Born and raised on an Oregon cattle ranch with a background in the Great Basin "Buckaroo" tradition, they promoted natural, gentle methods of horse training, emphasizing "feel" of the horse and observation of its responses to the handler.
Many horse trainers and owners claim influence from the Dorrance brothers including Pat Parelli, famous for his video series of games to play through groundwork.
The Dorrance brothers' influence travelled widely throughout the United States, particularly amongst cattlemen, cowboys, who worked with horses every day.
The writings of the Dorrance brothers, in terms of horsemanship, is not divergent from those of other great horsemen such as Nuno Oliveira or François Robichon de La Guérinière.
Bill Dorrance, aside from his horsemanship skills was renowned as a rawhide braider and roper.