There are two very important lessons that Ray Carmean has always remembered throughout his 40-plus year career as a professional horse trainer – 1) Never push. Take your time with young horses and they will tell YOU when they are ready; and 2) Break them so other people can ride them.

Carmean didn’t originally set out to become a trainer, but it didn’t take long after he started the breaking youngsters on the side for it to become clear that’s where his path would lead him.

“I was working in a warehouse and training horses part-time. The day I got laid off I decided I would never again work for anyone else but myself,” he said.

Born in Florida, Carmean moved with his family to Pennsylvania when he was just 15. He attended Hempfield High School in Landisville, Pennsylvania and two years of business college.

Even as a young child, Carmean was aware that he was drawn to horses.

“I remember clearly that as a little boy there was a girl down the street who had a pony so I wanted a pony too,” he said. “I just had to get one.”

In 1978, Carmean started his own training operation, in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, specializing in breaking young Quarter Horses and Paints mainly for Western Pleasure. In 1993, he moved his operation to a 39-acre farm in Shartlesville, Pennsylvania and expanded into training Hunter Under Saddle contenders and some all-around horses. Then in 2004 Carmean moved to a 79-acre farm in Orangeville, Pennsylvania that includes a 25-stall main barn; a four-stall supplemental barn; a 72-by-120-foot indoor arena; a 100-by-200 outdoor arena; four paddocks with run-in sheds; two walkers and three round-pens.

Although he didn’t work as an assitant trainer for anyone, Carmean says he learned by watching many others and by trial and error.

The best advice he’s ever received came from an “old timer.”

“He told me to always be honest selling horses and honest with your customers because if you are, you will have repeat business,” Ray said, “and to always smile and say ‘hi.’”

During his career, Carmean earned International Buckskin Horse Association World Championship titles in Longe Line, Junior Western Pleasure and Senior Western Pleasure; a Reserve Quarter Horse Congress Championship; and numerous Tom Powers Futurity Reserve championships.

He is especially proud to have been the one to start multiple Congress and World Champion Harley D Zip, who he made the finals aboard as a 2-year-old at the Quarter Horse Congress. Over the years Carmean has trained and/or shown such other highly decorated horses as Congress Champions Shez A Range Finder and Zippos Masterpiece; Reserve Congress Champion Asleep In Louisville, and leading AQHA Amateur Hunter Under Saddle Horse, Put Your Spurs On.

“I have been doing this for 42 years and I still love it,” Carmean said.

In recent years, Ray has enjoyed building a small but impressive broodmare band and he especially likes the process of figuring out which mares to breed to which stallions and watching the babies enter the world and grow up on his own farm.

When he is not at a horse show or training horses, Ray enjoys hunting and fishing and spending time with his wife, Tonya, and their son, Colt; daughter, Kelly Lugo; and step-sons, Evan and Blaise Williams.

“My idea of perfect happiness is living forever and hunting with my family,” he said.

You can reach Ray Carmean by calling (610) 413-2748 or via the Ray Carmean Quarter Horses Facebook page.

Open Profiles are part of InStride Edition’s editorial content. If you know someone who would make a good subject for a professional profile email Corrine Borton, 

Editor, at: CorrineBorton@InStrideEdition.com.