Old Prospector

Hello,
In the mid 1800’s there was an old prospector that rode a paint mule and led a grey pack horse. Now don’t ask me why he rode the mule and packed the horse, because it doesn’t make since to me either, but that’s the way the story goes. The guy dreamed of striking it rich but things just never seemed to go his way. He found a little gold now and then, just enough to keep him going but never the big score. A lot of people had seen this guy, because he moved around allot and never seemed to stay in one place too long. People that had came in contact with him said he seemed to have kind of a sour attitude, some said it was because he choose to ride the mule but they weren’t quite sure.

. He seemed to be in good health with plenty to eat but just wasn’t a very happy guy. He didn’t much care of prospecting in water so he was a pick and shovel guy and he always appeared dirty. One day he was on the side of a mountain and he would lift his pick up above his head and drive it into the side of the mountain. He had chosen this spot because he knew quite a bit about gold and where to look for it but he had been in this spot for about 3 weeks with not much to show for his efforts. His attitude wasn’t very good when he started and now it had gotten really bad. He would swing that pick into the shale rock and nothing but rock. Over and over, day after day, with no significant finds. There was a little color that showed up but not enough so satisfy our man and the more bitter he became. As he worked he thought what a rotten life he had, he was wasting his time. Other people were getting rich and all he was getting was dirty. He thought if he was in another profession he would do much better. But never once did he think about what he could do better. Is there something I could do different, Could I learn more about soil and rock formations? Have I chosen the correct spot? If I have chosen correctly could this be where the mother lode might be. By thinking that way he would be motivated to work harder and swing that pick twice as fast and twice as long but he didn’t choose to think that way. In a fit of despair he threw his pick down, saddled that mule and rode away. The next day a man riding along the trail that circled the base of the mountain noticed the pick lying by a large dug out area in the mountain and he too knew a little about prospecting. He thought the spot held promise so he tied his horse up and picked up the pick. He was full of hope for what might happen as he raised that pick above his head and as it struck the rock guess what? It turned out to be one of the largest gold fields ever found in California and the mountain was literally full of gold. The first fella was one more pick away, but he let his attitude get the best of him and quite. Surely he could have swung that pick just one more time.
That story was told to me by an old man in the town I grew up in when I was young. I never forgot it and when I’m tired and I feel myself starting to weaken I always think, just one more pick.
The reason that story came to my mind is the new format in the rodeo business is that the season ends on September 30. It starts in early January in Odessa, Texas at the first Rodeo of the year. There’s so many guys there you can’t even find a place to park and every one has high hopes. Attitudes are good and the goal for everyone is the same, this year their going to qualify for the National Finals Rodeo.
The winter takes us all over Texas and to the cold of Denver, Colorado and Rapid City, South Dakota. Then to Nevada for two weeks, on to California for 30 days and the spring Rodeos out there, right after that there’s Guymon, Oklahoma were they rope muley cattle that has never been touched and then to the rodeos in Canada. Reno, Nevada starts the 4th of July run and it’s the toughest 2 weeks of the year. There was 3 days this year during that time where I never went to bed. Rope during the day and drive all night for 72 hours. After those two weeks that takes you to Cheyenne, Wyoming and Salinas, California, then out in to the heat of Kansas, and Oklahoma for two weeks. Then off to the beautiful Northwest for a month and the last rodeo you got up there is at Pendleton, Oregon, The Arena is about 700 or 800 feet long and it’s on grass and several guys crash there every year. You go as fast as you can and you hope its not you. As soon as that’s over you drive, none stop to Albuquerque, New Mexico and compete there. On to El Paso, Amarillo, Texas and hopefully Omaha, Nebraska for the tour finals the last tour is Dallas, Texas and you finished a long tuff campaign that tests you mentally and psychically and test your horse in every kind of tuff situation they can think of, as the year grinds on, teams drop off. Hopes and dreams disappear and the same old good teams start to dominate. There are always a couple of new surprises but for the most part it’s the same old guys, because if you have a weakness that long grind will expose it.
This year there was something that happened that I would have never believed, if you predicted it in January. Last year and for as long as I can remember David Key and Kory Koonz have roped almost as good as a person can. So when they started roping together everyone thought, look out and they were right. They are a tremendous team and they came close to winning the Championship last year. As this year started they did just about like they always do, they won but by the time we got to Reno there winning ways had slowed down. I shouldn’t say they slowed down they stopped. These guys couldn’t win if they were the only team. I think they went all of the 4th of July run and never placed. It was the craziest thing I have ever seen. I don’t remember ever seeing, a great team like those guys, get so cold and not be able to win. You know what? You couldn’t tell. You would have thought they were winning everything, every time you saw them there attitudes were great, smiles on their faces and leaning into the wind. I never heard one of them criticize the other, not one time. There routine before their run never changed and after their runs and cheerful as always. But by mid July it appeared to everyone that one of the best teams in the world was so far back the National Finals rodeo was out of reach. I think everyone thought that except too prospectors that kept swinging there picks day after day, City after City they just kept grinding away and now there winning so much they’ve got there eye on the leaders. I just watched them win the first go round at the prestigious Ellensburg, Washington rodeo and I’m still ahead of them but I can feel there momentum coming, as can everyone else, I don’t know if there is anything we can do to slow them down. There actions this year are proof to me, that you shouldn’t doubt yourself or your ability. Keep swinging that pick until you physically can’t swing it again then dig with your hands.

Thanks for your time.
Until next month
Walt Woodard