DON EARL DRAKE
Longtime Oklahoma horse trainer Don Drake was born in 1937, in Sallisaw, Oklahoma. He attended Sallisaw Schools and played football until he graduated. In 1955, he married LaJuana Janet Davis, and they were married for 56 years until she passed away in 2012.
Don drove a truck for Coca-Cola, and later worked for Wonder Bread. As a child he rode horses for a trainer, and this led to a career that lasted a lifetime. In 1975, Don decided to train racehorses full-time and established Drake’s Racing Stables. He was a leading trainer at Blue Ribbon Downs many times. He then turned his business over to his son David.
Don and LaJuana had two daughters and one son: Donna Kay Armstrong, Charles David Drake,and Janet Sue Taylor.
Don Drake is the trainer of 315 starters with 4,945 starts, 849 wins and over $5.3 million in earners. He is the owner of 7 first place runners, 8 seconds, and 5 thirds with $37,945 in earnings. Regarding Quarter Horses, Drake once said, “Overall they seem smarter to me and easier to train." The Don Drake Memorial for three-year-old Paints and Appaloosas is held every year at Will Rogers Downs. Don Drake passed away at the age of 75 on June 30, 2012.