Businessman David Howden eyes more celebrations after meeting The Queen at Royal Ascot as Running Lion lines up in the Falmouth Stakes

In time there will be talk of soaring dreams, motivational speeches and rich traditions but, first, David Howden is addressing a celebration.

Howden is the Chief Executive of the insurance company that bears his name - the little acorn he planted 30 years ago to provide a 'personal service' is a now a mighty oak that employs 18,000 people worldwide with 120 high street offices across the UK.

He is no stranger to success in business but we are here to discuss the apple of his eye, Running Lion, the dashing, grey filly who attacks her races with the same zest as her 60-year-old owner approaches life.

Running Lion will tackle the Group One Falmouth Stakes at Newmarket today, a significant race for milers in the flat season, and she arrives here on the back of a barnstorming effort at Royal Ascot that enabled her to dismantle her rivals in the Group Two Duke Of Cambridge Stakes. She and her jockey Oisin Murphy flowed in unison.

As thrilling as that performance was, though, it couldn't hold a candle to the gusto Howden showed afterwards: arms aloft, eyes open wide, this was a giddy concoction of delirium and disbelief - the essence of what racehorse ownership is about.

'Oh, the elation!' Howden exclaims - he's just returned from a business trip to Taipei but there is no trace of jet-lag as he takes himself back three weeks.

'I remember last year she was favourite for the Oaks (at Epsom) and backed out of the stalls before the race. I watched that happen and I just laughed because you have to brace yourself for everything in this game. Anything can, and often does, happen.

'But at Royal Ascot, everything just came together wonderfully. Everyone wants a winner at Royal Ascot, it's the absolute pinnacle and there she was, leading from the front and doing it the hard way.

'What a day it was: The Queen found me in the paddock afterwards to talk about the race; there was so much to take on. I got back home later, had a couple of glasses of champagne and watched the race again - several times!'

Such is the affection Howden has for Running Lion, he was compelled to show a video of the four-year-old, who is trained in Newmarket by father-and-son team John and Thady Gosden, to delegates as reference point for events in life.

'People at the conference in Taipei who work for us had taken an interest in Running Lion,' he explained. 'I got up to show a video and said to everyone 'what I'm going to talk to you about is a lesson in building resilience.

'Running Lion had suffered some disappointments this season, having lost at Newmarket and Epsom, but success doesn't go in a straight line. I've seen that firsthand over 30 years and you have to be able to take the blows.

'There are two kinds of people in this world: those who put energy into a room and those who suck it out. I just wanted to show people that day what an amazing sport this and the joy it can provide.'

His enthusiasm for racing leaps out of every syllable. Aside from Running Lion, Howden owns another nine horses in training - spread across yards such as Ollie Sangster, Andrew Balding and Ralph Beckett - and has another 10 with the Qatari Sheikh Fahad At-Thani.

A father to three daughters, Talitha, Jemima and Kitty, he's a keen horseman himself and a rugby aficionado with Howden's sponsorship portfolio including the back of the British and Irish Lions.

His dreams of pulling on that Red jersey were ended as a 15-year-old, when he broke his back during a school game and required a spinal fusion but he never let that stop him remaining involved.

'Isn't The Lions tour the most extraordinary thing?' Howden asks rhetorically. 'I thought if I had a connection, why would I not be involved? This team comes together every four years and, together, they stand for the best of us.'

This much is true - never giving up, not being afraid to embrace a challenge - but, as we come full circle, to discuss Running Lion and her prospects against another Royal Ascot winner, Porta Fortuna, there is a momentary pause.

'Oh,' he says, smiling. 'I'm afraid I'm very, very nervous! It's a big step up in class against a very good filly….'

He will be at Newmarket with his wife, Fiona, and the slight pause at the end of the last answer suggests he's thinking about more celebrations.

'But if you can't run, you can't win!' Howden adds. 'These are the moments you have to enjoy, aren't they?'