What led to your job working with Emily Williams?
I am from Mexico and I arrived in California in 1969 and began working with horses when I was eight years old. Later I went to New Jersey to work for George Morris for two years in the early ‘80s and then in ‘85 and ‘86 with Katie Prudent. There was a Mexican manager there who is in the Hall of Fame and who retired two years ago – Pancho Lopez. He helped me a lot in teaching me about horse care. I then went to work for the Firestone family – Alison Firestone, who was the rider and the trainer. It was good working for her because she looked after me and my family – my wife and my children – and they grew up with me there in Virginia.
I retired two years after I stopped working for Alison. I’ve known Emily since she was a Junior rider since she was a little girl – like family to me. She is a great person. She called me and said I need your help. Her owner [Wendy Janesky] had just bought a new barn and they wanted everything to go well for the season. She asked me to come and work for her to help make that happen. I said I don’t know if I can because I am retired, but my wife said I don’t do well when I’m at home and I’m not around horses. So I said I would help and this is my first job working with Hunters.
How would you describe Damas de Tannerre ‘aka’ Dan’s personality?
He has a very good personality. He is a very lovable horse. He’s very respectful. He’s very calm and consistent. He loves attention and being pampered.
With Remi & Ramiro on her side, Emily Williams & Damas de Tannerre were presented as winners of the $25,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby, Presented by BluCreeq Spirits. Photo courtesy of Sportfot.
How did you prepare for the $25,000 USHJA 2* International Hunter Derby (Hunt & Go)
We started early in the week with a warm up on Tuesday and a class on Wednesday and Thursday. We spent time with the horse to make sure he felt good and was in good spirits. We had to have everything right for the horse to feel 100%, to do that [Derby] class, because we cannot make a mistake and every little thing adds up. The four of us guys who work here, we are a team and we all help each other.
That day, we had two horses showing and Autumn [Janesky] won the Champion in the Adult Amateurs 18-35 and Reserve with Dan. So he did the Adults with her, then we took him to the stall to rest a little bit and then we took him to the Derby. It was the first Derby that Emily did with him and he won. I was at the ring for the class to help Ramiro Lopez, who is the main groom for Dan and a very important member of the team. Emily always wants me to stay around her when she’s showing horses. She said, Remy, I want you to stay with me because you’re my lucky charm.
What do you love most about your job?
The greatest thing is to have a horse that rides very well, that rides in perfect condition when it goes to jump, so that it has a winning ride. Yes, I like it all the time when I take a horse to the ring that we win or that we are among the best. I feel happy when my horse is doing well, that is what makes my day the best. It’s not that they have to win, to make me happy – but it’s better when they do! And I know Emily wants to climb to the top and that is also important for me – to be able to help.
What advice did you give to somebody wanting to work as a groom at the top level of the sport?
You must have patience and spend a lot of time with the horses. You have to be passionate about your job, the horses and dedicate your time to them.
Feature Photo: It takes a team according to Remi. Damas de Tannerre pictured here with (l to r) Ramiro Lopez, Remi Padilla, Ociel Barroca and Hector Garay. Photo courtesy of Sarah Eakin on Paper Horse Magazine
Read more Groom’s Features of the Winter Equestrian Festival 2025:
* About Sofie Karlsson
* About Anna Halasz
* About Tamiles Pezzim
Sarah Eakin has a long history of sports reporting and covering equestrian disciplines – particularly show jumping, polo, racing and dressage – for a range of international publications as writer and editor-in-chief. In 2024, Sarah launched Paper Horse – an online magazine with an eclectic mix of stories from the horse world at www.paperhorsemedia.com. Paper Horse is an official Media Partner of Wellington International. Sarah was born in England and came to the US in 1996 as Sidelines’ Polo Editor; at the time she was chief polo writer at the Horse and Hound and Polo Correspondent to The Daily Telegraph. She married US professional polo player Gary Eakin and stayed Stateside traveling throughout North America while covering equestrian events. She is also an author; Wed, White and Blue, her first novel is on Amazon.
