A number of years ago I created this website for the purpose of documenting the information I was researching in preparation for a  huge undertaking: a horseback trip across the western United States, from south to north – Mexico to Canada. As I asked questions on a number of forums and websites, I came to know that there was very little helpful information available and that much of what I found was unreliable. Along the way, however, several people suggested that I might start a blog, so that they might keep up with my progress, not only in the research, but with the adventure itself.

That idea appealed to me as a means of collecting and storing good information, not only for my own use, but for those who wished to follow my project. As I began to look into the prospect of starting a blog, I discovered that I would have to subscribe to one of several blog websites that would use the traffic I generated, along with thousands of other bloggers, to generate a revenue stream for the site owners through advertising. It occurred to me that I might as well purchase a domain name and make my own website and that other “horse people”, like myself might even wish to join me and create blogs for themselves under my website banner. In time, enough visiting traffic might be generated to earn the bloggers a little income from advertisers on the site. So, I bought the domain name Western Trail Rider.

I have had the website since 2011 and have authored nearly 200 posts. I was able to coax a couple of others to start blogs under the WTR banner, however, neither has kept up their blogs. It seems facebook is a lot easier when one is simply posting for personal enjoyment. The few advertisers who have contacted me wished to operate on a commission basis only, meaning that if anyone was referred to them through my website, they would pay me a small fee. The problem was that I had no means of tracking referrals or proving referrals to claim payment. It just didn’t work and I didn’t have the technical knowledge to better market myself and/or website for profit. I even paid a consultant to address some technical issues with the site and help me try to create a marketable site. My consultant was less than reliable and the effort failed. He still owes me several hundred dollars.

I have been unable to complete the Mexico-to-Canada horse pack trip, although I am still trying to make it at least to my father’s hometown, Panguitch, Utah, so my purposes for the website have evolved somewhat.

Over the past several years, the website, in connection with my Western Trail Rider facebook page, has provided a means of assisting others with the sale and purchase of horses, which brought me to create the “Horses for Sale” page in the site. However, my effort to market horses for other people began taking so much time that my own horses stood in the pasture unused. I have made the decision to reallocate my time to spend the bulk of it riding and training my own horses.

More than anything, I have used the blog as a means of documenting as a journal my rides and pack trips, as well as a place for some articles I have composed regarding horse training, product reviews, how-to-do-it, and other things I like to write about. My hope has been that my posts may be of some use or enjoyment for others as well.

So, my website has generated very little income and costs me a couple hundred bucks a year to maintain. My technical knowledge is frustratingly inadequate and I often encounter issues with the website that require hours of study and effort to remedy.

According to the statistics generated by WordPress, about 13,500 or so people have subscribed to my website, but I’m pretty sure most of them are spam subscribers, selling knock-off Ray Ban sunglasses and expensive handbags.  I rarely see a comment on the site that is not a robot-generated spam comment.  Lately it has not seemed worth the expense or time I spend to keep the website up.

Recently, as my renewal date came near, I thought about letting the website go.  It is a hard thing to do, though, since I have put so much of myself into it. Over the past several months, I have had several conversations touching this, in which several of my subscribers told me how much they enjoyed reading my posts and hoped I would continue. This was very gratifying and led me to decide to continue. Then, very recently a very dear life-long friend, who is in poor health, told me how much he has enjoyed reading my blog posts, despite the fact that he is not a horseman, and that he hoped I would continue to publish posts about my rides and other horse-related adventures.

Well, I have paid my subscriptions and fees and the website will continue. I have made it a New Year’s Resolution to catch up on posts I have long left unfinished. I am sorry that I let things go so long.

So, here’s to you, Dan, John, Miranda, Dad and Mom, and all those I don’t even know, who have taken some enjoyment from my writings, musings, and adventures. And thanks for the encouragement.

The adventures will continue!