Horseback Riding at Dude Ranches – Tips for Riders:

Bayard Fox has owned and operated the Bitterroot Ranch in Wyoming for well over 40 years and during that time he has gained a huge amount of experience about how to run a great dude ranch operation. Here are his thoughts on the matter:

Dude ranches in general have a bad reputation among many of those who are truly interested in riding and horsemanship.  This is true of many dude ranches which cater to a clientele knowing little about horses or riding and offer a pseudo western vacation where square dances, wranglers with big hats, hay rides and cookouts are the main attractions.   Not all ranches are like that and they are as contrasting in character and philosophy as the individualistic types who run them.  If serious horseback riding on fine horses is your main interest, here are some important points to consider in seeking the dude ranch which will best suit you.

At their best, dude ranches can provide a superb horse riding experience now impossible in many parts of this highly developed planet. The scenery is spectacular, the air is clean and the climate excellent.  It is ideal country for horses. Few places can rival the Rocky Mountain West for riding holidays.

You can find some of the best horseback riding in the equestrian sense at dude ranches in the West.Yes, I know, you have heard about nose to tail riding, no speed faster than a trot and tired old nags used to taking the same trails with overweight guests day after day.You aren’t interested in barbecues, sing-alongs, and saunas or strutting about in Marlboro hats.You want to ride! You want to ride at your own pace in spectacular country on a variety of trails and maybe help herd stubborn, bolting cows on responsive, athletic horses.

The Rocky Mountain area has some of the most beautiful and challenging terrain in the world. It also has vast wild areas where you can ride all day without out seeing another human being.On top of that it is healthy country for horses and they have been raised and trained in that kind of country so that they perform to near perfection and take great pride in their work.They live in open country, graze freely together at night and do not have the complexes of horses shut in stalls most of the day.They are happy horses with a natural herd life.

Of course you have to recognize that dude ranches, like human beings, have totally different characters. Some of them have blatantly abandoned the old tradition of a dude being a guest who shares the life of a family working ranch; eats with them and works with them during the day. They attract those who want to have views of distant mountains, dip a foot in the heated swimming pool, take a massage and soak up a pseudo Western scene.That is the kind of thing which appeals to many Americans these days.

1. Owner Attitude

Do the dude ranch owners or managers ride personally with their guests or do they feel they have more important things to do?  If horseback riding is a top priority with them, they will participate often.  If they don’t, then riding cannot be all that important in their program.  Family ranches with an established history are generally a better bet than ones which have only been offering horseback riding vacations for a few years.

2. The Horse Program

Do the horses used at the dude ranch belong to the ranch itself or are they rented?  Many ranches rent horses during the season only and are often unfamiliar with the horses they get at the start of the season.  They have little control over the quality of these animals and rented horses are usually not of top quality.  It is certainly the cheapest option for a dude ranch with a comparatively short season and requires little investment, but it is not likely to produce as good a string as the horses which have been carefully selected over the years or raised and trained on a ranch.  If a dude ranch has its own horses and many or all of them have been raised and trained there, it shows a real commitment to an excellent riding program.  It is also a pleasure for many guests to see newly born foals, stallions, brood mares and young horses in training.  If the ranch has a broad selection of different breeds and types, you are more likely to find the horse that suits you.

3. Client to Horse Ratio

A vital factor to consider is the client/horse ratio.  If a dude ranch has only one horse per client, the horses are going to be exhausted long before the end of the season unless they are used very lightly.  A hard riding cowboy will need half a dozen horses used in rotation so that they can be fresh enough to work well for months on end.  Guests are unlikely to ride that hard, but if they are going to put a horse through its paces and cover some ground in rough country, they will need at least two or better three horses per serious riding client.

4. Terrain and Location

Dude ranches vary greatly in the kind of terrain they have for horseback riding.  Some are surrounded by flat, uninteresting country.  Sometimes the ground is very rocky and there are few places where one can ride safely at any speed.  There are superbly beautiful locations in steep mountain valleys which severely limit the possible rides which are on steep and rocky trails or up and down the valley.   Some dude ranches can ride in every direction with a great variety of terrain from mountains and forest to alpine meadows and sagebrush plains.  Others are very limited by steep mountains, highways and no trespass neighbors.  Some ranches are far from paved roads and signs of civilization, but others are located near highways and have buildings nearby.  Some dude ranches have rides in pristine wilderness areas and others have fences, traffic noises, paved roads, houses near the riding trails and numerous hikers.  It is important to find out how favorable the ground will be for the kind of riding you want to do.

5. Pace of Rides

Few ranches today allow riders to gallop around freely.  Liability issues have become too important and it can be hard on horses.  Many ranches do not want riders to get out of a walk and others go no faster than a trot.  Rides can move at a faster pace safely if they are kept small and it is important to find out how big the riding groups will be.  Some dude ranches will take up to twenty people together regardless of their experience.  Others will send out groups of six or less carefully matched according to ability which allows guests to ride to the top of their ability.  Determining ability is vital in putting guests in the most suitable group for them.  To do this properly a ranch must not only get the riders own assessment beforehand, but also evaluate them on the spot.  In this way a ranch can avoid having skilled riders bored and inexperienced ones terrified.  If a ranch has a broad selection of horses, it is of the utmost importance to match the rider to the most suitable mounts.  The most spirited and highly trained horses would quickly be ruined by inexperienced riders who would be in jeopardy on their backs.

6. Tack

It is vitally important that the tack should be comfortable for both riders and horses.  Does the dude ranch have a broad selection of saddles?  Are they careful to select a saddle which will not have uncomfortable pressure points on a horse?  The rider can tell you if the saddle does not suit, but the horse cannot.  A poorly fitting saddle can cause a horse to buck or act strangely and detract greatly from the riding experience.  Is care taken to give each horse a bit which suits him and is fitted properly?  The best procedure is to have a separate bridle for each horse.  Obviously the equipment must be well maintained and headstalls, reins, girths and latigoes checked and replaced periodically.

7. Safety

If you are enjoying your life, safety should be a major consideration.   Never ride without a hard hat.  After 65 years of serious riding, at least a hundred falls and seeing and studying many accidents, I have developed some ideas about how to reduce danger.  Like most of the world’s exciting sports, horseback riding has inherent risks.  They can never be eliminated, but they can be minimized without losing much of the potential thrill and pleasure.  Here are some of the ways to reduce risk:

A) Match the horse and the rider carefully.

B) The pace of the ride should be slow enough for the ability of the least skillful rider in the group.

C) Each rider should get careful instructions in how to handle this particular horse.  A rider who is not in control of his horse can endanger others as well as himself.

D) All ride leaders should be well qualified, have first aid training and be attentive to all the riders with them.

E) It is a vital safety feature that ride leaders should have quick communications to summon help in case of an accident.  Having a good plan in place beforehand can save precious time.

F) It is important to see that cinches are properly tightened, neither too loose nor too tight.  They should be checked before the rider mounts and again after a few minutes of riding since horses often puff up at the start.

G) The ride leader needs to be alerted to and aware of hazards like badger holes, quicksand, down barbed wire and potential scares which might spook horses from game like moose, elk, bear and deer.

H) As is the case with people, a small percentage of horses cause most of the accidents.  Safety conscious dude ranches will be vigilant in getting rid of potential problems.  They cannot do this if they are not familiar with the horses they have.  That is one reason why owning, raising and training them on the ranch is best.

I) Head accidents are probably the worst kind.  Wearing a hard hat greatly reduces the danger of them.  One has to decide whether a pseudo Western experience with a Marlboro style hat is worth the risk.  Most dude ranches allow riders to ride without hard hats, but some do not.

8. Attitude to Horses

Ranches have totally different philosophies toward handling and training horses.  Training can range from the often brutal, hell for leather methods of the old West to the gentle persuasion of the Linda Tellington-Jones (www.tellingtontouch.com) TTouch approach.  Some ranches have about the same feeling for a horse that they do for a motor bike and others treat their horses like loved members of the family.

9. Working Ranches

Some dude ranches have their own working cattle operation and others get all their income from paying guests.  Working cattle in partnership with a good horse in the traditional Western sense can be an exciting and rewarding experience.  In many parts of the West it is still the best way to move cattle from one part of a range to another and to round them up in the fall.  Remember that there is a big difference between rounding up cattle over a wide grazing area with varied terrain and driving a herd of cows down a dusty road at a slow pace.  Some ranches have authentic chances to work cattle and others stage it purely for the guests.   If team penning or team sorting is something you want to try, check to see if the dude ranch offers this opportunity.

10. Pack Trips

If the dude ranch is near a national forest, it may offer the opportunity to take a pack trip into the wilderness for an overnight or more.  These wilderness trips can be a marvelous experience and provide a chance to bond with the horses who will be your close companions throughout the trip.  You will see country which would be difficult to visit in any other way.  Keep in mind that this is usually not an opportunity for fast riding as pack horses should usually go at a walk and trails are often steep and rocky.

11. Wranglers

America has been late in setting up instruction programs for wranglers, but the Certified Horsemen’s Association now has an excellent program to instruct potential ride leaders.  The British Horse Society has excellent instruction programs for many years and the Federation Francaise d’Equitation has long had stiff requirements for ride leaders in France.   A good wrangler needs not only to know how to ride well, but should be attentive to those behind them and their problems.  Sensitivity to riders and horses is the great virtue, not macho strength.

12. Instruction

The horses at each dude ranch are trained in a particular way which may not be the kind of riding you are used to.  For instance, if you are a dressage rider, you will need to adapt to the dude ranch horses.  They cannot be retrained for the week you are there.  Most places will give at least some basic orientation as to how they expect you to handle the horses.  Some will offer instruction from qualified riding instructors which can be videotaped for your later viewing to get the best results.  If you are not familiar with the approved style of riding at the dude ranch you visit, you will be more comfortable and get more out of the riding with a few hours of instruction.  On some ranches the horses are used to having their riders post the trot.  Other places just expect riders to sit in the saddle and bounce along.