Gail was born in Mott, North Dakota, on July 7, 1943. She was a city slicker until she moved to a ranch in Eastern Wyoming, at the age of 10.
She helped on the ranch until she graduated from high school in Douglas, Wyoming. She then attended one year at Casper College.
She married Bob in 1964 and has since been involved as a full-time partner and ranch wife, mother to Stacy and Noel, and grandmother to Skeeter, Skye, and Skobee.