Working Ranch April/May 2025

toppin’ out BY TIM O’BYRNE WR is BACK in TRACTOR SUPPLY!

I think one of the biggest draws about our humble mag is the authentic, timeless and outstanding photography. When we kicked the title off 19 years ago, the photography world was very different. We wanted authentic photos right out of the gate, and we did our best. When digital SLR pho tography and cell phone cameras began to become more popular and technically impressive, that’s when things really took off. I remember when we first started our Friday Facebook post ten years ago. It was a simple concept. I was noodling around one morning seeing what everyone was up to that day, and obviously it was a Friday, and must have been feel ing a little melancholy about my early cowboying days, back when our trucks had 8-Tracks in ‘em and the hi-lo beam was a footswitch down on the floorboards. We’d be out early, moving stuff around, checking heat on recips across several pastures, stuff like that, and we always tried to get back to the truck and trailer by noon on Fridays because Paul Harvey would come on with his signature entertaining end of the week show. Somehow, somebody would get the key in the truck and fire up the radio just in time to hear, “It’s FRIDAY!”, blaring from the raspy, sun-cracked speaker on the dash. We’d all crowd in the cab like a nest of packrats, and then he’d launch into fifteen minutes of hilarious, sometimes poignant, always insightful stories about this and that. Personal stuff. What people were doing and see ing, experiencing. On that Friday, I thought, why not honor ol’ Paul and post “It’s FRIDAY! What the heck are you folks doing out there in cow country today?” The first couple years were simple typed posts, always respectful and educational, and often funny or poignant, just like Paul’s stories. But then, around Year 4, folks started getting handy with their cell phones, and rural internet sat ellite and fiber optics connections improved dramatically. Then you started posting photos and videos of sunsets, sunrises, moving cows, starting colts, working the fields, e are so happy to bring you all the news that Working Ranch magazine is now back on the newsstand in a thousand Tractor Supply stores nationwide! I get calls and emails all the time asking where folks can pick up a copy of WR, and now I’ll be able to point them toward their closest TSC store.

We’re back on the stand!

MARK O’BYRNE

feeding, traveling off the ranch, weather in your area, and so much more. Soon, we had access to so many excellent ranch pho tographers who learned how to capture the moment in high resolution, high enough to print poster size. And you shared them with us, thousands upon thousands. We thank you so much for that. And we’re proud to share the con tributions of our talented writers and photographers with everyone out there, easily accessible on the newsstand at There are plenty of choices when it comes to your life’s direction, and I’m sure (and hope and pray) you’ll do amaz ing. I wanted to remind you though, as I do from time to time, that our industry could really use some more grad uates from law school. Litigation and definitive contract creation and negotiation is becoming more critical to the beef industry as we face increasingly complex legal pres sure from opposing entities, international trading part ners, and our own governments. We need young folks like you that grew up in ag to consider corporate, busi ness, political and/or personal law as a profession, and Agriculture as a specialty. Thank you for your time and consideration. your local Tractor Supply. ATTENTION STUDENTS! CONSIDER A LAW DEGREE

14 I APRIL / MAY 2025 WORKING RANCH audited readers run 21 million head of beef cattle.