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Joe Valdez, Arizona
Having grown up in the arid, desolate
landscapes east of Tucson, Joe says horses
have played a big role in his life.
“We rode horses to school most of the
time, and some of our neighbours still used
horses to plough their ields,” he says. He had
his irst taste of the cowboy lifestyle at the
age of nine, when a “tough, old cowman”
who lived at a nearby ranch was missing one
of his cow ponies and requested Joe’s help.
In 1977, Joe joined the Tanque Verde
Ranch team; he’s been teaching western
riding and mountain trail riding ever since.
Even now, although semi-retired, he can be
found working with the riding programme
— and has enough stories to ill several
books. LUCY HEWETT // PHOTOGRAPHER
lucyhewett.com^
@lucyhewettMarch 2020 11