DERRICK BEGAY - INTERVIEW

Q - How old were you when you started roping?

A - That is unknown. Nobody knows that. I do not know how old I was when I first swung a rope. I was born into it, always around it. My dad, grandfather, uncles, all my family rope. I am 37 years old now, and I was just born into it.

Q - You’ve been to the NFR 8 times, is the challenge to perform at that level still exciting?

A - Yes it is! I am getting older every year. Competing is always a great feeling. I am addicted to it.

Q - You finished 4th at the American Rodeo, how did that feel?

A - I finished 3rd. It was bittersweet. I was not planning to go to this event and towards the end of the year we got qualified. Cory Petska talked me into going, and I got another partner Matt Sherwood. We advanced through the qualifiers. Only 16 teams are allowed, and 10 teams are from last year’s top standings. The other 6 are chosen through the qualifiers. They started with 194 teams that had to be narrowed down to 6 teams, so that is a tough process. Every time we caught a steer we kept moving forward and the chances are slim to even get to the final 4. 194 of the best teams in World, we get to the finals and it did not go the way we wanted. On the last steer we were eligible to win the million dollar prize, so that made it bittersweet. I wish I had a better start on that last one. I wish I had done that better. At one point in time I had the chance to win a million dollars and I will try again. Today there are a lot of guys that rope, so some luck, not just talent is involved to win.

Q - How important is the horse in Team Roping?

A - You cannot do it without the horse! It take two, and the horse does most of the work. The better your horse is makes it easier to do your job. Better off staying home if you don’t have something good to ride! You cannot do it without a good horse - anyone is only as good as their horse. In bronc riding, steer wrestling, calf roping, it is the horse that determines if you have a chance to win. In all events, the horse is the reason you have a chance to win. You have to draw a good steer too, but day in and day out a cowboy has to have a good horse, no matter if he brings that horse to the event, or draws the horse to ride. My horse is named “Swagger”, I bought him from a friend who lives about 30 miles from me in 2006. He was already a good horse. My motto that I believe in and tell anyone that asks is, “If you LOVE the horse buy him, worry about how to handle the finances later, if you LIKE the horse don’t buy him.” That sounds simple, but it is TRUE! Follow that rule and it won’t let you down.

Q - Do you train your own horses?

A - No, not really. The way for me to get a horse is to buy a younger one that is not quite finished. Then you finish him the way you want. So, I guess if you call that horse training, I do some training.

It’s not affordable to buy a finished horse today. A lot of horse traders are in this market. They have a good horse worth say $7,500.00, and they price him at 10 to 30 grand.

They say I want the most money off this sale, and they get it. They look at the buyer and say, they really want this one, they look like they have the money, etc.

That makes it hard to really know what a good horse is worth, and what the market for a good one really is. I don’t blame them for selling the horse for a high price, it just hurts the market for people getting into the sport, or wanting to move up or event the guys just starting.

Q - What do you look for in a team roping horse?

A - Something with speed, but a good all around horse is what it all comes down to. I want a horse that looks good, with a long mane and tail, good to be around, hauls in the trailer, good minded, good work ethic, and good steady disposition. Now that is something you can win on. They have to score good, that is how they stand in the box and go when you are ready to go. Then run to the steer as fast as they can, then handle the turn and steer and finish. The number one thing is can they score? Do they stand still, and wait for the rider to signal go? When it’s time to go, is it lightening fast? Rating the steer, turning, finishing, that is all important. It comes down to about four important things, but if they cannot score out of the box, then you don’t have much.

Q - How do you keep your horses shod?

A - My Uncle Carl is my farrier. He carries all his tools in one hand. He is a plain ole farrier, nothing fancy. No grinders, no special equipment or tools, nothing fancy. He lets a horse be a horse, he does not change them. Nothing crazy, nothing fancy. Sometimes when I am on the road I need help, and I find someone through the other guys that is liked and stick to nothing fancy. I had one guy say, “Well that will be $150.00” and I said to myself, that is not for me. I have been told and heard over and over again, “Every 6 weeks.” I could not tell you the date or how many weeks its been since my horses got shod last. I look at each horse and their feet, that tells me when they need to be shod. Some horses need it every 6 weeks, other horses longer. Some horses feet grow faster, some grow slower. The horses feet tell you when they need to be shod, you have to watch them.

I was 3 years old when this photo was taken with Clay O’Brien Cooper after he won his first World Championship.

“Cowboys & Indians” Erich Rogers (left) Derrick Begay (middle) Aaron Tsinigine (right)

Erich Rogers, Sherry Cervi and I hanging out in Wal-mart between rounds at the Turquoise circuit finals in NM. Team Arizona!

Q - What advice can you give to people that want to win at team roping?

A - There are a 1,000 different things I could say. If you have talent, the 1,000 things are different, than the 1,000 I have for if you just want to rope better. The first thing is the same for everyone, if you are not sure, “You better love it to do it!” Love for Team Roping is the best teacher you can have, otherwise practice is like a job. “I love being with horses, being around it, living it, living life with a rope in my hand.” Also, “When I was younger, I didn’t even know I was roping, I was just living.” “I loved Roping so much I did not even think about it” Right now, for me, it is kinda more like a job. I have a Rodeo this weekend, I better go and ride my horse. The last 3 to 4 years, it has become a bit more like a job. Time, age, my little girl, my cattle and family are taking up more of my time. But I am all in, I am ready, to really go for it! I don’t have anything to prove to anyone else anymore. I have been there and one it. I have turned over a lot of rocks being on the road a lot. Who what is hardest is being on the road. It’s still great to be able to say “OK, I gotta go do this.” Still doing this is a good

Q - As a Native American, have you been discriminated against in the roping arena?

A - NO. Not in the Roping or Rodeo community, no. My whole life I have never come across it in this industry. I am a true Native American Navajo. Born on the Reservation, raised on the Reservation and live on the Reservation with my entire family. The Navajo Reservation is the largest in the World (The sprawling Navajo reservation, located in parts of Arizona, Utah and New Mexico, is the largest and most populous Indian reservation, with 14 million acres of land and a population of 169,321), my family are all here. I live in a town called Seba Dalkai near Winslow, Arizona.