Cowboy, gas tester, outfitter, guide, welder; these are just a few of Terry Grant’s jobs through the years. But how did a regular, everyday Albertan go from those occupations to becoming the lead on a popular TV series called Mantracker? For Grant it happened by having a broad knowledge of wilderness survival and tracking, working hard, and being in the right place at the right time.
Grant grew up in Ontario and moved to Alberta at the age of 17, with the goal of seeing the mountains. Although his horse and cattle experience was limited, he managed to get a job that first winter at Bar U Ranch near Longview, where he fed cattle, moved livestock, branded and did general chores. “I grew up riding horses,” Grant says. “But it was working as a cowhand on those big ranches that really taught me to work cattle and ride.”
Grant worked at a various ranches for over 25 years, often interspersing cowboying with other jobs. “I’ve done several stints at gas testing,” he says. “And then I did water well servicing. I also worked in construction at a feed mill in Okotoks, welding, and all sorts of odd jobs. But I kept going back to cowboying — I guess it suited me.” On the side, Grant posed for a few cowboy commercials, and later did a bit part in a Western movie.
An interest in hunting helped develop Grant’s tracking abilities. “I guess it started with tracking cows,” Grant explains. “When you’re checking for cattle in hilly country, you pay attention to tracks so you don’t waste time searching in areas where there isn’t any livestock. And if I happened to see a deer spook in front of me, I’d walk over and study its tracks. I’d pay attention to the dirt; which way did the animal go, and how did that affect its track? After a while it got so I could look at a track and it meant something to me.” Eventually Grant began to use those skills to guide big game hunters.
Grant joined Turner Valley’s Search and Rescue in 1993, taking specialized courses in tracking people, and then putting his skills in general tracking and knowledge of the bush to use. “There is no money in search and rescue,” he notes. “The most you might be paid is your gas money, but it’s still a very worthwhile thing.”
In 2004 Grant’s cousin, Dewey, was approached by TV producers with the concept of Mantracker. Two people will be given a head start in the bush, armed with only a map and compass. The tracker and local guide will be on horseback. They will have to travel 40 km in a maximum of 36 hours without being caught. The producers were looking for someone to fill the lead part, and they told Dewey, “You look like a cowboy, know the backcountry and can track. You fill the bill.”
Dewey, who worked as an outfitter in the Rockies, turned the producers down but pointed them to Grant. “I talked to the producers on the phone, and sent them my picture,” Grant says. “They had me do some interviews, and videotaped me on horseback. Finally one of the producers said, ‘I like this guy. Let’s line him up against another 30 people and see how he does against them.’ The second producer said ‘No, he can ride, he can talk and he can guide; he’s our man.’”
Grant didn’t hesitate when offered the job. “I thought ‘What the hell, I’ll get to see some good country!’” he laughs. “That first year the show was only a half-hour long, and I was amazed to see how those camera men and producers could take 10 seconds of clips here, and five seconds there, and make a show of it,” says Grant. “At the end of the first year we were able to expand to an hour long show. The extra length allowed us to show the thought processes and strategies the prey, guide and I went through.”
Mantracker is now in its sixth year and Grant says he’s enjoyed working on every episode. “There isn’t one episode that stands out ahead of the others,” he says. “But some of the locations we filmed at had extra challenges. Newfoundland was really tough to ride in; (there’s no) cattle, so the undergrowth doesn’t get knocked down.And Utah’s steep canyons and slick rock made for some interesting rides.”
In most cases the guides were responsible for providing a horse for Grant to ride. Handling a wide variety of equines was challenging, but not in the way you might expect. “At first the guides didn’t think I could ride, so they were giving me quiet old plugs,” Grants says. “And those horses often couldn’t handle the work we had to do. Once the sidekicks realized I actually could ride things improved. I’d have about an hour to get the feel for each horse, and then the next day we’d be off in the bush, chasing someone. At times I had problems with certain horses, but there wasn’t a back-up horse so I’d just do the best I could. Some horses wouldn’t cross water, so when we got to a stream it would be tough. And others were dude-riding horses; quiet but only trained to follow right behind another. They didn’t know what to do when I trotted and cantered them. And some weren’t very fit, and they had a tough time handling the hundred miles or so we’d travel working on each episode.”
Grant was willing to switch from horse to horse, but he did insist on bringing his own tack, which included saddle, blanket and bridle. “I like my High Country Roper made by Matt Eberle,” Grant says. “It has good swells and cantle to keep me securely seated. Heaven knows what some of the sidekicks would put me in if I didn’t bring my own tack!”
At the end of season six Grant will be leaving Mantracker and working in slightly different directions. His website, www.therealmantracker.com, allows people to book him for public speaking engagements, corporate functions or training in tracking and other wilderness activities. “I already do a lot of public speaking all across Canada,” Grant explains. “I’ve talked to denturists, college kids, horsemen and business corporations and they all end up laughing and having a good time. I think that was the amazing thing about Mantracker. When the show started it was predicted the audience would be men aged 18 to 45, but that wasn’t the case. Instead the show interested men, women and children. I’d suggest that the whole horse, cowboy, adventure format intrigues an awful lot of people.”
Grant will be speaking at the Horse Breeders and Owners Conference, 8:40 a.m. – 10:10 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 14, 2012.