Tucson, Arizona – Cesar de la Cruz knits his brow in deep concentration as he tightens his grip on the rope on the penned bronco he sits astride, knowing that a mistake on his part in the coming seconds could be fatal.
Soon he is facing his objective. He raises his arm and quickly gauges the distance before thrusting his lasso through the air to rope a 200-pound calf.
De la Cruz, who says he was practically born on horseback, is 100 percent cowboy, just like his father, uncle and grandfather.
The 21-year-old Tucson native is one of more than 60 bronco busters from the United States and Mexico who are taking part this week in the Arizona city’s annual Celebration of the Cowboys, known in Spanish as Fiesta de los Vaqueros.
Now in its 81st year, the event brings members of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association to Tucson every February.
“This is one of the most beautiful traditions of this city,” De la Cruz says in an interview with EFE.
On this occasion, the would-be hometown hero and his horses, Tequila Cuervo and Johnny Ringo, are competing in the category of team roping, which involves pairs of cowboys vying to subdue a young bull in the shortest time.
But De la Cruz is also taking part this week in another rodeo being held simultaneously in Texas.
Asked how he’s managing to do both, he says only that “it’s hard, especially now with the price of gas so expensive.”
A professional cowboy has to compete in at least 40-50 rodeos per year, which means that he needs reliable transportation for himself and his mounts. He must also pay for the care, feeding and boarding of the horses, and for his own food and lodging on the road.
While the top-ranked pros can make as much as $100,000 a year on the PRCA circuit, it’s not that big a sum considering the expenses involved, and most cowboys are not in it for the money.
“I love what I do, I enjoy it a lot,” De la Cruz says, swearing that he climbed on a horse as soon as he learned to walk.
He says he practices for hours each day at what he regards as a full-time job, albeit one with no benefits or paid time off.
Already regarded as an expert with the lasso, De la Cruz credits his uncle, George Aros, a famous cowboy in his time, with providing much of the inspiration for him to join the rodeo.
The confident youngster says that nothing will make him abandon his profession, despite having already lost the better part of one finger on his right hand when was he was just 12.
“I got the finger stuck in the rope, a common mistake, especially when you’re learning,” De la Cruz says stoically of the mishap.
He’s now dreaming of being named the PRCA’s rookie of the year, though he acknowledges he has a long way to go before he has any chance of making that a reality.
“Being a cowboy and participating professionally in the rodeo is one of the greatest satisfactions of my life. It’s a tradition I would very much like my sons to follow, when I have them,” De la Cruz says.
Tucson’s rodeo week, one of the 20 major events on the PRCA circuit, will conclude Sunday.
