Regenerative Ag Stories on the Grazing Grass Podcast

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: On today's
episode, we are talking about

ranching with family as well as
utilizing public grazing land,

something I'm not super familiar with.

Karson will get started
with the fast five.

Our first question, what's your name

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Karson Rippstein,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558:
and what's your farm's name

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
the Ripp Ranch

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558:
and where are you located?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
in Central Utah.

Act, the nearest town is Richfield, which
no one knows where that is, so I want

you to think of Utah as someone's torso.

We're in the belly button.

That's, that's where we're at.

Right?

In central of Utah.

We're at

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: belly button of

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
button of Utah.

Yep.

Bet you haven't had someone describe
where they're at with a belly button yet.

Have you

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558:
No, no, we haven't.

That will definitely go up on
the Hall of Fame or Wall of

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
wall or shame one of the.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah,
it just says Wall of Aim up there

and you get to decide which way it goes.

Yeah, that's a very good analogy.

It's very visual.

It helps us see where you are and
what livestock species do you graze

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Beef cows.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: and how
long have you been grazing cows?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Oh, that's a hard question.

My family's very generational
ranch, probably less than late

18 hundreds in central Utah.

I would say me, I've ever since I was a
kid, my grandpa's had had cows, I'd say

me grazing cows in a more of a grazing
sense than just taking 'em to the pasture.

I'd say the last four years I've been
doing stuff and it's ramped up since then.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Very good.

Cal: Welcome to the grazing grass podcast.

The podcast dedicated to sharing
the stories of grass-based

livestock producers, exploring
regenerative practices that improve

the land animals and our lives.

I'm your host, Cal Hardage and each
week we'll dive into the journeys,

challenges, and successes of
producers like you, learning from

their experiences, and inspiring
each other to grow, and graze better.

Whether you're a seasoned
grazier or just getting started.

This is the place for you.

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Speaker 2: For 10 seconds about
the farm today we are going

to focus on how smart I am.

Oftentimes we talk about
electric fence and I'm like,

make sure you get it grounded.

Really good.

You know, what is that three
foot of ground rod per Juul?

Make sure you get that really
done right and it'll make all

the difference in the world.

I had that part correct.

Second part I didn't get.

So I've been rotating the cattle
through my dad's pasture and we

have our cows combined right now.

And as I've talked on the podcast, we
have permanent paddocks on my dad's land.

They're bigger than what they need to be,
but I was rotating them quickly through

that, and I wanted to do more, moved
towards more ultra high density grazing.

So I got an electric
fence and I put it up.

The cows went through the fence.

Now granted they didn't try
and come back through it.

I had it running pretty hot,
so maybe it made a difference.

But what did I forget to do?

Well, my cows are used to electric
fence but I have them combined

with my dad's cows who we don't
use electric fence with very often.

So I didn't train them to make sure.

They were familiar with the
fence and not going to bother it.

So when you are doing your electric fence
first, make sure you get it grounded good.

So you have enough
voltage going through it.

But secondly, train your animals.

So I've got 'em in a different
pasture right now with the

electric fence running through it.

I don't really want 'em
in that pasture right now.

But that's where I am because I've gotta
get 'em used to that electric fence,

or at least dad's cows used to it.

So I've got 'em in there.

The sheep actually did really
good and didn't even challenge

the fence, so that was good.

Second thing to show my intelligence.

On Easter, we were having a family
conversation about a 5K run.

I will be the first to admit I'm
outta shape, too old and don't.

I think that's really
something I wanna do.

However, the family talked about
it and I thought, I'm gonna do it.

So I downloaded a couch to 5K app on
my phone and I would just like to brag.

I made it halfway through the
first exercise, which for you all,

in case you're wondering about
it, if it was 28 minutes long.

I made it halfway, about 14 minutes.

You had five minutes of walking,
followed by the minute of running.

I thought I was dying.

A minute and a half of walking,
another minute of running each,

each time, that minute of running
came by, it got shorter for me.

So it's a minute running, followed
by a minute and a half of walking.

I made it maybe 14 minutes.

Um, I am outta shape, so just
if you happen to drive by my

house and you see me running.

No, you didn't.

Anyway, enough of that.

Let's talk to Karson.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Karson,
growing up, it sounds like you got

to spend a lot of time around cows.

Did you think that's a
path you wanted to go?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yes.

I never thought it was possible.

So I, like I mentioned, both, both sides.

My dad's side and my
mom's side have ranches.

Okay.

But, you know, my uncle was on my mom's
side and I had an uncle on my dad's

side that lived on the ranches and took,
so I just got to go visit the ranch.

You know, on the weekends I live
45 minutes away, so I'd spent every

waking moment on my grandpa's ranch.

Like I would, I would find my own rides
on the weekend to my grandpa's place.

45 minutes.

I had a list of my mom's coworkers and
stuff that would drive, I'd call 'em.

So yeah, that was my dream.

I was telling this to
some people the other day.

I thought I'd either be in
the NBA or a rancher and.

I thought that maybe an MBA would be a,
I'd be a higher chance as I'd do that.

That's how I,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
so it was a dream that I

never thought would happen.

If so,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558:
Why did you think that?

Why do you think this
is not something I can

do?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
you know, just you hear about

it getting into agriculture, you
know, if there's not any more land,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: There's not

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
lots of opportunities coming up.

And so where the family, you know, where
the ranchers were gonna go, both sides.

I just never thought I
would get a chance to.

So yeah, I just never thought I
would, it was always a dream, a

dream that I didn't hardly even chase
because I thought, I don't think

it'll happen till a little later on.

So.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: What
caused you to start chasing it?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Well, so I started working at, my

dad was able to, oh, after I left
high school, my dad was able to buy

a little herd of cows, like 28 cows.

Okay.

And he ran 'em with my grandpa.

My grandpa was nice enough to let
'em run these 28 cows with them.

And so that kind of gave me a
little hope, but I thought 28

cows, that's hardly worth, you
know, that's what my dad can do.

He does it on the weekends
and helps my grandpa.

I started working at the co-op and that's
when I realized, man, I love this stuff.

I love livestock.

I love agriculture.

And so I just, that's when I
kind of started, and then I was

able to go, IWI bought five cows.

I got, I got one of those
first time farmer loans from

FSA and I bought five cows.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
And I bought 'em in 2014, which is

the best time to buy cows, you know?

That was great.

So I

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Right.

Yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558: I
spent a lot of money and it was, it was a

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558:
cattle prices were really good

right through there.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
they were really bad to buy, but I,

you could not have told me not to.

'cause, you know, but luckily I
had a job so I didn't lose, lose

everything, but it had five cows.

So that's kind of how I got started.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: And did you
run those cows on your grandpa's place?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558: No.

At that point, right when that
happened, my grandpa passed away

and so my dad was able to, through a
coworker of mine, buy a little pasture.

And so we moved the cows over and then
I had a person I go to church with.

I asked them, they had a little five acre
piece, and I said, can I buy some cows?

And put 'em on your piece.

And they said, sure.

So my goal was I was gonna buy these like
gum cows 'cause that's all I could get

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
And I was just gonna calve 'em out, flip

'em, and yeah, that, that sounded great.

But then the market kind of
was kind of didn't, you know,

I was not gonna hold any over.

It didn't go as planned, but that's
kind of how I started, was a little

five acre lease that had no water.

So I had haul water in a tote

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yes.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
If you were from Utah, that might

make more sense in Oklahoma,
but we had a haul water to it.

So that's kind of how I started,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: There, there's
plenty of places here that you would

think would have water and it doesn't
have year-round water or something,

and hauling water's a great way to make
you more observant about where water

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yes it is.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yep.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Now, I, I hate
to even ask this question because I know

the, the answer on here, or at least
the direction you went with this, but

what kind of cows were you looking for?

Did you have a certain type in mind
at the time, or were you just buying

what was going through his cell

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Well, so at that time I, I was looking

for the complete opposite of what
I'm looking for now when I buy a cow.

So my I would've said, my goal
was to get us in our area what's

really popular, SIM Angus.

Right.

That cross a cow,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

I, I thought you were going that

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
yeah.

And you love cemental, so I
have to kind of dish on it a

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

I, I do love

CITAs.

You're exactly right.

I'm not fond of Angus,
but I do love CITAs.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
so I, that's why I gotta say it.

But, so my goal was big.

I wanted big cemental sim Angus cows

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh,

yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
wean these big old calves.

That was my goal.

That is not my goal anymore, but
that's what I was looking for.

So, and then as I grew, I was literally
just buying my dad works at the sale barn.

He loads cap trucks there.

He used to, he was law enforcement.

And at nights the night af the night
after the sale, he'd go load semis.

So I just go to that auction and I'd sit
there and usually my brother, he likes

to sit at the auction more than me.

He would buy whatever was cheap.

So if you look at our herd, you know,
I've got, and we can go into this later,

I have a purebred registered Angus
herd, but I also have a herd of cows

that I have some yellow cows, some gray

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Uh oh, yes.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
couple with a little tiger stripe, but

not, you know, not a lot of ear on them.

But I just bought whatever
I could get for cheap.

'cause I was trying to grow and

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Right.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
grew with cheap auction cows.

So.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: I think when
I was in high school, I got a ag credit

loan and I went and bought short and solid

cows.

That was, that was my go
brs, short and solid cows.

And they did really good.

That was, I don't know,
86, 87 when I bought those.

And then I went through college
and had to sell 'em all to pay

for living expenses in college.

But they, they, it was
really nice to have 'em.

But I can remember, you know, I am
still a fan of buying those old cows

and getting the cash for two out of

them.

If the market doesn't mistreat you Too

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
right.

As long as you don't buy 'em in
2014, that's, that's the key.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Right now
it might be a little iffy with the

prices right now, and they say they're
gonna hold up for another year or

two, but at some point they have to go

down.

I don't know

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
know if I, so like, I, I was just

able to get some more grazing
and I just, I, I cannot get

myself to go buy cows right now.

I just, I, I just can't do it, so.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Well,
I went to a cell last night.

I.

Hogs, goats and sheep,

because I'm thinking I need some hogs.

I've mentioned it on the podcast before.

So I went to observe the sale and thought
I'd buy some, I didn't buy any, but

they brought in two, one to two day old
hosting bull calves just through a ring.

You're talking the buyers there are
there for goats, sheep, or, or goats?

Goats, sheep, or

hogs, sorry.

Those three.

But they bring in these calves.

They still brought $400 each.

And I,

I've raised

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
been a good deal.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: maybe,
so I, I've raised too many calves

in my life to know that they,

they have a knack for laying down and

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yep.

Yeah.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: But
because that, that is really

cheap compared to other prices I'm

seeing though.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yeah.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558: I
don't know it, it's an interesting time.

Lots of optimism, but there's also
a lot of, you know, you're like, how

much, I think a lot of people got
burnt like I did when they bought cows.

So everyone, I think people are
a little more cautious maybe so.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

And, and there's, you know, Doug
Ferguson is so good about bo out

about identifying those undervalued
animals in the marketplace.

Yeah.

One of these days I'm gonna go to his

school, but yeah.

Figure out where that place is.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yeah.

M my brother, the best cows we
ever bought, my brother he was

working for a guy who would kind of
trade cattle a little bit and they

would buy these cheap coal cows.

And then my brother, they, this is
where he learned to preg check too.

They'd just preg check them.

And we'd buy, we'd buy some of these
cheap cold cows, cold cows that are

just really thin and looked rough.

And we still have a bunch of those left.

And I think we paid like 700 bucks 'cause
he just wanted 50 bucks more than he

paid for 'em or something like that.

So, so my brother would pre check 'em and
we'd buy a couple of those and they were

some of the best purchases we ever made.

Yep.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah,
that dad, so when we sold out

the dairy, we sold it out in 99.

And so then I started working
off the farm shortly after that.

I went to college.

I went back to college then and, and
then started working off the farm and

dad started building the beef herd

here.

And his initial purchases were like, what?

You said it was whatever was cheap.

So when I got home from school or work,
I had to go out and, and ear notch 'em

and tag 'em.

And, and who You No idea what we were
gonna see out there when dad pulled

in.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yeah.

Well, you know, and, and I don't know
if I was to start again, I think I've

told you I'd probably buy a herd of
Cory IES and put beef bulls on them.

That's probably what I would do.

If I didn't do that, I would probably
still go the auction by cheap

cows and just coal really heavy.

And I still

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
I, I, to me that just makes sense.

It makes sense in my, I could go buy
expensive cows and I go put 'em, if

you saw where I run my cows in the
summer, not everything does well up

there, so I'm gonna have to coal 'em
pretty heavy anyways, so I just, well,

coal some real cheap cows as some real,
you know, gold buying young heifers.

I'm just, doesn't make
sense in my application.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

You know, both of those ideas
soup me really well too.

I kinda like those cheap cows
and I also, I, I like those COEs

even.

They're a little expensive now, but
they're still a nice price point to

get in and raise a decent, decent
calf if you put a good bull on

them.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558: I
think, like in my climate, I know everyone

would tease me, but I passed that so

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
do anyways, but I,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: You just
gotta get over that, you know?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yeah.

But I don't know, I, I think if
someone was gonna get into it, I

had what, like I said, when I was
getting into it, I had the wrong.

Cow, and at least from what I'm thinking
now, I wanted big, big wean weights.

I would've never bought a corani.

Like never ever.

Now, I think I, I would
probably have done that.

I would've got my load, I could have
bought a lot more corani and put beef

bulls on 'em and had great success.

And now I'd have couple generations
down and you'd probably never

know, but they would do really good

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh, right.

Yeah.

I have to, the first orientees I
bought, I bought a, a small trailer

load of them, and dad and mom
lived down the road from me and.

Had him bring 'em in here
to Dad's place, Rell.

So I get 'em tagged and
get everything done to 'em.

I want it done.

The guy was bringing them up
on a Sunday, a Sunday evening.

I thought, dad, mom won't be down here.

It won't be a problem.

I'll get 'em tagged.

I'll get 'em onto lease land
before I have to admit to dad.

I bought these spotted animals and
just so happens they're going to

town and they pull in to talk to us.

I'm outside talking to 'em when this truck
pulls in, dad's like, what did you do?

I said,

well, you can see in just a

minute.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yep.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: And,
and that's what I should have

took a picture of was his

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yes.

Not the cows

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558:
what was in that trailer.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yep.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

So you got started with those first
cows and you had a little bit of land.

How did the journey continue with those

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
So, so that was my dad, like

I said, had a little herd.

My brother had maybe four or five.

I had four or five.

And we, we, I thought that's
where it would probably end.

'cause I.

I just thought, okay, I,
I have these four or five.

'cause I love it.

Like I just can't stop thinking about it.

It's like I wanted some
cows no matter what.

I wanted some cows

and I, it just, you know, you just, I
got out there and I don't have enough

money to go buy a lot of land base.

Utah has really, really expensive land.

I saw, you know, housing and land
in Utah's, getting up there with

some like California and stuff.

It's going up.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: yes.

I didn't realize land would be as

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yeah.

Not it, it's grow, it's growing.

It's one of the, you know, fastest
growing real estate markets as Utah.

It's not a great place to start.

But but what I did is I just found every
little piece of property that no one else

cared about or wanted and I talked to
them and so that's how I was able to grow.

Like, I just found I still, you
know, make some hay on people's.

Here in town, Utah's a little different.

There's, there, it's split up different
because of how it was settled.

But there's just small tracks,
land and people have five acres

in a house and I just make hay
around people's houses because

no one else wanted to
at the time, you know?

And so that's kind of how
I grew, was doing that.

I got a, I got some bigger lease that
made it so I could buy, you know, me and

my brother got to where we could have 20
because we picked up some other small, you

know, different leases that were further
away and they were, no one else wanted

them, pretty much is why we got 'em.

Like the, they're pretty rough and
the cows, there's hardly any fences.

And so just doing that kind of stuff,
just getting the undesirable places

that no one else is competing for,
that's where I kind of found my niche.

And so, yeah.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Right.

If, if you're, if money's a limiting
factor, then your labor, your

time, your initiative to get out
and find some of these undesirable

pieces are the way you make up for

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yeah, exactly.

And, and I'm, I'm not one of the kind of
people that's scared to look dumb or to

get someone say, no, I'll ask someone.

I don't care.

It's, it's fine for me.

I'll ask 'em.

Most people tell me no.

And then a couple years later they might
call and say, Hey, I've started thinking.

And you mentioned, you know, so, and,
and now what, what's been really good,

and this is through more connections
in Utah this might, this concept's

kind of different, especially
for most of your listeners, I'm

assuming most of Utah's public land.

So what we've been able to do is now buy
public land permits where we take our cows

in the summer out on public land for, so
like starting May 15th through October

15th, my cows are out on public land.

So as it had a, I bought those
rights to be able to do that.

So that just came up through
connections from my dad growing

up there and that kind of stuff.

So that's where majority of my
cows now go up on public land.

In the summer, I was just able
to buy or kind of do some deal

where I got an extra hundred head
grazing rights on public land.

So I was able to grow and do some of that,
and cut, cut back on some of my leases.

I wasn't able to just go buy
another a hundred head of cows.

Like I don't, I didn't have that.

So I just, some of the leases that, and
I've kind of done that as I've leveled up.

I've moved, I've gone to some of those
leases that are less profitable because

I had to haul water or something like

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
just kind of cut those and

moved and we've able to grow.

Now we're.

me and my dad and brother.

We're equal partners on the deal.

Now.

We've all run it together as an LLC
RIP Ranch, and so we get, we're we run,

we can run about 150 mother cows now.

And so we've kind of evolved
from when we started and I

had five, my dad had 28 and my

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
or four, so now we're about 150.

Close to that.

We're not all the way there.

I'm running extra heifers this year to
kind of get up on my numbers, but so

we do that in the summer that really
has helped us expand and then I lease,

I lease, we don't own very much.

We probably own between us
all 20, 20, 30 acres maybe,

and then all the rest I lease,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
yeah.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: So
there's two things there.

Karson.

I want, I want to get into.

One's your family.

LLC and how that, how you
all got started on that.

And the other thing is public

lands, like you said, that's
not something I'm familiar with

outside of conversations we've had.

That's all I know

about it.

So maybe a few other conversations.

So I'd like to get into
that a little bit more.

But first, let's talk about your
brother, your dad and yourself forming

a LLC and running cattle together.

How was that process and
how has it gone for you?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
So we were all my dad had his

cows, my brother had his cows.

I had my cows.

And we would just go at the end
of the year and do that awful

thing and say, I bought this much.

And we would, we would do this thing and
I'd pay my brother, he'd pay me, my dad.

We, it was just this big mess.

And we all worked on the same team.

We never thought, oh, that's your cows.

You need to go get it.

'cause we all ran
together, wherever we ran,

we just had our own cows.

About two years ago we, we'd kind
of talked about like, Hey, we need

to figure something out to make
this so it makes more sense because.

It's just to make it fair for everyone.

And so we, what we did is we
all had at, by the end, we

were all pretty close on cows.

Maybe I had, my brother might
have had two or three more than

me and my dad might have had

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
And we just said, you know what,

if we're all fine with it, we just
did a, made an LLC and we threw

everything in the, into the pot.

And we, now it's just all the rip
branch, we're all third owners.

Everything happens in thirds.

Which works really good.

And I think the reason is we're all
really, really putting a lot of effort,

not keeping score on who does what.

And you know, we all know
whose strengths what.

And like my dad, he's retired,
so he goes and feeds the cows

way more than me and my brother.

My brother manages a ranch for work and I
have a job, you know, I work at Redmond.

So I do that and I.

But my dad is able to do a lot of the
day-to-day stuff 'cause he is retired.

But then I do different things
that I'm better at than my dad.

So we kind of

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
having that awareness and

that's kind of how it's worked.

It's worked really, really well.

Like, I couldn't have asked for it.

I wouldn't do it the other way.

Again, I would do what we're doing.

It's, it's worked out.

'cause we've been able to combine
capital to buy some, you know, some,

some things we wouldn't have had to
because it's like, well I have this

much money that I can invest and my
brother had this much and this much.

And then how do you do that on your
taxes when you each bought a third

of a tractor and all this kind of,

you know, so we, it's just
been, it's been really good.

I know, I know there are, you know,
there's always the, well, what does

it do when it blows up at some point?

Or you split up and we've, we've
been planning on that and we're

gonna do more kind of planning.

But I think it's worked
out really well for us.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

And just to speak to that, do you all
try to have set meetings or are you

all just a family that talks a lot?

How do you keep any undercurrent from
developing into or festering into a

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
That's a good, I that's a good thought.

If you ask my wife, she'll say,
because Karson has no other

friends and his dad and brother.

So if that makes sense.

Like I have no other friend.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: I'm, I'm laughing
Karson, because that's what my wife tells

me.

I, she's like, you're on the
phone with your dad again.

You've talked to him three times today.

What more do you have to say

to him?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
we have a group chat and

on text, you know, it's me.

And, and I bet you that's who I'm, we
talk all the time, you know, whether

it's about what I'm doing at work,
that's just what we do and we're very

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh, yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
I, I, I think part of it, and we

are very forward with each other.

I think that is what most people
miss, is if I'm upset, I can say,

Hey dad, this has been upsetting me.

Can we do, can we, what can we do?

And then he'll probably say, well, I'm
doing that 'cause you're upsetting me.

And then we kind of figured out,

right?

So I think part of it is

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558:
Having that communication.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
and and we try that it, it's that the,

the communication and then the honesty
are probably the two most important.

And I wouldn't want to
do it with anyone else.

You know?

I

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
know.

Well, part of it's, I know I
couldn't do it all by myself.

And my dad knows he doesn't wanna
do it all by himself, and my

brother can't do it all by himself.

So we're all relying on
each other to make it work.

And so it's been really good.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh, well.

Well, good.

Has, were you all always this close or
has it evolved into being this close?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
We're, we're, we've all

been pretty dang close.

I'm older than my brother, five
years, so it's, you know, we, if

you would've asked me in high school
when he was in middle school and he'd

like wreck my four wheeler and stuff,

I would never have worked with him.

But we, we all just, you know, that's
just kind of, we're very close.

We're just very close.

So I think that's probably
where it all started.

And we were, we all had this
dream of having a ranch.

None of us thought we could do it.

Like, if that makes sense.

None of us thought we'd ever get

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: No, it, it does.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
so now that we do, we just

are, we are really enjoying it.

And sometimes when my dad's frustrated
or something, I'll say, dad, remember

five years ago you would've been
dreaming to be able to run this many

cows or to be able to do this or
that we would be able to afford to

do this because we just couldn't.

So it's, it's been good.

And we all have the same goal
and we have the same things.

We send each other podcasts
and we're always, we, you

know, it's, it's been great.

I, I, I really am happy with it.

I wouldn't wanna do it alone.

That's part of why it probably works,
is I don't think I could do it alone.

I'm not jealous of what my brother can do.

And he's, it's just

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
so we built that foundation well.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: I know
for, for me, working with my dad,

it hasn't always been a smooth ride.

Of course when I was younger I
thought I was a lot smarter than I am.

And so, so now I realize I'm not
as smart as I think I am, and it,

it makes the, the journey easier.

And like I said, dad and I talk a lot.

Of course, sometimes I still
vent to my wife that I can't

believe that's what they're doing

or wants to do, but it's gonna be fine.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
I, I'll tell you this, Cal, one

of the reasons it works so good
is my dad is a, he is the man.

But by this, I mean, when we put
everything together, I might say

we were all had similar cows.

He still put more into the pot.

Like my,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
that kind of guy.

The other thing is, is like, you could
tell from earlier I came, we came from

very conventional thinking on ranching
and, you know, inputs and ween weight.

That's the thing we cared about.

My dad has done nothing but
let me and my brother thrive.

You know, so

he he has not said, well,
that's not the way I did it,

or I think it should be done.

Or my grandpa, if I want a Bel Graze.

My dad, like two years
ago, I said, I want a bell.

We want a bell graze.

And he, he's like, it kind
of seems stupid, you know?

Like he's nice about it.

He's like, it makes no sense
why they're gonna waste so much.

But he didn't say, you can't Bel Graze.

We went and Bel Graze a spot this summer.

We were looking at that field and he
goes, why didn't you guys bel graze more?

You know?

So, and then this year we did
a bunch of bell grazing, so.

I think that that one of the reasons
it works is my dad is a champ.

He does not,

he does not think that he is because
he's got some more experience.

And I think that comes from,
he didn't have a lot before.

We kind of grew it all together.

We were all growing at the
same time and together.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558: he
is, he's made it really smooth that way.

And it's not like we
don't have frustrations.

There's things, and
you work with your dad.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Right,

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
there's

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: right.

They're

always gonna

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
drive you nuts, but

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: And, and
if I talk to someone that's outside

a third party, they'll say it's
just because you're just like him,

but,

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
that's right.

Yep.

Those are the things that
bug you the most about 'em.

But then you'd be like,
oh geez, that's the same.

I'm the same way.

So

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: right.

Yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
that's how

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

Uh.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
dynamic works.

It's, it's been really,
well, not, not all roses.

We have our things and I'll be mad
at my, but it get, it works out.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

Well, communication, honesty, transparency
I, you didn't say transparency, but I

just see from the conversation a lot of
transparency, honesty, and communication.

Those things are gonna
solve so many things.

Rather, it's working with
family or whatever job you're

doing.

I, I see so many things.

Communication's, just that huge one

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
I'll, I'll tell you one more

that I think is really important.

If you just assign good
intent to what they're doing,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: oh, yes,

I agree.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
instead of being like, goodness

gracious, my brother, what a, you
know, he did this and he did it.

He knew.

He knew.

You know, there's always that if you
just assign good intent to what people

are doing and if they, if we mess up,
if dad didn't do something that the

way I would've done it, if I assigned
the best intent to what he is doing,

that makes a big difference too.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh, yeah.

I, I like to call it
giving the benefit of the

doubt.

But yeah, that good intent, it may, yeah.

That could apply everywhere as well.

If we did that to each other as a nation,

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Oh my goodness.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: be so much better

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yep.

Yes, we would.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

Yeah.

That's as far political as I'll

go, but that's really where we should be.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
geez.

That's really picking a stand, Cal.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558:
Yeah, I know, I know.

I, I, I, want to be open and
accepting of and help everyone.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yeah, agree.

That's great.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

Let, let's talk

first before we go public lands.

You've talked about dynamics
of your family operation.

But somewhere in there, y you all made
a switch from going with these large

frame cows to working for something
that might work better with nature.

And I, I hate to even word it that way
because I don't wanna put words in your

mouth, but at some point you went from
these large frame cows to, you had a mind

shift.

What caused that?

And were you and your brother and
dad, you mentioned your dad with the

bell grazing, but were you all in
agreement on that, or what kind of

journey was that to, to get there?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
So I think it started, my brother

went after he graduated high school,
went out to Nebraska and worked for

Ag Reserves which is a large ranch.

If you guys know Burke Tiger.

He was the one who kind of

started ag, you know, he ran Ag
Reserves, so he went out to the Rex

Ranch where Burke Tiger managed.

Not anymore.

He didn't work with Burke.

But he worked out there and he would
call us and tell us about these cows.

And he is like, they're, they, the first
calls were like, these guys are stupid.

You know, they've got these little cows
that, you know, these little ugly cows

that just, and so he started that and
he went out there and worked a year and

he started coming home and he, that's
where we kinda learned little more about

stockmanship and all this kind of stuff.

Was ideas planted in my brother there.

But at first it was like, they're
not very smart, they're not near

as smart as we are, you know?

So.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: I'm, I'm gonna
stop you right there, Karson, because it

brings to mind, so I had this, so when
I dared, I always had a high school kid

helping me, so he'd milk occasionally.

You know, I had this one high school
kid that worked for me and I met, I

saw him a few years later and he's
like, oh, I'm buying Longhorn cows.

He says, 'cause my uncle has them
and he never does anything with them.

He just sells gavs.

I thought at the time, that
was the dumbest thing I've

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yeah.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: And and I
remember talking to dad about it, and at

the time we were pushing limousine, we
were trying to push bigger cows and stuff.

I'm like, that is so dumb.

We're so smart.

And here, you know, a few years ago
I brought in that load of Corte,

which

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yep.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: probably
a little less than Longhorn.

So, you know, it's interesting how that

happens.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558: So
that was, that was the start as we thought

they were dumb, and then he came back.

And he went and worked on another ranch
that's down on a desert and we kind

of, he kind of saw cows that never
touched hay bales much, you know,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh,

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
we started seeing what worked,

what didn't work out there.

The other thing is when I
started, when I left the co-op and

started working at Redmond, that

because of who the customer of Redmond
is, that really opened my eyes.

Like I started meeting all these
people and I'd go to, you know, I

remember when I went to the first,
I went to this Montana Soil Health

thing that's in Billings, Montana.

And I listened to all these
people, talk about their cows,

and man, it opened my eyes.

So it was a bunch of little things
then I, and because you've talked

to me, you know, I'm also, I'm not
an avid reader 'cause I'm dyslexic.

I'm an avid listener to books.

And so listening to like dirt to Soil
man cattle and felt all those things,

and listening to Steve Campbell it
was just, it's been a progression.

And, and all the way up to the
progression of now, we kind of felt

like it was hard for us to find bulls
that fit what we want to do in our area.

So we even raised bulls now from
our, we bought some registered

cows about two years ago.

We now we're raising low what we're
trying our goals, low input bulls.

So I'm getting old, old, you know,
like oldie genetics and Pharaoh

and stuff and putting 'em on that.

And I, so it's changed, but it went
from me thinking everyone who was doing

something different than me, stupid.

Now everyone just thinks I'm stupid.

So

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

Yeah.

Right.

Yeah.

That, that's okay.

If if they're doing it
and it's working for them,

great.

If, if it's not working, so great.

I've got some ideas you could

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
exactly.

Yep.

Yep.

And, and then the other
thing is Cal is financially.

It when we, we were floating our
ranch so much until we started, we

combined and, you know, I know the
market's changed, but we were really

floating our ranch with our jobs a lot.

Like

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: off the

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
that was another thing

why we, we combined.

'cause we're like, we wanna see if we can
even do this and make money and not just

be a sve to our, my, my make it so my
wife was a little happier with my, what

I'm putting into the ranch, you know?

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Right?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
so part of that was we stopped a lot of

inputs and you start, stop doing inputs.

You find out what kind of
cows work on your place.

I'd say

once in a while you'll have
one that really surprises you.

Like you'll have this big cow
that, you know, doesn't really fit

what I think would be a good cow.

But man, she, if she breeds up
and I don't have to baby her.

She's great.

I love her on the place.

So you know that.

So yeah, take away some bandaids,
you'll find out real quick what works.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: You know,
I, the, the part I love there when

you talk about ER's philosophy
and he's like, test the animals.

In the environment, you
expect him to be productive.

And he's, and I'm gonna paraphrase, I'm
sure I'm gonna butcher it all, but you

know, quit trying to figure out what
traits you need and focus in on what you

need.

And if that's a kef every year to
sell, that's a great starting place.

Instead of worrying about
keese, worry about if she weans

a calf, if that cow, weans

a calf, hey, we're good.

And keese may be, may not
be quite the right one,

but you know, worry about the size
and then you can start focusing or

not focusing, but by selecting for
that end product that you need.

Those traits you need are coupled in

there.

That's how it's getting there.

And instead, sometimes we wanna make
indexes and say, well, it should be, and

I'm gonna pick on the dairy industry.

You know, we're gonna look at the type
of the animal and we're gonna look at

the butter fat here and the protein.

Look at what your final
result is that you want.

And go with that.

Quit trying to outsmart nature.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yep.

And just, and take away the bandaids.

Like if you take away the ba
you'll find out really fast.

And, and we did.

And sometimes you're really
frustrated 'cause you really like a

cow, but she's just gonna be gone.

And it's okay.

Right now it's really okay.

'cause the coal market's great.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: It's really

okay right

now.

Yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
less, less.

Other times.

But it, I think, I think you
just gotta be open to that.

And you'll see I live in a desert,
so a big cow makes zero, zero sense.

You know,

when I get into the public land.

It's big country, you know, everyone
wants to know the cow per acre out where

I run it, it's probably a hundred acres
per cow calf pair for those six months.

So

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
you think you want something

that's uber efficient out there?

And

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558: so
all that just, it's all worked together

in the whole, you know, as you talk
about what changed, it's all the above.

Listen to people like you and
it's all helped me change.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Well,
I appreciate you, including

me, but I, I think that was

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Hey, I, I did on my, I don't know if,

you know, when I, I have a YouTube
channel and I did one time say early,

I said, if you wanna learn, you
gotta listen to GR Grass podcast.

And it's before I

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: there we go.

Yeah, so, oh, so, so now it is not

so

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Now I know you,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: I, I kind of get

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
yeah, I'll tell, I'll

recommend different things.

Just let, just message me.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558:
yeah, there you go.

Let's, let's talk about public

land, and you mentioned there,
you know, it's rugged land.

You're, you're not running very
many cows per acre out there.

What's that even look like
for someone from Oklahoma?

I, I think about our public land and it's.

It's wooded and it's over by the
lake and people can hunt on it.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
So I thi, I think this will help

give some context on why they're
EI think first you kind of need

to know why there's public land.

I think that really helps.

So think about when someone went to
Oklahoma and they could homestead and

they got 320 acres or 180 acres, their
family could live on 120 acres, right?

Or three or 360 acres.

You could live, you could raise a family.

If I moved that same homestead to
Utah, there, there's a little valley

that maybe if you lived in that
valley you could make it 360 acres.

But that's where everyone lived.

So.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
And I told you the cows, it might

take a hundred acres to run a cow.

So if you had 300, 6 20 acres,
yeah, you got three cows.

Look at you.

Good job.

You know, and there might
not be any water on it.

So what happened is, you know, the
home people would then that's when

grazing on public land started.

'cause they'd settled these valleys
and they'd raise their hay there and

then they'd graze the public lands.

So

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
where I'm at, and it's not just me,

there's probably seven other families
that run on the same public land.

And to be able to run there, you have
to own a, what we call as a permit.

It's just the ability
to, to run on that land.

Okay?

And you can sell the permit just
like you would sell a pasture.

You sell the permit, the right to do it.

So, but it doesn't mean you own the land.

You and I don't get to choose the thing
that stress, that's the worst is I don't

get to choose how I graze up there.

The government chooses how I graze.

That's one of the, the caveats, you
know, I don't have to buy the land,

but I still have to pay grazing
fees and fencing fees and all that.

And the other thing is I don't
get to choose how we graze.

We don't graze how I'd like for six months
a year because I don't get to choose.

But I live in rough enough country
that my cows still get weeded out

because I want the where I am at.

And each public land's different.

Where my one grandpa runs,
my one uncle runs cows.

It's kinda like the Garden of Eden.

There's big, there's, you know, tall
grass meadows, high mountain meadows,

beautiful aspens with tall green grass.

And the cows can get fat as they can be.

I, you move a little
further where I run cows.

And if you watch my YouTube video, I
always joke, well, if you're wondering

what the cow's eating, it's rocks.

It's because they, you know, they're,
they're, it's sagebrush and no live

water and just using dugouts or ponds.

So it varies where you're at and how, but,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
so I know that's a little complex

and confusing, but, so some people
might have the most beautiful grazing

ever in the summer, and I have
some of the most rugged grazing.

It, you know, it's, it's the, when
you think of pastures sink of 20,000

acres and then I reroute 'em through
20,000 acre pastures or 15,000 acres.

So that entails, we don't get, we
do everything horseback out there.

So because it's so big.

But that, I hope that gives a
little context, but it's, it's

varies what it looks like.

Varies, but what it kinda is, is you get
told you can run on this track to land.

And you can run this many cows for
this many months, and sometimes due to

drought, you can, you have to come off
early or go on late or have less cows.

So the, and I don't get make that
decision the government does, which

is good, you know, we should cha graze
differently in different times of year.

So that's, that's kind of how that works.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Now when your,
your cows go to those grazing permits,

are they your cows isolated from everyone

else's cows, or are

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
all run together.

They all run together.

So, yep.

You just, your cows, you take 'em up
and you probably, you take 'em up there.

And by the end, the last, so about
the 15th October, we all start

gathering cows and we just bring
everyone's in and my cows are

co-mingled with someone else's cows.

So

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yes.

So how does that affect your breeding?

Because

that means you've got six months
there that what potential is

other bulls are in there and

stuff.

How do you manage your
breeding so that you

can get the type of animal you

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
that's a great question.

And that's my biggest paradigm
that I cannot get over Cal.

I want to calve later.

I really do, but I don't want to
cal with everyone else's bulls and

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Right?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
you know, if you know what I'm saying.

And so, like on my purebred
cows, I try to take, breed 'em

45 days before, give 'em 45 days.

And then anything after that's
just gonna be cold or sold, I

won't keep half her or anything on
my, on my commercial herded cows.

I just, I let the bulls be with
them for like the first 21 days.

So one cycle.

And I'll try to keep heifers
out of that group 'cause

they're the first ones to cycle.

But that gives me the paradigm
that I'm now calving in

February, which is not the best.

I would love to get outta
that, but I can't wrap my head

around just taking it up there.

And I really think that doing
the right genetics makes a

big difference in our country.

And so there's my biggest paradigm.

So you just brought out my biggest
paradigm that I wish I could fix and I

could just find the easy way to do it.

And I really just don't know what to do.

And you might find it 'cause
you're not stuck in my head.

So.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: but, but
I, I do see that problem because.

To the right time of breeding, if you're
going to Kev later is gonna be right

in the middle of those six months.

So

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
no one and no, and everyone else wants

to, in my area, everyone calves in
December, that's when everyone calves,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: oh yes.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
we don't have harsh

winters like North Dakota.

And so it works.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
of the, the amount of money it

costs to feed a cow through there.

So we used to have in December,
we've now moved back to February

because that's about the time
the cows go on the mountain.

They're gonna be at the bowl.

Like, it's just, that's
just how it's gonna be.

There's gonna be bulls up there,
so they're gonna get bred.

So that's what I've moved it back as
far as I can, that I can think of.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
unless I could keep my cow separately,

but there's just no way to do that.

I just have to deal.

That's kind of my, you know,
my cheat code is I get a grazed

public land in the summer.

My lack of cheat code is, I can't
choose when I get a calve near as much

as I wish I could cal in May or April.

Right.

You know, and I,

it just, there's my paradigm.

I, I, I wish I could get
around it and I really can't.

But I pushed him back.

So last year was the first year we
moved from December to February.

I.

It was awesome because my commercial
herd of cows, I didn't feed 'em usually

very common in my area to get home.

In October, they graze some
hay stubble until November.

Then they've gotta start calving,
so they bring 'em in, they feed 'em

from November or about the end of
November to the middle of may or June.

I went on, I lease a lot of
stubble, so alfalfa, stubble,

corn stubble, grain stubble.

Luckily I was not able
on my commercial cows.

I didn't feed a bell of hay until the 1st
of March, which it was a big improvement

'cause I used to be November, right.

The end of November, I made that
jump and it has been awesome.

This year I, I leased a whole
bunch of corn stalks and gr and

I just caved my cows out on it.

I, and most people in my
area, that's not normal.

They've got sheds and I just caved them
out on the corn stalks and it was great.

I.

It's been one of the best changes
from feeding all that time to

just letting nature do its thing.

And I wish I could get around my
calving, so if you, if any of your

listeners don't feel free, it won't
hurt my feelings to gimme ideas.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: oh, yeah.

Yeah.

That is being able to extend a
grazing season, like that's just

really gonna help your pocketbook.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
tell me.

Yeah.

Yeah.

It's, it's a big deal.

'cause I, I raise, I can raise
enough hay myself, but now I'm

excited because we made that change.

I am now, you know, alfalfa's
king here in Utah and so usually

get three cuttings where I live.

I think most, for my third cutting
this year, I am now just gonna

be done with it and graze it.

And so I'm

gonna make less hay, which is
gonna make me a lot of money,

save me a lot of money on inputs.

And it's also.

And it's going to, like I said, that's
one of those things my neighbors

are gonna think I'm a weirdo, but
I'm pretty excited to do that.

I've also stopped doing as much
alfalfa trying to get more to

grasses because it holds over better
than alfalfa through the winter

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh, yeah,

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
than alfalfa does.

So,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: yeah.

Well, very good.

It, you know, we all have our
unfair advantage and we all

have our unfair disadvantage.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yes.

I.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: just
more fun to talk about the

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
I, I was just ta Yes, I was just

talking to a friend in South Dakota
and she said, every time I belly

ache about something in my pasture,
I remember Karson has to graze with

other people and deal with that so and

so, if we could, if we all decided
we weren't gonna take bulls up,

but that's just not gonna happen.

You know, I

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: right.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
like, we're in our grazing, we're trying

to, I'm, we're trying to figure out
should we use virtual fencing or not

to kind of change grazing patterns.

Getting 'em to decide that is a pain.

So I could not imagine if I
approached them with, I might

get ran out with a pitchfork, so,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
So anyways.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: but virtual
fencing would hold a lot of promise

for managing animals on those grazing
lands, on that extensive land.

If they've got enough coverage that

it can

work in

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
And, and this, we, I think

it would work out there.

It's just, and we're going to, we're going
to, it's, it's in the, it's on the table.

We're trying to figure out how it works
and, you know, all that kind of stuff.

So it's on the table, but it's just, if
it was me, I'd have it, but I've got eight

other families that also have to agree
with me that that's the right thing to do.

So

that makes it rough.

But the, the cool thing is, is I get
'em control the cows most of the time.

Half the time, you know, I get to
control everything when they come back.

And so that's my advantage.

Oh, is I can do what I
want when they come back.

So.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

Very interesting discussion on public
land and like I mentioned at the first,

I'm not knowledgeable about it at all.

Before we switch gears and go to our
overgrazing section, where do you see

the future for Youer, for Rip Ranch?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
I don't think our goal is to

grow a lot bigger than we are.

I think we're pretty
content with the size.

We grew this year.

Like I said, we got more permits, so we
were able to grow our capacity this year.

My goal, what I really want is to
find a way to extend my grazing.

So that's my rough time of year is about
March to May because that's when things

are starting to green up, and I would love
to have somewhere to go so I'm not out on.

Because right now I've kind of got
'em in dry lot type things, feeding

'em, which is not what I wanna do,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Right.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
gotta, I we're cold enough.

The grass isn't growing a
lot, but it's growing enough.

I don't want 'em grazing yet because
there's not even enough start on it.

So my goal would be to fix this.

That problem, that's, that's what

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh

yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
us to be more profitable is that

section of time right there.

I think if I can figure that out
through leasing or buying some kind

of spring grazing permit, something
like that, that's my goal is to fix

that, that time period on our ranch.

That's what I would like to do.

I think that'll, if we wanna
be more profitable, numbers are

not what I'm lacking right now.

It's that time period.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
I answered the, I hope I

answered your question, Cal.

So,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

No, and, and that makes sense.

Yeah.

So, yeah.

Very good.

Let's transition to the overgrazing
section and our over grazing

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cal_1_04-15-2025_173558:
and, you know, Redmond.

Let's see.

You've been working there a few

years.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Six years.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: So
we get started with Redmond.

Just let's introduce
Redmond to our audience.

Much better than our,
our ads have been able to

do.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Perfect.

So, what Redmond is, is we are so where I
said I live in the belly button of Utah.

Now, you guys will never
get that outta your heads.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Never.

It stuck

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
always gonna remember where Karson

lives is the belly button of Utah.

Right?

Just 30 miles north of me.

We have ancient sea.

Mineral deposit, that's a salt deposit.

And we've been mining salt
there since about 1958.

So, the cool part about it is
the salt that comes from there

has all the sea minerals in it.

So the other cool part is the sea
minerals are sequestered, so it's

not like coming off the ocean.

Most sea salt comes off the
ocean and we don't have that.

So we don't have any of the pollutants
or anything that comes off the ocean.

We're sequestered sea salt.

And with that, we also have a really cool
clay deposit that we sell product outta.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

So what, so you provide those products.

Is that the only thing Redmond provides?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
the, that's the base.

You know, the base of all of
our products is salt and clay.

And we do a lot of different things.

So we have human.

People in not in agriculture laugh when
I say human salt because they're like,

well, what other kind of salt is there?

But we have table salt, right?

We have electrolyte drinks
we have hunting rock.

So if you've ever been to bass
pro shops, Cabella's, and you've

seen trophy rock, that's Redmond
that comes from the same mine as

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: oh yes.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Salt.

Yep.

So that's in tractor supply.

We have equine rocks.

So yeah, those, that's the
base of all our products.

The thing that makes it unique
compared to other, other companies

that are selling salt and mineral
is that we are unrefined sea salt.

That it's sequestered sea salt.

The other cool thing that I
don't, a lot of other companies

will have sea salts and things.

We also have some people with expertise
at Redmond, so we can help with your farm

and actually help with that kind of stuff.

And we have, we have other mineral mixes.

So like on agriculture side, it's not
just our salt, we could put, we put

garlic in the salt for fly control.

We have a mineral mix for goats
and sheep and beef cows and we can

add minerals for whatever you need.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: So let's go
with the Redmond salt, just to get

started with that.

It's got minerals in it, trace
minerals in it because you're

harvesting it from that ancient sea.

Are you feeding anything else to
your cows besides the Redmond salt?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558: no.

So I, I used to, back when I
worked at the co-op, you know,

I was the smartest guy around.

I had this like $60 bag mineral that was
gonna make me a fortune and it never did.

So I didn't, but yeah, so my cows,
they get Redmond salt all year round.

That's their only supplement.

I do, I do.

I will tell you I have a cheat
code that I live by there.

So if there's ever a broken bag, I
sometimes get the beef mineral mix or

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh, he

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
you know, if there's ever a broken bag.

Sometimes I get one of those.

But yeah, the

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558:
there's another advantage

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
my other unfair advantage.

But the, yes, so Redmond salt's,
my supplement, I do add the,

the clay, the conditioner.

I do add that during the summer
or the winter time, but that's

what my cows are supplemented.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: And
why do you add the, the clay

or the conditioner during

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
there's a couple things.

If I could year round, I would,
but like I said, I don't have

full control of what happens.

Happens six months a year now.

Yes.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Right,
and you don't wanna provide it for

everyone

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Well, and it takes a little work 'cause

you can't feed it just free choice.

You gotta mix it with the salt.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh, okay.

Yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
salt, one part conditioner or you can

do, like Steve Campbell recommends you
do the enticer to get 'em eat more.

But if you're not able to do
that, the three part salt, one

part conditioner is, is great.

So the things that it does is,
is a natural toxin binder, which

is really cool and it binds
all sorts of different toxins.

I've seen research where it helps with
lark spur, which only happens in high.

This will mean nothing to you.

But if you graze in high
altitude, it's a poisonous plant

and high altitude, I've seen

results that it will actually
help with that toxicity AFA

toxins, anything like that.

So when I'm grazing corn, I
definitely want it because it

will also, it'll bind toxins.

It'll also buffer the rumen
so it's buffers just as good

or even better than bicarb.

And the other thing is it also is
chuck full of minerals of really

bioavailable vi bioavailable minerals.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

So, so if you're grazing a high
percentage alfalfa or a high percentage

legume, that conditioner's going to

help in those

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
oh, yeah.

Yeah.

And, and we've also seen cool results
on feed efficiency, things like

that because of the conditioner.

So,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

Karson, I'm thinking
where do I want to go with

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
well, would you like me to tell, tell

people why maybe our philosophy's
different than the industry?

Would that be interesting to you?

Maybe

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: I do
think it would be yes, because

I, I think it's important.

I.

Just as we do business with anyone
to understand where they're coming

from and support the businesses
that, that have like-minded missions

of ourselves.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
So I, I think the, the couple things

to understand about Redmond that makes
us unique is first we live this life.

I.

So our owner, the owner of Redmond,
is really passionate about human

health, regenerative agriculture.

We have a raw milk dairy right near
our mine where we sell raw milk,

and we're trying our best to do it
in the cleanest, most natural way.

We just planted a bunch of pasture
to turn the cows out on more pasture.

So we're, we're literally grazing grass
at Redmond and we're trying to do more and

more of it, which I think is really cool.

The other thing is, I think our philosophy
on supplementation is different.

The industry standard, I don't know
if you ever heard of the term NRC Cal.

You probably

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yes, I have.

Yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
So for someone who doesn't know,

it's just what they tell you.

Your animal needs to not be
deficient or to be too much,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: I used
to have a green book on my shelf

that had all the requirements

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
you enjoy to read that, you're a sicko.

That's what I think.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah, right.

Yeah.

Yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
but the NRC gives you requirement.

Most mineral supplementation companies.

They're, they're gonna give zero credit
to what's in your forage, and they're

gonna supplement it a hundred percent.

NRC.

If you actually watch cows and
you know, nutrition, you'll

know that that's not true.

They're actually gonna get more
than more minerals from their

grass than any supplement.

'cause supplements are
not super bioavailable.

They, they're expensive.

So our philosophies, we don't try to
get it a hundred percent NRC, we try

to let nature do its job which is
first you have good, healthy grass.

You're gonna have, you're gonna
need a supplement less mineral.

That's just, that's a thing
that we are really, we think.

And the other one is we like to use
nature's products, which is our salt.

It's got 60 plus minerals in it.

A cow doesn't need
supplemented only 15 minerals.

You know, there's more than 15 minerals
in a cow's blood, just like your blood.

If you ever.

Think of that, that's an interesting
paradigm that we supplement 15

minerals and you look at our blood,
there's a lot more than that.

So,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558: so
we've seen really cool results with that.

We've seen we've done studies at Montana
State where we gave them white salt

and then gave them Redmond salt that
cows, and they were in the same pasture.

The cows that had Redmond salt,
their calves gained 23 extra pounds.

I'm not saying that happens every time,
so don't any of you listeners think that

you're gonna put this out and get, but
what it tells me is there's something

different, and you might see it,

you might see it as less pink eye.

You might see it as left less foot rot.

You might see it in a lot of different
ways, but to me feeding, replacing white

salt with Redmond salt is like taking,
you know, the reason we supplement

salt is it's the most deficient mineral
in our animal's diet all the time.

If you look at your grass forage
quality, you're always gonna be

short on sodium and chloride.

Most of the time, I'd say 95% of what
I look at is, but but the difference is

like, if, if you were short on iron and
I gave you an iron pill and I ate a steak

to get my iron, which one is better off?

It's the one that's nature made
and I didn't try to, to replicate.

So we're not trying to
be smarter than nature.

We just know that our
products work and are clean.

Any other context that
would help Cal with that?

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558:
I, I, I think that's great.

I think, I don't know
enough about minerals.

I know when you start
talking about Fred Pro's

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Nourishment book.

Provenza.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

Provenza get all those constant
consonants in the right

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
It's tough with his name.

Yeah.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

They.

He talks about animals going and able to
do some selective grazing based upon their

needs, which speaks to that, that
we don't have to be providing

everything to them, but we can provide
what a certain amount or what they

need.

I'm, I'm excited because we're gonna
start using Redmond Salt here, and I

know over the years our mineral program
has been lacking, and when I say that,

it's because I didn't have mineral
out there or then I get it out there.

So I, I'm excited to, to start using
Redmond Salt here and see how it works for

us.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
and it's interesting.

People will, people who are probably
more in the mainstream feed industry

would say, oh my goodness, you are
going to cause so many problems.

Cow, if you take away this mineral
that's chelated and balanced by our

nutritious, your cows are just going,
their teats are gonna turn purple.

They might just all fall over dead.

It, it's, it's crazy.

There's a lot of fear around mineral.

I think you're right.

Like people don't understand it.

It's,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Right.

I, I have to admit, I don't

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
And the, the thing is, is you're right,

I've seen that cows are way better
at meeting their needs on a pasture.

If you have a diverse pasture, like
if you're grazing right, and you have

a diverse pasture, I would say you
could put Redmond 10 fine out and

that could be your mineral program
and you will have zero problems.

Sometimes you might need to supplement
more because you have lacking forage.

That's fine.

And we do, we do supplement.

We have Selenium 90, which has
some added traces and added

selenium or, or beef mineral mix.

And those are fine.

I'm not saying you shouldn't use
something with added, but the goal,

the goal should be get your grass good.

And so that all you need to
do is supplement some salt

and some trace minerals to it.

It doesn't, I think that the feed
industry has made us so scared of

minerals and we shouldn't be your,
your cows will tell the whole story.

Look at your cows.

Like, if you're not having problems,
why are we so scared of it?

You know?

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh, right.

Yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
So you say your minerals lacking.

And I, in my head, I'm like,
well, cow, what problems are you

having on your, on your cow herd?

Right.

And

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
I, I, I'll, I'll give a good example.

I had a rancher from, from Dylan Montana
call, and he said, I need some mineral,

but man, I am so low on phosphorus.

Just I, and I said, how
do you know you're low?

Oh, Yvette told us years ago,
and everyone knows this area

is really low in phosphorus.

So I actually had him, I said, I
would love, I said, do you have

phosphorus deficient problems?

No.

No.

So I named him.

He didn't have any.

We went back and he
sent me his forage test.

I looked.

He actually had excess phosphorus in his

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yes.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
So, and if, you know, phosphorus

is like the most, one of the most
expense, you know, it's expensive to,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
add, in there.

So I just, we took it out of his mineral.

He, he'll call me once a year when
he is gonna order his salt and

tell me how much money I save him
and how much he's happy with me.

You know, because he, he thought he
was so scared if he didn't feed like

a 15% phos mineral, his cows would
just, just fall apart and he's not

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
So I, you, I think if you don't know

cow, I'd say you need to test your
forage, have someone look at it and

compare it to what the NRC values are.

And if you need someone to
do that, I will do that.

I'll even show you what you want,
but I think that's the first step.

If you're just like, I don't know
what to do and I don't know what I'm

deficient in, you can always forage
sample and that'll give you a best,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
because no one's going

to actually liver biopsy.

I, I've given up on that.

That would, you know, no one's
gonna go liver biopsy their cows.

So take a example.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: You are

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
It'll give you a good, good guess.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

So, so the, the first step in
that is to get a forage sample,

figure out what you're growing

here, and, and that'll help you

fine tune what you are in

need of

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
So if you're worried, oh, I, you

know, if you're worried, I think
we're low in this, I don't know.

Just take a forage sample, send
it, send it in, get the results.

You can call me or someone even smarter
than me at Redmond, which there's a whole

bunch of us, and I will look through it
and I'll tell you, and I'll even show

you the calculator that I put it in.

I'd even share the
calculator if they wanted.

And so you could enter it in and you
could see where you're at and where

you're excess and where you're not.

I personally think Cal people,
overfeed, mineral, I think

they over supplement Mineral.

I, I'll give you a, a good clue to this.

I went to a class and they, they showed
the 20% of people who make the most money,

the second, the most money, the most
middle, then all the way down to the 20,

the 20% lowest profitable on their ranch.

Okay?

And they did this across the
whole United States, off all this

data that was sub in, sent in.

I, I was shocked.

The ones who made the most money, they
spent the least amount on mineral.

They spent the least amount
on all these different things.

But the mineral one surprised me, but
not really because I've seen people

who have switched from expensive like
me, Karson, I'll tell you Karson story.

I switched from a $45 or whatever bag
of mineral to buying Redmond salt.

And I've had better breed up.

I've had less pink eye and less problems,
and I spend a fraction of what I did.

I, I would, because we're so good
at getting sold to, I think more

people over supplement mineral
than are deficient in mineral.

If I was to supplement one
thing, it would be salt.

And that's not just 'cause I sell salt.

I really think, I think you would
take care of a lot of issues if your,

if your main supplement was salt.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: yeah.

Does.

You know, I've heard this said
numerous times that Americans

have the most expensive urine

because of the vitamins we take
and, and I'm pretty guilty of

that because I take a handful of
vitamins I think I need to take every

morning, so,

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Right.

Yeah, I, I would, I would agree and
I think a good, a good practice Cal

to, to wonder where I'm at on that.

If you look at your feed bag, the cool
thing about feed bags is the mineral

with the mo on, on your mineral bag.

Look at the order of pro ingredients.

The thing that has the most in it
is going to be at the very start.

Okay.

Look at your feedback and see
usually number two or three is

gonna be a gain gain by product
or DDG, or molasses or something.

So that tells me

that's, that's fascinating.

That would be the third most
included ingredient in my mineral

that's telling me that a cow
naturally wouldn't select that I.

So that tells you a lot about that?

I think

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
I think people cause a little

saying from Fred Provenza, if
you've read his book, nourishment.

Have you read that?

Cal?

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: I, I
have to say that's one on my

shelf that I haven't

read.

Is there an audio

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
there.

It's, there is an audio book.

So you are now, it's now on your list

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

Well, because I just
finished man Cattle and Vil

or ve because you had said,
Hey, there's audio book for

that, and I was like, oh, okay.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
for nourishment.

I waited and waited and it finally
came out and you need to listen to it.

But he, he says a quote, and I
will misquote it because I am not

very good at quoting things, but
he said, everything's a poison.

The only thing that makes it
a poison is the, that makes

it not a poison is the dose.

And that means too much and too little.

You know, everyone talks about selenium.

Selenium is extremely
toxic in large amounts.

In the right amount.

It's really, really vital.

So it, you think about that, I think
we can all put their such thing as

too much mineral and I think we are on
the verge of it more than we're on the

verge of not enough mineral because
of we are consumers as Americans.

Right?

You talk about that

we are consumers and we want to be
good cattlemen and we want, so we

think the better, the more money
we spend, the better off we are.

And I don't think that's always the case.

I think the more balanced with
nature we are, the better off we are.

You know, we, we we're, especially in
your community, I, I would assume most

people would, would know that fertilizer
is not always great for the land.

Right.

And I would say I don't always
think heavy minerals good for our

cattle in the same way that you
wouldn't go put tons of urea on.

I'd be careful about putting tons
of calcium and foss in my cows.

So, and I know it's gonna make more PE
that might make people confused, but

they're, I would love to talk to anyone
who wants to have that discussion on

what their program could look like.

And by just looking at forage samples,
things like that, it's not gonna be

perfect, but we could, we can get a
lot closer that way and actually see.

Are there any holes?

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

Very good.

Before we move off of Redmond,
where do people, where can you buy

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
So that's a great question.

And, and like you said, it can, depending
on where you live, it's easier or harder.

If you live in the Great Plains
like Nebraska, Montana, South

Dakota, North Dakota, it's so easy.

You, you just go on our website,
redmond agriculture.com,

find a store, put your zip code in
and it'll, it'll be at the store.

'cause there's lots of cows there.

It's really easy for us to get it to you.

If you live somewhere else, I'd say
that's your first step is to go to

that or just call us at Redmond and
I'll get, I'll get you a hold of

someone, we'll get you a hold of
someone who will get you product found.

Like Cal wanted some, he called, he
said, Hey, I want some, I just got

Duke that knows the area to call him.

Duke found him some.

It works out really slick.

So if you don't know and the locator's
not, you know, you don't find anyone

on there, we will get you product.

Just call us, we'll help you find it.

If it that's anywhere from, you
want a five pound bag up to, I

want a semi load, we can help
you figure out where to get it.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558:
Oh, very good, very good.

And I know from my area where I am getting
it was on the locator, but I'm like,

I've never seen Redmond there, so I was

like, I buy mineral

there, but I, I've never, and I
hadn't asked or anything, so that's,

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
And if it's on the locator, and

if you go in there, the best to
say most of 'em might not stock.

Not everyone's gonna stock it, but
they'll always be able to get it in.

You just might have to wait one week.

So you might have to plan a little

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

Yeah.

Very good.

Well, we appreciate that, that
overview and talking about minerals,

talking about Redmond, Karson, is
there anything else you'd like to

add before we go to the famous four?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
I don't, I don't think so.

I just think if we just change our
mindset on mineral supplementation

the same way we've changed it on soil
supplementation, I think that would

be really beneficial for a lot of us
to think, do I need to add all this?

Or does nature have pretty good cycles in
a pretty good way of taking care of this?

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: I,
I ha I like that analogy.

I do.

And, and that's one of those things we're
propping up animals possibly that we

could be selecting for more productive

animals.

Well, Karson, it's time for
our famous four questions.

Speaker: Are you looking to add
functional traits to your cow herd?

For over 30 years, GBT Angus has
been developing cattle that best

fit a low input environment.

Fertile, functional, practical,
and predictable Angus genetics

are their core breeding values.

They implement a short 45 day calving
season to ensure only the most

fertile genetics get replicated.

Their no touch policy also stabilizes
calving ease, maternal intelligence,

and the convenient traits of
sound, functional udders and feet.

Visitors are always welcome.

Join them for their annual online
two year old bull sale held

every third Friday of March.

Please accept this as your invitation
to visit about anything genetics,

grass, or cattle management.

Visit www.

GBTAngus.

com or catch them on
Facebook or X at G B T Angus.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Same four
questions we ask of all of our guests.

. So our first question, Karson,
what is your favorite grazing

grass related book or resource?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
You're gonna put me through the ringer

on this because if you know me, I
am like an encyclopedia of things.

You should listen to anyone who meets me.

I give them a list of things.

My, the, the most impactful
to me was man cattle.

And I can't, I hate saying it.

Ve felt whatever you
want to call it, Johann.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: yeah, I, I'm not

exactly

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
me either, but Johann

Zeman, that is number one.

Number two, dirt to Soil by Gabe Brown.

Those are my two favorites.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh, yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
That, that's like the Bible

for that, in my opinion.

Those two books right there,
those are the two you need.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Our
second question, what's your

favorite tool for the farm?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
I thought of this, I,

I'm not a big tool guy.

I would, I would say my earphones,
but I've heard that too much

because my earphones are my
favorite, one of my favorite tools.

I'll say something different.

My favorite tool is my horse because
it's real and it's gonna be different

for, because I live where I do in a big
country, it's really allowed me to do a

different things like graze places that
don't have loading corrals or facility.

So my horse has really allowed me, I
think, to be, to do things that were,

get me some leases or something that
were a little difficult for other people.

So I'd say my horse

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
and her name's Juanita.

So it's Juanita.

Yeah.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: How
did how'd she get that name?

I

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
so great.

It's a great question.

I, I just love, I don't know, I
love Spanish names for horses.

So my,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: oh, yes.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
when I was in high school, I broke a horse

and I named him, I don't know if you ever
watched Young Guns that show Young Guns.

I named my Horse Chavez.

And so my dad used to always tell
me he was going to like, he'd go

like, you need to go catch Jose.

And I'd say, no, it's Chavez.

You know, so

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
it started.

And I always named my horse Spanish names.

That's just why.

And so Juanita was on
the list that I wanted.

I think her name when I
bought her was something like

Apache or something like that.

And it didn't fit.

Juanita's very fitting in that if
you ever watch my YouTube channel,

you'll see she's got her great
personality and I love Juanita.

So I'd say Juanita's
probably my favorite tool.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh, very good.

Very good.

Very interesting about your names.

It's always interesting where do
people come up with their names for

different

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
And, and I named my dogs

after like an older person.

So my dogs are named like
Sue and I've had Bob,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: our third
question, what would you tell

someone just getting started?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
I would say get good mentors.

I think that probably is, and I, I left
that out a little bit on my journey, but

part of the reason I was able to start
doing what we're doing is I, a guy named

Chad, who's a good friend of mine, who
I helped farm when I was growing up.

Chad made it very possible for me
because before I had stuff that I could

use, Chad would let me use his krells
or Chad let me borrow his tractor.

I so.

There's people, I'd say find
you people that care about

your success as much as you do.

And that'd be Chad for me.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh, very good.

Yeah.

And lastly, where can others
find out more about you?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
So you can find out more about me.

I have, you don't wanna follow my Facebook
and my Instagram or just my personal one.

And I'm not very exciting.

I post once a year maybe.

If you wanna watch me, I'm on
the, the Ripp Ranch on YouTube.

It's just the Ripp Ranch.

As a caveat, my last name is Rippstein.

We are not named after
the Yellowstone character.

Rip, just so everyone knows.

Ever.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: I
should have asked that earlier

because I knew your answer

to that.

I should have

asked that earlier.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
the Yellowstone character.

Rip.

It's because Ripstein is you,
you heard it at, at the Oakey

homestead thing where I spoke.

The guy said Karson Ripp, and he couldn't
remember if it was Stein or Stein.

So I've, we've taken that out.

So it's just the Ripp Ranch
and you can watch me there.

You can also, you know, anyone's free
to reach out to me on Redmond stuff.

I feel just get ahold of the office.

If you want to talk to Karson,
you can, or whoever at the office.

But you wanna talk to me that way?

Just redmond agriculture.com.

You can find all that information.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh, very good.

Very good.

And to wrap this up, Karson,
do you have a question for

me?

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
I wanna know that's, I

I'm interested in this.

We, I asked you this at dinner,
but I want to know if you're gonna

test your bulls this year after we
had our discussion at at dinner.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: I am planning
to test them this year because

I, I do think that's important.

Now I feel a little bit, I also
think I should test my Rams as

well, but.

I'm more likely to let that
slide on the Rams than I am

on the Bulls for some reason.

But yeah, no, I think we will.

And I say that I just gotta get it on the
calendar call and schedule it and just do

it.

That's

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
That was my question.

I was curious if I changed your mind on
that when I was quizzing you at dinner

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: YY yeah.

No, I, I really think, I, I do agree
it's something we should do, because

that's probably the most stressful
time of the year to me, is that time

between breeding and you get 'em

preg checked

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yeah.

You just

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: because what
if you preg check and they're all open?

What if.

And we do blood tests, so I'm able to
preg check early, but they're still,

you know, by the time you put the
bull in there, you wanna give the

last one that had opportunity a month.

So you've got three months in there
that you're just like, or for me, I'm

like, well, I hope he is doing his job.

I'm not seeing enough action out there.

I'm not.

So it would alleviate some stress by doing

that.

And I think it's, and the, the
thing is it doesn't cost very

much.

It costs a little bit of time.

It costs a few dollars.

It's not expensive.

But what happens if that bull is no

good on the, then you gotta whole big

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
I had a bull and he was

my favorite bull, Cal.

I was so proud of this bull.

I got him on a good deal, which
makes me like something more.

And he was about four years
old and I love this bull.

I knew he would test and he
didn't test and it was the most

disappointing thing, but it.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
It was a good let, he, he

just didn't have enough.

He didn't, he was shooting
pretty much blanks.

I thought, I'm glad I didn't put him as
my only bull with some group of cows or

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Oh yeah,

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
would've been really disappointed.

So that was an okay question,
but that was my question,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558:
Oh, that was a great one.

That was

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
didn't mean to call you out.

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: No, but you know,
we have to share our failures and what

we've gotta be transparent and honest
with, with the audience here and life.

I just think it's beneficial.

And I would like to say I do everything
the way you're supposed to, but you

drive down the road in front of my
house and you'll be like, no, he

doesn't.

I can tell.

And that's truly the case.

So we're all trying to get better

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
Yeah.

And that's okay, huh?

But like,

if we look at everyone and just
know they're trying, it makes

that whole, like I said, a sign
of positive intent that just

Yeah.

Yeah.

That's, that's

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Yeah.

Working with the tools we have,

and we just

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
And sometimes

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: in our

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
sometimes it's just not gonna be

the way you wish you could do it.

Right.

I wish I could calve later.

I just can't right now.

So it just, yeah, it's

what it's, and

I will find it one day, so,

cal_1_04-15-2025_173558: Well,
Karson, we really appreciate

you coming on and sharing today.

karson-rippstein-_1_04-15-2025_163558:
yep.

Perfect.

Cal: Thank you for listening to this
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