LAST Sunday afternoon, having returned that day from my trip to Aintree, I took myself off to see a movie, Amarcord, part of a festival of films by the renowned director Federico Fellini. However, having booked the ticket some weeks earlier, I was now torn.

You see, I have a very small ownership part in a gelding called Freddie Robdal, trained by Henry de Bromhead. He was due to run that same afternoon in Tramore, with none other than Rachael Blackmore taking the mount.

However, with adverse weather conditions thought likely to scupper any real chance of winning, I reluctantly settled on an afternoon at the Irish Film Institute.

When the movie ended, I switched on my mobile, hoping to find that Freddie and Rachael got around safely. After all, an earlier outing at the same venue resulted in a first fence parting of the ways. Before I had a chance to check the result, I was met with a message that I had 59 WhatsApp notifications. What was happening?

I have to say that my heart missed a beat or two (thankfully I was booked for my annual visit to the cardiologist the following afternoon), and then I started to read the messages. In spite of poor visibility at the seaside track due to fog, the picture was clear. Freddie Robdal, with superb handling by Rachael, won his first race.

I checked again. Could it be true? Yes it was. In the dying strides, he put his head in front, getting the verdict by a nose. After what is approaching five decades of professional involvement in racing and breeding, and a lifetime of family involvement, Leo Powell had his first taste of success as an owner. Wow. The feeling was magical.

This led me to think about the joy of owning a racehorse, even at a micro level. If I got this level of satisfaction and joy from landing a first prize of €7,900 with Freddie (my takeout is about €150), what would I be like if I owned a share in Corach Rambler, purchased for £3,000, and netting half a million for his Aintree triumph. I would certainly need more than an annual visit to the cardiologist!

If anyone saw the scenes after Freddie Robdal won, or had been a fly on the wall at the celebrations in Dublin on Sunday night, they would certainly want to own a racehorse. It is a feeling in a million. Try it, and check out this week’s The Owner column on page 10.