5 Values I Learned on the Ranch

A “living legacy”…

This is truly rarefied air. Very few get the opportunity to be part of what they build… of what they leave behind. Expose your next generation to the iconic principles that conquered the West.

“It reclaims your heart, every single time. It’s how my grandfather felt… grounded, proud and restored.”

5 Values I Learned On The Ranch

Responsibility– At the ranch, you care for your animals before yourself. Cattle don’t care what holiday it is or where you need to be, they have to eat. These animals are our livelihood and it’s our responsibility to care for them before we worry about anything else. Along with responsibility comes time management. I knew that I had to be ready for school and have the steers fed before the bus got to our house.
Respect– There’s an endless amount of ways to learn respect on a cattle ranch. Respect includes anything from doing what your father tells you (the first time he asks) to understanding that herd bulls are bigger than you, and won’t always go where you want. If you respect your animals, they’ll respect you. The cattle return his respect because he never treats them poorly.
Integrity–The importance of being honest and doing the right thing, especially when no one is around to see it, was burned into my mind as that steer I said I’d trained but hadn’t showed my questioning mother how much time we hadn’t spent together.
Compassion– I grew up riding in the passenger seat of the ranch pickup, watching dad care for hurt animals and help newborn calves. When I got big enough, helping these animals became part of my responsibility. It was sometimes confusing as a young child to see an animal in pain or a calf that needed extra help. There were plenty of cold winter nights spent in the barn helping calves nurse or giving extra attention to sick ones. Learning how to truly care for something else might be the best thing I learned on the ranch.
Work Ethic – There’s always something that needs to be done on a farm or ranch. When I got home from school, I had a list of chores to be done before dark. On weekends, while my friends slept in, I was up working cows in time to be done before we had to be at the school for a sporting event. When I’d get home, there were nighttime barn chores. It’s important to learn how to get things done and work hard to accomplish goals. My friends always thought that it must’ve been horrible to work this hard—what do you mean you don’t sleep until noon on Saturday?! But it’s rewarding to know that you’re contributing to the productivity and success of an operation. Those of us that grew up in agriculture don’t know lazy, it’s not how we were raised.

“IX is irreplaceable, I’ve got 57 years of feelings and memories.”

Part working ranch, part retreat, part time-machine… IX Ranch offers something truly unique in our over-connected, stressed out and divided society. It’s a salve for your soul, a personal wilderness ecosystem and vehicle to live your legacy.

IX transports you back to a time when when your word was your bond and taming a piece of the “wild west” meant something. A modern day expression of a pioneering spirit that has never died.