August 26, 2025 • 33 mins
The journey from coal miner's son to respected farrier and ranch operator unfolds in this captivating conversation with Ricky, whose story proves that passion and perseverance can overcome any obstacle.
Growing up in Painesville, Eastern Kentucky, Ricky's early exposure to horses was limited until a life-changing encounter with his future wife Jade through youth rodeos. Their connection, strengthened by their shared experience with type 1 diabetes, would eventually lead to the creation of Wildfire Ranch - now a thriving equestrian destination in Southern Illinois.
Diagnosed at just four years old with a blood sugar level of 989, Ricky narrowly survived what could have been a fatal episode. This health challenge has shaped his approach to life, work, and now parenthood. "It's inconvenient, but ain't impossible," he reflects, embodying the resilient spirit that drives his success as both a skilled farrier and business operator.
Wildfire Ranch stands as testament to vision and hard work. What began as a simple request to till a small practice area for barrel racing has evolved into an impressive facility featuring a covered arena, nearly 100 stalls, on-site lodging, a café known for excellent fried fish, and family-friendly amenities including putt-putt golf and playgrounds. The ranch draws participants from across the country for youth rodeos, barrel races, and other events, creating a community where "kids can make memories."
Alongside running the ranch, Ricky continues to develop his farrier skills, traveling regularly with established professionals to shoe 25-40 horses during multi-day clinics. His advice to aspiring farriers? "Don't quit. When you start, it's going to be miserable, but it gets easier the more horses you do and the more you educate yourself."
As he balances the demands of his craft, the ranch, and an eight-month-old daughter, Ricky's story reminds us that with determination, continuous learning, and strong community support, extraordinary things are possible - even when facing significant challenges.
Check out Wildfire Ranch on Facebook to discover upcoming events and everything they offer at this unique Southern Illinois equestrian destination.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Ricky, what's up, man ?
Speaker 2 (00:02):
Not much.
Speaker 1 (00:03):
Thanks for coming in today.
Absolutely, we've hung out alot, but I don't really know
that much about you yet.
So where'd you grow up?
Speaker 2 (00:12):
Eastern Kentucky.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
Eastern Kentucky.
Where at?
Speaker 2 (00:16):
In a town called Painesville.
Speaker 1 (00:18):
Nice Was there a lot of horses there and stuff.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
There was a lot of walking horses.
Speaker 1 (00:22):
Do you like those?
Speaker 2 (00:24):
Not really.
Speaker 1 (00:26):
I don't either.
Were you riding when you werelittle and stuff?
Were you always kind ofinvolved in horses, or how did
you get?
Speaker 2 (00:32):
When I was a young, young kid we had horses and I
had a puppy and we rode some.
But we kind of got out of itonce I got old enough to really
start riding and then I haven'treally been around horses until
I got with my wife.
Speaker 1 (00:50):
Jade right yeah, how did you guys meet?
Speaker 2 (00:53):
Through Youth Rodeos actually.
Speaker 1 (00:55):
Oh really.
Speaker 2 (00:55):
Yeah, and she also.
When she was 15, 16, she gotdiagnosed with type 1 diabetes.
And we had a, a person ofinterest common interest, you
know and they, uh, she sent hermy way to talk cause I've had it
for forever, and, uh, he waswanting some advice on how to
(01:16):
deal with it, this and that.
So that's kind of how we gottalking.
Speaker 1 (01:20):
It's like a diabetic love story.
Speaker 2 (01:21):
Yeah, and we you throw together.
Speaker 1 (01:26):
So you've known her quite a while.
I've known her for a while,okay, and were you still living
in Eastern Kentucky when youguys started dating, or did you
move up here?
Speaker 2 (01:33):
No, so my dad?
He's a coal miner and hebrought us up here in 2016.
Oh, okay.
And so everything out here waspretty new to me.
Rodeo was very uncommon okayand uh, I think they're around,
but we were it's not big outthere, gotcha.
And uh, so yeah, he brought usout here.
(01:55):
And uh, I found out about waynecity's youth rodeo at the time
and I had a friend they, theydid it.
I started shoot dog and I justwanted to be involved in.
I've always had a thing forhorses, right.
Speaker 1 (02:08):
I just never was around them gotcha, so so you
started with the shoot doggingyeah, did that go to?
Steer wrestling no, I never didsteer wrestling no, and then,
uh, you're roping now too, right?
Speaker 2 (02:19):
I do some just for fun, okay then when did?
Speaker 1 (02:22):
uh, you're a farrier as well, in addition to helping
with wildfire and all that.
So when did you get intoshoeing horses, or what kind of
sparked that interest?
Speaker 2 (02:32):
well, it all kind of started whenever I was first
hanging around out there um, theguy shoeing their horses.
At the time I'd go out thereand watch some stuff and it just
caught my interest and itseemed logical you know, just
for as many horses as we have.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
Yeah, Did you want to do it?
A lot of the farriers we talkedto a lot of them.
They wanted to shoot their ownhorses.
Speaker 2 (02:54):
Yeah, and that's kind of where it started.
That's where everybody started,yeah, okay.
Speaker 1 (02:58):
And then did you go to a farrier school?
I did your school, or which onedid you go to?
I went to uh, lookout mountainand gates in alabama.
Speaker 2 (03:08):
Okay, and how many weeks was that?
I went for four.
They really tried to get me tostay longer, but I I was kind of
advised not to just get somereal basic stuff down and come
back, start shooting.
And very quickly I learned Ishould have stayed.
Speaker 1 (03:24):
I was going to ask you you thought the four weeks
was.
Speaker 2 (03:26):
No, it wasn't near enough.
Speaker 1 (03:28):
It wasn't enough.
I think a lot of people look atthose horseshoeing schools and
are like, oh, six weeks, I canbe a farrier.
Speaker 2 (03:34):
Yeah, no.
Speaker 1 (03:36):
Yeah, that's a lot of people's experience, and then
with some of the farrier stuff,you've got to work here with
steve, summershine, and got towatch people like him.
Speaker 2 (03:54):
I've got to work with steve and that's been a
blessing.
Like him and casey, they both,uh, really opened my eyes to how
important all this is and howfar you can go with it.
Speaker 1 (03:58):
Yeah, it's not just trimming a horse's foot you know
, on a shoe, on smacking steel.
No yep, and then the other bigthing you're doing is wildfire
ranch, yeah, which is a verycommon name around here, right?
Speaker 2 (04:08):
now yeah, it's, it's getting there yeah, you guys are
doing awesome.
Speaker 1 (04:11):
So where?
Where exactly, is wildfireranch?
I'll admit, I haven't got thechance to go there yet yeah,
it's, uh, it's up in ewing.
It's right outside of bentonillinois, right yeah yeah when
did, when did you guys startthat?
Speaker 2 (04:24):
so around 21 or 22 is when they started having shows
and basically all it was.
I mean it was an arena.
He had the announcer's booththere and when they started we
didn't have the cafe or nothing.
We had food trucks come in andstuff.
Speaker 1 (04:43):
Was there an arena already there that you guys
built?
Speaker 2 (04:45):
Yeah, I got with my wife and first time I came out
there there was already an arenathere, okay announcers booth,
stuff like that, but it waspretty like it was just getting
started yeah, and then um, whohad the idea to take it to the
next?
so level really had been her dadben um at all.
(05:06):
Really.
They moved out there wellbefore then and she was getting
into horses, barrel racing andstuff and she just wanted a
place to work her horse.
And that, that place and ifyou'd seen it you'd really know
how crazy this is but it was athicket, like it was thick, and
there was one little opening andshe's like, could you till up a
(05:26):
spot where I could just work myhorse?
And then we blinked and nowit's.
Speaker 1 (05:31):
Now, it's this.
That's what it is.
Yeah, I mean, you got a coveredpen.
You got all kinds of stuffthere.
What all, what all you guys gotthere?
Speaker 2 (05:39):
so we got the covered arena um, we got a half a
basketball court.
There's putt putt golf, there'sa playground, there's.
We got some big tractor tiresor sandboxes kind of around.
Uh, cafe west, little westernstore and there's.
Speaker 1 (05:57):
Is there cabins there too, like airbnb?
Type airbnb cabins so it'sreally a family oriented.
Speaker 2 (06:04):
It's very family oriented.
Speaker 1 (06:05):
That's the whole point yeah, that that's awesome
because there's a lot ofdowntime in some of these events
yeah and I have toddlers, andtheir attention span is
surprisingly shorter than minewhich isn't very big, so having
plenty of stuff to do is awesomeand at the events, uh, we try
to let the kids have fun.
Speaker 2 (06:26):
Like ben, he's got some gypsy vanders and he pulls
a wagon.
He'll pull a wagon around.
He's had 20 kids hanging offthe wagon.
That's awesome.
And he's got big sub speakersin him.
It's blair music.
Speaker 1 (06:37):
It's a good time yeah , I've seen a lot of pictures
from there and talked to a lotof people that have been there
and everybody sings its praises.
So that's awesome.
You get you just covered thatarena.
Was it last year?
The year before?
Yeah, last year was our firstyear with it yeah, and it's did
um, and you guys have built aton of stalls there too, correct
?
Speaker 2 (06:56):
yeah, so we had.
Two years ago we put up a 48horse bull barn and now we're
just now wrapping up 50 more soyou've got almost 100 stalls
yeah, we got.
We got 70 something done rightnow.
Oh wow, we're starting on thelast barn here this this week
who, uh, who's doing all thework?
Speaker 1 (07:15):
are you guys doing a bunch yourself contracting it
out?
Speaker 2 (07:18):
or we do a lot of it.
Um, me, ben and uh r, ryan andKeith are now.
They help a lot, and uh, if Icould sit here all day and list
off the guys that have helped us.
Speaker 1 (07:30):
Right.
Speaker 2 (07:31):
But yeah, we'll.
Uh, we do a lot of our own,like the concrete work for the
pillars on the roof.
We did all that.
Speaker 1 (07:36):
Yeah, Before they came in.
I'm assuming you guys didn't dothe big steel roof.
Speaker 2 (07:39):
No, they came in smack the roof on.
It was done.
I'm sure that roof was cheaptoo.
Speaker 1 (07:48):
Yeah, well, I mean we didn't think.
Yeah, I've looked at some stufflike that and it's crazy.
See, there's a little westernstore there.
What are you guys selling inthere?
Speaker 2 (07:55):
oh, there's like purses and belts, and we have
our own wildfire t-shirts andstuff there's kid toys and uh,
yeah, just a little bit ofeverything.
Some vet stuff.
Speaker 1 (08:06):
Doctor and stuff.
Yeah, and then what about thecafe?
You guys got there Because,that's, you know, having food at
places like this is huge forpeople that are coming in.
Speaker 2 (08:15):
The cafe is like kind of the whole heart of the place
.
Speaker 1 (08:19):
Really.
Speaker 2 (08:20):
Yeah, if it ain't going, none of it's going and it
it helps a lot.
But uh, the food is.
The food is really good.
I mean it's nothingextraordinary but the food that
they serve really good who'swho's cooking in there?
Speaker 1 (08:41):
is that you?
Speaker 2 (08:41):
you back there I've been back there, yeah, uh, but
no, jade's uh sister andrea, sheshe runs it okay that's kind of
her, that's her baby, that'sher part of it know.
Speaker 1 (08:51):
If I was to go there this weekend, what should I
order?
Speaker 2 (08:56):
The fish is really good.
Speaker 1 (08:58):
Fried fish yeah, oh nice Three-piece fish.
Speaker 2 (09:01):
I've never heard a bad thing about it.
Speaker 1 (09:03):
Awesome, yeah, awesome.
And then you guys got a lot ofsponsors.
Yes, that support you guys,which is huge.
Yeah, and we're very thankfulfor all of them.
Speaker 2 (09:16):
Yeah, if people are interested in sponsoring to just
contact you guys like me or thenumber attached to it's jade's
number.
Speaker 1 (09:21):
Okay, so, and then how else can I mean it's such a
huge asset for southern illinoisand the horse community?
I mean, you get people haulingin from all over, don't you?
Speaker 2 (09:31):
Yeah, we've had people from Michigan, Georgia,
Oklahoma, I mean just coming foryouth rodeos.
Yeah, I mean it's been reallygood.
There's people from all overand we have Horse Hotel too.
We're on Horse Hotel.
Speaker 1 (09:46):
Oh really.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
Yeah, so we've had people from Canada come through.
Speaker 1 (09:49):
Just passing through to stay the night, just passing
people from canada come through,just passing through to passing
through.
Speaker 2 (09:59):
Stay the night, stay the night, yeah, that's awesome
how can people help support youguys besides sponsorships just
coming out there being involved?
Speaker 1 (10:02):
yeah, uh, spreading the word about it, you know, and
then um, I'm in these horseshows, anybody can come watch,
right you don't have to, yeahyeah, buy some fish and yeah
support you guys that way.
So that's, that's awesome.
So let's talk a little moreabout your, your horseshoeing.
You've been traveling a littlebit with another farrier, that's
well established.
So we're all you're goingeverywhere.
Speaker 2 (10:23):
Right, I've been hopping around a little bit.
Yeah, there, for the last yearI've been traveling a lot.
Now I've been traveling a lot.
Now I go with him about onceevery five weeks, maybe a little
more.
You know, last year it wasevery week.
We were somewhere differentyou're traveling different
(10:43):
facilities.
Speaker 1 (10:44):
How many horses you guys shoe in when you go to
those places?
Speaker 2 (10:47):
depends, but usually we like around 25 to 30, but
I've like around 25 to 30, butI've seen it up to 40.
Yeah, you know.
Speaker 1 (10:57):
And how long does that take?
Speaker 2 (11:00):
Typically we've done 40 in three days yeah.
Speaker 1 (11:04):
And it's just you and him.
Speaker 2 (11:06):
If we do 40, there's usually one, maybe another guy
Gotcha, but a lot of like doing25 or something.
It could be just me and him.
Speaker 1 (11:16):
Yeah, that's awesome, and you got a little daughter.
Now how old is?
Speaker 2 (11:20):
she, yeah, she's eight months, eight months yeah.
Speaker 1 (11:23):
Before you know it, she'll be in first grade.
Yeah, I know how has thataffected your traveling with the
other farrier.
Speaker 2 (11:32):
It was an adjustment like it.
It didn't seem very like it was.
It was a hard thought, but it'sbeen.
It's been pretty good.
Jade's a trooper, really, fordealing with that.
I couldn't do it without her,without ben or any of them.
Speaker 1 (11:47):
yeah, I remember when my daughter was right around
that eight month I went to aconvention for that's the first
time time I'd left her, justjust leaving for a few days.
Speaker 2 (11:56):
It's like, holy cow, your whole life you don't have
one, and then it's there and youcan't imagine anything before
it seems like yeah, and rightafter I mean it wasn't two weeks
he was born, we were in Tulsa,oklahoma, at a horse show and we
were gone for like a whole weekshoeing or showing shoeing yeah
(12:19):
and uh.
Speaker 1 (12:22):
So I was gone for a week right after born it was it
was different yeah, yeah, that'sawesome your wife supporting
that too, because theopportunities you have to learn
from Casey and these other guysis not very many people get that
.
Speaker 2 (12:35):
No, no, and that's something she understands.
It doesn't make it any lesshard, but she does a really good
job.
Speaker 1 (12:45):
And is she doing a lot of who's planning all these
events at Wildfire, because youguys got something almost every
weekend.
Speaker 2 (12:50):
Yeah, me, her and ben plan, just about all of it.
Yeah and uh, like our youthrodeos.
Uh, jake and carol hampson,they produce that.
So okay they kind of, we justkind of let them do their thing
and they set their dates andthey add you know all that.
So they just, we just host that, but but all of our barrel
(13:12):
races or anything extra, wenormally plan all that.
Speaker 1 (13:15):
Yeah, and there's a lot more work that goes into
that than most people probablyever think about.
Speaker 2 (13:19):
Yeah, there's a lot of work Just figuring out how to
make everybody happy basicallywith the numbers and all that
and how big you want it and justtreating everybody fair.
It requires a lot of thought.
Speaker 1 (13:38):
Yeah, it is.
I mean, the general public isnot fun to deal with.
Speaker 2 (13:43):
Not typically.
Speaker 1 (13:44):
But one thing talking to all these Youth Rodeo people
is they are awesome people.
They're amazing people, so alot of them are super
understanding and supportiveyeah, youth rodeo crowd is
really good is that yourfavorite?
I hate to pick favorites, butyou could infer gotcha yeah, it
seems like, even though thosekids are competing against each
(14:05):
other, they're all helping eachother and their parents and
everything like that.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
So it's just.
Speaker 1 (14:10):
It's a really good community yeah, and you've been
there long enough.
Have you seen some kids go from, for instance, walking around
the barrels to going out andmaking a full run and
progressing like that?
Speaker 2 (14:22):
That's special watching that happen.
I was a little older when Istarted competing and getting
into it and stuff, and just thememories I made, watching other
kids make memories there, likethat's going to be, that's where
they made all their memories,that's where they got better,
you know, and that's that's thewhole point.
Speaker 1 (14:41):
Yeah, but you know, and that's it's really good,
yeah, and then, since you've hada daughter your own do you look
at these kids a littledifferent time?
Speaker 2 (14:50):
yeah, I'll see little girls on ponies and I'll just
be staring at them.
Sometimes I'm like these dadsprobably think I'm a creep,
because I'm just imagining.
Speaker 1 (15:01):
You know, uh, that it's going to be her one day
yeah, yeah, that's awesome andand then, um, and then her
family's so involved too,because I mean raising kids.
Everybody says it takes avillage and that's it does, yeah
, it's to do it.
Speaker 2 (15:15):
Well, exactly, yeah yeah, what's the?
Speaker 1 (15:19):
what's your future plans with wildfire?
You guys got anything.
I mean, you just keep we'regonna.
Speaker 2 (15:25):
I think, after these stalls are built, we might start
to slow down as far as, like,building the place uh, I mean,
ben said that for the last threeyears, right?
Speaker 1 (15:38):
uh, I think we're getting to a point where we can
start slowing down, just havingshows and start to enjoy it, and
because it's been non-stopbuilding since we started, yeah,
so anytime I talk to somebodythat's helping, like the
darnells or something they're,you guys are always working on
something, so that'll be nicewhen you guys can sit back and
(16:01):
just appreciate the hard workyou put in and host these shows.
What about your uh future withyour farrier career?
Where do you see that going?
Speaker 2 (16:10):
I see it going really far.
I, I'm gonna.
I plan on hanging around steveand casey as much as I can and I
want to take advantage of everybit of it yeah, I mean you
can't get enough education fromthem yeah, they are a wealth.
Speaker 1 (16:24):
Every time they're here, I learn something from
them.
Yeah, and I think that's what'scool about that.
And the vet industry is you'realways I mean every day I learn
something.
You don't just reach a pointwhere you know it all.
Speaker 2 (16:39):
No, if you stop learning, you're losing.
Speaker 1 (16:43):
And then, not that it's a competition, but it is.
I mean, there's other farriersout there that would love to
have the clients you do and theclients he has and the barns.
Speaker 2 (16:55):
You've got to stay on top of your game, for that I
mean nothing.
You could lose it any day.
I'm very grateful for every dayI get to be with those guys.
Speaker 1 (17:07):
How has the diabetes?
How does that affect yourtraveling and work and
everything like that?
Speaker 2 (17:14):
it's a big bump in the road like it it can.
You know, some days I hardlyknow it's there, but there's
also there's days it'sinevitable.
You know you're gonna haveproblems and that's just
something you gotta keep workingthrough like it's inconvenient,
but it ain't impossible, youknow.
Speaker 1 (17:31):
Yeah, what about, like, when you're traveling,
especially on the weekends upthere, when you're hosting these
shows?
As far as like your diet andeating right and taking care of
yourself like that, yeah, that'svery important.
How do you, how do you manageon the road, Because I'm
assuming what's an ideal dietfor you, an ideal diet is just
(17:52):
straight carnivore.
And you've done that for awhile, right.
Speaker 2 (17:55):
And I've done it for a while.
The last month or two I was offof it, but actually this past
week I've been back on it and Ididn't know.
I was trying to feel adifference and I couldn't, until
I got back on it and I was likethat's a difference.
That's how you're supposed tofeel.
That's how you're supposed toyeah, I've done it.
Speaker 1 (18:12):
I mainly my diets.
When I have time to meal prepand stuff is meat, yeah, but
when I can do it consistently,I've noticed a big difference in
my energy working and right.
I mean, my job is physical, notas physical as shooing horses
but I can tell a huge differencewhen I am eating right and
taking care of myself, like thelittle aches and pains and
energy levels are and that's thething when you pair carnivore
(18:36):
with diabetes.
Speaker 2 (18:37):
You got to make sure you eat enough like you got to
stay fueled up yeah becausepeople who do carnivore they can
.
They can fast and they can go awhile without eating it and not
make a difference like if I'mchewing you got it, I gotta eat
a lot, and that's what'schallenging about on the road is
(18:57):
one place is having options toget stuff, the price of it, you
know it.
Speaker 1 (19:04):
It makes it difficult , but it's well worth it yeah,
yeah, I remember when I used toget ribeyes on like sunday
morning on sale for like fivedollars a pound.
Speaker 2 (19:13):
Yeah, and now they're on sale for like twelve dollars
a pound yeah, it's carnivoresbecoming a more popular thing
and it's it's jacking everythingup, yeah, yeah, yeah, and then
um, so can you?
Speaker 1 (19:26):
um, you wear the pump , don't you yeah?
Speaker 2 (19:29):
I have a t-slip yeah, that's um.
Speaker 1 (19:33):
When were you diagnosed with that?
I was four on new year's eve oh, really, did you have a bad
health scare?
Speaker 2 (19:40):
it was pretty scary.
Yeah, I was.
I was pretty close to notmaking it really yeah, I was
real close yeah what happened somy parents were taken.
I stayed with my dad's parentsand they were taking my mom's
mom back to.
She lives in Indiana and I wasjust getting sick.
I was peeing in the bed a lot,drinking a lot of water, just
(20:04):
looked sick and they said I needto go to the doctor and that
was around there.
It was kind of an uncommon thingback then, like my mom didn't
even know it was a thing rightand uh well, I went to the just
a regular family doctor and he'slike you gotta go, and they
were actually calling ahelicopter in to come get me
(20:25):
holy cow and uh, it was takingtoo long, so they threw me in an
ambulance and I was four so Iwas ticked off.
I didn't get driving ahelicopter.
And then I was wondering whatcolor the ambulance was going to
be, right, stuff like that.
But uh, I was.
I was pretty sick, I was, andfor the people that know, I was
like 989 when they diagnosed me989 yeah, what a normal range is
(20:51):
, like like you want, like 120.
Speaker 1 (20:53):
Is that your?
That's sugar?
Speaker 2 (20:54):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (20:55):
Oh, okay.
Speaker 2 (20:56):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (20:56):
Wow, so you were almost 10 times that.
Speaker 2 (20:58):
Yeah, like it was, you know, adults.
I guess kids can kind of takeit better, but adults was in the
hospital not making it five,six hundred.
Oh wow, but kids, I feel likeI've noticed, do like they when
they get up there, like they canstretch it a little further.
But yeah, but it's still.
It wasn't.
I went far, you know.
Speaker 1 (21:19):
Yeah and then a lot.
I mean, when my kids startedschool it seemed every other
week she was sick with something, so a lot of people, and I
think even doctors, will chalkit up to, oh you know, just a
little cold, little flu notfeeling good yeah, and that was
the thing I dealt with a lotafter getting diagnosed.
Speaker 2 (21:38):
I was going into kindergarten and dealing with
teachers and my mom was a veryscary lady to those teachers.
Intimidating or just they'rewhat, like I, I got my way, like
if I needed something I had it,and if I didn't get it it was a
bad deal.
But I love my mom.
(21:59):
Yeah, that's awesome.
Shout out to love my mom.
Speaker 1 (22:00):
Yeah, that's awesome.
Shout out to Ricky's mom what'sher name?
Frankie Nice, she going tolisten to this, you think.
Speaker 2 (22:05):
Probably Awesome, yeah, awesome.
Speaker 1 (22:08):
Shout out to all the moms out there.
Speaker 2 (22:09):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (22:11):
As far as your with the wildfire and people, you
said your wife's numbersattached to it.
Speaker 2 (22:17):
Yeah, Does her phone blow up all the time?
Yes, and it.
They will call at the most justrandom times, like it'll be a
sunday at four in the morningand they'll be like, hey, I need
stalls, or you know this orthat, or you know which is fine,
(22:38):
and jade, if she's awake sheanswers at any time you know,
but it's just, it's weird, youknow.
Speaker 1 (22:45):
Yeah, I know the feeling going off all the time
yeah, and one thing, um, andbefore kids, or even when my
kids were little, it wasn't thatbig a deal, yeah, but now that
I got two toddlers runningaround, yeah, they can be
sitting quietly.
As soon as I get on the phone,they lose their minds.
So hopefully you can figure outhow to set some boundaries.
Speaker 2 (23:07):
Well, it's already started.
If she's on the phone, if I'maround, I've got to take Lacey,
because if anybody, if we starthaving a conversation, she wants
to be involved in theconversation and she will be the
loudest Yep, and that's hardfor some people to understand.
(23:28):
Like, and to add to that, we sowe had a.
We have four airbnb cabins backthere.
It's on like the arena grounds.
Well, me and jade have a biggercabin that's attached to the
bath and shower house and itsets back there with everything
and that's what we lived in forsince we've been married.
Well, this past weekend, uh, weswapped ben houses.
(23:49):
Uh, he's in the cabin now andme and her moved up to the house
because for especially youthrodeos, because it's so busy.
Uh, people would roll in at 11midnight and our dogs would go
nuts and wake the baby up andthen they'd be rolling back in
at five in the morning and just,and then, where it's attached
to the shower house, you canhear everything oh yeah so it.
(24:10):
You know, me and her don'tnecessarily mind, but when it
starts waking up the baby, itwas time to.
Speaker 1 (24:16):
Yeah, that's, that's tough yeah, a lot of people in
the vets, the vet world, they'lltalk about building a clinic on
their property.
Yeah, and then, like, there's acouple facebook groups, I'm in,
but people that have done italways chime in don't do it,
don't do it.
I mean, we live at work enoughyeah people.
Just I mean with your deal is alittle bit different because of
(24:38):
traveling and logistics forpeople.
They may have to roll in at 1am.
Speaker 2 (24:41):
Right, but a lot of them don't have that much
respect for what else is goingon, and you know that's just
part of it.
People got to do what they gotto do and I'm not going to turn
away anybody.
Speaker 1 (24:54):
Right.
Speaker 2 (24:55):
That's just part of it, but that's just on our side.
Speaker 1 (25:07):
We got to figure out what works for us.
Speaker 2 (25:08):
Yeah, yeah, especially with a baby, because
everything changes.
Yeah, and a lot of diapers.
Do you change diapers all thetime?
Yeah, I'm a diaper changing?
Speaker 1 (25:12):
what about swaddling?
Were you good, did you guysswaddle?
Speaker 2 (25:14):
I was getting.
Yeah, I was getting pretty goodat that.
Yeah, I was, I was the swaddleman.
Yeah, it took it took me aminute, but I was getting the
hang of it yeah.
Speaker 1 (25:21):
You guys think you're going to have any more.
Speaker 2 (25:23):
Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, it'll be a few years, but yeah.
Speaker 1 (25:27):
Mine are spaced at three years apart, and that's
yeah that's about three, fouryears.
Speaker 2 (25:30):
Yeah, I think that's pretty good.
Speaker 1 (25:42):
Me and my brother, we're about three and they're,
you know, when the olderdaughter, she's big enough for
she could really help, and it's,it is, it is a big help, yeah.
So, um, are you, you roping atall, you competing at all?
I mean, in all your spare timeyou don't have no I, I ride just
our horses more than I rope.
Speaker 2 (25:56):
Uh, I was roping before, well before we had a
baby and stuff.
I was going down to larry's androping some.
But uh, I mainly just keep ourhorses in shape, keep them road.
Now and if I have a chance togo rope and I will, but I don't
do it real seriously yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1 (26:17):
And then you think you have um all the time in the
world, and then you have a kid,and then you got no time, no
time.
Speaker 2 (26:28):
Between between the kid, the ranch and shoe and um,
I'm tied up.
Yeah, you got a lot of irons inthe fire, yeah.
Speaker 1 (26:36):
Yeah, I feel you, um, I guess.
One other thing I want to talkto you about is with the farrier
stuff, like if anybody waslistening to this, like some
kids out there and wanting to doanything, would you have any
advice to a kid that's thinking,maybe I want to shoe horses,
even on a side or for a living?
Speaker 2 (26:59):
Yeah Well, the first thing would be don't quit,
because when you start it'sgoing to be miserable, like I.
I want to shoot you straight.
Like it.
It is hard and but it gets.
It gets easier.
The more horses you do, themore you educate yourself, it
gets easier.
And another piece of that oneducation is go to school and go
(27:21):
to school for a while if youcan, and then when you come out,
find somebody to go with.
That's.
That was the most importantpart for me, because that's
whenever my my shoeing changedis whenever I started traveling.
Speaker 1 (27:33):
Yeah, we.
We see some people come in andI'm not going to call any names
and I don't know half of them,but they'll.
They seem to say, oh, myfarrier's the best he's been
chewing for 30 years.
Speaker 2 (27:47):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (27:47):
But that's what I tell people.
It's like I've been playingguitar for 20, and I'm terrible
at it yeah.
Because I never got.
I learned one way and nobodysat down and taught me.
Speaker 2 (28:02):
And that's one on those topics like I don't.
I don't like talking bad aboutother fairies or anything, but
when you get clients saying, oh,he's the best, um, he's done it
for this long, it's like well,he's kind of been doing these
things wrong for them exactly Iwas talking to rick jackson here
, yeah, and we were talkingabout practice and and him
coaching people and andeverything and the the old thing
(28:24):
you know, practice makesperfect.
Speaker 1 (28:27):
But I don't know that I agree with that.
I think practice makespermanent yeah and if you're not
practicing correctly, you gottapractice correctly yeah, unless
I told him, like even tigerwoods has a golf coach best
golfer in the world, but hestill has a coach.
Having another set of eyes,keeping you in check is really
important yeah, in the in in thevet world, the network we build
(28:48):
is super important because Imean, every week I'm I'll find
I'll have something that comesin like I don't know, but I know
somebody that knows what to door has seen this before, so I'm
sure that's the same with sameway, if you don't know, you
better hope you know a guy thatdoes.
Yeah, so that's, that's thething.
And, um, there's a girl that'sdoing a summer research project
(29:11):
talking to rural veterinarians,and that was one of her
questions was basically like wasis it helpful to call people?
Or, you know, is it like yourcompetition or something?
Speaker 2 (29:22):
I was like no, we're all in this together.
All the vets and vets workingwith farriers and that's the way
it needs to be with farrierstoo that I think Steve and Casey
are trying really hard to getgoing because it seems like
farriers around here they don'tI don't know that they really.
They don't dislike each otheror they really try to compete,
(29:43):
but they're not on the same team, right, you know, and when you
have other guys on the same team, it's.
Speaker 1 (29:49):
I mean, you can build up a community yeah, yeah and
then, and the foot is just soimportant for a horse.
I mean, a lot of the quarterhorse lameness we see it's in
the foot, quarter horse lamenesswe see it's in the foot.
I'd say probably 70 percent.
Yeah, um, and and the propermechanics of the foot is so
important and I'm not a farrier,I know how things are supposed
to work.
So that's where working withpeople like steve has taught me
(30:13):
a lot, because some stuff Iwould think would be helpful,
yeah, might be in the short term, but what if we distort that
hoof capsule too much?
You know, we see some othertrouble down down the road.
Yeah, and I think the there,the, the knowledge is just ever
(30:34):
increasing, especially with mrisbeing more available and
popular.
Speaker 2 (30:38):
We're learning, yeah, and that's a lot, and that's
why you can't ever stop learningis because there's always new
stuff.
There ain't like a set amountof stuff to learn.
Speaker 1 (30:47):
It keeps going, yeah, every year.
I mean you guys have farriers,have conventions and everything
like that where the brightestminds are presenting have you
got to go to a farrier'sconvention?
Speaker 2 (30:56):
yet I ain't been to a convention.
I would really enjoy goingthough.
Yeah, farriers convention, yetI ain't been to a convention.
I would really enjoy goingthough.
Yeah, you should.
Yeah, yeah, my um, I think mybrother's spoke at some steve
speaks.
Yeah, a lot.
Speaker 1 (31:10):
Yeah, he does.
I'd like to go to one beforesteve speaking.
Speaker 2 (31:11):
Yeah, he's a pretty good speaker too.
He's a.
He's a very good teacher, yeahit's.
Speaker 1 (31:14):
It's one thing to be able to do it, but to be able to
teach it too, yeah, yeah.
So he's shout out to Steve ifhe's if he's listening, yeah.
So, um, I think that about wrapit up here.
You got anything you want totalk about.
Speaker 2 (31:30):
No, you're good, I answered all your questions.
Speaker 1 (31:33):
Yeah, what do you?
What do you guys got thisweekend at Wildfire?
Speaker 2 (31:35):
Well, so yesterday we had a barrel race last night,
and then we have a 4-H showgoing on this morning, like
right now.
Oh, and so we're having thecounty's 4-H equestrian.
Speaker 1 (31:49):
Oh cool.
Speaker 2 (31:50):
Yeah, out there.
Then tomorrow we have a teamroping, and Saturday and Sunday
we have a youth rodeo Nice.
Speaker 1 (31:58):
Yeah, you guys, you got bucking shoots there yeah,
do you have any?
You got bucking shoots thereyeah, do you have any like bull
ridings or bucking rodeos oranything?
Speaker 2 (32:06):
We have little britches rodeos and they offer
the class.
We haven't had any big bulls gothrough there.
They've bucked some steers butthey really don't get used a
whole lot yeah but they're there.
Speaker 1 (32:17):
But, they're there when we want to put them to use.
That's awesome, all right,ricky thanks so much for
stopping by man.
I appreciate you taking thetime and driving down here and
absolutely, where can peoplefind more info about wildfire?
Facebook?
Speaker 2 (32:27):
facebook's the best place okay, wildfire ranch
wildfire ranch and cafe okay,awesome.
Speaker 1 (32:33):
So john will put a link in the in the show notes to
that so people can click onthere and like and follow and
you guys are always postingstuff.
Speaker 2 (32:39):
Yeah, you can find every event.
We got price lists and justanything you really need to know
.
Speaker 1 (32:45):
That's awesome.
That's awesome, all right.
Well, thanks for tuning in.
Yeah, until next time, takecare of your horses and yourself
.
Veterinarian surgeon, or astart to come, quick, draw the
syringe and give it a flick.
Speaker 2 (33:02):
Bring your little black bag with the medicines and
bring the trank and the crankand the penicillin.
Ricky, what's up, man ?
Speaker 2 (00:02):
Not much.
Speaker 1 (00:03):
Thanks for coming in today.
Absolutely, we've hung out alot, but I don't really know
that much about you yet.
So where'd you grow up?
Speaker 2 (00:12):
Eastern Kentucky.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
Eastern Kentucky.
Where at?
Speaker 2 (00:16):
In a town called Painesville.
Speaker 1 (00:18):
Nice Was there a lot of horses there and stuff.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
There was a lot of walking horses.
Speaker 1 (00:22):
Do you like those?
Speaker 2 (00:24):
Not really.
Speaker 1 (00:26):
I don't either.
Were you riding when you werelittle and stuff?
Were you always kind ofinvolved in horses, or how did
you get?
Speaker 2 (00:32):
When I was a young, young kid we had horses and I
had a puppy and we rode some.
But we kind of got out of itonce I got old enough to really
start riding and then I haven'treally been around horses until
I got with my wife.
Speaker 1 (00:50):
Jade right yeah, how did you guys meet?
Speaker 2 (00:53):
Through Youth Rodeos actually.
Speaker 1 (00:55):
Oh really.
Speaker 2 (00:55):
Yeah, and she also.
When she was 15, 16, she gotdiagnosed with type 1 diabetes.
And we had a, a person ofinterest common interest, you
know and they, uh, she sent hermy way to talk cause I've had it
for forever, and, uh, he waswanting some advice on how to
(01:16):
deal with it, this and that.
So that's kind of how we gottalking.
Speaker 1 (01:20):
It's like a diabetic love story.
Speaker 2 (01:21):
Yeah, and we you throw together.
Speaker 1 (01:26):
So you've known her quite a while.
I've known her for a while,okay, and were you still living
in Eastern Kentucky when youguys started dating, or did you
move up here?
Speaker 2 (01:33):
No, so my dad?
He's a coal miner and hebrought us up here in 2016.
Oh, okay.
And so everything out here waspretty new to me.
Rodeo was very uncommon okayand uh, I think they're around,
but we were it's not big outthere, gotcha.
And uh, so yeah, he brought usout here.
(01:55):
And uh, I found out about waynecity's youth rodeo at the time
and I had a friend they, theydid it.
I started shoot dog and I justwanted to be involved in.
I've always had a thing forhorses, right.
Speaker 1 (02:08):
I just never was around them gotcha, so so you
started with the shoot doggingyeah, did that go to?
Steer wrestling no, I never didsteer wrestling no, and then,
uh, you're roping now too, right?
Speaker 2 (02:19):
I do some just for fun, okay then when did?
Speaker 1 (02:22):
uh, you're a farrier as well, in addition to helping
with wildfire and all that.
So when did you get intoshoeing horses, or what kind of
sparked that interest?
Speaker 2 (02:32):
well, it all kind of started whenever I was first
hanging around out there um, theguy shoeing their horses.
At the time I'd go out thereand watch some stuff and it just
caught my interest and itseemed logical you know, just
for as many horses as we have.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
Yeah, Did you want to do it?
A lot of the farriers we talkedto a lot of them.
They wanted to shoot their ownhorses.
Speaker 2 (02:54):
Yeah, and that's kind of where it started.
That's where everybody started,yeah, okay.
Speaker 1 (02:58):
And then did you go to a farrier school?
I did your school, or which onedid you go to?
I went to uh, lookout mountainand gates in alabama.
Speaker 2 (03:08):
Okay, and how many weeks was that?
I went for four.
They really tried to get me tostay longer, but I I was kind of
advised not to just get somereal basic stuff down and come
back, start shooting.
And very quickly I learned Ishould have stayed.
Speaker 1 (03:24):
I was going to ask you you thought the four weeks
was.
Speaker 2 (03:26):
No, it wasn't near enough.
Speaker 1 (03:28):
It wasn't enough.
I think a lot of people look atthose horseshoeing schools and
are like, oh, six weeks, I canbe a farrier.
Speaker 2 (03:34):
Yeah, no.
Speaker 1 (03:36):
Yeah, that's a lot of people's experience, and then
with some of the farrier stuff,you've got to work here with
steve, summershine, and got towatch people like him.
Speaker 2 (03:54):
I've got to work with steve and that's been a
blessing.
Like him and casey, they both,uh, really opened my eyes to how
important all this is and howfar you can go with it.
Speaker 1 (03:58):
Yeah, it's not just trimming a horse's foot you know
, on a shoe, on smacking steel.
No yep, and then the other bigthing you're doing is wildfire
ranch, yeah, which is a verycommon name around here, right?
Speaker 2 (04:08):
now yeah, it's, it's getting there yeah, you guys are
doing awesome.
Speaker 1 (04:11):
So where?
Where exactly, is wildfireranch?
I'll admit, I haven't got thechance to go there yet yeah,
it's, uh, it's up in ewing.
It's right outside of bentonillinois, right yeah yeah when
did, when did you guys startthat?
Speaker 2 (04:24):
so around 21 or 22 is when they started having shows
and basically all it was.
I mean it was an arena.
He had the announcer's booththere and when they started we
didn't have the cafe or nothing.
We had food trucks come in andstuff.
Speaker 1 (04:43):
Was there an arena already there that you guys
built?
Speaker 2 (04:45):
Yeah, I got with my wife and first time I came out
there there was already an arenathere, okay announcers booth,
stuff like that, but it waspretty like it was just getting
started yeah, and then um, whohad the idea to take it to the
next?
so level really had been her dadben um at all.
(05:06):
Really.
They moved out there wellbefore then and she was getting
into horses, barrel racing andstuff and she just wanted a
place to work her horse.
And that, that place and ifyou'd seen it you'd really know
how crazy this is but it was athicket, like it was thick, and
there was one little opening andshe's like, could you till up a
(05:26):
spot where I could just work myhorse?
And then we blinked and nowit's.
Speaker 1 (05:31):
Now, it's this.
That's what it is.
Yeah, I mean, you got a coveredpen.
You got all kinds of stuffthere.
What all, what all you guys gotthere?
Speaker 2 (05:39):
so we got the covered arena um, we got a half a
basketball court.
There's putt putt golf, there'sa playground, there's.
We got some big tractor tiresor sandboxes kind of around.
Uh, cafe west, little westernstore and there's.
Speaker 1 (05:57):
Is there cabins there too, like airbnb?
Type airbnb cabins so it'sreally a family oriented.
Speaker 2 (06:04):
It's very family oriented.
Speaker 1 (06:05):
That's the whole point yeah, that that's awesome
because there's a lot ofdowntime in some of these events
yeah and I have toddlers, andtheir attention span is
surprisingly shorter than minewhich isn't very big, so having
plenty of stuff to do is awesomeand at the events, uh, we try
to let the kids have fun.
Speaker 2 (06:26):
Like ben, he's got some gypsy vanders and he pulls
a wagon.
He'll pull a wagon around.
He's had 20 kids hanging offthe wagon.
That's awesome.
And he's got big sub speakersin him.
It's blair music.
Speaker 1 (06:37):
It's a good time yeah , I've seen a lot of pictures
from there and talked to a lotof people that have been there
and everybody sings its praises.
So that's awesome.
You get you just covered thatarena.
Was it last year?
The year before?
Yeah, last year was our firstyear with it yeah, and it's did
um, and you guys have built aton of stalls there too, correct
?
Speaker 2 (06:56):
yeah, so we had.
Two years ago we put up a 48horse bull barn and now we're
just now wrapping up 50 more soyou've got almost 100 stalls
yeah, we got.
We got 70 something done rightnow.
Oh wow, we're starting on thelast barn here this this week
who, uh, who's doing all thework?
Speaker 1 (07:15):
are you guys doing a bunch yourself contracting it
out?
Speaker 2 (07:18):
or we do a lot of it.
Um, me, ben and uh r, ryan andKeith are now.
They help a lot, and uh, if Icould sit here all day and list
off the guys that have helped us.
Speaker 1 (07:30):
Right.
Speaker 2 (07:31):
But yeah, we'll.
Uh, we do a lot of our own,like the concrete work for the
pillars on the roof.
We did all that.
Speaker 1 (07:36):
Yeah, Before they came in.
I'm assuming you guys didn't dothe big steel roof.
Speaker 2 (07:39):
No, they came in smack the roof on.
It was done.
I'm sure that roof was cheaptoo.
Speaker 1 (07:48):
Yeah, well, I mean we didn't think.
Yeah, I've looked at some stufflike that and it's crazy.
See, there's a little westernstore there.
What are you guys selling inthere?
Speaker 2 (07:55):
oh, there's like purses and belts, and we have
our own wildfire t-shirts andstuff there's kid toys and uh,
yeah, just a little bit ofeverything.
Some vet stuff.
Speaker 1 (08:06):
Doctor and stuff.
Yeah, and then what about thecafe?
You guys got there Because,that's, you know, having food at
places like this is huge forpeople that are coming in.
Speaker 2 (08:15):
The cafe is like kind of the whole heart of the place
.
Speaker 1 (08:19):
Really.
Speaker 2 (08:20):
Yeah, if it ain't going, none of it's going and it
it helps a lot.
But uh, the food is.
The food is really good.
I mean it's nothingextraordinary but the food that
they serve really good who'swho's cooking in there?
Speaker 1 (08:41):
is that you?
Speaker 2 (08:41):
you back there I've been back there, yeah, uh, but
no, jade's uh sister andrea, sheshe runs it okay that's kind of
her, that's her baby, that'sher part of it know.
Speaker 1 (08:51):
If I was to go there this weekend, what should I
order?
Speaker 2 (08:56):
The fish is really good.
Speaker 1 (08:58):
Fried fish yeah, oh nice Three-piece fish.
Speaker 2 (09:01):
I've never heard a bad thing about it.
Speaker 1 (09:03):
Awesome, yeah, awesome.
And then you guys got a lot ofsponsors.
Yes, that support you guys,which is huge.
Yeah, and we're very thankfulfor all of them.
Speaker 2 (09:16):
Yeah, if people are interested in sponsoring to just
contact you guys like me or thenumber attached to it's jade's
number.
Speaker 1 (09:21):
Okay, so, and then how else can I mean it's such a
huge asset for southern illinoisand the horse community?
I mean, you get people haulingin from all over, don't you?
Speaker 2 (09:31):
Yeah, we've had people from Michigan, Georgia,
Oklahoma, I mean just coming foryouth rodeos.
Yeah, I mean it's been reallygood.
There's people from all overand we have Horse Hotel too.
We're on Horse Hotel.
Speaker 1 (09:46):
Oh really.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
Yeah, so we've had people from Canada come through.
Speaker 1 (09:49):
Just passing through to stay the night, just passing
people from canada come through,just passing through to passing
through.
Speaker 2 (09:59):
Stay the night, stay the night, yeah, that's awesome
how can people help support youguys besides sponsorships just
coming out there being involved?
Speaker 1 (10:02):
yeah, uh, spreading the word about it, you know, and
then um, I'm in these horseshows, anybody can come watch,
right you don't have to, yeahyeah, buy some fish and yeah
support you guys that way.
So that's, that's awesome.
So let's talk a little moreabout your, your horseshoeing.
You've been traveling a littlebit with another farrier, that's
well established.
So we're all you're goingeverywhere.
Speaker 2 (10:23):
Right, I've been hopping around a little bit.
Yeah, there, for the last yearI've been traveling a lot.
Now I've been traveling a lot.
Now I go with him about onceevery five weeks, maybe a little
more.
You know, last year it wasevery week.
We were somewhere differentyou're traveling different
(10:43):
facilities.
Speaker 1 (10:44):
How many horses you guys shoe in when you go to
those places?
Speaker 2 (10:47):
depends, but usually we like around 25 to 30, but
I've like around 25 to 30, butI've seen it up to 40.
Yeah, you know.
Speaker 1 (10:57):
And how long does that take?
Speaker 2 (11:00):
Typically we've done 40 in three days yeah.
Speaker 1 (11:04):
And it's just you and him.
Speaker 2 (11:06):
If we do 40, there's usually one, maybe another guy
Gotcha, but a lot of like doing25 or something.
It could be just me and him.
Speaker 1 (11:16):
Yeah, that's awesome, and you got a little daughter.
Now how old is?
Speaker 2 (11:20):
she, yeah, she's eight months, eight months yeah.
Speaker 1 (11:23):
Before you know it, she'll be in first grade.
Yeah, I know how has thataffected your traveling with the
other farrier.
Speaker 2 (11:32):
It was an adjustment like it.
It didn't seem very like it was.
It was a hard thought, but it'sbeen.
It's been pretty good.
Jade's a trooper, really, fordealing with that.
I couldn't do it without her,without ben or any of them.
Speaker 1 (11:47):
yeah, I remember when my daughter was right around
that eight month I went to aconvention for that's the first
time time I'd left her, justjust leaving for a few days.
Speaker 2 (11:56):
It's like, holy cow, your whole life you don't have
one, and then it's there and youcan't imagine anything before
it seems like yeah, and rightafter I mean it wasn't two weeks
he was born, we were in Tulsa,oklahoma, at a horse show and we
were gone for like a whole weekshoeing or showing shoeing yeah
(12:19):
and uh.
Speaker 1 (12:22):
So I was gone for a week right after born it was it
was different yeah, yeah, that'sawesome your wife supporting
that too, because theopportunities you have to learn
from Casey and these other guysis not very many people get that
.
Speaker 2 (12:35):
No, no, and that's something she understands.
It doesn't make it any lesshard, but she does a really good
job.
Speaker 1 (12:45):
And is she doing a lot of who's planning all these
events at Wildfire, because youguys got something almost every
weekend.
Speaker 2 (12:50):
Yeah, me, her and ben plan, just about all of it.
Yeah and uh, like our youthrodeos.
Uh, jake and carol hampson,they produce that.
So okay they kind of, we justkind of let them do their thing
and they set their dates andthey add you know all that.
So they just, we just host that, but but all of our barrel
(13:12):
races or anything extra, wenormally plan all that.
Speaker 1 (13:15):
Yeah, and there's a lot more work that goes into
that than most people probablyever think about.
Speaker 2 (13:19):
Yeah, there's a lot of work Just figuring out how to
make everybody happy basicallywith the numbers and all that
and how big you want it and justtreating everybody fair.
It requires a lot of thought.
Speaker 1 (13:38):
Yeah, it is.
I mean, the general public isnot fun to deal with.
Speaker 2 (13:43):
Not typically.
Speaker 1 (13:44):
But one thing talking to all these Youth Rodeo people
is they are awesome people.
They're amazing people, so alot of them are super
understanding and supportiveyeah, youth rodeo crowd is
really good is that yourfavorite?
I hate to pick favorites, butyou could infer gotcha yeah, it
seems like, even though thosekids are competing against each
(14:05):
other, they're all helping eachother and their parents and
everything like that.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
So it's just.
Speaker 1 (14:10):
It's a really good community yeah, and you've been
there long enough.
Have you seen some kids go from, for instance, walking around
the barrels to going out andmaking a full run and
progressing like that?
Speaker 2 (14:22):
That's special watching that happen.
I was a little older when Istarted competing and getting
into it and stuff, and just thememories I made, watching other
kids make memories there, likethat's going to be, that's where
they made all their memories,that's where they got better,
you know, and that's that's thewhole point.
Speaker 1 (14:41):
Yeah, but you know, and that's it's really good,
yeah, and then, since you've hada daughter your own do you look
at these kids a littledifferent time?
Speaker 2 (14:50):
yeah, I'll see little girls on ponies and I'll just
be staring at them.
Sometimes I'm like these dadsprobably think I'm a creep,
because I'm just imagining.
Speaker 1 (15:01):
You know, uh, that it's going to be her one day
yeah, yeah, that's awesome andand then, um, and then her
family's so involved too,because I mean raising kids.
Everybody says it takes avillage and that's it does, yeah
, it's to do it.
Speaker 2 (15:15):
Well, exactly, yeah yeah, what's the?
Speaker 1 (15:19):
what's your future plans with wildfire?
You guys got anything.
I mean, you just keep we'regonna.
Speaker 2 (15:25):
I think, after these stalls are built, we might start
to slow down as far as, like,building the place uh, I mean,
ben said that for the last threeyears, right?
Speaker 1 (15:38):
uh, I think we're getting to a point where we can
start slowing down, just havingshows and start to enjoy it, and
because it's been non-stopbuilding since we started, yeah,
so anytime I talk to somebodythat's helping, like the
darnells or something they're,you guys are always working on
something, so that'll be nicewhen you guys can sit back and
(16:01):
just appreciate the hard workyou put in and host these shows.
What about your uh future withyour farrier career?
Where do you see that going?
Speaker 2 (16:10):
I see it going really far.
I, I'm gonna.
I plan on hanging around steveand casey as much as I can and I
want to take advantage of everybit of it yeah, I mean you
can't get enough education fromthem yeah, they are a wealth.
Speaker 1 (16:24):
Every time they're here, I learn something from
them.
Yeah, and I think that's what'scool about that.
And the vet industry is you'realways I mean every day I learn
something.
You don't just reach a pointwhere you know it all.
Speaker 2 (16:39):
No, if you stop learning, you're losing.
Speaker 1 (16:43):
And then, not that it's a competition, but it is.
I mean, there's other farriersout there that would love to
have the clients you do and theclients he has and the barns.
Speaker 2 (16:55):
You've got to stay on top of your game, for that I
mean nothing.
You could lose it any day.
I'm very grateful for every dayI get to be with those guys.
Speaker 1 (17:07):
How has the diabetes?
How does that affect yourtraveling and work and
everything like that?
Speaker 2 (17:14):
it's a big bump in the road like it it can.
You know, some days I hardlyknow it's there, but there's
also there's days it'sinevitable.
You know you're gonna haveproblems and that's just
something you gotta keep workingthrough like it's inconvenient,
but it ain't impossible, youknow.
Speaker 1 (17:31):
Yeah, what about, like, when you're traveling,
especially on the weekends upthere, when you're hosting these
shows?
As far as like your diet andeating right and taking care of
yourself like that, yeah, that'svery important.
How do you, how do you manageon the road, Because I'm
assuming what's an ideal dietfor you, an ideal diet is just
(17:52):
straight carnivore.
And you've done that for awhile, right.
Speaker 2 (17:55):
And I've done it for a while.
The last month or two I was offof it, but actually this past
week I've been back on it and Ididn't know.
I was trying to feel adifference and I couldn't, until
I got back on it and I was likethat's a difference.
That's how you're supposed tofeel.
That's how you're supposed toyeah, I've done it.
Speaker 1 (18:12):
I mainly my diets.
When I have time to meal prepand stuff is meat, yeah, but
when I can do it consistently,I've noticed a big difference in
my energy working and right.
I mean, my job is physical, notas physical as shooing horses
but I can tell a huge differencewhen I am eating right and
taking care of myself, like thelittle aches and pains and
energy levels are and that's thething when you pair carnivore
(18:36):
with diabetes.
Speaker 2 (18:37):
You got to make sure you eat enough like you got to
stay fueled up yeah becausepeople who do carnivore they can
.
They can fast and they can go awhile without eating it and not
make a difference like if I'mchewing you got it, I gotta eat
a lot, and that's what'schallenging about on the road is
(18:57):
one place is having options toget stuff, the price of it, you
know it.
Speaker 1 (19:04):
It makes it difficult , but it's well worth it yeah,
yeah, I remember when I used toget ribeyes on like sunday
morning on sale for like fivedollars a pound.
Speaker 2 (19:13):
Yeah, and now they're on sale for like twelve dollars
a pound yeah, it's carnivoresbecoming a more popular thing
and it's it's jacking everythingup, yeah, yeah, yeah, and then
um, so can you?
Speaker 1 (19:26):
um, you wear the pump , don't you yeah?
Speaker 2 (19:29):
I have a t-slip yeah, that's um.
Speaker 1 (19:33):
When were you diagnosed with that?
I was four on new year's eve oh, really, did you have a bad
health scare?
Speaker 2 (19:40):
it was pretty scary.
Yeah, I was.
I was pretty close to notmaking it really yeah, I was
real close yeah what happened somy parents were taken.
I stayed with my dad's parentsand they were taking my mom's
mom back to.
She lives in Indiana and I wasjust getting sick.
I was peeing in the bed a lot,drinking a lot of water, just
(20:04):
looked sick and they said I needto go to the doctor and that
was around there.
It was kind of an uncommon thingback then, like my mom didn't
even know it was a thing rightand uh well, I went to the just
a regular family doctor and he'slike you gotta go, and they
were actually calling ahelicopter in to come get me
(20:25):
holy cow and uh, it was takingtoo long, so they threw me in an
ambulance and I was four so Iwas ticked off.
I didn't get driving ahelicopter.
And then I was wondering whatcolor the ambulance was going to
be, right, stuff like that.
But uh, I was.
I was pretty sick, I was, andfor the people that know, I was
like 989 when they diagnosed me989 yeah, what a normal range is
(20:51):
, like like you want, like 120.
Speaker 1 (20:53):
Is that your?
That's sugar?
Speaker 2 (20:54):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (20:55):
Oh, okay.
Speaker 2 (20:56):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (20:56):
Wow, so you were almost 10 times that.
Speaker 2 (20:58):
Yeah, like it was, you know, adults.
I guess kids can kind of takeit better, but adults was in the
hospital not making it five,six hundred.
Oh wow, but kids, I feel likeI've noticed, do like they when
they get up there, like they canstretch it a little further.
But yeah, but it's still.
It wasn't.
I went far, you know.
Speaker 1 (21:19):
Yeah and then a lot.
I mean, when my kids startedschool it seemed every other
week she was sick with something, so a lot of people, and I
think even doctors, will chalkit up to, oh you know, just a
little cold, little flu notfeeling good yeah, and that was
the thing I dealt with a lotafter getting diagnosed.
Speaker 2 (21:38):
I was going into kindergarten and dealing with
teachers and my mom was a veryscary lady to those teachers.
Intimidating or just they'rewhat, like I, I got my way, like
if I needed something I had it,and if I didn't get it it was a
bad deal.
But I love my mom.
(21:59):
Yeah, that's awesome.
Shout out to love my mom.
Speaker 1 (22:00):
Yeah, that's awesome.
Shout out to Ricky's mom what'sher name?
Frankie Nice, she going tolisten to this, you think.
Speaker 2 (22:05):
Probably Awesome, yeah, awesome.
Speaker 1 (22:08):
Shout out to all the moms out there.
Speaker 2 (22:09):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (22:11):
As far as your with the wildfire and people, you
said your wife's numbersattached to it.
Speaker 2 (22:17):
Yeah, Does her phone blow up all the time?
Yes, and it.
They will call at the most justrandom times, like it'll be a
sunday at four in the morningand they'll be like, hey, I need
stalls, or you know this orthat, or you know which is fine,
(22:38):
and jade, if she's awake sheanswers at any time you know,
but it's just, it's weird, youknow.
Speaker 1 (22:45):
Yeah, I know the feeling going off all the time
yeah, and one thing, um, andbefore kids, or even when my
kids were little, it wasn't thatbig a deal, yeah, but now that
I got two toddlers runningaround, yeah, they can be
sitting quietly.
As soon as I get on the phone,they lose their minds.
So hopefully you can figure outhow to set some boundaries.
Speaker 2 (23:07):
Well, it's already started.
If she's on the phone, if I'maround, I've got to take Lacey,
because if anybody, if we starthaving a conversation, she wants
to be involved in theconversation and she will be the
loudest Yep, and that's hardfor some people to understand.
(23:28):
Like, and to add to that, we sowe had a.
We have four airbnb cabins backthere.
It's on like the arena grounds.
Well, me and jade have a biggercabin that's attached to the
bath and shower house and itsets back there with everything
and that's what we lived in forsince we've been married.
Well, this past weekend, uh, weswapped ben houses.
(23:49):
Uh, he's in the cabin now andme and her moved up to the house
because for especially youthrodeos, because it's so busy.
Uh, people would roll in at 11midnight and our dogs would go
nuts and wake the baby up andthen they'd be rolling back in
at five in the morning and just,and then, where it's attached
to the shower house, you canhear everything oh yeah so it.
(24:10):
You know, me and her don'tnecessarily mind, but when it
starts waking up the baby, itwas time to.
Speaker 1 (24:16):
Yeah, that's, that's tough yeah, a lot of people in
the vets, the vet world, they'lltalk about building a clinic on
their property.
Yeah, and then, like, there's acouple facebook groups, I'm in,
but people that have done italways chime in don't do it,
don't do it.
I mean, we live at work enoughyeah people.
Just I mean with your deal is alittle bit different because of
(24:38):
traveling and logistics forpeople.
They may have to roll in at 1am.
Speaker 2 (24:41):
Right, but a lot of them don't have that much
respect for what else is goingon, and you know that's just
part of it.
People got to do what they gotto do and I'm not going to turn
away anybody.
Speaker 1 (24:54):
Right.
Speaker 2 (24:55):
That's just part of it, but that's just on our side.
Speaker 1 (25:07):
We got to figure out what works for us.
Speaker 2 (25:08):
Yeah, yeah, especially with a baby, because
everything changes.
Yeah, and a lot of diapers.
Do you change diapers all thetime?
Yeah, I'm a diaper changing?
Speaker 1 (25:12):
what about swaddling?
Were you good, did you guysswaddle?
Speaker 2 (25:14):
I was getting.
Yeah, I was getting pretty goodat that.
Yeah, I was, I was the swaddleman.
Yeah, it took it took me aminute, but I was getting the
hang of it yeah.
Speaker 1 (25:21):
You guys think you're going to have any more.
Speaker 2 (25:23):
Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, it'll be a few years, but yeah.
Speaker 1 (25:27):
Mine are spaced at three years apart, and that's
yeah that's about three, fouryears.
Speaker 2 (25:30):
Yeah, I think that's pretty good.
Speaker 1 (25:42):
Me and my brother, we're about three and they're,
you know, when the olderdaughter, she's big enough for
she could really help, and it's,it is, it is a big help, yeah.
So, um, are you, you roping atall, you competing at all?
I mean, in all your spare timeyou don't have no I, I ride just
our horses more than I rope.
Speaker 2 (25:56):
Uh, I was roping before, well before we had a
baby and stuff.
I was going down to larry's androping some.
But uh, I mainly just keep ourhorses in shape, keep them road.
Now and if I have a chance togo rope and I will, but I don't
do it real seriously yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1 (26:17):
And then you think you have um all the time in the
world, and then you have a kid,and then you got no time, no
time.
Speaker 2 (26:28):
Between between the kid, the ranch and shoe and um,
I'm tied up.
Yeah, you got a lot of irons inthe fire, yeah.
Speaker 1 (26:36):
Yeah, I feel you, um, I guess.
One other thing I want to talkto you about is with the farrier
stuff, like if anybody waslistening to this, like some
kids out there and wanting to doanything, would you have any
advice to a kid that's thinking,maybe I want to shoe horses,
even on a side or for a living?
Speaker 2 (26:59):
Yeah Well, the first thing would be don't quit,
because when you start it'sgoing to be miserable, like I.
I want to shoot you straight.
Like it.
It is hard and but it gets.
It gets easier.
The more horses you do, themore you educate yourself, it
gets easier.
And another piece of that oneducation is go to school and go
(27:21):
to school for a while if youcan, and then when you come out,
find somebody to go with.
That's.
That was the most importantpart for me, because that's
whenever my my shoeing changedis whenever I started traveling.
Speaker 1 (27:33):
Yeah, we.
We see some people come in andI'm not going to call any names
and I don't know half of them,but they'll.
They seem to say, oh, myfarrier's the best he's been
chewing for 30 years.
Speaker 2 (27:47):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (27:47):
But that's what I tell people.
It's like I've been playingguitar for 20, and I'm terrible
at it yeah.
Because I never got.
I learned one way and nobodysat down and taught me.
Speaker 2 (28:02):
And that's one on those topics like I don't.
I don't like talking bad aboutother fairies or anything, but
when you get clients saying, oh,he's the best, um, he's done it
for this long, it's like well,he's kind of been doing these
things wrong for them exactly Iwas talking to rick jackson here
, yeah, and we were talkingabout practice and and him
coaching people and andeverything and the the old thing
(28:24):
you know, practice makesperfect.
Speaker 1 (28:27):
But I don't know that I agree with that.
I think practice makespermanent yeah and if you're not
practicing correctly, you gottapractice correctly yeah, unless
I told him, like even tigerwoods has a golf coach best
golfer in the world, but hestill has a coach.
Having another set of eyes,keeping you in check is really
important yeah, in the in in thevet world, the network we build
(28:48):
is super important because Imean, every week I'm I'll find
I'll have something that comesin like I don't know, but I know
somebody that knows what to door has seen this before, so I'm
sure that's the same with sameway, if you don't know, you
better hope you know a guy thatdoes.
Yeah, so that's, that's thething.
And, um, there's a girl that'sdoing a summer research project
(29:11):
talking to rural veterinarians,and that was one of her
questions was basically like wasis it helpful to call people?
Or, you know, is it like yourcompetition or something?
Speaker 2 (29:22):
I was like no, we're all in this together.
All the vets and vets workingwith farriers and that's the way
it needs to be with farrierstoo that I think Steve and Casey
are trying really hard to getgoing because it seems like
farriers around here they don'tI don't know that they really.
They don't dislike each otheror they really try to compete,
(29:43):
but they're not on the same team, right, you know, and when you
have other guys on the same team, it's.
Speaker 1 (29:49):
I mean, you can build up a community yeah, yeah and
then, and the foot is just soimportant for a horse.
I mean, a lot of the quarterhorse lameness we see it's in
the foot, quarter horse lamenesswe see it's in the foot.
I'd say probably 70 percent.
Yeah, um, and and the propermechanics of the foot is so
important and I'm not a farrier,I know how things are supposed
to work.
So that's where working withpeople like steve has taught me
(30:13):
a lot, because some stuff Iwould think would be helpful,
yeah, might be in the short term, but what if we distort that
hoof capsule too much?
You know, we see some othertrouble down down the road.
Yeah, and I think the there,the, the knowledge is just ever
(30:34):
increasing, especially with mrisbeing more available and
popular.
Speaker 2 (30:38):
We're learning, yeah, and that's a lot, and that's
why you can't ever stop learningis because there's always new
stuff.
There ain't like a set amountof stuff to learn.
Speaker 1 (30:47):
It keeps going, yeah, every year.
I mean you guys have farriers,have conventions and everything
like that where the brightestminds are presenting have you
got to go to a farrier'sconvention?
Speaker 2 (30:56):
yet I ain't been to a convention.
I would really enjoy goingthough.
Yeah, farriers convention, yetI ain't been to a convention.
I would really enjoy goingthough.
Yeah, you should.
Yeah, yeah, my um, I think mybrother's spoke at some steve
speaks.
Yeah, a lot.
Speaker 1 (31:10):
Yeah, he does.
I'd like to go to one beforesteve speaking.
Speaker 2 (31:11):
Yeah, he's a pretty good speaker too.
He's a.
He's a very good teacher, yeahit's.
Speaker 1 (31:14):
It's one thing to be able to do it, but to be able to
teach it too, yeah, yeah.
So he's shout out to Steve ifhe's if he's listening, yeah.
So, um, I think that about wrapit up here.
You got anything you want totalk about.
Speaker 2 (31:30):
No, you're good, I answered all your questions.
Speaker 1 (31:33):
Yeah, what do you?
What do you guys got thisweekend at Wildfire?
Speaker 2 (31:35):
Well, so yesterday we had a barrel race last night,
and then we have a 4-H showgoing on this morning, like
right now.
Oh, and so we're having thecounty's 4-H equestrian.
Speaker 1 (31:49):
Oh cool.
Speaker 2 (31:50):
Yeah, out there.
Then tomorrow we have a teamroping, and Saturday and Sunday
we have a youth rodeo Nice.
Speaker 1 (31:58):
Yeah, you guys, you got bucking shoots there yeah,
do you have any?
You got bucking shoots thereyeah, do you have any like bull
ridings or bucking rodeos oranything?
Speaker 2 (32:06):
We have little britches rodeos and they offer
the class.
We haven't had any big bulls gothrough there.
They've bucked some steers butthey really don't get used a
whole lot yeah but they're there.
Speaker 1 (32:17):
But, they're there when we want to put them to use.
That's awesome, all right,ricky thanks so much for
stopping by man.
I appreciate you taking thetime and driving down here and
absolutely, where can peoplefind more info about wildfire?
Facebook?
Speaker 2 (32:27):
facebook's the best place okay, wildfire ranch
wildfire ranch and cafe okay,awesome.
Speaker 1 (32:33):
So john will put a link in the in the show notes to
that so people can click onthere and like and follow and
you guys are always postingstuff.
Speaker 2 (32:39):
Yeah, you can find every event.
We got price lists and justanything you really need to know
.
Speaker 1 (32:45):
That's awesome.
That's awesome, all right.
Well, thanks for tuning in.
Yeah, until next time, takecare of your horses and yourself
.
Veterinarian surgeon, or astart to come, quick, draw the
syringe and give it a flick.
Speaker 2 (33:02):
Bring your little black bag with the medicines and
bring the trank and the crankand the penicillin.
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