse will chase his 11th career-win in the Listed Starlight Stakes on Saturday.
