It was an overwhelming sense of pride that Emma-Jane Vincent felt when she was officially listed as a co-trainer alongside respected Brisbane horseman Barry Lockwood in the form guide earlier this month.
The 72-year-old Lockwood had mooted he was set to go into a partnership with Vincent who is his long-time offsider and second-in-charge at his Eagle Farm barn.
The final tick of approval was completed recently and the newly branded Lockwood and Vincent team had their maiden runners together on the first day of this month.
They have since had a trio of runners without yet striking a first-up victory.
As an experienced trackwork rider and stable foreperson for several high-profile trainers across Australia and New Zealand, the move into an official training capacity had long been coming for the 36-year-old Vincent.
Lockwood is regarded as one of the true gentlemen of the racing game in the Sunshine State and the significant opportunity to officially train alongside him is not lost on his younger co-trainer.
“I am really excited and I feel pretty lucky,” Vincent said.
“Barry is someone that I respect so much, not just as a horseman but as a person, as well.
“I feel pretty lucky to be working alongside him, even though I have been doing it for a long time. To have your name next to his, it is pretty cool.
“There is a very good reason why Barry is so respected within the industry. I love racing and once I started working for Barry, I thought this is my last racing job because I will not learn anything more from anyone else.”
Veteran Queensland mentor Lockwood has flagged for the best part of a year that a partnership with Vincent was imminent.
“She has been riding work for me for probably seven or eight years and has been working in her current position as my assistant probably for the last three or four years,” Lockwood said.
“She’s done her time. Emma has been with me for a few years now and she’s been great.
“Now she’ll be in partnership with me. She deserves to have her name up there.”
Before going into an official training capacity, Vincent had served a lengthy apprenticeship within the industry.
She got her first taste of Australian racing when she travelled to Melbourne for the Spring Carnival with Kiwi conditioner John Sargent’s horses, which included Red Ruler, among others.
From there she worked under the tutelage of recent Hall of Fame inductee Peter Moody, Michael Hawkes in Sydney, before landing on the Gold Coast with Toby Edmonds and then onto Brisbane with Kelly Schweida and John Meagher.
She has been with Lockwood ever since.
“I have worked for some wonderful and well-respected trainers,” Vincent said.
“You learn from everyone in racing.
“Barry is someone who I do not stop learning from, which is special because you don’t meet people like that very often.
“He is someone that is happy to teach anyone that wants to learn.”