“As I fed the horses, I looked up at the sky. Was that mushroom cloud over there before? I squinted to get a better view, considering part of the county was smothered in a blanket of thick smoke … The winds were kicking up again, and some of the gusts had to be blowing 60 miles per hour, minimum. I pulled my phone out of my pocket and looked with horror at the weather app’s warning: Red Flag.”

This is an excerpt from a novel by Ami Cullen, recounting her experience during the second-most destructive wildfire in Colorado’s history.

In October 2020, Cullen was in charge of the equestrian program at C Lazy Ranch in Granby. The historic guest ranch was in the direct path of the East Troublesome Fire.

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Cullen had to gather all her courage to evacuate more than 200 horses, directing her team of wranglers and volunteers to move the animals to safety. As the fire raged, they evacuated all the animals — not once, but twice over two days. The fire burned parts of the ranch Oct. 21.

The ranch land and its staff are healing from the fire in the four years since East Troublesome. Cullen was inspired to write her experiences down, with encouragement from guests and wranglers.

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How the community came together to evacuate C Lazy U’s horses

The book — “Running Free: An Incredible Story of Love, Survival, and How 200 Horses Trapped in a Wildfire Helped One Woman Find Her Soul” — is for sale after publishing in August 2024.

“I felt this story had to be told,” she stated in a news release about her work. “It is an incredible story of how people came together to save some 200 horses from one of the worst fires in the history of Colorado — and also a story of personal challenge and transformation.”

Cullen began by writing a memoir, but the story soon took on a life of its own, becoming a fictionalized version. In “Running Free,” she creates the character of Emme, whose life mirrors her own. By fictionalizing the story, Cullen said she had more creative freedom.

Through the eyes of Emme, Cullen describes harrowing events she experienced, such as watching the flames from East Troublesome get closer and closer to C Lazy U, and making the decision to evacuate all the animals to a nearby property, including donkeys and horses. While the fire was visible over the ridge, Cullen, ranch staff and many volunteers rounded up the animals and moved them slowly off the ranch, one trailer at a time. Just a day later, the fire grew larger, and they had to move the herd again, this time to the Front Range.

Cullen’s book recounts the generosity of the community and the bravery of the staff, ensuring that all animals made it to safety and returning the herd home after the wildfire passed.

Ami Cullen walked away from a promising legal career for the rugged life on a dude ranch — a decision that would ultimately thrust her into the path of one of the most devastating wildfires in Colorado’s history and lead to a high-stakes mission to rescue more than 200 horses from the flames. This life-altering experience ignited her new book, “Running Free,” a gripping and relatable journey of personal transformation that delves deep into the inner battles we all face and the incredible freedom that comes when we abandon the lives we think we should live to embrace who we are truly meant to be.

Howard VanEs
Let’s Write Books president

From working in law to a life with horses

Cullen grew up in Chester County, Pennsylvania, where her love of horses began at an early age. She competed in the hunter/jumper discipline at a national level and was equally dedicated to her studies as she was to horses, earning her law degree in Washington D.C.

She was practicing law at a firm in Bethesda, Maryland, when she took a weeklong vacation with her best friend at C Lazy U. When she arrived at the expansive, 8,500-acre ranch and met the horse she would explore the hills and aspen groves with, she felt at home.

Cullen would continue to visit the ranch every summer, and it began to feel like her life belonged in the saddle in rural Granby rather than the courtroom on the East Coast. She met her future husband, Mike Cullen, at the ranch, where he worked in the activities department. He encouraged her to follow her dream of living in Colorado and being with horses — not just on vacation but as a career.

In 2012, she made the leap, leaving behind her law career in Maryland for a temporary job as a wrangler at C Lazy U. When her contract was up, Cullen figured she would return to her former life. Her friends and family didn’t expect she would pass up six figures and a life in the city for 14 hours of labor outside in the elements.

But Cullen knew her heart was at C Lazy U. She decided to extend her contract.

“Horses teach us to listen to our guts. They require us to have a relationship with them and be honest with ourselves,” she writes in the book. “The saying ‘Horses are a mirror into our soul’ couldn’t be more true. My relationship with horses kept me true to myself and provided me with the courage to leave the predictability of what my life had become and guided me into something extraordinary.”

Years later — after the East Troublesome Fire scorched the ranch and the pandemic forced it to close to guests — Cullen and C Lazy U are still here. At the ranch, time seems to stand still as wranglers lead horseback rides through a landscape healing and becoming greener after the fire.

To purchase a copy of the book, visit RunningFreeHorses.com or Amazon.com.