LEE PITTS COW BOY COURAGE

COWBOY COURAGE

AND

THE RING MAN JOB

The job of 'ring man' is not for sissies. Nor are we talking about

the guy with coat and silk tie, eating barbecue, outside, the auction

ring, the bid collector, at the auction market. We are taking about the

real guy, inside the ring, matching wits with a killer cow. Yes, the

auctioneer gets top billing but it is the ring man, risking his life, so the

show may go on. The ring man profession is not listed as one of the

most dangerous jobs but it can be a widow maker, something like a

bull fighter. He's a decoy to get a raging bull or a huffy heifer in line.

Ring men wade into a herd of pair to sort off a cow and calf, they have

been seen walking across the backs of steers to get to a maverick.

Tennis Shoe Tommy was one ring man worth watching. Yes, he

had an attitude, but, he had an unequaled skill , a ducker and dodger,

and knew which steer need to be sorted off, most times before the buyer

knew. Always a step ahead of a hard charging cow. Tommy never got

hurt. His manure stained tennis shoes kept him agile and as he got older

at work. Cigarettes got him in the end.

Things at the auction gate did change, gate that the ring man opened

and closed were opened and closed with a button pushed by the

auctioneer. No more ring men. Total dismay. No more cowboy

courage.

Abstract: March 12, 2017, Steer Planet – Show Steers & Club

Calf Fourm by Lee Pitts.