About me ....

I've been around horses for as long as I can remember, and I was one of those kids who was riding before they could walk! I was brought up in a horse-orientated family. My late father, Ray Harris, trained dozens of winners, including Te Punganui (11 wins), Group One winners Brutus and Scotch Mist, Diamond King (Dunedin Gold Cup), and Greek Magic -- who Dad reckoned was the best horse he trained.

During my early years I helped out around the stables and started riding out in the mornings for Dad when I was 13 or 14. But even back then I was more focused on the care and husbandry of horses than riding them, so never really got serious at other horse sports.

In the early days I also helped out Riccarton trainer Barry Taggart (Seaside story, Eros), and Nelson horseman Shortie Healey, who at the time had Mr Richmond, Battle Joy, and Kiljoy).

At the age of 19 I travelled to Cambridge to further my knowledge of the horse industry. I worked at Middle Park Stud as head stud groom for about three years. Among the stallions at stud at Middle Park during my stay were Tric Trac, Balmerino, and Triumphal March. Balmerino (otherwise known as Randal) was a wonderful horse -- a real gentleman.

After that stint I came back home to work as Dad's stable foreman for a while, then went north again to work as stable foreman for Paddy Busuttin for a year. That was a year to remember, as Paddy won the trainer's premiership. Horses in the stable that season included Asti Bay, Sarah San, and Pageboy.

Later, I moved on to Paramount Lodge in Matamata for about five years. During that time Spectacular Love and Half Iced were standing at stud. After that stint I worked as Mike Moroney's racing foreman for a year, which proved to be a lucky break in terms of my start as a bloodstock agent. During that time I met his brother Paul Moroney, who is one of the country's leading bloodstock agents.

By now, after spending several years at studs and around racing stables I felt that I had the right grounding with regard to breeding, rearing, and conformation. At that time the New Zealand industry was selling most of its horses to Australia, with a few going to Asia, unlike today, when many of our horses are exported to race in the likes of Singapore, Hong Kong and other Asian countries. The bloodstock industry is a hard one to break into, and I was lucky to have Paul's support.

In late 1998 my father became ill and I moved back to Canterbury and joined him in a training partnership to ease the strain. Sadly, Dad died in February, 1999.

In the 2000-2001 season I took up the reins as a licenced public trainer and started training from Dad's Tuahiwi quarters, training horses for some of the stable's former clients, and building up my own clientele as well.

My latest move has been to new facilities at Rangiora Racecourse, in a specially converted 19-horse barn. We have other stabling as well, and the move means that I can have about 45 horses in work on the premises.

The stable's record thus far has been extremely successful, and I have won the Newcomer to Training Award for the past two seasons.

It's been an exciting ride so far, and there's still a long way to go!