We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Leo Hardy a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Leo, appreciate you joining us today. Let’s start with a fun one – what’s something you believe that most people in your industry (or in general) disagree with?

Almost everyone I have met has told me “you can’t do that” or “it’s not possible to be a first generation farmer/rancher in today’s world”. If I had a theme it would have to be “Impossible eh? Nope!”

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers?

My quest began as a child growing up in a suburb of a large western city on a quarter acre lot in a subdivision. My father’s stories about growing up on a farm in Peoria Illinois and my mother’s intrigue and interest with indigenous peoples in the four corners region of Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona laid a foundation for what has become a life compass and quest. Fortunately, my maternal uncles and aunts were living the rural lifestyle and shared and instilled it in me. While a very young child I’ll never forget being tossed up on a very spirited horse without a bit, bridle, halter or saddle and told simply to “just hold on!” Wow, that was the beginning of a one-hell-of-a ride! I look back on that and now clearly realize life is all about just holding on. In my early teens I mowed lawns and did landscape work, later became an apprentice meat cutter while in high school that led to college as a young adult. Before finishing my Bachelor’s I took a right turn and voluntarily went on a 2 year ecclesiastic ministry serving the delightful Navajo people of Arizona and New Mexico and learned to speak Navajo. To date nothing in the secondary education was more difficult. There was no innate talent or skill for that! I remember my tongue getting cramps trying to correctly pronounce the word “tl’ii” (horse) in Navajo! After returning home I moonlighted at the Ogden Utah IRS center in the batch unit and later graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Zoology. I worked as a wildlife biologist aide for the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources during the early eighties. Living in a camper on the back of my father’s 1964 Chev pickup for two summers in Price Utah was almost heaven in my mind! As a graduate student in Wildlife Science while focused on the plight of what was called the “Colorado Squawfish” (more appropriately now called the “Pike Minnow”) I moon lighted cleaning dog runs at a local rural rural veterinary clinic, worked part time at a tissue culture laboratory and ultimately was admitted to medical school at 26 years of age. Following a 5 year medical residency training program in anatomic and clinical pathology I began private medical practice and continue to work at three small rural hospitals in south central Utah. During my medical education I had an epiphany at the top of 14,000 foot high Pike’s Peak just outside of Colorado Springs Colorado. I successfully finished the annual Mountain Bike ascent race up to the top of that summit! I repeated that feat the following year and bettered my time placing in the top 50th percentile!. Now still in full time medical practice I moonlight cutting hay, baling it and feeding our dozen horses and 35 cow calf pairs while managing our agritourism business on what I affectionately call our first generation family ranch.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

One of the very most important life lessons I’ve learned was to simply trust myself. I’ve always been of the opinion that it is important to ask the advice of others. I have not nor do I condone the idea of doing things just one way or my way. I’ve always listened to others and continue to carefully weigh their opinion in difficult decision making. However, there is a point at which you have to trust your own intuition, experiences and knowledge. Glad I have and continue to do just that. Interestingly almost everyone is willing to tell you how or why they think you should do something their way. What I now clearly realize is that they are biased from their own experiences! On the other hand, they are even more biased based on their own lack of personal observations or experiences that might be yours alone! I think that’s probably how some people end up in careers they are disappointedly surprised to find themselves in. So, what I’m trying to say is, listen very carefully to others and never limit your data set. Look at the source of the information more carefully than even the content. Then, collectively measure both the experts pros and cons and garnish it with your own. I truly believe I have done just that in my 64 years and despite going against some of the soundest advice ever and taking a few risky turns here and there, I now most certainly enjoy a destiny of my own creation.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Don’t underestimate your own strength and resiliency. Several years ago I had a near death experience with a serious health problem. I ended up in the hospital for almost 2 months, spent multiple weeks in the ICU and underwent three major abdominal surgeries. I lost over 50 pounds and was a mere skeleton of myself. I was horrified the first time I looked at myself in the mirror at home. I ended up with a colostomy bag for almost one year. This was one of the most difficult periods of my life. I remember a few days after coming home being so weak I could barely walk from the couch to the bathroom. One afternoon I picked up a magazine. As I flipped the pages I stopped at a full page ad for the “Wounded Warriors”. As I looked at the faces of those men I knew almost exactly what I needed to do. Those guys became my heroes. That afternoon I walked from one side of the house to the other and opened the front door and stood on the porch facing the warm sunshine. I have never looked back since then. Each day I set a goal and walked a little further. Finally I took a bumpy ride in my jeep with my midline abdominal incision still weeping all the way up to our family ranch. Those were the first few steps for getting back in the saddle. I rode my favorite horse just yesterday and plan on doing it again this afternoon gathering our cattle.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.HiawathaHideout.com

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/windwalker_akaltee/

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/for.the.Outlaw.in.all.of.us/

• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0wMyXtvTR_2gH4Clk9ePhg

Image Credits
Without the sacrifices, support, patience and love of my life– Roberta and our children Ashley, Jess, Jake and JJ this would have never ever been possible.