Mission Farrier School Blends Mustangs, Horsemanship, & Community
By Andrew Cutler
A lightning storm moved in fast during the 2025 Fiesta Cowboy Gathering, disrupting the cowboy poetry event at Tygh Valley Fairgrounds. Without missing a beat, organizers herded everyone into the hog barn. The poetry continued, and many agreed that the unexpected venue created a unique ambiance.
“It wasn’t planned, but many people agreed it created a really special atmosphere,” Teddy Franke says.
That adaptability captures a distinct element about Teddy and the work he does in Tygh Valley. He owns and operates Mission Farrier School, training farriers in an 8-week comprehensive program that merges traditional horseshoeing with cutting-edge biomechanics and horsemanship.
Teddy also co-owns Live Equestrian, which coordinates the annual Fiesta Cowboy Gathering. He competes in mustang adoption challenges, serves on the Wasco County Fair and Rodeo Board, trains horses, teaches clinics nationally and internationally, and somehow finds time to work as a farrier.
It’s the kind of life that sometimes requires him to host cowboy poetry in a barn when the weather doesn’t cooperate.
A Calling, Not Just a Trade
Mission Farrier School has existed since the late 1980s, but Teddy took ownership in 2021 after graduating from the program in 2015 and becoming an apprentice in 2019.
The school was founded by Mark Plumlee, a farrier who wanted to be an educator of traditional horseshoeing while integrating updated biomechanics, hoof science, and horsemanship.
Mark was working within the horseshoeing program at Walla Walla Community College when guest teacher Gene Ovnicek arrived. Gene spent significant time studying feral mustangs and collecting data on how their feet functioned, completing several studies in the early 1990s. His approach was controversial.
“Mark’s role was to accompany Gene to protect horses and clients—to essentially keep an eye on things,” Teddy says.
Eventually, Gene’s understanding of biomechanics and willingness to challenge convention won Mark over.
“Mark already had a long shoeing career behind him, but as he tells it, ‘That’s when the learning really started,’” Teddy says. “Gene excelled at understanding the needs of the horse, while Mark’s true strength was education.”
Gene inspired Mark to design a new kind of school based on what he learned from feral mustangs, combining expertise, biomechanics, and horsemanship. That combination became the foundation of Mission Farrier School.
Teddy first connected with Mark in 2002 while interning in a horse program in Washington. He was already teaching as a certified instructor through the Certified Horsemanship Association. The program he worked on hauled horses to Mission Farrier School for hoof care, and Teddy helped furnish horses for students to work on while Mark taught. Along the way, he learned basic hoof care and trimming practices.
From Alaska to Tygh Valley
Teddy was born and raised in Alaska, where his father directed a camp with a large and diverse horse program. He showed horses, joined 4-H and the Interior Horseman’s Association, competed in competitive trail riding, started colts, and worked with harness teams.
Right out of high school, Teddy spent a summer in Denali National Park working with draft horses, providing rides from Kantishna Roadhouse to Wonder Lake. He later attended Bible school and toiled in the Alaska oil fields before committing fully to a career in horsemanship.
“At the time, most formal education options leaned toward equine science, but I was far more interested in applied horsemanship— hands-on training, teaching and real-world horse work,” Teddy says.
In 2012, Teddy moved his family to South Wasco County to direct the horse program at Camp Morrow in Wamic. 1 steady challenge was finding consistent hoof care. While many of people donated their time and skills to help keep up on camp horses, more routine care was needed. In 2015, the camp allowed Teddy to go back to Mission Farrier School for more training.
In 2019, Mark asked Teddy if he had considered becoming a farrier educator.
“Mark believed my horsemanship background could bring new life into that side of the program,” Teddy says. “He mentored me for several years, and in 2021, I officially took over the school and relocated it from Snohomish, Washington, to Tygh Valley.”
Today, Mission Farrier School is licensed by the Oregon Higher Education Coordinating Commission, approved as a training provider through Oregon WorkSource, and authorized to accept GI Bill benefits.
“To my knowledge, we are the only non-college farrier school west of the Mississippi offering GI Bill access for veterans,” Teddy says.
Learning From Mustangs
Students attend 8-week sessions, with hands-on work every day. They spend time under horses, at the forge, in the round pen, and working through routine and pathological cases.
“Students participate in halter breaking, trailering, handling feet, and trimming untouched hooves,” Teddy says. “To be a good shoer, you must first be a good horseman.”
Learning what happens in a natural environment helps students rehabilitate domestic horses.
“For horses suffering from pathology, if we can re-create or mimic the function of that environment in our trims and shoeing, often we can set a horse to heal or function at a much higher level,” Teddy says.
Nearly 80% of graduates go on to start and build successful hoof-care businesses.
Celebrating the Horse
Beyond the farrier school, Teddy devotes his time to co-owning Live Equestrian with Scott DePaolo and Wendy Hensley. The trio arranges the annual Fiesta Cowboy Gathering.
“It’s an opportunity for friends, families, and people who enjoy horses to get together to rope cattle, participate in stock horse events, and enjoy a big equestrian family campout,” Teddy says.
Fiesta is held the weekend after Labor Day each year at Tygh Valley Fairgrounds. At its core, the event revolves around judged loop vaquero-style ranch roping, which differs from rodeo roping.
“Instead of roping 1 animal at a time, competitors rope out of a herd of cattle,” Teddy says. “Riders are scored based on the type of loop they throw. Vaquero-style ranch roping also places a strong emphasis on stockmanship and horsemanship.”
The event awards gear instead of cash prizes, including horse tack, handmade equipment, and shop-built items, many donated by participants themselves.
“This helps keep the event family-friendly and discourages the kind of high-end competition that can intimidate beginners,” Teddy says.
Youth can participate in ranch roping, stock horse competitions, and even cowboy poetry and music. Spectators are welcome.
Teddy has been a member of the Wasco County Fair and Rodeo Board since April 2024, helping lead an effort to improve the horse arena and offer more events.
“Beyond teaching the craft, I care deeply about mentoring students in life,” Teddy says. “I help them navigate big questions and transitions, and I openly incorporate my faith in Jesus into that mentoring process, along with an emphasis on integrity, responsibility, and service. It’s about developing people—not just farriers or horsemen, but whole individuals.”