FEATURE — At my age, I’m a bit slow both in body and mind. It dawned on me one day as I took my horses to South Valley Large Animal Clinic for what I don’t remember. As usual, the parking lot was packed with trucks and horse trailers. Everyone patiently awaited their turn. What finally caught my attention was that I was the only guy waiting to see a vet. Everyone else sitting in their trucks and talking through rolled-down windows was women. Where have all the cowboys gone?
That same question pops into my mind at every trailhead I ride from these days. Other than my septuagenarian riding buddies (Ron, John, Jim, Bill, etc.), most everyone I meet is named Mary, Rochelle, Michelle, Debbie, Jody, Jeanette, etc. For the most part, I recognize their trucks, trailers, horses and dogs. I can’t say that for the men because I see so few of them on the trail.
My data-driven mind required confirmation of what I was seeing on the trail. A quick Google search confirmed my observations. According to the data, 77.4% of today’s equestrians are women. I grew up surrounded by men who rode. Both my grandfathers were avid horsemen. I rarely met a woman on the trail riding the Wasatch Mountains of northern Utah surrounding my small hometown of Pleasant Grove.
I don’t know where all the cowboys have gone, but I do know that the future of trail riding rests with today’s young women. I always thought I would mentor young men wanting to become horsemen. I assumed I would be teaching the basic skills needed to ride out and return safely from the backcountry to boys. Little did I know that my final years of riding would be spent with my two ersatz granddaughters ages 15 and 16.
Where I come from, you don’t get to pick your own trail name. My two granddaughters aren’t pleased with their handles, but I think they fit.
“Jayne Wayne” is “Oh my Gosh!” enthusiastic about everything and can ride anything on four legs with or without a saddle. “Blitz Cassidy” is a bit quieter with a wicked sense of humor who tells me all the time “You are not funny, Grandpa!” And she’s one heck of a rider. They have both been riding horses since they were 7 or 8, schooled by professional women instructors. I can’t teach them anything about riding. It’s my job to get them into the backcountry and safely home again.
Getting there
I can’t remember where I learned to drive a truck and trailer, but it was most likely in the school of hard knocks. To continue their backcountry education, these young women and others like them need to learn how to drive and maintain their own trucks and horse trailers.
I have started teaching “Blitz” to drive a rig. It’s a bit intimidating for a 15-year-old with only her learner’s permit, but she can turn the truck and trailer around to load the horses. Backing up has never been my long suit, but we are working on that too. Eventually, she will need someone with patience enough to refine her skills.
Both girls must learn about truck and trailer maintenance. I have seen too many trucks and trailers broken down due to failed trailer wheel bearings or faulty trailer lights and brakes. Eventually, someone will have to teach them how to change truck and trailer tires. AAA will not come to tow your truck or change a tire off an oiled road.
Staying found
I have ridden in most western states including Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Arizona, Nevada and Utah. On occasion, I have been accused of being lost. I respond by saying, “I’m not lost. I just don’t know where I am right now.” My granddaughters get very tired of location questions while riding in the backcountry. In the past, I dared to question their horsemanship, but no more. I used to tell “Blitz” to kick Gwen into a natural walking horse gate. She responds politely, “Leave me alone. I know what I’m doing.” She is right.
Their horsemanship is not in question, but they still have a lot to learn about backcountry orienteering. To prepare them for riding on their own, I ask about which direction we are going, where the truck is located and names of the prominent landmarks. I encourage them to become proficient in using at least one of the many electronic navigation aids now available. While these devices are very useful in staying found, they also need to know how to read topographical maps and use a compass. The army taught me, but I doubt their mothers would want them to enlist in the infantry.
Staying safe
In today’s world, staying safe requires thinking ahead and being prepared for emergencies. A while back, the three of us took a supposedly short afternoon ride before dinner at six. “Jayne” was training a young filly with little trail experience. Like most southwestern Utah horses, she had never seen water except in a trough. We got her across the river but couldn’t get her back to the truck and trailer on our original route. We tried everything.
It was getting dark, so we implemented Plan B. Plan B took us cross country in the near dark to the highway. They thought I was crazy pushing my big mare Gen through some very rough country to get there. I heard a lot of “No, no, no. Not going up or down that.” I responded, “Do you want to spend the night under a tree while your moms have search and rescue looking for us?” They learned the importance of staying found and having a Plan B.
Staying safe also requires dealing with unplanned medical emergencies. I shared with them my own example when I got dumped a long way from medical care. If my friend Doc Johnson, DVM, hadn’t been with me, I probably wouldn’t be riding with “Jayne” and “Blitz” today. Two ambulance rides later I was in the intensive care unit with a punctured lung, multiple rib fractures and a dinged-up head.
I coached them never to ride alone, always to tell someone where they are going, and when to expect them back. At their age, they think they are bulletproof. I have tried to convince them to learn basic first aid and how to summon emergency help in the backcountry.
Caring for your horse
Both these young women know the basics of horse health care. I try to teach them that a healthy horse in the backcountry starts with a well-cared-for horse at home. They get frequent lectures about up-to-date vaccinations (twice a year), rotational worming (every two months), psyllium for sand colic (once a month) if stabled on sandy ground, and regular hoof care (every eight to 10 weeks).
My schedule comes from occasional bad experiences horse-packing through some remote areas of the West. I once rode 65 miles on an easy boot in Yellowstone after losing a shoe. I have had to treat other supposedly experienced packers’ horses with bute, banamine, or electrolyte paste from the horse first aid kit that I carry, which they didn’t have. They both are learning how to take temperatures, check respiration rates, and listen for gut sounds.
In addition to backcountry vet care, we are working on how to hobble, picket and highline a horse. These essential skills are taught at Back Country Horsemen of America horse-packing clinics.
The cost
When I was a kid, most everyone in my small town had a horse in their backyard. Land was plentiful and feed was cheap. We either rode from the house or jumped our horse into the back of a pickup with a homemade rack on the back. We had no fancy horse trailers or trucks back then. My granddaughters doubt my veracity when I tell them that I could get my mare to jump from level ground into the back of my truck and out again. The condition of the tailgate was proof it happened.
Today, land is scarce and feed is expensive. Occasionally you will see one of the early, small straight-load trailers around, but not often. The old two-wheel drive, standard transmission trucks have been replaced by $75,000, four-wheel-drive behemoths, and horse trailers are large and expensive.
To prepare “Blitz” and “Jayne” for the future, we discussed the costs of horse ownership frequently. They know that purchasing a horse is the smallest expense of ownership. As of now, “Blitz” and I jointly own her 4-year-old filly, Gwen. She keeps a detailed accounting ledger of Gwen’s expenses, which we review regularly. Both girls are learning the true costs of horse ownership.
We also discuss the future when they will be on their own without help from Mom, Dad or Grandpa. To encourage them to pursue education, so they can afford the horse lifestyle, I have promised them both new saddles when they graduate from college. They tell me to put their saddle money in an interest-bearing account because they aren’t sure I will still be around for their graduations. As I have mentioned, they are too smart for their own good!
The future
I may have passed my personal expiration date, but I have also promised my granddaughters to hang around long enough to see them riding on their own in the backcountry. As they continue to learn and improve their backcountry skills, they become less dependent on me. Soon I will provide transportation only. Once they get their own trucks and trailers and learn to drive them, Grandpa will be waiting at home to hear their trail stories.
I look forward to their independence and hope they help sustain the future of trail riding. It makes me terribly sad to think that in the future horses won’t be found on the many historic trails of the west. The future of backcountry trail riding now rests upon these wonderful young women. I believe with some mentoring they will be up to the task.
Written by DOUG WEST. West is a member of the Southwest Chapter of Back Country Horsemen of Utah. He lives in St. George with his wife Caroline, two dogs (Maynard and Bitsy), two cats (Molly and Ellie) and four walking horses (Rose, Dottie, Gen and Gwen).