2006 Trainee Views
Dubai - March 2008
Insha’Allah
If we need to explain one word that we learnt during our time in Dubai, it would be Insha’Allah. It indicates hope for something to occur in the future and it also provides Allah’s blessings on what you are about to do. I am sure it was uttered more than once by one of our minders who was trying to find Junling Sun for more than three hours at Dubai’s International Airport!
We had been promised much ahead of our arrival in Dubai. Of the 12 of us, Gina was the only Flying Starter to have experienced the wonders of this colourful land and she spoke of it in terms just as glowing as the ones provided by Darley’s management team.
I arrived a week earlier than the team and was astounded to see the lights of the Burj carrying across to ‘our holy place’, the basketball court at Emirates Academy. Over our three months stay, it was on this concrete block that limbs were damaged, ankles bruised, blood spilt, backs cracked, pain felt and those with lion hearts revealed. In one or two games the number of injuries tallied higher than the baskets sunk.
Through it all was Alan Simpson, a king amongst men, the Lord of Dubai. This Scotsman was parent, advisor and guardian angel but above all a great friend. A man who could laugh at both you and himself with equal abandon and who introduced us to the wonders of Dubai’s other side, Peppermint and Tiesto, a man he energetically described as “the best DJ in the world”. Alan was a vital link between us and Ajay and Emma who were the Dubai management team who took care of us on a daily basis. Emma, queen of the handbrake, kept us both laughing and working. If there were queries during our placements with some of Dubai’s horse trainers it was Emma who was there. If there were concerns over the cooking scents brewing from behind Door 26 (Junling) Emma was called. If we were lost drag racing through the desert unable to find Hatta Farm…you guessed it, Emma.
It was also Emma who organised what was undoubtedly the most astounding visit of our Dubai stint and it didn’t involve horses. A camel breeding farm, blessed with ‘Camas’, a cross between camels and lamas, and perhaps the world’s only midget camel, widened our view of the world and introduced us to the commercial market of camel breeding and its deafening consequences. But it wasn’t all crazy sights and sounds, baby camels had Sarah, Gina and Liz beaming.
Few of our group had previously experienced working so intimately with stables and relished the chance to share in both failure and success. Jerome regained his pfff after a stint with fellow Frenchman Erwan Charpy.
Mike De Kock wowed us all when we visited him as a group and left Brandon and I with both racing and life experience.
Gina won the hearts and minds of the local media and looks to have found her calling. Godolphin, its management figures Simon Crisford and Saeed Bin Suroor, and a stable of immaculately bred and turned out horses was an experience Alex and I will never forget. Rarely in life can you learn so much and share great moments.
Eden, Dean, Jerome and Andy overcame the language barriers of International and World Cup Quarantine, lapped up extended breakfasts and made lasting contacts.
Satish Seemar entertained and educated Sarah, Liz and Dean, while Dhruba Selvaratnam anointed Bo and Junling as the future princes of Jebel Ali. And Doug Watson may deserve a knighthood after a successive 10 weeks of questioning from Eden and Brandon.
With our morning work covered our afternoons were filled with marketing theories, robust HR discussions, Duncan’s finance stories and Theo M’Bise smile and website development. At the start of these courses none of us expected to see the emergence of The Aqua Frolic, learn about the world’s first shuttle farm Calais Farm or more astoundingly China’s central horse and pony club aptly known as The Clubba Hubba. But the single most memorable moment of our stint in Dubai was the privilege of meeting His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid al Maktoum.
And then the day arrived. After 18 months of whispering and wondering we were assured that we would meet the visionary whose spectrum of achievements include reforming the Middle East and creating the management course that is Flying Start. The buzz was palpable as the morning began. It even led to Jerome and Junling wearing identical shirt and tie combinations. The morning was spent meeting with a selection of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed’s right hand men. Visits to The Palms, the Burj Dubai, Dubai Holdings and Nakheel gave dimensions to His Highness’ plans for Dubai and the wider United Arab Emirates. For those who think they know what lies ahead in Dubai, we can assure you that this is the beginning, not the end.
As the hours ticked by the tension built. The search for the Mercedes 4WD with the ‘1’ number plate increased. We received confirmation that lunch was to be on the top floor of the Burj al Arab. As our bus approached the security blockade we saw it. The ‘1’. It zipped between cars, slipped around us, skipped through security and was gone. John Ferguson led us up through the Burj as a succession of management figures ensured protocol was kept in order. Within minutes we had been introduced to a figure whose influence continues to redefine the world we live in. Those introductions included His Highness meeting a new member of the programme, Drew, who had run under the alias of Dean for the best part of 18 months.
Over the most lavish meal most of us had ever taken part in His Highness explained his vision of Dubai and of where the UAE is heading. He laughed at stories told by the Crown Prince, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum, who joined us during lunch. And he had us laughing when trying to convince us that he was still a better endurance rider than his son, the world champion.
For the last three months we give our warmest thanks to His Highness Sheikh Mohammed, to John Ferguson, to Darley management, to Alan and Emma, to those who taught us and had to deal with us on a daily basis. Our course in Dubai couldn’t have been better and our minds learnt a great lesson… that our dreams can come true. INSHA’ALLAH!
Fabricio Buffolo and Gina Bryce
The baseball court and the Burj at night
Fabricio with Asiatic Boy
Andy on the sand dunes