OCTOBER 1995 BACK ISSUE

Part of Horse Previews Magazine website. Posted on 10/1/95; 10:00:00 AM.

Facility Spotlight: Goldenwest Quarter Horses

Goldenwest Quarter Horse Ranch is the home of Steve Bovan, Virginia McKay and their daughter T.J. McKay. The ranch is a family owned business with other family members involved & living on the ranch. It is located approximately 5 miles North of Sprague, Washington & spreads through 4 counties in Eastern Washington. For a long time, it was the largest single family-owned ranch this side of Texas! The facility includes several homes, plus an expansive main house with 49 rooms, an outdoor arena 150'x250', a 90' outdoor round pen, 20 inside stalls in a spacious, restored barn, 15 large paddocks, an indoor round pen for training colts, acres of grazing & Sprague Lake which, along with its 2 resorts, is also part of the ranch.

The ranch had its beginning over 120 years ago, by trading horses with the Indians & the Calvary. After Virginia's grandmother moved to the states from Germany, she wrote a book called "Opportunities of the Goldenwest." This is how Goldenwest Quarter Horses & Goldenwest Cattle Company originated. In 1992, the ranch was awarded the Washington State Ranch Remuda & is in the top 15 ranch Remudas in the U.S.

Both Steve & Virginia grew up in the Horse Industry & have been in the business for the past 10 years. Virginia grew up on the ranch. She remembers as a little girl, watching with her grandmother, the cows in the pasture being loaded on the train. Steve got his first saddle when he was 4 years old & at 5 years old was winning in competition, with his dad as riding instructor.

Goldenwest Ranch's main goal is to sell horses as reasonably as they can, with the best bloodlines, & a 30 day guarantee. Steve said, "Our policy is, if we can't guarantee a horse for 30 days, why would we expect the buyer to like it for life. We don't breed anything we can't ride." All the broodmares have been Futurity. A couple times a year they go to Texas & pick up broodmares. Last year, they were the 32nd volume horse buyer in Texas. Steve said Texas is perfect for all the top bloodlines. Goldenwest Ranch doesn't take any outside horses for breeding, because they have their own studs. The horses are bred for all different kinds of Futurity, cutting, & reining. They sell approximately 60 horses a year & in the last 10 years have only received 3 riding horses & a colt back; but most of the profit is in the cattle, which are Angus, Saler & Hereford.

Each year Goldenwest has a Spring & a Fall roundup & invites the public. For 6 to 8 miles, they roundup the cattle & then drive them about 8 miles to their destination. This is free to the public & a lot of fun. They also put on a Team Penning show in Ritzville, Washington in May. This year, there were over 300 teams. Steve also uses their own cattle for team penning.

Steve, Virginia & T.J. have more shows coming up this year: The Snaffle Bit in Reno, Reining in Oaklahoma, & Cutting in Fort Worth. Steve & Virginia have their own string of horses which they train on a daily basis. All in all, they handle about 18 horses a day. Steve said, "We spend a lot of time working on the ranch. We enjoy our work & everything just comes together."

Goldenwest Quarter Horses can be contacted at 509/257-2529.