At the Pony Express Memorial, Old Town Sacramento

I'm from Oregon, and lived in the West all my life, in fact I've never even seen the east bank of the Mississippi River.  School drove me crazy; it seriously cut into more important aspects of my life -- like hunting and fishing.  As soon as I cut the lead rope that kept me tied to the school building I started looking around for wider ranging adventures - and I found them.  In fact some of them about scared me to death, but now they make for great stories!

I ran with a bunch of good ol' farm boys chasing rodeos.  I rode saddle broncs and had the time of my life. The bronc riders of that day had little to fear from me, although I heard the whistle a time or two, my six-foot-four frame made me less than a stylish rider.

I went on to punch cows for a cattle company in western Oregon, and then moved on to wrangling horses and packing for hunting and guide outfitters. I worked in the wilds of the Alaska Bush for three years where I saw some of the greatest beauty left on earth.  I also served as the official horse shoer at two different outfits.  These horses received one shoeing a year, and except for hunting season, ranged free most of the year fighting off wolves.  Anyone who ever did any shoeing can imagine what it was like to shoe these guys.  In fact I told the story in a poem called Packstring Shoer   (read it online at www.cowboypoetry.com). 

In Montana I took out ten day, 100 mile trips over the divide through the Bob Marshal.  I later went to Wyoming and ran horses in the shadow of the Tetons.  I finally ended up in Colorado packing for Rocky Mountain National Park, that was the best job I ever had.  Along the way I broke horses in the good old way.  Unlike rodeo, style isn't important when breaking horses to ride, they still bucked as hard, but no one was scoring. Now I'm in Reno, Nevada, working my way up the ladder as a writer and performer. 

For a good many years I spent more time with horses and mules than people. I could understand the four-legged critters, but to this day I still scratch my head trying to figure out the two legged variety.  I met my wife in Colorado, I was barely housebroke and she came from a cultured background. Over the years she has managed to have some positive influence over me and can actually take me places now.  She is raising our three daughters to be fine young ladies and has succeeded wonderfully.  As I always tell the girls, "Listen to your mother and she'll make ladies out of you, but I'll teach you how to fight."  When she wasn't looking I taught the girls how to spit like a cowboy, but I warned them not to tell their mother.

In addition to my years in the world of the cowboy I spent several years as a Deputy Sheriff in Colorado.  It was here that I gained an inside view of what the modern lawman is up against, his Old West counterpart had his hands equally as full.  I knew lawmen that were as honest as the day was long and others who had no business with a badge on their chest.  You will find lawmen a frequent subject in my stories, the good and the bad.

I spend as much time as possible hunting and fishing, my passion is fly fishing and fly tying.  I tied professionally for over twenty-five years and still do.  I've had several articles on fly tying and my outdoor experiences published in outdoor magazines and hope to continue adding outdoor articles in between my westerns. 

My focus these days is to continue writing westerns, both novels and short stories and to get on western stages and entertain folks with my particular style of cowboy entertainment.  I am a storyteller in the vein of Robert Service, telling stories in rhyme, but unlike Service I spin a lot of humor into my stories.  My programs consist of a mix of Cowboy Poetry, some serious, but most are funny stories of cowboy and western life.  Then, sprinkled into the mix are humorous anecdotes of my experiences in the horse world.  A few are tales, but most are things that really did happen to me.

I have often been invited to speak to groups on the Western movement, the history of the cowboy, and my personal experiences in the cowboy life. Having done considerable study and research in the Western movement, as well as actually visiting the historical sites for the purpose of giving my books and stories authenticity, gives me a unique perspective on the subject. I also inherited a considerable amount of true stories from my father and grandfather who lived in the traditions of the Old West and seen much of it. I am always open to invitations to come and speak.

The good folks who read my stories and books have been generous in their praise. They like what I write and that makes me feel that I have gotten my story across.  I also want to thank all of you for the 2008 Will Rogers Medallion Award, and the 7 (and counting) People's Choice Awards I have won.