Using your format, PRB....

Andy Haywood...best real, life-long cowboy I ever knew. Most educated 'uneducated' man I ever knew. Was riding a horse by 5 and working cattle on the ranch by 8...no time for a school with 4 walls, the ranch was his school... I didn't cross paths with him until he was already 60 yrs old. He was the farm manager where I kept my horse. He could read livestock, people, the land and the weather like nothing I'd ever seen. He instinctually knew when storms were coming or when to turn the pastures and plant the oats. The vet learned to quit arguing with Andy over whether a horse was pregnant or not...Andy would say, "If that horse is pregnant, I'm pregnant!" Wait a few weeks and you would see he was right.

The final year of his life I had the privilege to work alongside him, and what a life-changing experience that was. Cancer was raging in his body and mostly every day was a bad day. But Andy didn't know what it meant to quit or take a day off. I was managing my highly stressful corporate job, but I'd try to leave early to make it to the farm before feeding time. I'd rush around filling the water tanks, getting the hay and feed ready before he showed up, knowing that he'd kill himself trying to do it all. I think he knew what I was doing, and I hope he appreciated it, but he never said a word to me. He took great pride in his work and didn't want anyone to feel sorry for him. The disease took him from us too soon, but he battled it like a muthaf$%&# till the very end. He was a man of deep faith, and he never lost his cheerful spirit. RIP, Andy, you were one-of-a-kind.....

Sorry if I've said too much...I know this is an SF forum and I try to stay in my lane.

Best pretend cowboy: The Rifleman, Chuck Connors. Hell of an athlete. Trivia: Chuck was the first person to shatter a backboard in the NBA, not those Shaq/Kobe punks. :cool:

Sister, you can chime in whenever you like, always welcomed.

Sorry for the loss of your friend, I would have enjoyed meeting him.

I know a person like the one Orion described and I think that they are something of a dying breed. He is half Native American and grew up on a ranch near a reservation not far from where I live. In his working years he was a farrier, horse trainer, member of the Sheriff's posse, member of the County search and rescue, and participated in professional rodeo. Today he is getting old and supplements his retirement income by making custom saddles and tack. If you stop by his shop he has many a story to tell. With his weathered and rugged features he looks like he just stepped out of the Old West. Even in this 21st Century there are still a few real cowboys around, you just have to know where to find them.

Where I hunt wild boar, the guides are all cowboys. Real Deal. I was fortunate enough to get an invitation to the owners 60th birthday party last March. He rode his horse in to the Banquet Hall where the party was being held. I thought the highlight of the evening was when his horse took a dump in the lobby while he was being introduced...

:mad:



:p:D

For the record, IMHO best cowboy IRL, my uncle - a true horse whisperer, any horse that spent even a weekend with him doubled in price, ranked in the top 10 calf roping National Seniors in his 70's, taught ALL who came by how to ride, throw shoes, rope and drink beer, lover of women of all ages, never met a critter he couldn't make friends with, and damn good at growing tomatoes. RIP Butch Wise - I miss ya.

Pretend cowboy - mmm... toss up. John Wayne or Daniel Craig - hubba hubba :o

LL

I am sorry for your loss.

He sounds like a helluva cowboy and a great guy to boot.

RIP, Andy.

TR

Thanks for telling us about him orion5, he sounds like he was a great man. I'm sorry for your loss. RIP Andy Haywood.