Thank you to John Wackerle and Barbara Wackerle Baker for sending this Banff Summit news article from 1969 which has been word processed as the original clipping lost its quality.

Banff Summit News – October 16th, 1969.

How to Break a Bronc – Warden Style

By Deiter Hagn

 

Horse Breaking Made Easy…or…How to Tame a Bronc in Six Easy Lessons, was the course given by Warden Bill Vroom at the Ya-Ha-Tinda government horse ranch recently.

The idea of a horsemanship school was conceived by Warden Vroom and sanctioned by the Regional Office of the National Parks Branch.

In simple terms the idea was to set up a camp where wardens could be issued a tent and an unbroken mustang. Through the course of the following six days the warden and his protégé spent all their time together while Vroom provided helpful instruction on how to develop the maverick into a reliable trail horse.

When the horses were issued they included four black thoroughbreds, descendants of mounted police horses whose bloodlines trace back to Man o’ War, the famed Kentucky Thoroughbred, and three very sprightly Quarter Horses. All were two-year olds.

Students included: Gordon Bergeson, Riding Mountain, Terry Gibbons, Glacier Park, B.C., Gordie Peyto, Waterton Park, Art Hanley, Kootenay Park, John Wackerle, Monte Rose and Jay Morton from Banff.

The wardens joined their instructor Bill Vroom and camp boss Willi Pfisterer at the equipment building September 29th. Chief Park Warden Bert Pittaway gave the men some words of encouragement and sent the off on the 53-miles trip up the Cascade Fire Road to the Ya-Ha-Tinda.

 

On arrival at the ranch the horses’ names were drawn from a hat. For some of them it was “love at first sight” – not so in the viewpoint of the horses! After roping their “pets” the men had to put on halters and saddles to lead the horses from a corral to a nearby meadow. The acrobatic task of putting hobbles on the broncs and picket them followed. From this moment on John Wackerle’s “Dormer Baby” was the star of the camp – he did everything nobody wanted him to do! Looking like the tamest of all the quarter horses you ever saw – he acted similar to a furious stallion as soon as John got close to him. Some of the wardens who had never before handled such difficult horses gained a lot of respect for their animals. Bill Vroom lent many a hand and soon afterward the wardens started sacking their broncs – which means flapping a pack mantel or similar item at and on the horse until the animal does not shy or spook anymore.

Pitching individual tents in front of their horses (out of reach of picket lines) came next. The idea behind this was to keep man and horse close together for day and night and so speed up the break-in process.

After two days of continuous work with the horses, all wardens mounted their animals and took the first 3-mile ride. Tuesday the wardens went on a 15-miles trail ride and the horses behaved as if they were born trail-horses. Returning to the ranch, the sky clouded over and from that developed an unexpected 24-hour snowfall – reaching 12-14 inches by early Friday morning.  The snow was a welcome break for men and horses to heal their various sores (did you ever take a wild horse on a trail ride?) A great bonfire was the place for western stories, lectures and “warden” jokes. The ranch’s foreman Cal Hayes and horse breaker Richard Rainer (Regnier) of the ranch gave many tips on handling riding and packing horses.

While staying on the ranch, the wardens and visitors (from as far away as National Parks Head Office) were dinner guests at Richard Rainer’s home, where his wife Nony managed the difficult task of feeding about a dozen very hungry men.

Saturday morning all the horses were turned loose to take up their free life in the ranch valley again. John Wackerle was reluctant to part with his adorable “Dormer Bab-by” – but he galloped off fast to enjoy the easier life.

Bill Vroom and Wally McPhee would like to make the training school an annual affair because of the success of this year’s camp. Before departing to Waterton Park, Warden Gordie Peyto stated: “This was by far the best camp I ever attended – even if it was my first one.”