When Chad Summers went to high school, all he wanted to be was a jockey.
He never realised that teenage ambition, but that adolescent disappointment will be surely forgotten should he train Mind Your Biscuits to win the US$2 million (Dh7.34m) Dubai Golden Shaheen at Meydan Racecourse on Saturday.
Success in the UAE’s premier sprint would be a remarkable feat, because Summers only received his training licence last month. He has yet to have a winner from just four runners in America and has only 12 horses in his barn back home.
“All I wanted to be was a jockey,” he said at Meydan yesterday. “I was 4ft 10 and weighed 90lbs, but when I was tall enough to ride the roller-coaster I cried because then I couldn’t be one.
“The opportunity to be here to win any race, let alone a $2m race in front of Sheikh Mohammed, is fantastic,” referring to the Vice President and Ruler of Dubai.
Being a trainer was about the last job left in racing open to the 32 year old that he had not tried his hand at.
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More Dubai World Cup
■ All you need to know
■ Interview with Maria Ritchie
■ The real 'Olympics of horse racing'
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Out of college he was a budding journalist who cut his teeth as an intern at the Thoroughbred Times. He also covered the sport for the website Greatestgame.com.
He came and went from the Associated Press and worked briefly for the Horse Racing Radio Network.
In between he gained a deeper understanding of the sport from Grade 1-winning trainer Bernie Flint. He also worked in a multitude of roles for lesser American conditioners such as Chuck Simon.
He was a hot walker. He was a groom. He has been an assistant trainer and had a spell as a racing manager.
Summers’s only tangible success has come in the wheeler-dealer world of being a bloodstock agent.
He reportedly bought Grade 1 winner Off The Tracks and sold a 60 per cent stake in the filly to Todd Pletcher.
His best piece of business, however, remains buying half a stake in Mind Your Biscuits for just $30,000 when the son of Posse was just a yearling.
Summers had hoped to shift Mind Your Biscuits as a juvenile but he was forced to turn the horse into a project when nobody wanted to buy him.
If the lack of interest in Mind Your Biscuits was the first bump in the road that forced Summers to knuckle down, then becoming a father was the second.
“You have got to try to work out what you want to do to make you happy,” he said.
“When you have kids it makes you think long-term about what you want and you need to provide and support that family. You can’t raise a family earning $200 a week.”
Mind Your Biscuits will start as favourite for the Golden Shaheen and justifiably so.
He finished third to Drefong in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint in November, but he was subsequently promoted to second after Masochistic was disqualified for anabolic steroids.
He then stepped up to win the Grade 1 Malibu Stakes at Santa Anita on Boxing Day from Godolphin Mile favourite Sharp Azteca before running a respectable prep when second to Unified in a Grade 3 at Gulfstream Park in Florida. The four-year-old colt completed his final preparation on Tuesday at a rain-soaked Meydan by running 400 metres in 22.2 seconds, before galloping out 800 metres in 52 seconds.
Most dirt sprints at Meydan are won by horses who like to run prominently, so Dubai World Cup-winning rider Joel Rosario will have to be at his best if he is to get his fast-finishing mount up from prominent speedsters such as US raider St Joe Bay and last season’s winner Muarrab.
One horse who will not pose a threat is fellow US raider Imperial Hint, who arrived in Dubai this week with a fever and has been replaced by Salem bin Ghadayer’s High On Life. The name Mind Your Biscuits originates from a song by the Country and Western artist Kacey Musgraves.
Summers was deciding on a name for his pride and joy when the song was released early in 2015.
“Every time the horse runs, my brother will send her a tweet that her horse is running,” Summers said.
“She hasn’t got back to us yet, but now we are on the world stage maybe we can get a follow.
“I can sing the song for you if you want, but that will be on Saturday night after we win.”
Summers may be a jack of all trades thus far, but he is at least a master of being confident.
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Infobox
Western Region Asia Cup Qualifier, Al Amerat, Oman
The two finalists advance to the next stage of qualifying, in Malaysia in August
Results
UAE beat Iran by 10 wickets
Kuwait beat Saudi Arabia by eight wickets
Oman beat Bahrain by nine wickets
Qatar beat Maldives by 106 runs
Monday fixtures
UAE v Kuwait, Iran v Saudi Arabia, Oman v Qatar, Maldives v Bahrain
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
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Changing visa rules
For decades the UAE has granted two and three year visas to foreign workers, tied to their current employer. Now that's changing.
Last year, the UAE cabinet also approved providing 10-year visas to foreigners with investments in the UAE of at least Dh10 million, if non-real estate assets account for at least 60 per cent of the total. Investors can bring their spouses and children into the country.
It also approved five-year residency to owners of UAE real estate worth at least 5 million dirhams.
The government also said that leading academics, medical doctors, scientists, engineers and star students would be eligible for similar long-term visas, without the need for financial investments in the country.
The first batch - 20 finalists for the Mohammed bin Rashid Medal for Scientific Distinction.- were awarded in January and more are expected to follow.
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Company%20Profile
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Expert advice
“Join in with a group like Cycle Safe Dubai or TrainYAS, where you’ll meet like-minded people and always have support on hand.”
Stewart Howison, co-founder of Cycle Safe Dubai and owner of Revolution Cycles
“When you sweat a lot, you lose a lot of salt and other electrolytes from your body. If your electrolytes drop enough, you will be at risk of cramping. To prevent salt deficiency, simply add an electrolyte mix to your water.”
Cornelia Gloor, head of RAK Hospital’s Rehabilitation and Physiotherapy Centre
“Don’t make the mistake of thinking you can ride as fast or as far during the summer as you do in cooler weather. The heat will make you expend more energy to maintain a speed that might normally be comfortable, so pace yourself when riding during the hotter parts of the day.”
Chandrashekar Nandi, physiotherapist at Burjeel Hospital in Dubai
More on Quran memorisation:
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
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