European Exports With Gemma Freeman

[Wandering Eyes]

European Exports is a series where we catch up with people who have left their home countries to make a new life in the racing industry in America. Today, we catch up with Gemma Freeman of Stonestreet.

KR: Where are you originally from?

GF: I’m from Newbury, which is in Berkshire, and it’s a really pretty part of Southern England. Watership Down Stud is there, and Highclere Stud, and it’s near Lambourn.

KR: When did you come to America, and why did you decide to come here?

GF: I came to America in January 2005. I was working at Watership Down Stud at the time, and I’d spent a year in Australia and some time in Ireland. I had applied for a job in Newmarket that was sort of the next step up, and I didn’t get it and I didn’t have a plan B. Simon Marsh, who runs Watership Down, had spent some time at Lane’s End in his twenties, and so he sent me to Lane’s End for 18 months. And that was 13 years ago.

KR: Is there anything you miss about England?

GF: Truly what I miss other than family is bridleways and footpaths. All the land is so private here, you can’t just go riding or walking, and that’s what I miss the most.

KR: What do you think American racing could learn from British racing?

GF: Consistent rules across Britain simplify participation for trainers, owners and fans, and I also think it frees up a lot of brain power, energy, resources–financial and mental–to do other things for the benefit of the sport.

KR: And vice versa, what could Britain learn from America?

GF: What astounded me when I first came here is how you could go to a racetrack, get your training license and just rent one stall and be a horse trainer. America really is the land of opportunity. The ease of entry as an owner or trainer is much different, and I think it’s really good. Young people, people from different backgrounds, can come and thrive in this country.

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