story by Riata Cummings
Bronsen, Westynn, and Daelyn Iverson are three hardworking young men known as the Traveling Cowboys. The boys live in Hurricane, Utah, with their parents Kelby and Kathie and younger sisters Makadie, Oaklie, and Kynlie. The family owns and operates Western Legacy Farm and Ranch where they board and care for over 70 horses. They raise chickens, goats, sheep, cattle, and horses, as well as maintaining peach, cherry, and pecan orchards. The family is also involved in Agri-tourism, hosting a farm camp and cowboy camp for kids, as well as running a corn maze based on the tale of the Headless Horseman. All six of the children learned to ride horses at three years old, competing in rodeo shortly thereafter.
Bronsen is a 16 year old ninth grader attending Hurricane Middle School. His favorite classes include shop and P.E, and he is a member of the National FFA Organization. He enjoys playing the guitar and piano, trapping, hunting, leather crafting, shoeing horses, and riding 4-wheelers. He loves the ranch life, especially when he can ride his horse and move cows on their mountain range. The western way of life has helped Bronsen develop common sense and a strong work ethic. On Bronson’s first day of kindergarten, the principal asked all the students to raise their hand if they could ride a bike. Bronson piped up and said, “No, but I can ride a horse!” That story highlights the different upbringing he has had compared to other kids. The Iverson family is one of the last agriculturally oriented families in Hurricane, and the long hours of constant work sometimes wear on the kids’ nerves, but they always strive to be happy.
Westynn, the middle boy, is a 14-year-old eighth grader who also attends Hurricane Middle School, and his favorite classes are science and history. Westynn is a talented pianist and enjoys snowmobiling and biking. He loves to relax in the family’s cabin after long days of working hard on Kolob mountain. He enjoys the challenge and effort of caring for their animals and has learned how to handle his horse with compassion and precision. Although their days are filled with feeding animals, fixing fences, cleaning stalls, working with show steers and doing the many projects necessary to keep the farm running, the boys find time for fun and their family motto is, “work like Helen B. Happy.”
Daelyn is 12-years-old and attends Hurricane Intermediate School as a sixth grader. The P.E.-fanatic enjoys riding scooters at the skate park, BMX racing, trapping, and playing the piano. He loves that their lifestyle gives him the opportunity to earn his own money through showing animals in the 4-H and earning prize money at various rodeos. He enjoys living on their ranch surrounded by open land and plenty of places to play. Daelyn once competed at the Beaver County Rodeo, winning several buckles in several events. When he went back the next year, they gave him an All-Around buckle that he hadn’t even realized he had won.
Between the three of them, the boys have over 75 buckles and loads of achievements. Their events include team roping, tiedown roping, breakaway roping, goat tying, saddle bronc steer riding, bull riding, barrel racing, pole bending and flag racing. They have competed in the Southern Utah Junior Rodeo Association, Tri-Valley Rodeo Association, Utah Junior High School Rodeo Association, as well as many local and fair rodeos. In the future the boys would like to compete in high school rodeo and in ranch rodeos with their dad. They owe much of their success to a mare named Golden, who once carried all three of them through 6 events (18 events total) at a Saturday night rodeo, only to foal the next morning.
The Traveling Cowboys would like to thank their dad who pushes them to work hard and be their best and their mom who is, “the life blood of their operation.” They would like to extend their gratitude to their friends, family, and sponsors. Finally, they would like to thank Heavenly Father who makes it all possible.