Ep. 91 - Bryce Albright of the Dude Rancher's Association chat the importance of FFA and youth leadership
If you haven’t already done so, please check out our first episode with Bryce Albright, the Executive Director for the Dude Ranchers' Association, by clicking the button below.
It’s almost as if we have a field reporter on the episode with our repeat guest and good friend Bryce Albright, the executive director of the Dude Ranchers’ Association, who is also a member of the COWGIRL Magazine 30 Under 30 program. While this will most likely not be Bryce’s last time on the podcast, we are excited to talk about what the Dude Ranchers’ Association is doing as they move into the winter season and what being named to the prestigious COWGIRL Magazine 30 Under 30 class was like for her .
Winter Season in DRA
With fifteen ranches not even opening last year, all 93 got to open this year with most, if not all, seeing their most successful season in their history. The Dude Ranch industry is thriving and these resilient, time-tested ranches, some of which have been around for the nearly full 96 years of the association, many of them are stepping into a much needed time for a winter break and recharging.
However, many ranches in the southern areas of Arizona and California are gearing up for the winter season and the opening of traveling to even new regions. Some of the Wyoming, Colorado and Montana guests are transferring over to fall and winter activities as well - a much slower pace for guests than those that visit in the summer.
A Dude Ranch in the winter time could be a great way to get away in the winter time for a break. A great time to unwind, relax, and really enjoy what the ranch has to offer in their quieter, more kid-less times of the year for guests. Places like Arizona are really nice to get away from the snow and ride in some great, big, outdoor country on horseback.
Economic Industry Facets of DRA
“Dude Ranches created social distancing - we were doing it before it was cool,” jokes Bryce who says that that line started to become their advertising punch line. In fact, many of the ranches are sold out for 2022 or nearing that 75% occupancy line. “We were doing really well at the start of the pandemic and then we had a little bit of a flat line, like everyone in the travel industry did, at the start of the pandemic… When we came back up, we came back up and skyrocketed. Ranches turned some of the best seasons they have ever had with a high number of guests… in a safe, welcoming and calm environment.”
While it still feels a bit like a rat race in modern America, the ability to step back into an old west feel with modern amenities has been a huge draw for ranches. As international travels comes back around we rewind back to six months ago where we are doing a lot of the same practices and procedures that the international guests feel comfortable, safe and welcomed to this wonderful destination.
Horse Industry Economics
The horse market is booming with retired, older women that are wanting a good, safe horse - this definitely seems to apply to the dude ranch industry as well. Bryce’s off-the-cuff recommendation is to contact the DRA office to let them know what you are looking for and helping people find the right ranch. For a girl’s trip, definitely heading to Arizona down to the Tucson area. There is a variety of ranches that “scream girls trip,” with hot tubs and pools, spas, and adventure. For the summer, there are ranches that do Cowgirl Getaway retreats in Montana. Those dedicated weeks just bring everyone together and you get to meet and interact with other women and be with “your girls.”
In the fall, some of the ranches even have extremely popular quilting retreats! The fall is a “shoulder season” for a lot of ranches and they have “adult only weeks” which have a huge draw. Kids are back at school, children’s programs aren’t running, and the older generations can come to the dude ranches to experience it without having to keep up with the younger generation. It depends on the dynamic of where you are going too, but you really get to take it easy if you’d like. A lot of people will take Thanksgiving, Christmas and even Spring Break trips down in the Arizona ranches where you can rock climb, horse back ride, and do any other sort of crazy water activities as well.
Why a DRA member?
“All of our ranches are vetted - they have to go through a two-year application process to even become a Dude Ranchers Association member. They have to meet a very high set of standards…, restrictions and guidelines,” says Bryce. “There used to be a lot of hard and fast rules like a required seven-night stay or that they were the only guests on site.”
A lot of those hard and fast rules were softened back during the financial hardships in 2008. They instead changed over to some founding pricinples of the DRA:
Horses
Hats
Hospitality
Heritage
Honesty
Heart
All of those have a short description to understand why they apply to Dude Ranches, the dude ranch industry and the western industry. When you visit a DRA member ranch you’re guaranteed an authentic experience, top notch hospitality, top notch horses, all inclusive, and welcoming to all. Meals, lodging, and most activities are always included in most places that makes your trip really easy to plan - this is a huge draw for many business individuals.
The members also have a heart and soul for the industry that they want to provide an experience that they don’t just enjoy, but that they want to keep coming back too. Providing experiences that changes peoples lives and gives them something more to think about outside oft he concrete jungles and the day-to-day job. There are still these gems that aren’t flooded with people that can give you new experiences and make you feel alive again.
“Our Dude Ranches definitely provide that to every guest that steps foot in our industry,” says Bryce.
Heading Towards 100 Years
“Part of our mission and our goals just as an association is to preserve, protect and promote the unique environment that dude ranches take place in, which is the western world,” says Bryce. “All of our ranches are really striving to provide guests with a great authentic western experience.”
This means that the DRA is providing a lot of resources, working with markets and breaking into new markets to reach as many people as they can that don’t know about this type of vacation or what the west has to offer. As they head towards hundred years of the association, they’re very humbled for the honor because most trade associations have an expiration date. The fact that dude ranches have stayed relevant for a hundred years show just how great the experience is and that when people do find it, it lights a fire in them.
“A big part of coming into the hundred is our history and our heritage,” says Bryce. “We have survived multiple centuries and generations of guests, hosts, and ranchers themselves. Generations of changes in agriculture and the whole western world - really just making sure we keep a strong focus on our history and how we got there. I do see our 100th convention being huge and also where people can really come together.”
“We hope to continue for another hundred years and through that it takes a village and that’s not just us in the office or our board of directors, it’s all of our ranchers past and present,” says Bryce. “It’s truly incredible that we have made it one hundred years.”
A Foundation From FFA
“FFA holds such a special place in my heart,” says Bryce, who says that the organization is so much more than just “Future Farmers of America.” It’s a group of people striving to keep the western life alive and Bryce was a perfect example of that. She didn’t grow up on a typical farm or a ranch, she grew up on a dude ranch. Their bread and butter was hosting guests, not selling cattle.
“I started at a very young age, I got involved at sixth grade because my siblings were involved in it,” says Bryce, who laughs that she lucked out to get to go at such a young age. “FFA really shaped me for who I am today. I can honestly say that I wouldn’t be in the position that I am in now if it weren’t for FFA.”
Participating in every competition under the sun, she was fortunate to be on two national teams and one of her biggest honors was serving as a state officer from 2014-2015 for the state of Montana. Through these opportunities, Bryce’s public speaking skills, leadership skills, and the drive to always be striving to better herself came.
“It allowed me to meet so many people … and to go to so many places,” says Bryce. “Those little experiences building it all up is really what shaped me. I saw the world through FFA, I got to see the agriculture industry, the western lifestyle, and I got to find who I was through FFA. My blue jacket is one of my prized possessions.”
“It was such an honor to get to represent the state of Montana and represent those kids in the state of Montana and that organization - it’s truly life changing and changed my life. I would not be where I am today if it were not for FFA, I am as well spoken and well versed as I am because of FFA. I learned how to network and it really made me grow up to be around so many of those people,” says Bryce. “Getting into my position here to get to further advocate for the industry … is truly more than I could ever ask for. Never did I think that when my FFA advisor was making me practice every day after school that it would lead me to here - I wouldn’t change it for a thing.”
Becoming A State Officer
In order to be a state officer in the state of Montana, you had to be enrolled in an ag class with minimal member fees, and, at that time, you had to have Supervised Agriculture Experience (SAE). Placement was Bryce’s category and that meant she learned her money through someone else. Other kids’ source of income was raising livestock animals to sell in comparison.
“I was very much so just working for someone else in a totally different light of agriculture,” says Bryce. The selection process for state officer was a grueling application process. After submitting your application, you have to go through a three-day interview process. When Bryce ran, there were 41 kids running for 8 positions of student offices, and had to partake in a variety of activities to test how they would represent Montana FFA for the year.
If you selected, you had a variety of tasks from doing radio and television, attending all the events, and promoting FFA. Putting on workshops, giving speeches, and represent the organization and the state organization as a whole. Meeting with sponsors, doing public relations, and then, as a team, hosting the state convention. At the state convention you give your retiring speech in a poetic full circle moment.
“Some of my friends, some of my best friends, come from my state officer state team… some of my best memories come from my state officer year,” says Bryce. After moving to Wyoming, she wasn’t as able to stay as involved as she was prior to moving. “The leadership side of it was probably the biggest part of the state position and my favorite part as well.”
Build Your Resume
Extracurriculars are very important in building your resume when you are young. Through groups like FFA and 4-H, you learn leadership, work ethic, how to network with people, work with people, and other really important life skills such as interviewing for a job. Building a resume and going through an interview with people in the industry is often skills that you wouldn’t be able to find anywhere else.
“Even hiring in my office here or with the ranches… we always talk about how we want to reach more of the agriculture kids because they have a work ethic and know what it’s like to put in more than eight hours a day,” says Bryce. “If FFA or 4-H is on someone’s resume, they automatically get bumped to the top … After being involved in both those organizations for most of my life, I know what kind of kids are going to come out of that organization.”
“It’s defeating and so moralizing to get passed up on every opportunity and it’s hard to start those entry level positions because of pay or your skills surpassing that - putting in your time is so important, especially in the position we are in,” says Bryce. “Nobody is going to be an executive director over night… you are going to have to climb the ladder. Especially right now with the shortage in the work force, you can climb that ladder really fast” you just have to be ready to start at the bottom.
“You also have to try a bunch of jobs before you know what you want to do,” says Bryce who went to school and got a business degree. Working as a nanny, housekeeper, kitchen server, wrangler, in the office, etc. she didn’t know what she wanted to do but it ultimately got her the position that she has now. Working different jobs, keeping an open mind and knowing that you don’t need to have everything figured out at 18 years old. You can do different things and you don't have to be an overnight success.
Even though Bryce has worked herself to the top of her organization, that doesn’t mean she doesn’t have to continue to work very hard every day to be able to stay at the top. Follow the process, intertwine yourself with extracurricular activities, and keep to your work ethic - it’ll pay off.
“There is no more valuable tool in life than experience,” says Bryce. “Experience as much as you can because you never know when that is going to help you.”
We gave a big shoutout to Jamie Denue with J. Lee Photography who went with us to the COWGIRL Magazine 30 Under 30 who had just lost her job from a Colorado Dude Ranch that lost a big part of their ranch from the Colorado wildfires. Make sure to check her out here on Instagram!