Top 25 Reasons to Be a Cowboy | #14: The Tack

Have you ever considered just how unique the cowboy tools of the trade are? Take the saddle alone. Only stockmen use this tool and only the American cowboy uses one with a cantle, swells, and a horn. Drill down a bit more and there are myriad styles even within that narrow subset: Wade, Will James, Association, Buster Welch, Modified Association, Ranch Cutter, Toots Mansfield, Olin Young, Visalia, team roper, and the list goes on. Then, once you pick your tree, how do you want it rigged? Conventional 7/8, ¾, 5/8, centerfire, in-skirt, flat plate, or cable? Square skirts or rounded? Tooled or stamped? Roughout or smooth?

And so it goes for every piece of cowboy tack; bits, spurs, saddle pads, ropes, headstalls, reins, hackamore, doctoring bags, stirrups, breast collars, hobbles, etc.

Start adding custom baubles to all this and the combinations and outcomes are nearly limitless.

Cowboying—as a career—doesn’t offer much in the way of wealth-building. And only in rare cases will a professional cowboy garner much notoriety. One of the only and best ways a cowboy can express himself is through his tack.

What kind of saddle a cowboy rides, what kind of head and mouth gear he uses on his horses, and what kind of spurs he wears speaks volumes about who he is and what is important to him. A particular kind of horsemanship style is often reflected in his tack. Maybe from his saddle you can tell what part of the country he’s from—or even what era he finds most alluring. What weekend horse activities or competitions he’s involved in could be revealed by the type of rope he packs or how he stops a critter that’s been roped (mulehide or rubber dallying or tied on).

And all this equipment is not for display only—it gets used–so it gets worn out. A simple walk through the World Championship Ranch Rodeo trade show reveals the necessity and the craving that cowboys and cowgirls have for their tack. Half the tradesmen there are creating goods for use on the ranch. And are arguably the best in the business. If a cowboy needs a new pair of reins, he can pick and feel a dozen options before he finds the ones that suit him perfectly. Same goes for every other piece of tack. And if you don’t find the perfect thing, a dozen craftsmen are on hand for you to place your order. I don’t know if office chairs make accountants excited, or bankers get a rise out of picking out calculators, but I know as a cowboy, the prospect of searching for a new bit is a thrill. That’s why our tack is a major reason to be a cowboy: it’s just so cool, so individual, so fun to buy, and so fun to use.

photo by C Keller Photo & Design