CANADA Canada - Ben Tyner, 32, cowboy, his horse returned w/o him, Merritt, British Columbia, 26 Jan 2019

[Trudie]

Definitely agree that the situation prior to him arriving seemed tense and I would assume him arriving would not ease any of that tension. I do hope that if this was the case, he talked to someone about it so that LE can be advised. MOO

Living in the horse capital of the world, I’m familiar with the dissension caused when large farms make major personnel changes. Some of the farms near me have 15-20 tenant houses (no bunk/multi family homes), when a farm sells or brings in new management, it’s often difficult to get existing “hands” to vacate. Many have lived for 20+ years on the same farm, they have no place to go. The higher end farms provide for a long term, faithful employee, when they retire. The farm will buy a modest home, usually in Lexington/Fayetteville county, for a retiree to live the remainder of his life in. Obviously the farm needs the new employee to live on site. In fact, I have a friend retiring after 25 years as yearling mgr., her boss has already purchased a house for her & her husband, in city limits.
(Idk how one goes from the beauty of living on a pristine thoroughbred farm to the city)

 

[Trudie]

If we go with the theory that he was thrown from the horse and is injured, how difficult would it be for a search and rescue to find him incapacitated? The area that he’s in, are we thinking needle in a haystack? Or perhaps is it that he found some shelter that is making it so difficult to locate him?

If he is injured & couldn’t find shelter, idk how he could survive.
Why is there so little info about NR?
I think Ben’s one disadvantage is the fact he is in new territory, he hasn’t been with NR long enough to know the “good, bad & ugly”.
If he did set out alone on his day off, I think he was in exploratory mode, perhaps. Out for a leisurely ride to an area he hadn’t yet discovered. Jmo

 

[Gumbeaux]

Lol, I was tired when I posted the article, I screwed the date up. Those terminated were allowed to remain for six months, if I understood correctly. That’s never a good thing, imo. It’s the right thing but imo, not beneficial to the boss.

The comments below the article are interesting.......[/QUOTE]

BBM

Wow, you weren’t kidding. Clearly some big tensions at NR after layoffs — in the months prior to Ben being hired.

I am going to guess that his having worked at a ranch in Russia may have given him a different mindset than the locals. And honestly, he dresses a little fancy for the range. Nothing wrong with fancy dress, but I would think it would set him apart.

 

[jellybean96]

Actually there has been quite a lot personal info online through articles
and FB. He did not smoke, so they don't know if he would carry
a lighter. Nothing said about him drinking, although I've seen
a pic of him in Australia holding a Coors can. No idea about
drugs.
Lots of past friends and co-workers have come forward to say
he's a very responsible, trustworthy, hard worker.
Don't know much from his current co-workers.

I guess I should have specified no local friends or co workers have said much. Maybe they didn't know him since he's only been there a short while?

 

[cutter99]

Local article from the Merritt area.

Merritt Morning Market 3246 - Feb 4

 

[Gracie55]

There were interesting comments. Somebody else suggested reading them earlier. I agree. Should read.
Nicola Ranch cuts hay production, lays off nine employees - Merritt Herald

 

[Trudie]

It just seems so wrong to see searches have been suspended.

 

[Concernedmamaof3]

It just seems so wrong to see searches have been suspended.

Is it a temporary suspension for the weather or permanent one? I guess either way also leads one to assume they aren't expecting him to be alive at this point. MOO

 

[Trudie]

Is it a temporary suspension for the weather or permanent one? I guess either way also leads one to assume they aren't expecting him to be alive at this point. MOO

Idk. Info is so limited. In my heart, I hope a large, local posse have saddled up & are searching. I think someone is, do you? There’s no law preventing a cowboy from riding.

 

[moonriverfarm]

I'm so sad for Ben. I pray he is holed up in a cabin with enough firewood to keep him warm til he is found.

 

[Gracie55]

Is his family still there? Awful for them.

 

[Trudie]

I'm so sad for Ben. I pray he is holed up in a cabin with enough firewood to keep him warm til he is found.

Hope so! One thing, barring a severe injury, he’s tough as nails, imo!
I was thinking too, most cowboys I know train their horse to “ground tie”. Is it foolproof? Lol, no.

 

[Trudie]

Is his family still there? Awful for them.

There’s little info. I’m sure they haven’t left with no answers. They must be devastated.

6 hours or so ago, but no new info.

RCMP suspend search for missing B.C. rancher Ben Tyner after nearly a week - KamloopsMatters.com

 

[watcher9]

“Those were some of the last tasks that they were assigned,” she said, noting 130 searchers were hard at work on Saturday and 70 on Sunday. “We did grid searching, we did perimeter searching, we had dogs, we had trackers. Some of the drainage and gullies are areas that are also high priority so we wanted to make sure we cover those.”

RCMP suspend search for missing cowboy - Merritt Herald

 

[Trudie]

“Those were some of the last tasks that they were assigned,” she said, noting 130 searchers were hard at work on Saturday and 70 on Sunday. “We did grid searching, we did perimeter searching, we had dogs, we had trackers. Some of the drainage and gullies are areas that are also high priority so we wanted to make sure we cover those.”

RCMP suspend search for missing cowboy - Merritt Herald

The one thing I noticed on his FB, Ben changed jobs frequently, not unusual for a working cowboy, imo. Russia seemed to captivate him, his posts lead me to think he loved Russia, preferring non-Russian horses, lol.

 

[Trudie]

“Those were some of the last tasks that they were assigned,” she said, noting 130 searchers were hard at work on Saturday and 70 on Sunday. “We did grid searching, we did perimeter searching, we had dogs, we had trackers. Some of the drainage and gullies are areas that are also high priority so we wanted to make sure we cover those.”

RCMP suspend search for missing cowboy - Merritt Herald

Do you suspect injury or foul play? I’m uncertain, going back & forth. If injured, Ben knows the importance of getting out in the open during daylight, when air searches are going on. This ain’t his first rodeo.
I’m so afraid he met up with the wrong person.......

 

[azure]

Do you suspect injury or foul play? I’m uncertain, going back & forth. If injured, Ben knows the importance of getting out in the open during daylight, when air searches are going on. This ain’t his first rodeo.
I’m so afraid he met up with the wrong person.......

Hard to imagine any reason to meet up on horseback vs in a vehicle. Esp in that weather. Coming across the wrong person? Maaaaaybe, but again with the weather I just can’t imagibd bad guys hanging around. I’m a horse trainer by profession. Much likelier that he either fell or became separated from his horse and succumbed to the elements.

 

[Trudie]

Authorities say it appears 2 brothers froze to death

Well, just heard this sad story on our local news.
So, like Azure, I feel the elements are a critical factor.
Maybe he had a medical episode, heart attack, aneurysm or something. The guy knows his horse. IMO, he’s not going to tumble off, even if his horse bolted or otherwise spooked. Most of us that are accomplished rides “feel” the horse & anticpate their next move. Before very e jumps on me, I’m not talking about a 3y.o. Barely broke mount. I’m referring to a seasoned horse ridden by a seasoned outdoorsman/cowboy. Moo

 

[Portabella]

I don't know if this is the same for other horsie people, but also I have never nor has anyone I worked with ever sustained an injury that fully incapacitated them from being thrown. I am highly embarrassed to say I have been thrown or had to bail (one time) too many times to count on fingers and toes. However if he was near cliffs or drop offs, that could be tragic. I have to give props to those of you who are never thrown, truly. I self taught riding and jumping bareback and spend many trips into the dirt. That being said, I learned how to fall. I think most horsie people learn how to fall good if that makes sense, to go with it. I still have hope (even though if he went off a hillside or cliff, he is lost to the weather if not the fall) I have hope he is dug in somewhere. I know its probably false hope, but I cannot keep from checking back, I still feel he is going to get himself out of this. Oh and when I worked at Pen Mor farms, I ate, drank and breathed horses. I had aquaintances at work, but no time for friends or a life. Seriously. My thoughts are with his family and those who love him....IMHO

 

[Trudie]

I’m with ya, Portabella. Since I could walk/talk, horses have been my life. I’ve been hurt more on the ground by a horse than during a ride. In fact, I’m fearless riding & will ride any horse I can get a saddle on. I’d rather ride a rogue horse than handle him from the ground.
Like you, I keep checking back hoping he’s been discovered. I feel confident people are looking, even if formal searches were called off. If I lived in the area, I’d be looking for how many hours my horse could tolerate the conditions.