Photo Gallery
The Journey
About Ralea K. Casperson or "Ray"
Ralea has over 23 years in the horse industry as a rider, competitor, barn manager, instructor and trainer and breeder. Her passion and love for horses started at a very young age. Eventually as a birthday gift from her father she got her first pony Thunder at 13 years old. Only after much begging and pleading. Since then, this love has developed into a lifelong passion, and career. Ralea started as a young child trail riding and then lead to 4-H where she spent many years learning horsemanship and showing at the county fairs. Eventually she went from just being a young dorky kid with a pony to winning multiple trips to states and nationals with her Morgan Gelding Debonaire. She then went on to be a camp counselor and instructor in 4-H and asked to be horse president. She spent many years training and showing quarter horse, paints and Morgan’s in breed classes for Western and English performance, Halter, In- hand and barrel racing, and eventually around age 15, started into Dressage and really started her training career. Dressage eventually took precedence as she developed a large passion and love for the sport. She loved how it helped her in all her training and many other disciplines with a finesse and softness. Something that she thought lacked in many other disciplines. Eventually Ralea focused more on Dressage and started heavily with Friesians and Friesian Sport horses when she bought her Friesian Percheron stallion Knight at the age of 18. She then started her first real training business. By this point Ralea had become head trainer of an APHA/ QH facility and already had started and competed many horse for multiple facilities in Minnesota. She then went on a worked for a large Friesian Breeding center where she started and trained many Friesian stallions amongst many other breeds. She was asked to join the Friesian Dance Troupe and started doing performance shows with her stallion Knight. From there she worked with Richard Shrake who saw her talent at an event she was performing at and wanted her to join his Resistance free training team. She studied his techniques along with Monty Roberts’s join- up and became a level 2 coach. Ralea’s life abruptly came to a stop when a training injury broke her leg and needed major surgery to rebuild her ankle. With doctors order of a long healing and therapy process she decided to go back to collage after a broken leg injury to study Equine veterinarian at the University of Minnesota vet school. There she completed her pre-studies and was fully accepted into vet school. As much as Ralea tried to focus on pursuing another career path she longed to train and teach again and decided becoming a vet was truly not her desire. After a long recovery she started slow by working as assistant for her good friend and top female jouster in the country, as well as a Friesian breeder and top driving and carriage trainer. She became skilled in the joust, and learned the art renaissance game which consisted of spear throwing, archery and sword with her stallion Knight and went on to do performance at Renaissance shows and events. She became horse master at certain events and is considered a level 3 jouster, just one step below at becoming a teacher of the arts! It was truly one of the best times with her stallion.
Ralea came across an opportunity to have her own facility in Turtle lake Wisconsin where she started Lord of the Reins training academy at 21 years old. She started a breeding and training facility where she went on to breed Friesian Sport horses with her stallion Nero’s Knight Mystique. After a few years in Wisconsin she became very ill and caught severe pneumonia where she almost died and had a terrible injury to her back where she almost ruptured a disk in her lower back. The doctors said being in the cold and environment she was in was very detrimental to her lungs. She had to close the doors and business and decided to go study under other great dressage trainers for a while and do some traveling while she was young enough to do so. She received a working student position in New Mexico where she trained and studied under a German Master at a large Swedish Warmblood breeding facility. Later she went on to Colorado and started a small Dressage training program and studied under a Reining trainer and learned the skills to develop reining horses. She then after received an opportunity to train Oldenburg stallions in Winnipeg Canada and her and her stallion moved to the terrible cold. There she remained 9 months until she could no longer handle the cold but did receive her equine management and level 1, 2, and 3 Canadian training and instructor certification. After much needed warmth she decided to make the move of her life. She truly wanted to set up her future facility and really try and pursue her dreams of competing in Wellington Florida and training with the best in hopes to one day be selected for the United States Olympic team where she could remain healthy and warm.
She has just received her Bronze and Silver Medal in the United States dressage federation with only horses she has trained and raised. The passing of her Stallion Knight, who would have been her mount to she hoped to get her last score died suddenly before she and he could complete her Gold medal. Her goal is to finish her Gold medal with her Holstiener Mare she bought as a two year old. She is currently training all the Grand Prix movements and they hope to debut shortly.
She has developed her own farm into a CEM Quarentine and plans to import high quality horses to develop for herself and sales called Global Dressage Sales.
Learn More
Follow Ralea on her journey on her facebook page, and Instagram. Please email us for any information you would like to receive.
Current Training:
Training with Olympian Jan Ebeling
Current Employment:
Manager of Diasti Stables
Accomplishments & Training:
USDF Bronze and Silver Medalist, currently 1 score away from her Gold medal that she hopes to accomplish with her own mare she has raised and developed.
FEI Trainer and Instructor Classically trained in both French, German Dressage through the FEI Levels
Studied proficiently in the In hand and long lining techniques of the Dressage for airs, levade, piaffe, passage and driving.
Level 1-6 instructor and trainer and Equine management in Equine Canada (2011)
Her Stallion received High Merit in Friesian Heritage Horse and Friesian Sport horse both In-hand and under saddle showed competitively though 4th level training I-1.
Certified level 2 Richard Shrake, resistance free training
Numerous wins in Halter, Western and English performance classes
Showed and approved many horses in breed inspections for USDF, FSP, FHHR, AWS, Swedish Warmblood association
Training under many accomplished Olympic, Pan am trainers
Skilled in Driving, Stallion breeding, training, Reining, Western Performance, English Performance, APHA, AQHA, and Friesian and Morgan Breed Shows
This website uses cookies.
We use cookies to analyze website traffic and optimize your website experience. By accepting our use of cookies, your data will be aggregated with all other user data.