Ranch work is great but not at Tumbling River Ranch
Pros
The ranch guests are fantastic. The other seasonal staff are phenomenal. Living and working on a resort ranch in Colorado is just as exciting and fun as it sounds. Lifetime friends and memories were made. You learn what you're made of and how to deal with bosses that are explosive, insensitive and predictable in the worst way.
Cons
With a job as great as working on a high-end, all-inclusive, family dude ranch, you would think Tumbling River Ranch would have high year-to-year retention and be turning away more candidates than they accept, but that's not the case. The owners/supervisors (Megan and Scott) are hot-tempered, angry, vindictive, biased, shaming, and unethical. Their reputation in the region is notorious which makes it almost impossible to hire local staff. Therefore, they prey on college kids that travel long distances for the job, who are then trapped with no local advocates or opportunities for alternative housing and employment. This past year only 4 staff from the previous year (a staff of almost 30) returned to work on the ranch. The year before, they had 100% turnover (due to firing employees or employees quitting - some even packing and leaving in the middle of the night). Megan and Scott's supervision style is based on fear. They yell horrible things at the staff until they cry. They have withheld food to teach staff a lesson. They only pay staff for the work they want to pay you for. There are many guest-related social functions each week that are REQUIRED and UNPAID up and above the typical 55 hour week. They promise monthly pay raises and an end-of-season bonus but didn't happen.
