As he closes in on his 80th year, this iconic cowboy and rancher says that even the hard times have been good times.Buster, who trained such legendary horses as Marion’s Girl and Peppy San Badger, still prides himself on riding good working stock.

 May 2007

Story and photos by Betsy Lynch

 
Buster, who trained such legendary horses as Marion’s Girl and Peppy San Badger, still prides himself on riding good working stock.
 
It’s hard to imagine, but this month Buster Welch will celebrate his 79th birthday. And while Buster enjoys recalling the past as much as anyone, he certainly doesn’t dwell in it. As a stockman with more than a thousand head of Angus cattle to tend, he’s always looking ahead to the next breeding season, the next calving season, the next branding, the next market day.

Consider for a moment Buster’s favorite quote:
“The greater part of our happiness depends on our disposition and not our circumstances.” —Martha Washington

Buster’s disposition has always compelled him to make the most of his circumstances. His inherent optimism is part of what attracts people to him, and although it’s been some time since Buster was center stage in the cutting arena, he continues to be a fascinating figure.

Just consider his resume: three hall of fame inductions, four NCHA world championships, five NCHA Futurity championships and numerous horseman and cattleman awards.

Welch has accepted each accolade with grace and gratitude. He’s unwilling to prioritize, but, in truth, the Foy Proctor Cowman’s Award is probably nearest and dearest to him. This is because although his success in the horse world is legendary, he rode the crest of that wave with relative ease. Navigating drought and a fickle cattle market has been a more challenging chess match—and the game is ongoing.

West Texas Roots
Buster did not begin life under the best of circumstances. He was born on May 23, 1928, near Sterling City, Texas. Appendicitis claimed his mother when he was only 6 weeks old, so his grandparents stepped in to raise him. His granddad, Bud Welch, was a retired Mills County sheriff and stock farmer. He introduced Buster to horses and cattle at a tender age.

Buster’s dad, Charles Welch, rode pipeline for The Atlantic Oil Company. When he remarried, he reclaimed Buster and settled his family in Midland, Texas, his brood then having grown to include 12 children.

Having been doted on by his grandparents, Buster admits he never really adjusted to life among so many siblings. At age 14, he stole away in the night on a horse named Handsome Harry, who at first bucked so hard it pitched the young man forward and Buster’s sheepskin coat caught on the saddle horn. By the time he righted himself, he didn’t have one button left on his jacket.

With visions of being a cowboy, Buster pointed his horse into the cold south wind and rode all night and into the next day, clutching his coat about him. It was 45 miles to Foy and Leonard Proctor’s ranch, then one of the largest cattle operations in West Texas, and Foy hired Buster despite his young age. It was 1942, World War II was in full swing and good men were in short supply.

It was a lucky place to land, says Buster. The Proctors were college educated, “straight shooting” and had a strong work ethic.
“I was more of a flunkie than anything else,” Buster recalls. “People used to talk about the energy shortage back in the ’70s. Heck, they didn’t know what an energy shortage was. I was 16 before I ever knew my name wasn’t ‘Get Wood.’ ”

Buster broke colts and held the cuts while Foy and Leonard worked cattle. He admired their quiet way of riding. Their horses ran hard, stopped straight and rolled right back through themselves. An even more valuable impression was Buster’s revelation that the success or failure of a ranch depends on how the herd is shaped—what is kept, what is culled. Buster longed to make those cuts.

Bud Wellman, a Texas history professor and longtime friend of Buster’s, began chronicling the cowboy’s exploits some years ago. While doing so, he interviewed Foy Proctor, who was then in his 90s. Foy told Wellman, “Buster was like the other cowboys—only smarter.”

Buster stayed with the Proctors for two years, but when he found himself sharing camp with a man who turned mean with drink, Buster felt it prudent to lend a hand elsewhere.
At 16, he left to take a job at Roy Parks’ ranch near Odessa, Texas.
“I wanted to get closer to town—to the perfume and the gas fumes,” Buster laughs.

He stayed at the Parks’ ranch long enough for Roy Junior to help him develop his roping skills, and to observe Rastus MacIntosh and Andy Hensley work cattle. Buster would later come up against Hensley and the horse named Royal King in the show pen. “They were hard to beat,” he says.