As a kid I had the huge opportunity to work, as one does at 14, on the Stampede Ranch in the Eden Valley. That place was Guy Weadick's, the guy who started the Calgary Stampede. It was a wonderful experience to connect me to the natural world. Watching a calf come out of its mother changes your world view.
In those days, 50% of my generation had that experience here in Alberta. Now it's 1%. The problem with that is that it's not about walking around looking for calves any more; it's about driving big machines.
I think a lot of us would love to have the kids out there—I have kids out to my place all the time—but it's hard to give them a sense of being involved. You don't want to put a 14-year-old on a tractor or a combine. It's not a simple proposition. But I definitely think, in the same sense that we take people out to show them national parks and give that experience to them, that they should be visiting operating ranches. We should have a national program to support kids going out.
I think you'd have to pay one of Larry's kids to corral them—you know, take care of them for the day and keep them out of trouble—but I think the concept is really important in terms of reconnecting with those landscapes.