No long faces after Penrith punters buy shares in Waterhouse winner Storm Boy

There were no long faces for the 15 people in attendance when legendary trainer Gai Waterhouse, accompanied by a then little-known colt, walked into a bar. They all walked out with part-ownership of the frontrunner in Saturday’s Magic Millions race.

Gai Waterhouse auctions off shares in her colt Storm Boy at The Log Cabin pub in Penrith.

A horse walks into a bar with legendary trainer Gai Waterhouse and 15 Western Sydney businessmen end up buying shares in him.

And there were no long faces because Storm Boy, the colt she paraded in the beer garden of the Log Cabin pub in Penrith, is favourite to win Saturday’s $3 million Magic Millions 2yo Classic on the Gold Coast.

Waterhouse led the colt off the float and went into full selling mode explaining how she always buys precocious horses because “they go early” and evoked the memory of her legendary trainer father Tommy Smith.

“This is a very nice colt,” she said.

“As my father said as he got older ‘don’t buy me a stayer, a man will be dead by the time he gets to the races. Buy me a sprinter and I will train it to stay.”

Gai Waterhouse at the Magic Millions sales. Picture by Luke Marsden.

Screen Grabs from a video of Gai Waterhouse auctions off shares in her colt Storm Boy at The Log Cabin pub in Penrith.

At the Magic Millions yearling sales yesterday Waterhouse said she had purchased Storm Boy at the Magic Millions the year before because “we liked him” and was looking for people to buy shares in him. The lunch was the perfect opportunity.

“We took him to the hotel in Penrith and showed him to the customers and a few bought in,” she said. “He has given them the ride of their life.”

Mark Harrold owner and chief pilot of Sydney Helicopters group owns a stake in Storm Boy. Picture: Damian Shaw

Sydney Helicopters boss Mark Harrold said Waterhouse was invited as guest speaker at the Log Cabin pub for a group of Penrith business owners.

“Gai arrived with two yearlings on a horse float and then paraded them around the beer garden which was pretty awesome,” he said.

The tranaction took place at the Log Cabin pub in Penrith.

“We are suckers really but she is hard to resist,” he said. Harrold joined a group of 15 who decided to each buy a $6000 share to take a 20 per cent ownership of the horse.

Storm Boy has not lost a race and is the favourite on Saturday. “We have had caps and pins made and are flying up on Friday to be there for the race. It is really a lot of fun,” he said.

1Part owner Stephanie Cunningham with Magic Millions favourite Storm Boy at the Chris Munce stables in Eagle Farm, Brisbane. Picture: Lyndon Mechielsen

Also owning shares in the horse is Queensland based Cunningham Thoroughbreds. Stephanie Cunningham said the family was “buzzing” with in the build up to the race. “We are really excited at his prospects. He is a big strong boy with a great team behind him.”

For Harrold there will also be a bit of family tension – Harrold’s brother-in-law is Widden Stud owner Anthony Thompson who has an interest in the 2yo Classic’s second favourite Spywire.

“I have never owned a horse but obviously know a bit about it through Anthony,” Harrold said.

Anthony was not so impressed.

“I have tried to put him into horses and there has been no interest. But because Gai Waterhouse walks into a pub with a horse and says ‘buy a share’ of course he did,” he said.

Originally published as No long faces after Penrith punters buy shares in Waterhouse winner Storm Boy