The Team

Christine Vanneck

Founder

Christine Vanneck, the founder of Muny Sunk Stables, comes from a family strong in horsemanship and riding and has always had horses in her life. As a child, she grew up loving and caring for her backyard ponies, as well as interning at Blue Chip Farm to learn more about breeding. Since her daughter, Sarah Owen, also grew to love horses, Christine ventured from the Palm Beach area to create a better and wholesome life for herself and her daughter. Knowing the Tryon, NC area had a wonderful opportunity for local and USEF rated shows, she chose to live in the heart of western NC. Ever since Christine was a child, she dreamed of having a farm and horses, which led to buying her first farm, and eventually buying the farm where Muny Sunk is now located. She has invested her life into her farm and daughter's dreams. She has taught Sarah all aspects of running the farm, but now steps back to allow Sarah to accomplish her goals as a breeder.

Sarah Owen

Breeding & Young Stock Manager

Sarah got her start at Wellington Show Stables under the guidance of Helen Varble and her team of young trainers such as Ali Oakley-Sweetnam. After relocating to North Carolina and for the remainder of her riding career, she rode with trainers Judy Young, Betsy Pack, Holli Adams, and Sergio Campos. Sarah competed across the Eastern seaboard from the pony divisions to regional and national standard Grand Prixs. From a very early age, her fascination for show jumping breeding grew to far surpass her love for riding. Through dedicated research, Sarah has acquired extensive knowledge of jumper bloodlines and the top performing horses that come from these lines. Furthermore, from her days as a rider, she has also acquired the ability to accurately evaluate a horse from conformation to athletic ability. Sarah's goal is to provide the best bloodlines with jumping talent to buyers in North America as well as Europe. Recently, Sarah took a step further in her breeding education and was certified for artificial insemination with both fresh cooled and frozen semen along with ultrasounding and reproductive care.

Mark Brown

Breeding Manager

Mark Brown, being a lifetime horseman, has been involved with every aspect of the Equine industry. Raised on the the historic Castleton Farm in Lexington KY, and Blue Chip Farm in NY, he’s worked with some of the greatest horses, horsemen and veterinarians of the Thoroughbred, Standardbred, and hunter/jumper industries. He has extensive knowledge in all aspects of breeding, foaling, and specializes in colts & stallions as well as mare & foal management. During his time at Blue Chip, he managed all aspects of the day to day operations, from reproduction to management. Mark also served on the Commonwealth of Virginia Racing Commission. Christine and Mark have known each other for almost 40 years, as Mark managed her family’s broodmares, while apprenticing under his father, William S. Brown. His father was the first ever inducted into the Harness Horse Hall of Fame as a farm manager, managing both Castleton and Blue Chip Farms.