Richard Shrake
Clinician

Richard Shrake has been a trainer and highly-regarded professional for more than 40 years. And a barn full of winning students has always proven his reputation as a teacher. Shrake’s capacity for patience and communication skills made him a hit with youth students in his barn from the beginning. As a showman, Shrake has shown all over the United States and, as a clinician, has shared his experiences and teaching methods throughout the United States and beyond. Shrake's training method, a balanced, common-sense program called Resistance Free® Riding and Training Methods, has made him one of the best all-around clinicians.

"The Resistance Free® methods have been a life-long process for me to be able to share with you the knowledge of patience, kindness and obedience when working with horses and riders. I have trained and instructed for over 40 years and my goal is to pass this on to all horse people who want a program that will work for them and their horse,” is Shrake’s professional affirmation.

His base in Sun River, Ore., allows Shrake the time to write his Bridle Wise column, which appears in major magazines throughout the country. He has trained World Champion horses and riders, judged all the major breed World Championship shows and put his years of wisdom into his columns, a video series and well-constructed clinics.

In recent years, he has been called the ''ultimate coach'' by his students. Shrake's primary purpose in creating the Resistance Free * method has been to develop a cooperation between horse and rider that results in humane training and riding and always maintains respect for the partnership between horse and rider.

One of the most popular of his programs, called the Graduate Course, is a breakthrough in personalized riding and instruction. It benefits trainers and riders alike, whether for show or pleasure. Shrake has the ability to lead students though step-by-step instruction to work with all disciplines and levels of ability. His clinics always stress that the first step toward any training success comes after an evaluation of the health of the horse. Without that, there can be no success.

Career Highlights

• Creator of the Resistance Free® Training & Riding Methods
• Judged 16 world championship shows for 5 major breeds
• Instructor of more than 4,000 clinics
• Demonstrator at more than 280 horse expos and fairs
• Author of three best-selling equine books
• Lecturer at more than 200 universities and colleges
• Producer of 29 equine educational DVDs
• Designer of saddles, bits and tack for major equine companies
• Writer of Bridle Wise, a syndicated monthly column
• Originator of the Accredited Resistance Free® Trainer/Instructor Program
• Owner of “Miss Resistance Free®”, the Breyer model horse for the new century
• Advisory board member for six college and university equine programs
• Winning trainer and rider of all-around horse at the Quarter Horse Congress, the world’s largest horse show
• Sponsored by the most respected and honored equine corporations in the horse industry: Purina Mills LLC, Sundowner Trailer, Ford Motor Co., Pfizer Animal Health