When you spend a lot of time with people, there are always funny stories. People are just funny, whether it’s intentional or not. I always think we should write a book about the life and times of a dude ranch. But, I can’t usually remember them long enough. With that in mind, I made a few notes from this winter as events unfolded and funny things happened.
If you’re expecting some earth shattering expose of a well known guest, it’s not happening here. But here are some of the things that have made me laugh as I’ve walked through the dude ranch world this winter:
Note from a guest to the housekeepers: We couldn’t find the moose. Would you please not hide it so well tonight?
Compliment to the chef: Laura walked up to me after breakfast one morning and told me she needed to show me something to share with Chef Matt. What was it that she wanted to show me? She lifted up her shirt a little and pointed to her pant button, that wouldn’t close.
VFB- One of our long time loyal guests Danny blew out his knee just weeks before his scheduled time at the ranch. Being the die-hard that he is, he decided that he might as well recuperate at the ranch rather than sitting around his house. So they came anyway. During his stay, he needed a stool in his cabin so he could elevate his knee. Bill Backer, our quiet and behind the scenes jack of all trades whipped one up really quickly and brought it by. I got an email from Danny later telling me he just had one of the best experiences of his 10 plus years at the ranch: A VFB. What? He explained that meant a Visit From Bill. In fact, he said he thought he might try to break something so Bill would have to come back. First of all, it’s funny that at a dude ranch I’m getting an email from a guest in one of our cabins. But even better is that Danny gave us a new acronym and reminded all of us that even the elusive Bill can make a Vista Verde Ranch stay better. We need to get him out more!
Money back guarantees: Another first this winter..I had a potential guest who was interested in speaking with some folks who had been to the ranch before. So I put him in touch with a few families. Joe, one of the guests he spoke with sent me an email to let me know they had talked. At that time he also told me that he had given the potential guest a money back guarantee on his stay. He didn’t say the ranch would give him his money back, he said he would! Seriously!
So, there are some of my more funny moments from this winter at our dude ranch. There have been plenty more as I laugh out loud on a daily basis. Some of you make me laugh when you call and book and are so excited that you’re screaming (Kathleen and Christine, I’m talking about you) and most of you just make me laugh with your stories and antics while you’re here. It’s so fun to be around wonderful people every day here at Vista Verde. I hope you can come out and create some funny memories sometime too!