BAGUIO CITY ? Nothing reminds Baguio residents better about a bygone era, when cowboys galloped through the mountains on horseback, than the city?s iconic pony boys and Ibaloi cowboys.

They are remnants of a time when horses were part of the daily routine, free to roam around the city, much of which were available only for grazing.

These cowboys may also be the very last artisans who serve the only saddle-making industry in this part of the country.

Boyet Calub, and brothers Butch and Joseph Molintas are the only saddle makers in Baguio today.

As young cowboys, they spent their days in Wright Park here in the company of other cowboys and about 70 horses.

Back then, horseback riding was banned by Mayor Luis Lardizabal.

?There were about 70 horses. We had a lookout, and each time Lardizabal?s people would inspect Wright Park, all 70 horses and their riders would gallop to the mountains,? says Butch Molintas, 46, who started riding horses when he was 5 years old.

Horseback riding was finally legalized in the early 1970s. Soon after, the number of horses in Wright Park grew to 200.

Butch says the saddle-making trade was developed to address an unforeseen need among Ibaloi cowboys.

?The Ilocos region used to supply the saddles. In the late 1960s, [a local resident named] Mike Molintas started saddle-making out of necessity [because cowboys had to deal with worn out saddles]. He took apart a US Cavalry saddle made in Ilocos, and then put it back together. That?s how he learned,? he says.

?At first he would just repair the saddles. And then he started making the saddles himself,? he says.

The Baguio-made saddles were sold at P1,200 to P1,500 each, making them far more valuable than the Ilocos saddles, which were sold at P250 to P500 each.

These days, saddles are shaped and cut using a wooden mold. The saddles are then wrapped in leather.

But the saddles used to be wrapped in ?Sikang? leather, which is produced by soaking raw hide for a month in a mixture of water, and bark and branches of the Kamatsile tree (Pithecellobium dulce), Butch says.

He describes ?Sikang? leather as ?half-cooked leather,? which lasts for 15 years.

Butch is confined to a wheelchair, due to a spinal cord injury, but he still holds shop at his home in Barangay Pacdal here.

Together with his brother Joseph, Butch?s small enterprise has produced quality saddles and leather trappings for horseback riders.

Their products range from saddles, horse reigns, breast plates, bridles, saddle bags, leather bags and belts ? all showcasing ornate, one-of-a-kind designs.

Calub owns a shop called the Wright Park Saddlery, near the park where he got the name. The Saddlery displays his saddles, belts, and cowboy boots.

He also owns a shop in neighboring La Trinidad, Benguet, which specializes in cowboy boots and other leather accessories for cowboys.

Calub and the Molintas brothers are known for producing the affordable saddles, which take a day or two to make; and the specialized Western saddles (priced at P8,000 to P12,000 each), which take a week to produce.

Because of the saddles? durability, their shops get orders after a long duration.

But Calub and the Molintas brothers cope by taking on customers from Cebu, Mindanao, Palawan, and Hawaii.