Andrew McKeever

Early Life and Background

I grew up in Co Meath beside Duleek and I come from a very traditional sporting/farming background - hunting, shooting, fishing all part of the lifestyle. My father trained back in the 1950s. Like so many smaller trainers, he was able to train the winners but getting the owners to pay was the problem! That has always left me with a big empathy for the people involved in the business.

I went through the normal circles growing up - ponies, pony clubs, hunting and racing. I joined the Young Racegoers Club years ago from home. I wanted to be a vet, but didn't work hard enough and certainly wasn't clever enough.

Early Career and Diverse Experiences

I got a number of jobs in my early 20s. I worked for Clem Magnier which was an experience. I was on the stud side of the operation. He was training in Rathvale, I was across the road in Clifden Lodge. I met wonderful characters there. Ray Carroll was there and the Coogans were all there, great people. I was there for a couple of years.

I had a couple of other smaller breeding jobs, and went home for a while and farmed at home. I did that for 11 years. I got an interesting job as Sports and Leisure Manager with Ashford & Dromoland Castle which I did for five years. That was providing outdoor entertainment for guests and running the shoot which I set up. That came to an end after five years and I dealt with a lot of stewards at the time.

Becoming a Turf Club Official

They needed someone to take on judging. I did my first day with the Turf Club in April 1991, so I am now in my 35th year as a Turf Club official. I started with judging and have also done starting and Clerk of the Scales. I have been the Senior Judge for a good few years. Personally, I think it is the best job in racing.

There is absolutely no margin for error and you have to be very precise. I'm a great believer in the integrity of the job. I mean people have said to me 'Oh, you could have given that as a dead heat', but what is nearly enough? You see the split or you don't and there is no in between. Once you start down the 'nearly' road, it is the slippery slope. You have got to be absolutely precise.

Technological Advancements in Judging

When I started, we were working with negatives and developing pictures in dark rooms. It was slow and if you took a long time, you would be under pressure to get the result out. The senior stipe would be ringing you to say 'come on, come on'. I think I got the reputation of being grumpy over the years in saying it takes as long as it takes! If there's a delay, it means it is a difficult one.

The advancements in technology in my job are constantly evolving. We are very, very lucky to have a wonderful senior cameraman in Graham Reid who is technologically very savvy. He developed the reverse angle camera system which needs the fibre-optic cables, so that it is absolutely true on either side. I'm very grateful to Brian Kavanagh, when he was head of the HRI (horse racing Ireland), for the great funding given.

We have nearly all new judges' boxes around the country, great camera and computer systems, and it is all very quick and precise and very definite. Coming from where I started, there have been huge improvements. A judge works with two camera technicians and it is great teamwork with wonderful people that I work with. That has all helped over the years.

Memorable Moments in Racing

I'm going to really miss that involvement in racing because it has been part of my life. I'm 70 now and I have been 35 years at it, so it is half my life. The 35 years have gone in so fast, it is frightening how fast it has rolled by. You have different days. Some days you come and you just get through the work, other days it is an absolute pleasure seeing quality horses running.

I always look forward to the big meetings - the likes of Punchestown and Irish Champions Weekend (at Leopardstown and the Curragh). There is a real buzz. It is great fun to see the young two-year-olds coming out at the beginning of the Flat and the three-year-old horses developing. I have had a couple of lovely moments where I have seen a young horse run and have come home to my wife and said 'wow, I've seen a future champion'.

I remember the first one was Imperial Call (subsequent Cheltenham Gold Cup winner in 1996), I remember being blown away seeing him in his early races. Kicking King and Supasundae were others - you see quality stands out. On the Flat, I followed Sea The Stars for a long time - a wonderful horse. We were so lucky to see two superstars in the same era with Sea The Stars and Frankel. That was a real pleasure.

Passion for Jump Racing and Industry Reflections

I love the spectacle of jump racing. The Flat is more cerebral, it is the breeding that attracts me there. The big days in Punchestown are great. I'm a great fan of the Dublin Racing Festival (at Leopardstown) to see all the top horses meet and compete against each other which doesn't happen before Christmas really. I think that one of the great attractions of jump racing to Irish people is that you can follow horses over the years. The Flat horses can come and go quickly enough.

Honeysuckle was wonderful. It was a pleasure the other day to see the Bowes win with an offspring of Solerina (Faceman in Kilbeggan). Those things give you pleasure. We mustn't forget that although we refer to what we do as an industry, it is principally a sport and there is joy that sport should bring.

I felt from the very beginning that we have been in the top five racing countries in the world and I think we have managed to hold on to that, which is not easy because of the amount of money that is available in other countries. We consistently produce outstanding jockeys, trainers and horses. I do worry about the broader base of racing - the small trainer, the conditional jockey. It is becoming more and more difficult. The owners with the deep pockets are attracted to the big stables and it becomes more difficult for the smaller trainer to get good horses. To survive, they regularly have to sell them. It is a difficult situation.

Life After Retirement

We have five mares at home, so I'll be keeping busy in retirement with a small amount of land. I'm a keen gardener and the shooting and the fishing still features in my life. Fishing in the summer and shooting in the winter. I have a couple of young dogs to train. I would hope to keep an involvement in racing and love the point-to-points which I have done from the beginning.

I have offered my services to a couple of the local hunts, so I'll hang in there. The one thing I am really looking forward to getting away from is the driving. It has got more and more frantic, the traffic is heavier and the manners are worse! I will go to some of the local tracks especially when there is good racing. I look forward to arriving after the first race, and walking around with a drink in one hand and a betting ticket in the other! Then going home before the last. I also enjoy racing in England and have been to a good few tracks.

Reflections on a Rewarding Career

I have enjoyed working in the Irish racing industry immensely. I have worked with wonderful people and I have believed intensely in what I do. It is hard enough to get a foot in the door, but jobs can turn up in the sporting press. I'd say to anyone to make themselves keen, turn up regularly. Judging jobs are very rare, I was lucky that when I was looking for something else there was a slot available. I had to do six years part-time first before I became full-time.

Being an official is a great job, we are the front line in racing. It is a very rewarding career, demanding though. You lose your weekends and there is a large amount of travelling. Sometimes it is frustrating but, in general, I found it very rewarding. I am ticking down the days now until the end of September and, when I go to a track, I'm thinking 'is this the last time I will be working here?' with a tinge of sadness. I have very much enjoyed the 35 years.

Andrew was in conversation with Michael Graham.

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The next blog in this series will be published on August 16.

About Michael Graham

Michael has worked in horse racing journalism for more than 15 years, having also written a weekly betting column on Gaelic football and hurling for a newspaper. He is involved in writing the My Racing Story features on this website. He spent a year in South Africa completing a Diploma in Business Administration and also studied Newspaper Journalism in Belfast. He enjoys playing 5-a-side football on a regular basis.

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