Riding High in the Saddle in Sidney
Sidney, MT
Photography by Stu Hoefle
Julie Rehbein pulled her pickup and horse trailer up to the corrals. Inside the trailer her horse, Nick, was accompanied by two others, Brooke and Razen. When she stopped, the truck’s doors flew open and out jumped the owners of the horses. As they began unloading, they excitedly chatted and greeted a fourth friend in the nearby corrals.
“We’ll help you Cherie,” one of them yelled to the woman in the corral. “Don’t you do a thing.”
“I’m not helpless,” she shot back. “I’m just moving a little slower.”
Four women, all love horses, and all love to ride. In addition to Julie, the cowgirls, ranging in age from 64 to 77, consist of Charlene Netzer, Kathy Wyman and Cherie Gatzke, and all live on ranches within five miles of each other. They love to ride so much they hire themselves out to area ranches when extra help is needed to gather and sort cattle.
Cherie, the one “moving a little slower,” was recovering from a shoulder dislocation and fracture that resulted from her horse stumbling on a mole hole and both went down. Her horse took off for the barn leaving Cherie to fashion a sling out of her shirt and walk the half mile home. Begrudgingly, she hadn’t ridden since, but she was determined to ride with her friends on this day, bum shoulder or not.
“We’ll help you,” her friends said.
And they did. Once they bridled their horses and tightened their cinches, they took over prepping Rio for Cherie to ride, all while chatting, bantering, and catching up with each other. When they were ready to ride, they led their horses to a slight incline in the landscape which aided them into their saddles.
“Some of us are a little on the short side,” Charlene laughed. “It helps when you’re our age to have a little boost.”
Their friendships were destined, two of the women married into a common family and two bonded over their daughters’ high school friendship, and all are longtime Sidney community pillars. Their lives are interwoven into a bond which has molded them into a fearsome four, unafraid to try nearly anything. Unobtrusively, started by Cherie and Kathy, as near as they can remember, Charlene joined shortly afterwards and Julie about six years ago.
“I’ve ridden all my life,” Julie, a feisty 70-something, and the oldest member of the foursome said.
“Stick her on a cow and she’ll eventually show up,” Cherie added with a laugh.
As it turned out, Julie’s cousin was looking for extra riders to help move cows and the four of them ended up together which established a long-term, unofficial partnership. It wasn’t long before they began earning a group reputation.
“The young riders used to snicker when we’d pull up,” Julie said. “‘Are we babysitting these gals, or what?’”
But the hushed comments have since ceased as the women have proven themselves to be excellent hands. They rope, gather, and push cows up the chute. They vaccinate during brandings and gather for shipping in the fall. And, no matter what, they always finish the job.
“I dread the day they say I can’t get on a horse. People have said to us, ‘it’s too dangerous for your ages, don’t you think it’s time to get rid of your horses?’ To them we say, ‘we’re not going to give up on our dreams just because of our age.’ No one should.”
“There’s really nothing we won’t do,” Cherie said. “We’ve fought rank bulls and obstinate cows.”
“We know how each other works and we work really well together,” Kathy added.
They work as a team, so when they are offered a job, the four decide together whether it’s a fit and they’re all available.
“We’re selective,” Charlene said. “We like to work together, so if one of us can’t do it, there’s a good chance we’ll turn it down.”
It helps if they are seeing new country or returning to a ranch where they previously enjoyed the work. All adept at pulling a trailer of horses, they rotate the driver duty as they head to each job. Once they commit to a task, even inclement weather won’t stop them. They’ve worked in 100-degree days and in freezing blizzards.
“We’re dependable, people can count on us, and we get the job done,” Cherie said. “We can’t just ride when the sun shines. It doesn’t work that way. Most of our calls are, ‘how soon can you be here?’ so we know to dress for the weather.”
This comment sparked a trip down memory lane, and they recounted Cherie, bundled up on a rainy day, encased in a slicker trying to stay dry in a downpour. Unbeknownst to her, her slicker had made a funnel into her boots and when they finished, she got off her horse, and to the delight of her friends, poured two boots full of water out. Still laughing about it years later, it’s evident they share more than work, but a close friendship as well.
“We’re in each other’s lives,” they said.
Birthday parties, get-togethers and other social affairs bring them together, but riding is their passion. That’s clear, considering the financial feasibility of their business.
“Well,” they admitted, “most of the time, we help out just because we love to ride.”
Between laughter, they offered their best guess as to how long the business would remain.
“I figure another 20 years,” Julie said. “By then I’ll be almost 100, so that’s a good time to quit.”
“I dread the day they say I can’t get on a horse,” Kathy added. “People have said to us, ‘it’s too dangerous for your ages, don’t you think it’s time to get rid of your horses?’ To them we say, ‘we’re not going to give up on our dreams just because of our age.’ No one should.”
The ranch women find adventure where they can, and a few enjoy hunting as well. Cherie’s shoulder was healed enough to enjoy a goat hunt arranged earlier this fall. Charlene planned an annual elk hunt with her husband and Kathy and her husband both had elk tags to fill. The hunts had to fit around fall cattle work, though. As shipping started and ranchers began gathering pairs, the four filled their schedules, ready and eager to saddle their horses and help out.
At the end of each workday, the tired but happy women return to the barn to unsaddle and load their horses. As they trail across the pasture, as is their custom, Julie’s voice starts out and is soon joined by the other’s as they sing an old favorite.
“Whoop-pi-ti-yi-yo. Rockin to and fro. Back in the saddle again…”
