by Victoria Howard

Born and raised in Woodbury, NJ, Diana Kramer still resides in the Jersey Blue State. After graduating from high school Kramer needed a job so the 18-year-old went to a local farm looking for work. That was over 22 years ago. It didn’t take long for her to discover that working with horses was what she wanted to do with the rest of her life.

Although she had not been born into the business her family always owned riding horses, so she had some experience working with horses. But back in the 80s, Kramer’s mother had dabbled in grooming standardbreds for Mark and Kathy Schwartz and her grandfather loved and followed harness racing.

Kramer’s grandmother, that she calls mommom, has always been her No. 1 fan.

“My mommom has been my biggest supporter ever since I was a child,” Kramer said. “She took me to shows, meetings, babysat my children, she even took me to Tom and Linda’s that first day where I met and fell in love with Willie Slick, a 17.2 hand son of the great Niatross. I thought to myself, ‘This is going to be my horse someday,’ and four years later when he got injured and was retired from racing, he became mine. Unfortunately, he has since gone to horse heaven.”

After Kramer discovered how much she enjoyed working with standardbreds, she worked for some of the best trainers in the business, such as, Thomas Lail, Jr., Jimmy and Nancy Takter, Jonas Czernyson, Bernie Noren, Jan Johnson (Continental Farms), Richard Silverman, Casie Coleman, Annette Lorentzen, Marcus Melander, Robert Cleary, Izzy Estrada, Bruce Nickells, and Alex Goldin. Presently she works for Goldin, rubbing and riding.

“I’ve worked for a lot of Scandinavian trainers because when you are employed by them you could rub and ride, and that’s what I love to do best,” Kramer said. “Throughout the 20-plus years I have been involved in the sport, I’ve been blessed to have worked with some of the best trainers and learned a lot from each one and took it with me. But I’m especially grateful to Tom Lail and Linda Mobray for having faith in me and giving me my start.”

Looking back on her career so far, Kramer mentioned several horses that have made an impact on her, including two of her own, Kid Did It and Wilbur’s Z Tam.

“As far as the equine who taught me the most about horses and the horseman’s way of life was a quarter horse mare I had growing up named Ranchers Lil Imp.

“The fastest horse I ever took care of was Net Ten Eom for Richard Silverman; he is now standing Down Under. But my biggest thrill was winning with my horse ‘Kid’ [Kid Did It] when he won his second lifetime start at Freehold or his win at Yonkers. He was my first winning horse.

“As far as ‘Wilbur’ [Wilbur’s Z Tam] I never got a win, but was second in a photo, which was just as thrilling as a win to me. He is now happily retired at 15 years old.

“Poor Kid had many naysayers who called him ‘hamburger’ and said he would never be a racehorse, but he proved them wrong for now he has four parimutuel wins and two fair wins. I’m hoping to drive him in the fairs this year as well as qualifying him.

“This year Kid attended the Halloween Parade at Freehold acting as an advocate trying to save Freehold Raceway, along with several others from the track.”

Kramer said things haven’t changed much for her over the years.

“Today, I still eat, sleep, breathe horses and harness racing, and have never been happier,” she said. “Of course, there are many setbacks and heartaches that come along in the business, so you have to be a die-hard to survive.

“I just finished studying for my driver/trainer license and plan on making my debut in a qualifier with my horse Kid next year after he gets done enjoying his vacation. I always said I wanted to get my driver/trainer license but never got around to it, but Kid gave me that extra push.

Kramer keeps her horses at a private farm and her employers stable at Taylor Gower’s. Both are located in Cream Ridge, NJ.

“When we race it is usually at The Meadowlands but occasionally race at Shenandoah Downs,” Kramer said. “I absolutely love the breed and what they do on and off the racetrack. Every year I try hard to make it to the Standardbred Nationals where I ride regularly.

“My goal is to do what Brielle Roman and Molly D’Agostino do, retrain and rehome standardbreds when their career as a racehorse is over. There are so many wonderful people who care about the horse once their racing career has ended, and I give them all so much credit.

“As far as the one female I look up to in the business it would have to be the late, great Bea Farber. That woman is a legend who paved the way for all the other women in the sport. Bea was way ahead of her time, and I’d love to see what she would be doing if she were alive today.”

Kramer said that since she has worked with so many special horses, it was hard for her to pick a favorite, but one did stand out a little from the others.

“Ranchers Lil Imp is at the top of the list because she is the one who taught me a lot about a horse’s personality, quirks, funny ways, and how they think.

“But I want to say that the two horses I presently own — Wilbur and Kid — saved me, I didn’t save them. They are the reason I get up every day and work hard. They may not have won a Breeders Crown or earned a million dollars but to me they are champions and until the day that I die, they will be with me. I hope that Kid will help me with my next chapter, learning how to drive in a race. But regardless, I owe these two horses everything and feel so blessed to have them.”