Jean Brown

Horses are a way of life for Jean Brown. As a child, she lived on Castleton Farm, the largest Standardbred farm in Lexington, Kentucky, where her father trained horses and helped manage the farm; when she was eight, the family moved to Blue Chip Farms in Wallkill, New York, the largest commercial Standardbred farm in the state, where her father retired as general manager and where Brown is now administrative manager.

Brown attended Beloit College in Wisconsin, majoring in geology. She then went on to Yale University to study paleontology. Horses drew Brown away from Yale before she earned her graduate degree when she decided to take a job in the research department of the U.S. Trotting Association in Columbus, Ohio. She then worked as assistant sales manager for the Garden State Sales Company, a Standardbred sales company in Monticello, New York.

But Blue Chip was beckoning her home. An owner retired in 1990 and the farm needed a replacement; Brown was it.

The 648-acre farm is home to six stallions (3 of which are Syndicated) that breed between 650 to 800 mares a year. As many as 450 horses may be on the premises at any one time during breeding season. About 150 mares stay at the farm year-round with their foals and yearlings.

Brown is a member of the auxiliary of the Goshen Historical Track, the oldest harness track in the country. She is also a director of the Harness Horse Youth Foundation and the Harness Horse Breeders of New York State. In May 2006 Jean was promoted to Sr. Vice President-Operations. She became a member of the Zweig Committee in 1995.