Biography Information

About twenty years ago I began braiding for the same reason most people do-to build gear for my own use.My first pieces were pretty crude but usable.All I had was a copy of Bruce Grants Encyclopedia of Rawhide and Leather Braiding with no one to ask advice of and it soon got so frustrating I quit. I picked it up again in 1990 to make Christmas presents and got caught up in it again. I learned some new knots and some of my pieces were good enough for some people to offer me encouragement and advice on how to improve my work.

Around '92 I began corresponding with Ed Pass,who I believe to be the best braider in North America. Ed has given me much good advice and encouraged me to refine my work and grow as a braider and artist. I strive to make each piece better than the previous one,being innovative within the framework of tradition,always keeping to the belief that form should follow function and that functional gear should be beautiful.

My work hangs in private collections around the country as well as in The Don King Western Museum, Sheridan, WY. My bridles and hackamores are also being used in cutting competition and in the reining and western pleasure arenas.

I have exhibited work at the following juried shows:

• "I See by Your Outfit That You Are A Cowboy" at The SunValley Center for the Arts, Ketchum, ID
• Cowboy Classics at The Arizona Nat'l Livestock Show, Phoenix, AZ
• Trappings of Texas at Sul Ross State University, Alpine, TX
• A Gathering of Gear at The Western Folklife Center in conjunction with  The Cowboy Poetry Gathering, Elko, NV
• The Big Horn Gallery, Cody, WY
• 98 - 99 Nominated among top 5 braiders in the US by the Academy of Western Artists