‘The Pioneer Woman’: Ree Drummond’s Husband Once Almost Set Their Ranch on Fire
The Pioneer Woman star Ree Drummond isn’t just a celebrity chef. She’s a mother of four who lives and works on a ranch with her husband, Ladd Drummond, and it just so happens she became a celebrity chef in the process. But Drummond will be the first one to say that she doesn’t always have it as together as it seemed on TV — including the time a controlled fire came a bit too close to the Drummond’s lodge.
Ree Drummond’s family owns more than 400,000 acres of land
Drummond has made a massive name for herself through her cooking show, but in Oklahoma, the Drummonds are known for much more. Ladd Drummond and his family are some of the top landowners in the country. The Drummond ranch is a whopping 433,000 acres — or about half the size of Rhode Island. The Drummonds own a cattle company, which explains the massive amount of land.
Drummond films her show at the family’s lodge, and when cameras pan to the lodge’s exterior, viewers catch a small glimpse of the vast land. Plenty of work goes into maintaining that land, though, including controlled fires. But things once got a bit out of hand.
Ree Drummond once explained how a controlled burn caused visitors to evacuate her ranch
Drummond is used to the activity on the ranch, but ranch life can be dangerous. While speaking with Oklahoma Horizon TV, Drummond revealed why she was a few hours late to the interview. Her husband mainly oversees the activity on the ranch, but the land’s controlled burning gave them a surprise that day.
“We had controlled burning on the ranch, and the fire jumped the road that it wasn’t supposed to jump,” Drummond said. “We actually had some lodge tours going on out on the ranch … So I wound up rounding them all up and having them follow me out the back door,” Drummond said. Drummond said the fire jumping is something that “happens a lot.” Thankfully, everyone made it out safely, and they were able to get the fire back under control. However, it did make Drummond late for that interview. “This is my life for the past 20 years,” Drummond says of her “authenticity” in being a rancher’s wife.
Ree Drummond wasn’t planning to become a rancher
Though Drummond has grown accustomed to her lifestyle, she wasn’t planning on marrying a rancher and settling down in the middle of Oklahoma. Drummond, who was born and raised in Oklahoma, had attended school in California. Following her graduation, she was planning to attend law school in Chicago.
Things changed when Drummond met her husband in an Oklahoma bar. And once they started dating, she knew she was in it for the long haul. Drummond opted to forego her law school plans and settle down with Ladd. The two were married in 1996, and the rest is history.
