The Cowboy Experience is a three-day, ranch-based retreat for Veterans, hosted by Dean Properties in West Texas.
We encourage Veterans with no prior horse or ranch experience to apply.
Through horsemanship, ranch work, leadership workshops, and team-based challenges, Veterans will step away from the noise of everyday life and reconnect with purpose, community, and one another—all within an authentic cowboy environment built on service, resilience, responsibility, and accountability.
At the heart of the experience is The Cowboy Code: a simple framework built around showing up, doing hard things, taking care of your people, asking for help when you need it, and leaving things better than you found them.
This isn’t simply a retreat. It’s an opportunity for Veterans from across the country to work side-by-side, learn from one another, build meaningful relationships, and rediscover the strength that comes from belonging to something bigger than yourself.
October 22–25, 2026 • West Texas • Veterans 18+
Registration not available at this time.
Organized By
Big Fish Foundation
We were founded by Major Brian Chontosh, USMC (ret.). During OIF in 2003, he led the CAAT platoon for 3/5, and his radio call-sign was “Big Fish”.
