by Chris Lomon
Although she works overtime to keep pace with a training career on the fast track, that hectic life doesn’t prevent Heather France from helping new faces at the races.
It would be understandable if the horsewoman from Three Rivers, MI — named for its location at the confluence of the St. Joseph River and its tributaries, the Rocky and Portage rivers — had little time to dedicate to mentoring others.
Despite the demands of running a 22-horse barn, France makes it a priority to guide and educate harness racing newcomers.
“I am very particular in what I do, so it is hard for me because I want things done a certain way,” she said. “I have to remind myself that things are getting done, my staff is learning and they are doing a great job.”
France’s harness racing journey began in the mid-2000s when she started work as a groom in the barn of trainer and fellow Michigander Joe Seekman.
“I worked there for about four and a half years, and I fell in love with it [horse racing],” France said. “What brought me there was a combination of a lot of things. I always wanted a horse when I was a kid. I always admired horses. We didn’t have space for a horse when I was growing up, but I just loved how pretty they looked. But when I came into harness racing, it was a whole new way of looking at them.”
Lessons were plentiful.
“I truly enjoyed my time with Joe,” she said. “I learned how to drive a truck and trailer there. They had broodmares, weanlings, yearlings – a whole array of different things that helped me learn more about the sport and the horses.
“Everyone worked together. It was more of everyone working as a team and we just got things done. I would go to the races a lot and I always looked forward to it. I would also paddock every horse we had. I was young, so I was always willing to do anything.”
France’s admiration for pacers and trotters grew throughout her time with Seekman.
Her favorite during that tenure was Annieswesterncard, a bay son of Western Hanover out of the Cam’s Card Shark mare Annie Your A Card.
The pacer with the white left front ankle, earned nearly $1.5 million during a distinguished career that included 36 wins from 185 starts.
“He was a super nice, docile horse,” France said. “He was pretty and he was fast. He was just an all-around great horse.”
There have been other memorable ones over the years.
“I worked for Trent Stohler and he always had some very nice Sires Stakes horses,” she said. “I would travel to Pennsylvania and watch them race on that circuit. He had Glassine Hanover, who paced in 1:52 as a 2-year-old. I also worked for Jeff Cullipher for a few years and got to work around some very nice horses there, too, including Alexa Skye.”
In 2014, France launched her own training career and wasted little time celebrating her first win.
On Oct. 28 of that year, she sent out Princess Baby Ella in the third race on the card. Less than two minutes later,1:55.1, to be exact, the daughter of River Boat King crossed the wire just under a length clear of her closest rival.
“My biggest highlights so far would probably be my first training win,” she said. “The other memorable win would be with Clapton Blue Chip. He was a trotter, who I worked with at the Seekmans. They helped me buy him and helped me so much when it came to him. Those two wins would stand out as the most memorable so far.”
There will almost certainly be more to add to that list, given how France’s career has shifted into high gear.
Her win and purse totals have improved every year since 2021, when she posted one win from 13 starts with a modest stable. From there, she recorded 16, 28, and 44 wins in successive seasons.
What will she do for an encore in 2026?
Just two-plus months into the year, her stable is already on pace to eclipse her 2025 numbers across the board.
On Feb. 17, at Miami Valley, France made three visits to the winner’s circle. One night later, at the same five-eighths oval, she celebrated two wins.
As for the reasons behind the success over the past three-plus campaigns, France ruminated before sharing her answer.
“The most challenging thing right now is having 22 horses and keeping everything in line, in terms of entering horses, classifications, keeping staff on the same page and how you want things done,” she said.
“I do get stressed, but I always remind myself that everything will be fine and work out. My staff are amazing and the owners I have are great. I keep them in the know and tell them what I am going to do before I do it and ask for their opinion. That has all played a big part in what we have been able to achieve over the past few years.”
An open mind and ear — along with extensive travel — have also served her well.
“I am a listener and a people-watcher, so I take mental notes all the time,” she said. “I worked for a lot of great people, and you always take away something important from each place.
“I have been to a lot of racetracks, which always offers a new perspective on racing. Since around 2007, I have been to Canada, New Zealand, Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Kentucky – that has been one of the great things I have been able to do because of this sport. You get to see so many wonderful places and meet so many wonderful people, but you also get to learn something new when you talk to all these horsepeople.
“Everyone has different ways of doing things, so it is always fun to interact with people from the East Coast or West Coast and see how they do things. If one thing isn’t working, maybe you are able to introduce a new approach you learned from someone else.”
It has proven to be a winning formula for the France barn.
In a sport driven by numbers, her statistics tell much of the story, but not all of it.
The pursuit of personal-best milestones is matched by her commitment to sharing her love of racing and horses with those in her barn, inspiring others through her words and actions.
Just as so many did for her along the way.
“I am very fortunate to have a team that works hard,” she said. “They are all great. They want to learn and do things right. That helps with the stress of getting everything ready for the races, training schedules and so many other things.
“It reminds me that I was once there myself.”