Riders urge return of National Bison Range horse event

Employees who worked for local Indian tribes aren't the only ones unhappy they were booted off the National Bison Range. So are horseback riders. A 57-year-old tradition allowing people to view the Bison Range and its wonders from the back of a horse one day a year came to an abrupt end in 2010. "Very spur-of-the-moment," says St. Ignatius rancher Jerome Stenberg, a member of the Mission Rangers who organized the annual Bison Range Ride. "No dialogue, no nothing." Stenberg says the Bison Range's new project leader, Jeff King, told the group the ride, which was started during the Korean War, did not meet requirements of an "Appropriate Use and Compatibility Evaluation." King, who did not return a phone message Thursday, reportedly told the group the ride was being canceled because of safety concerns for riders, the threat that horses could introduce weeds or disease to the range, and because the cancellation would not deprive anyone of the opportunity to view wildlife - they could still do so from vehicles. Stenberg says the ride, which always took place on the third Sunday of May, lured horseback riders from around the globe...more