Meet Sara English | Sycamore Lane Farm Vice President

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sara English and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sara, what habits do you feel play an important role in your life?
As with anything in life, I feel that discipline is key. This is especially true when working with young horses, because much like humans they feel most comfortable in a consistent routine. Everyone has mornings and when they want to hit snooze or stay out late at night, but when you have an animal depending on you for everything, you have to shift your priorities.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Sycamore Lane Farm is a boutique thoroughbred farm located in Nicholasville Kentucky. Because we are a small operation believe in quality over quantity, so we can tailor our program to fit the individual needs of each horse in our care. Whether a horse needs an extra meal to maintain healthy weight or extra grooming for a shiny hair coat. We breed, raise, prepare horses for sales, purchase horses for clients, and start young horses under saddle.
However, we specialize in Pinhooking, a term that originated from Kentucky’s tobacco industry when individuals would buy small plants from larger farms and grow them to sell at market with the aim of making a profit.
Typically we Pinhook weanlings to yearlings. Meaning, we purchase a horse recently weaned from their mother (usually about 6-9 months old) and we sell them as yearlings (1 year old horses). This is arguably the easiest way to pinhook horses because they do not have to prove they’re fast, they just need to look the part of a potential racehorse and pass a veterinarian exam.
However, this doesn’t mean the job is easy. The goal of pinhooking is to improve the quality of the horse, this can be done through training, regular hoof maintenance, as well as proper diet and exercise.This requires a lot of attention to detail, as every horse develops at their own pace.
Owning my own business has taught me an immense amount of patience. I think the biggest lesson I have learned is that in this business nothing goes as planned so while we always have a plan sometimes we have to roll with the punches. Yet somehow it always works out in the end.
If you, the reader, should take away two things from this article I hope it would be
1. Never let anyone tell you that you can’t make money doing what you love.
2. Just because you have to go at a slower pace than those around you does not mean you won’t make it to your destination.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Since Lexington is the horse capital of the world my first stop no matter what time of year would be Keeneland Race Course. It is gorgeous year-round but during the race meets, which take place biannually in April and then again in October. The atmosphere is unmatched, it’s like the Disney World of horse racing. After a day at the races I usually like to go to dinner, I really enjoy Carson’s for a warm cozy yet elegant atmosphere Then, for some after dinner drinks I enjoy going to Charlie Brown’s Restaurant & Pub for the best White Russians in town.
The next day I would start with brunch at Frank & Dino’s, a true Italian restaurant where you’ll always feel at home. Then we would go for a drive around the scenic back roads surrounding Lexington, passing by many horse farms along the way.
And because I’m a huge history nerd I would love to take a visitor on a tour of the childhood home of Mary Todd Lincoln or another prominent figure in history. Lastly, I think I would finish the adventure off with a trip down Bourbon Trail to sample some of the worlds best Bourbons.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My dad, Daren English, has without a doubt been the cornerstone of my business, even from a very young age he helped me pick out my first pinhook, Awesome Flower, who went on to win multiple stakes races, and later became the mother of multiple Grade 1 stakes winner Cyberknife. I don’t know of very many people who would be willing to give up their entire way of life and move halfway across the country just to support and mentor their child throughout their first few years of business. He has taught me more about horses, business, and life than I think I could ever write. I would also like thank Caroline Madden, President of Marketing for Never Say Bourbon for promoting my business whenever possible. I think it is very important small businesses support each other.

Instagram: sycamorelanesales

Other: Email: sara@sycamorelanefarm.com