Piaff Bubbles: Big Engine, Big Heart, and a Name Like a Prosecco Hangover
- By Danni Levy
If you’ve been watching Race for the Crown on Netflix, you’ll know horse racing isn’t all top hats and posh finger sandwiches, it’s elbows in the mud, nerves of steel, and a whole lotta horsepower. It’s a sport where dreams cost thousands, and your hopes can be scuppered by a patch of dry ground.
Which brings us to Piaff Bubbles—our lad. Yes, we actually own a share in this absolute unit. With a name like a boozy girls’ night out but the stamina of a Sunday League centre-back, Piaff is a staying chaser built for long races and longer naps. He’s trained by Rebecca Menzies, one of the hardest-working trainers in the game and not shy of a straight answer. With over 80 horses in her care, she still knows which ones are the grafters and which ones just fancy a trot and a carrot.
We had a proper natter with her to find out where Piaff fits in the yard pecking order, what life as a trainer’s really like, and what happens when a horse hangs up its racing plates for good.
First off—what made you pick Piaff Bubbles? He’s got decent breeding, but what else caught your eye?
“Piaff was bought from the Goffs Spring Horses In Training sale back in 2022, originally for another partnership and then he transferred ownership to the Rebecca Menzies Racing Partnerships. He was an expensive horse and is an out and out staying chaser type, meaning he loves long races. He looked like a horse that would improve with time.”
You’ve got over 80 horses in training. Be honest—where does our boy Piaff sit on the leaderboard?
“We do have over 80 horses but these are split between jump and flat horses. Within the jumping hierarchy he rates highly! He has been very consistent for us finishing in the first 4, 7 times out of his 11 starts for us. He takes his racing well but does need soft ground to show his best. If we didn't have to rely on the weather he would have had lots more starts and hopefully wins for us. This Spring has been a disaster for horses that like juice in the ground.”
Do you ride them yourself? Or are you more the boss with a clipboard these days?
“I have just started riding back out after a 10 year break! Typically we have between 10 and 12 horses per lot and I usually watch them on the gallops (from the comfort of a jeep!) so I can see how they are going. I am very fortunate to have some experienced riders who can tell me how that particular horse has worked and the feedback is crucial for altering their future training regime.”
What’s the big dream for you? What’s the one win that’d have you doing cartwheels?
“That’s a hard one, if you had asked me when I started training nearly 12 years ago it would have been to train a winner. Then as we have grown and increased our number and quality of horses my goals have changed. I would love to train a Grand National winner but equally would love to train a Royal Ascot winner. Ultimately, to have a successful career with lots of winners!”
Be honest—what’s your day like? Are you up at stupid o’clock getting your hands dirty?
“The days are long and it is definitely a way of life rather than just a job. I start at about 5am and sit with a coffee while I do the riding out board. This has to be done before the riders start at 7 and can be a complicated task depending on who we have riding out and which horses need to do what exercise that day. Once that is done I will go out to the yard and make sure that everything is ok and all the horses have been fed. Our first lot goes out at 7am and I will meet the horses and riders in our outdoor school to give any last minute instructions before I follow them out onto the gallop and find my viewing point. From here I will watch the horses work and then wait for them to walk back in to find out how the riders think they have got on. We usually have 6/7 lots a day and I will try to watch as many as I can. In between lots I will check my entries and catch up with owners who have called in to see their horses. We finish for lunch around 12.30 and then I either head into the office to catch up on things or if we have runners I usually go racing. In the winter I may leave much earlier. It all depends on what time they run.
Either way, once I am back from racing or finished up in the office I like to go around the yard and check that everyone is happy and that everyone is settled for the night before I head into the house. Not forgetting to feed Cynthia, the cat, on my way.”
How important is the jockey in all this? Are there proper bonds between horse and rider?
“The Jockey is very important, I try where possible to use jockeys that I know and that have been in the yard and ridden out for me. This allows them to see the horses at home and build a relationship with the horses. I am lucky that we have 3 jockeys who ride out most days for us and they get to know the horses well. A very good horse can put an average jockey on the map, equally a really good jockey can get an average horse to win!”
And when Piaff calls it a day—what happens then?
“This is a really good question, over the last 11 years I have made sure that all our horses that have been retired have found another home that suits them. It is important that we try our best to make sure that we find them a new purpose once they finish on the racetrack. For the time that they are in training they are giving us their best and it is only right that we return that effort when finding them new homes. When Piaff retires it is likely he will be able to go on and do another job whether it's as an eventer or a pleasure horse and I will definitely be doing my best to find his perfect forever home - hopefully it will be a while off yet!”
Loaded** Verdict:** Piaff Bubbles might not be sipping Moët anytime soon, but he’s tough, talented, and in good hands. Trained by one of the most switched-on women in racing, he’s got every chance of giving us a few big days out, and a few decent betting slips too. Keep your eye on him next time he runs on soft ground... and remember the name.
Even if it does sound like something you'd order at a bottomless brunch.