Steve Arnold has managed Chimney Peak Ranch since December of 1993. Steve has a wife and five children, four of whom are still at home. Prior to taking the lead at Chimney Peak, Steve leased the Owl Creek Ranch, which neighbors Chimney Peak. He had a herd of purebred Limousin cattle from 1978 until 1993 when Owl Creek sold. Prior to that, Steve was employed by Dick Tetherow of Valentine, Nebraska. He was a cowboy on the Tetherow ranch and was in charge of health for a 5000-head feedlot and 800 registered Simmental cows.
    While at Chimney Peak, Steve has been responsible for all day-to-day aspects of the ranch. He has implemented a number of changes in ranch operations, including slimming the work force from six employees to four and streamlining the irrigation and hay operations. He has overseen the replacement of of approximately ten miles of fence and the clearing of about 400 acres of brush. The cowherd has grown from 50 cows to almost 600 and the calving season has been changed to more perfectly fit the environment and coincide with the bigger of the markets.
    Steve served for five years on the Ridgway school board, four years as president of the Ouray County Cattlemen's Association, and five years as treasurer for the cattlemen. He was a charter member of the Mt. Sneffels Education Foundation and is currently a member of the Colorado State University Cooperative Extension Advisory Board. He also serves on the vestry of St. John's Episcopal Church in Ouray, Colorado.

Ed Gleason has been working on Chimney Peak Ranch for over 24 years. He has a wife and two grown sons. Eddie has done and can do just about everything there is to do on the ranch. Each year he is responsible for irrigating half the hay crop. He also takes care of the cattle when they are at home and out on the summer range. Eddie puts in some very long days and hard miles on horseback. He is a wealth of information when it comes to the ranch's history.

Jim Blankmeyer has been with Chimney Peak for the past 16 years. Jim has a wife and two young children. Jim is an all-around ranch hand. His particular specialties are maintaining and operating the equipment and keeping the buildings and fences in good shape. Jim is responsible for irrigating half the hay crop and he does all the baling for the ranch. He is very good at keeping things running smoothly.

Todd Murdock is Chimney Peak's newest employee. He has been with us since April of 2000. Todd has a wife and three children. Todd comes from a ranching background but has spent the last 16 years operating heavy equipment. Todd and his wife came to Chimney Peak because he loves the work and they feel like the ranch is a great place to raise their children. He is an excellent equipment operator and a very good cowboy. Over the past two years, Todd has put in many hours getting to know the range and fixing fences. He is good with horses and cattle and should make a very good addition to the ranch staff for many years to come.