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Cover Story
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Page 6
As a light summer sprinkle taps on the
roof of the horse arena, 14-year-old Crystal Anderson
sits atop Teddy, a brown quarter horse, and nervously
leads him to the center of the ring. Clad in dusty jeans,
roper boots, a red Western shirt and a helmet designed
to lock like a cowboy hat, this Pensacola, Fla., teen is
about to begin her inaugural attempt at herding a cow
cxi the Imus Ranch near Ribera, N.M.
While three bona fide cowboys keep die other five Corriente
steers and heifers in a corner, ranch bosses Don and Deirdre Imus
and their son, Wyatt, 7, fill in the gaps behind her. As the lone
loose cow tries fervently to rejoin the herd, Anderson successfully
cuts it off. "Keep up! Keep up! You’re doing a good job," encour
ages Don Imus. "Stop! Keep up!"
Anderson quickly learns to maneuver Teddy just where she
wants him to go and delivers the day's finest performance. “That
was great for your first time,” Don Imus tells her. Her fear now
replaced with pride, she smiles and returns to the rear of the arena
to join the other two cutting novices learning the ropes of separat
ing a cow from the herd.
It’s hard to believe that just two days ago, Anderson had never been
on a horse and was terrified of even trying. “I was thinking, Are me
and this horse going to get along to where he won't buck me off or
do anything outrageous?”’ Anderson says. "But it went well; nothing
went wrong. I felt proud of myself because I finally did something that
I always wanted to do and that I always feared. I learned I can do more
and that I am more confident than I think I am.”
That’s music to the ears of Don and Deirdre Imus, who dedi
cate their entire summer to hosting eight one-week sessions at
the 4,000-acre cattle ranch for children who have had cancer or
blood disorders, or have lost a sibling to sudden infant death syn
drome. But make no mistake: this is no frolicking summer camp
or serene high-desert day spa. The Imus Ranch is an exhausting,
sunrise-to-sunset boor camp for cowboys and cowgirls designed
to instill the values of hard work and the Western lifestyle. "We're
straight shooters with these kids," says Deirdre, 41. "We lay down
the rules the first day here: This isn't Camp Happy Face.’”