Cowboy Express - Grant Gerber dies on return from DC

Grant Gerber, an Elko native who grew up cowboying the county’s ranges, died Saturday at age 72 in a Salt Lake City hospital surrounded by loved ones. He was remembered for dedicating his life to fighting for local rights against federal encroachment. A funeral is planned for Friday, which is Nevada Day. On Oct. 7, while riding coast to coast carrying petitions to Washington, D.C., Gerber’s horse, Gandhi, stumbled on a prairie dog hole in Kansas, taking Gerber down with it. He was knocked unconscious. Gerber was one of many riders in the Grass March/Cowboy Express, a cause that started as an effort to protect the livelihood of Lander County ranch families who were ordered to remove their cattle from the drought-stricken range, on which they owned about half of the land and all of the water rights. The movement blossomed to include redress for many controversial land policies and wildlife concerns due to federal management. After the fall, Gerber said he was glad he was the one who took the tumble and not a fellow rider, according to his son, Travis Gerber, who rode alongside his father. “He was examined and released from a St. Louis hospital with no sign of bleeding,” Travis Gerber said Thursday. The group continued on their journey, and made it to the Capitol on horseback Oct. 16. The movement garnered widespread media attention as riders trotted horses down the busy D.C. streets. After the petitions were delivered, Gerber had nagging headaches and checked into a hospital in Cheyenne, Wyoming on the way home, where doctors discovered internal bleeding. He underwent surgery Thursday in Salt Lake City...more