By Tom Locke
Debt coach by day, horseman by passion — and a guy who can still smell B.S. through a barn wall.
Introduction: More Colts Than Cows?
In the world of horsemanship, particularly colt-starting, there’s one thing more common than saddle sores: outrageous claims. It seems like every trainer these days has “started thousands of colts,” usually before puberty and somewhere between starring in a rodeo and inventing horsemanship itself.
Now, I’m not saying these folks aren’t handy with a horse. Some are. But the numbers? The math? The tall tales of near-death experiences followed by record-breaking productivity?
Let’s just say… something smells. And it ain’t the horse manure.
The Math Doesn’t Lie — But They Might
Let’s crunch some numbers.
Say a trainer claims to have personally started 3,000 colts. Spread over a generous 25-year career, that’s 120 colts a year. That’s one horse every three days, including:
- Finding and haltering the horse
- Grooming and saddling
- Groundwork
- First rides (plural — no one-and-done pros here)
- Cooling down, unsaddling, brushing, and return trips
And this, mind you, is every day. Rain or shine. No days off. No injuries. No flu. No weddings. No life.
And yet, many of these same trainers also claim they’ve had major wrecks: busted ribs, broken legs, hospital visits… followed by somehow starting more horses during recovery than most do when fully functional.
Some even run YouTube channels, filming, editing, and uploading ego-polished content multiple times a week. Apparently, they’ve discovered the 36-hour workday. Elon Musk, take notes.
The Millionaire Mystery
Let’s entertain the numbers again:
- 300 colts/year × $1,800 per colt = $540,000/year
- Over 25 years = $13.5 million
So if they’re telling the truth, these cowboys are not just horsemen — they’re millionaires. Yet many still drive beat-up trucks and live in trailers with one side leaning suspiciously toward the pasture.
Where’s the money? Bitcoin? Beanie Babies? Custom spur collections?
Or maybe — just maybe — the numbers are as inflated as their egos.
Cowboy Credentials: The “You Ain’t No Trainer” Routine
Spend enough time in the community, and you’ll hear lines like:
- “You ain’t no cowboy unless you’ve wrecked at full gallop.”
- “You’re not a real trainer if you don’t start eight horses a day.”
- “I was starting colts before I could walk.”
Sure thing, pardner. And I was running credit counseling clinics in the womb.
The truth is, there’s an ugly competitiveness brewing behind the reins. Trainers don’t just brag about horses — they shame others for having a life, for being cautious, for preferring quality over quantity.
Real vs. Reel: The YouTube Cowboy Economy
Social media has only made this worse.
Trainers with GoPros and ring lights now spend as much time curating an online persona as they do actually training horses. They post daily, dropping nuggets of wisdom between clips of rearing horses and dramatic background music.
It’s more about theatrics than technique. And when your business model is ego + internet, reality is optional.
There Are Good Ones Out There
Let’s give credit where it’s due.
There are trainers out there — you probably know a few — who genuinely have started hundreds of colts. Maybe even more, if they’ve supervised programs or managed teams of riders. They don’t brag. They don’t post every session on Instagram. They don’t need to.
They just show up, do good work, and go home.
These are the folks I respect. You probably do, too.
Final Thought: Ditch the Bravado, Keep the Craft
Horsemanship is about partnership, feel, and timing — not math-defying feats of colt-starting superheroism. When a trainer’s mouth is faster than their horse, it’s time to start asking questions.
So to all the ego-trainers out there inflating their stats like they’re applying for cowboy sainthood:
Maybe take the saddle off your pride. It’s starting to rub.
Want to have a real conversation about horses — or dollars and sense?
Reach out here or explore more articles on practical horsemanship and financial truth-telling.