Ranch Roping Clinics Gain Ground in Montana: Practical Skills, Safer Stock Work
From branding pens to big outdoor arenas, Montana riders are showing up in growing numbers for ranch roping and team roping clinics. The draw isn’t just competition—it’s practical, ranch-ready skills: handling cattle efficiently, reading a cow, staying safe in tight quarters, and getting a horse confident around livestock. Quick takeaways Clinics can speed up the […]
Before You Head Out: Where to Check Montana Closures, Restrictions, and Public Notices
Whether you’re chasing roosters on the Hi-Line, floating a spring creek, or checking cows along a river bottom, the fastest way to ruin a good day is to roll up on a closed access point or miss a new restriction. In Montana, conditions can change quickly: fire activity, low water, construction, wildlife conflicts, and seasonal […]
New federal dollars could boost regenerative grazing on Montana ranches
Regenerative agriculture has been a buzzword in Montana coffee shops and sale barns for years, but the practical question on most outfits is simpler: Who’s going to help pay for the trial runs? Reports indicate a new federal program is coming online to fund regenerative agriculture work, which could include projects tied to soil health, […]
Montana Hay and Grain: What’s Driving Prices, and How Ranchers Can Plan Ahead
Across Montana, hay stacks and grain bins are more than winter security—they’re a line item that can make or break a year. Over the past several seasons, producers have watched feed costs jump around with drought, fuel and freight, and shifting demand from livestock and export markets. Reports from around the state indicate the volatility […]
Montana Team Ropers Are Going Digital: What a Streamed Clinic Can (and Can’t) Replace
In a state where winter roads can shut down a weekend haul and calving season eats the calendar, it’s no surprise Montana ropers are taking a harder look at online education. Reports indicate a new streamed team roping clinic featuring Ryan Motes is being offered through Roping.com, adding to the growing menu of subscription-based instruction […]
College rodeo scholarships: what Montana families should ask before the next entry fee
Across the Northern Plains, more high school rodeo athletes are looking at college programs not just as a place to compete, but as a path to education—sometimes with scholarship help. Reports from regional rodeo coverage highlight how certain events and circuits are being used as recruiting touchpoints, giving top competitors a chance to get in […]
Montana Team Ropers: How to Get More Runs In Without Burning Out Your Horse
Across Montana, team ropers are finding more ways to stay sharp between big weekends—practice nights, small jackpots, and traveling clinics that focus on fundamentals. The common thread isn’t just getting more runs; it’s getting better runs. With fuel and entry fees still adding up, many ropers are looking for practice setups that build timing and […]
What Makes a Great Heel Horse: Lessons Montana Ropers Can Use This Season
In team roping, the header gets the first look, but the heeler’s horse often decides whether the run turns into a paycheck or a no-time. The best heel horses don’t just run fast—they manage distance, stay square, and make the hard part look ordinary: getting to the right spot, at the right speed, every time. […]
Round baler upgrades: what Montana hay crews should watch in Deere’s newest lineup
As hay season planning starts long before the first windrow hits the ground, equipment announcements tend to catch Montana producers’ attention—especially when they promise more flexibility and fewer headaches in the field. Reports indicate John Deere has introduced a new round baler aimed at versatility and dependable performance, a combination that matters when you’re chasing […]
What a Big Rope Horse Sale Signals for Montana’s Ranch Horse Market
Across the West, good rope horses aren’t just a rodeo luxury—they’re working tools that can make a day in the branding pen smoother, safer, and more efficient. Reports out of Texas about a returning, ranch-backed rope horse sale are a reminder of what’s moving the market right now: proven programs, consistent handling, and horses that […]
What a Seven-Figure Rope Horse Says About Today’s Ranch-Horse Market
Every so often, a horse sale number hits the roping world like a branding-iron sizzle. Recent reports out of the team roping scene point to a rope horse bringing around $1.7 million—a figure that’s hard to wrap your head around whether you rope on weekends or make a living horseback. Quick takeaways Reports indicate an […]
Winter Roping Season Rolls On: What an Arizona ‘406’ Rodeo Says About the Draw for Montana Hands
Winter is when a lot of Montana horse and roping folks point the truck south. Shorter days at home, frozen ground, and a calendar full of jackpots and rodeos in warmer country make it the natural time to tune up horses, stay sharp, and chase a little winter money. Quick takeaways: Reports indicate a returning […]
What an Arabian Horse Win in Doha Can Teach Montana Breeders
Reports out of the Middle East indicate Arabian horses from the United Arab Emirates turned in standout performances at a major show in Doha, Qatar—another reminder that the Arabian breed remains a truly global business. While Montana isn’t hosting international halter classes on that scale, plenty of breeders here are still making decisions every spring […]
Historic barns and main streets get a boost—why it matters to Montana ranch country
Montana’s working landscapes are full of history you can still use: barns that stack hay every summer, irrigation headgates that keep pastures green, and main-street buildings that still house feed stores, cafes, and small-town banks. Reports out of the state Capitol say a new round of historic preservation attention is landing on projects across Montana—ranging […]
Montana-Bred Rope Horses: What a Winning Program Gets Right
Across Montana, rope horses aren’t just arena athletes—they’re ranch tools that also have to handle long days, rough ground, and real weather. Breeding and raising a horse that can score, run, face, and stay sound is part genetics, part management, and part ruthless honesty about what’s working. Quick takeaways Soundness comes first: feet, legs, and […]
Keeping a Montana Ranch Intact: When a Family Chooses Legacy Over a Sale
Reports circulating nationally this winter describe a Montana cattle ranch valued in the tens of millions being transferred away rather than sold off in pieces. The headline-grabbing angle is the dollar figure. The Montana angle is more familiar: a family trying to keep ground together, protect a working landscape, and navigate the reality that land […]
Why a Big-Stage Roping in Arizona Matters to Montana’s Ranch Rodeo Crowd
Every winter, Montana’s rodeo and roping world keeps one eye south. When an Arizona town like Wickenburg starts drawing attention for a big, branded rodeo weekend in 2026, it’s not just a calendar note—it’s a signal about where the sport is headed, what kind of horses are in demand, and how producers are building events […]
Dry Summer, Tight Hay: Montana Ranchers Weigh Feed Options and Winter Plans
Across parts of Montana, a dry growing season is translating into tighter hay supplies and higher-stakes decisions for ranchers and horse owners. Reports indicate some producers are seeing lighter first cuttings, fewer second cuttings, and more competition for what’s available—especially good-quality grass hay and alfalfa. Even when hay is out there, the bigger question is […]
Luxury Ranch Deals Are Moving Quietly in Montana—Here’s What Working Ranchers Should Watch
Montanans don’t need a glossy brochure to know the ranch market has changed. Over the past few years, big-acre places have drawn interest from buyers who want privacy, views, and a slice of the West—sometimes with cattle as part of the picture, sometimes not. Recent reports tied to a high-end, off-market ranch transaction have renewed […]
Grain Benchmarks Matter in Cattle Country: A Montana Lens on Feed Costs and Risk
When grain markets get jumpy, Montana ranchers feel it fast—often through the feed bill before anything else. Even if you grow your own hay, grain prices can ripple into supplements, pellets, mineral mixes, and the broader cost of keeping cows in condition through winter. That’s why a newly released grain market benchmarks report from university […]
A 38,000-Acre Gift Highlights a Growing Question in Montana: Who Shapes Ranch Country’s Future?
Montana’s working lands are more than scenery—they’re businesses, wildlife habitat, and the backbone of rural communities. Reports from Montana Public Radio indicate a group of ranchers have donated roughly 38,000 acres with the goal of preserving a stewardship legacy and keeping local voices at the center of how the land is managed. Quick takeaways: Reports […]
A Record-Size Working Ranch Gift Puts Montana Land Stewardship in the Spotlight
Montana’s working landscapes don’t stay “working” by accident. They stay that way because families plan ahead, neighbors step up, and organizations find ways to keep ranch ground in production instead of carved up. A recent report out of Phillips County is putting that reality front and center: reports indicate the Ranchers Stewardship Alliance (RSA) received […]
Blackfoot Valley ranchers rethink the playbook as land, water and markets tighten
Along the Blackfoot River corridor, ranching has long depended on a familiar formula: grass in summer, hay in winter, calves in the fall, and a close watch on water. Lately, that formula has been getting harder to balance. Reports indicate ranch families in the Blackfoot Valley are experimenting with new ways to keep operations profitable […]
Native Fish, Working River: What Yellowstone Conservation Could Mean for Montana Ranches
Along the Lower Yellowstone River, the conversation isn’t just about fish or water—it’s about keeping a working river working. Reports indicate Montana Farm Bureau is backing federal legislation aimed at native fish conservation on the Lower Yellowstone, a stretch where irrigation intakes, bank stabilization, and spring runoff are part of the annual rhythm for ranch […]
After Babb Restaurant Fire, Owners Say They’ll Rebuild—A Familiar Story in Cattle Country
BABB — Reports indicate a fire heavily damaged an iconic restaurant in Babb, a tiny community on the doorstep of Glacier National Park where highway traffic, ranch pickups, and stock trailers all share the same two-lane ribbon of road. The owners have said they intend to rebuild, according to coverage circulating in Montana news. Quick […]