After attending college, brothers Jeremy, Jayce and Jay Doan made their way back to the family ranch in central North Dakota. Black Leg Ranch is a big spread, nearly 20,000 acres, but supporting multiple families demanded additional revenue streams.
When Jeremy returned to work on the ranch, he started Rolling Plains Adventures, which offers hunting packages that have won the North Dakota Governor’s Travel and Tourism Award. Guests are picked up at the Bismarck airport, fed, lodged and guided throughout the ranch, where wildlife is plentiful.
“It was a struggle at first,” Jeremy says on the latest episode of Grow Getters, a podcast showcasing ag producers who have created side businesses. “People told me it was a dumb idea. But I’ve always loved hunting and the outdoors, and I felt like I was living a dream. I just had to make that dream a reality. It has had its hiccups, but it’s been a very worthwhile business.”
The outfitting operation has expanded to include guided ranch tours, collectively drawing visitors from all 50 states and 65 countries. The brothers have also created a direct-to-consumer business, selling cuts of their grass-fed and grass-finished beef and bison meat.
And then there’s the Copper Jewel Barn, a 13,000-square-foot event space where they regularly host weddings and corporate functions. Having transformed old buildings on the property into handsome lodges, they can host groups of up to 25 people for overnight stays on the ranch. “It’s a neat space with a lot of character,” Jay says. “We’re proud of it.”
To echo the classic infomercial mantra — but wait, there’s more. They’ve also opened Black Leg Brewery, which produces a variety of craft brews that are distributed throughout the state and in parts of Minnesota. The brewery has recently partnered with North Dakota State University to offer two additional brands, Bison Light and Bison Bock. “It fits really well into our operation,” Jays says, “and it tastes good.”
As far as advice to other ag producers considering a side business, Jay says, “Everybody has some competitive advantage. You just have to find it.” He adds that one of their ranch’s advantage is its location — a 20-minute drive to the airport. “That’s huge for tourism, and that has really helped us,” he says. The brothers agree that part of their success is due to “thinking outside the fence.”
“People think we’re nuts sometimes,” Jay says. “Who has a brewery on a ranch?”
Watch the full Grow Getters interview
Visit the Black Leg Ranch website: https://www.blacklegranch.com/
