Pete Taylor was born and raised in Oakland, California. He was originally exposed to horses at Boy Scout camp in the early 1960s. After an on-duty career-ending injury forced retirement from the Oakland Fire Department, he bought horse property in Oakland. The following year he realized his lifelong dream of horse ownership. What followed was exploration of a variety of equine pursuits, including backcountry horse packing, cowboy mounted shooting, trail riding, parades, team penning, team branding competitions, and whatever else he could find to do horseback. Sometime around 2009, Pete was exposed to Californio style horse- and stockmanship. In 2013, he won his first Californio stock horse competition and his bridle horse was awarded top amateur stock horse honors. In 2017, he bought property outside of Ione, California, that he continues to develop to accommodate his horses, and one day soon, a small herd of cattle. Foremost, he continues to train, ride and rope in the Californio style.