Two aging cowboys wearing white hats, Wranglers and beat-up boots eyeball me from under a giant open barn that shelters several horses and a haystack bigger than a house.

These aren’t just any cowpokes, however. They are Gilbert Aguirre, who has run the old O’Neill ranch for most of his 83 years, and Tony Moiso, now 79 and a bona fide cattleman as well as chairman of Rancho Mission Viejo.