"Searchin' Silhouettes"
by
Greg Kelsey

Spending a little research time on the historic Pitchfork Ranch was a highlight of my year.  I saw and recorded countless inspiring ideas.  This is one of the first to be brought to fruition.  .   .  On the range, fresh horses are jingled in five or so miles each day and traded out for the spent ones.  The cowboys made a rope corral with their lariats to hold the horses while their mounts were selected.  The wagon boss would float out about sixty feet of line with coils hanging in the air and rope out each horse.  The task was repeated at dawn, noon and dusk.  The wagon boss was amazing with the houlihan; smooth and graceful, accurate and precise.  The scene was mesmerizing - on a ranch whose history extends back a century, observing a hand so masterful in his use of a rope and that knew his job so well that he could call out a horse's name with just a glimpse of its silhouette in the dim light before he threw his loop with amazing skill - it had to be recorded in bronze.