Buckin' Babes

Part of our Redwing Core Curriculum, this chainsaw workshop is designed specifically for women+ and offers a welcoming, supportive environment to build skills and confidence with this essential tool.

Workshop Overview

April 17–19 & October 16–18, 2026 | Redwing Ranch, Gardner, CO

Chainsaw and fuel-management skills for women+.
A two-day, two-night workshop designed to help you build confidence and technical skill with chainsaws. Learn safety, maintenance, cutting techniques, and fire-mitigation strategies in a supportive, hands-on environment.

About the Event

Part of the Redwing Core Curriculum, Buckin’ Babes is a welcoming, all-inclusive weekend for women and gender-expansive participants eager to develop land-based skills. Over the course of the workshop, you’ll progress from saw basics to practical field work that connects technical skill with stewardship and fire resilience.

Day 1 focuses on safety, equipment setup, and foundational cutting techniques.
Day 2 builds toward real-world application—pile burning, brush clearing, felling, and shaded-fuel-break projects on the ranch.

Participants will:

Understand chainsaw function, operation, and safety protocols
Practice cutting, limbing, and log-handling techniques
Learn sharpening, bar-oil, fuel-mix, and general maintenance routines
Gain an introduction to tree felling and on-site hazard assessment
Apply fuel-management principles: pile burning, defensible-space layout, and shaded-fuel-break design
Build lasting confidence through hands-on practice in real outdoor conditions

Who This Is For

This workshop is open to women and gender-marginalized individuals of all experience levels—no prior chainsaw background required. Come curious and ready to learn in a supportive, collaborative community.

Details

April 17–19 & October 16–18, 2026
Redwing Ranch, Gardner, CO
Tuition: Tiered pricing available (see bottom of page)
Check-in: Friday 4:30 PM | Wrap-up: Sunday 4 PM

What’s Included

Instruction from an all-women+ instructor team
Use of chainsaws, PPE, and tools
All meals Friday dinner → Sunday lunch
Two nights of lodging (or camping & local's option)
Workshop materials and field resources

Buckin’ Babes Weekend Schedule

Friday:

4:30 PM – Arrival & check-in

6:30 PM – Welcome dinner

Saturday:

Full day of chainsaw instruction, hands-on practice, and group rotations

Breakfast, lunch, and dinner provided

Sunday:

Tree felling & pile burn practice

Breakfast and lunch provided

Closing circle & 4:00 PM afternoon departures

Erin Sheridan (she/her)

Erin got her start on a logging team in college, where she learned the fundamentals of chainsaw operation, safety, and maintenance. She quickly took to the sport, becoming a serious rookie competitor in the Timbersports world, honing her technical skills in events like crosscut sawing and axe throwing. She later worked on sawyer crews, building shaded fuel breaks, felling hazard trees, and tackling large-scale fuels reduction projects. She also led a sawyer crew on a ranch, improving road accessibility, creating shaded fuel breaks, and enhancing land management through strategic chainsaw use. In addition, she has hosted the Cal Poly Logging Team for workdays, providing guidance on practical chainsaw applications in ranching and fuels management.

Lou Bean (they/them)

Lou Bean is a saw crew leader and wildland firefighter from Colorado currently working in the Central and Southern counties. In addition to fire mitigation, prescribed burning, suppression, and burn scar recovery work, Bean is passionate about empowering community members and early career professionals with training and education, both in their work leading saw and burn crews with Southwest Conservation Corps, coordinating the Neighborhood Ambassador outreach program with SPAWP, and volunteering as a structural and wildland firefighter with Chaffee County Fire. Bean studied both Construction Coordination and Environmental Science and completed a thesis on Fire Ecology in the Wildland Urban Interface and has since worked for the National Parks Service and the US Forest Service in addition to their current gigs. Bean also runs The Blaze Project, which designs fire ecology curriculum for classrooms and non-traditional learning environments.

Victoria Schmalz (she/her)

Victoria Schmalz lives in Delta County, Colorado with her husband on their 700 acre family farm, where they raise grain corn and pinto beans. When she's not out irrigating, she's usually out playing with chainsaws and driving around the country for her work with STIHL Inc. Her background with chainsaws started as a small engine mechanic working in a hardware store, where eventually she worked her way up through different companies to get where she is now. She enjoys the ability to train others in the industry, and to share her experiences in the agricultural world.

Megan Jackson (she/her)

Megan lives in Pueblo County with her husband and 3 children on a small hobby farm. When she isn’t chasing her kids or chickens around, she’s chasing cows in her free time for reined cow horse and ranch versatility competitions. Megan has always had a knack for mechanics and started her career as a service coordinator in a small engine shop for a farm and ranch group 10 years ago. A position opened with STIHL Inc. to allow her to continue to grow in her career and she has been traveling the country as a Territory Manager for the past 6 years. Training, providing sales support and building relationships with end users are just a few of the many facets that being a Territory Manager entails, and she enjoys the ability to bring her knowledge and experience to a career she loves.

Fiona Jackson (she/her)

Fiona Jackson is the Ranch Manager at Redwing Ranch and a co-instructor for Buckin’ Babes. She brings practical, ranch-tested chainsaw experience built through years of on-the-ground work—clearing brush, maintaining fence lines, and handling the everyday demands of working lands. Fiona focuses on simple systems, proper technique, and helping participants build confidence with a saw for the kinds of tasks they’ll encounter in their own work.

“Redwing Ranch staff creates such a supportive environment that not only empowers women to be confident land stewards, but creates a learning environment that inspires you to bring your new-found knowledge beyond the weekend to your community.”

- Megan R.

Workshop
Pricing Tiers

At Redwing Ranch, we believe land-based skills, good stockmanship, chainsaw confidence, and regenerative knowledge should be accessible—not gated. To support that, we offer a tiered pricing structure that honors different financial realities while keeping our workshops high-quality and community-rooted.
Each tier receives the same full workshop experience; the only differences relate to lodging.

Choose the tier that fits your situation—no explanation needed.

Belle of the Woods // Tier 1 — $790

This tier is designed for participants with steady financial resources who want to help sustain and expand access to land-based education at Redwing Ranch. Selecting this option helps us offer reduced-cost tiers for those who need them. Includes a bed in one of our ranch houses.

Crosscut Cowgirl // Tier 2 — $700

This tier is well-suited for participants who are financially stable or learning on a modest budget. It fully covers the cost of the workshop without contributing extra toward subsidized tiers.

Includes a bed in one of our ranch houses.

Buckin’ Beginner // Tier 3 — $550

A reduced-cost option for new or early-stage land stewards, ranchers, sawyers, or learners who may not have had access to resources, tools, or training before. We believe skills like these should be accessible to everyone. Includes camping on-site.

Homegrown Sawyer // Locals Pass — $450

This tier is designed to make Redwing Ranch workshops accessible to our local community members who already have housing nearby. It supports regional participation and deeper community connection. Includes all programming and meals; lodging not included.

Need a little flexibility? We offer a first and second deposit option (with the remaining balance due four weeks before your workshop).

To arrange this, please contact us at info@redwingranch.farm