A cattle drive story

The first real daywork check I ever earned was from Ratcliff Ranch. I worked there quite a bit when it was a yearling operation. Jimmy Lowery was a full-timer living at the Blue Ribbon then and my buddy Curtis Capps was a full-time dayworker. Jimmy’s […]

One real good horse

There’s an old cowboy saying that you will be lucky if you own one real good horse. I’ve been richly blessed. I’ve had two. When I got to Oklahoma and started learning to daywork, I figured out real quick I needed an actual ranch horse. […]

Wagon wrecks

“We had a little wagon wreck,” my friend Ron Lowery wrote. Seems he and Julie were rolling the wagon through the yard by hand to wash the mud off. I guess the septic tank cover was just worn out, because the wagon fell in… “Julie […]

We worked for Charley Chambers this week on the Osage. Even though it rained a lot the day and night before, it stayed dry for us to drag. It was a little chilly and the branding iron heater felt good when I was on the […]

Memories are made of this

“Isn’t that beautiful?” “Yes, it is,” my brother Keith said. We were looking across the bottoms at Crossroads near my hometown. It was just coming on daylight. The pasture kelly green with mist hanging over the treetops. Black cows grazing with little calves by side. […]

The best time of year

It’s calf dragging time. Every working cowboy’s favorite. Area ranches share their cowboys to brand the calves. So it’s a big get together that lasts for weeks. Good food at the wagon, good company and work we enjoy. Memories are made dragging calves. Mike and […]

These are my people

Eldon Walker has passed away. In his obituary it said he wrote one of the best things in life is harness that fits. He knew harness fit. He knew working a team. For years my family threw a weekend wagon ride for friends at the […]