Tales of a Wyoming Cowboy
Memoir / Nonfiction
Date Published: October 16, 2006
Publisher: The Lowell Press
Camp Coffee is not just about a person-Grant Beck-and his stories, it’s
about a way of life-the cowboy way of life. Most people will never feel the
warmth of a high mountain campfire or experience the eye-burning smoke
wafting from the branding coals. Few will have any firsthand experience of
what the American cowboy was all about. Lots of books have been penned about
lots of cowboys, both fictitous and real. But few cowboys have touched as
many people in the encouraging way that Grant Beck has through his chosen
profession. This is a must-have volume for all that are drawn to the essence
of the western experience.
EXCERPT
Camp Coffee is not just about a person – Grant Beck – and his stories, it’s about a way of life – the cowboy way of life. Most of our children, but especially their children, will never feel the warmth of a high mountain camp fire or eye-burning smoke off the branding coals. The twentieth century half-heartedly embraced the legacy of the American West. Few born into this century will have any firsthand experience of what the American cowboy was all about. Lots of books have been penned about lots of cowboys, both fictitious and real. But few cowboys have touched as many people in the encouraging way that Grant has through his chosen profession.
While destiny is a debatable notion, I certainly feel there was some higher order leading me to Pinedale, Wyoming, the Two Bar Spear Ranch, and Grant Beck. For as long as I can remember I wanted to be a cowboy.
Heading west from Kansas City to Wyoming in a ’66 Mustang, I was fully prepared to trade-in my fuel burner for a hay burner.
Throughout the course of scribing these stories, Willie Nelson’s words ring as true for me now as they did the first time I heard his hit song: “I grew up dreaming of being a cowboy, and lovin’ the cowboy way. Pursuing the life of my high ridin’ heroes…”
Grant Beck is one of my high ridin’ heroes in much the same way his older brother, Wells Beck, was for him. While I chose not to make a career of cowboying, I am privileged to know the man and his life, and compelled to share what I learned with anyone interested in saddling up.
So much of who we evolve to be is tied into those we know and what we’ve done. If you’re blessed, you can thank your parents, as I can, for providing a solid foundation. Hopefully, you all are lucky enough to have met a number of people who’ve made a real difference in your life – like Grant has for me and for so many others. The distinction in the West is that the meaningful difference can come from both the two-legged and four-legged variety. And with a cowboy you can rarely separate the two.
About the Book
Bob Sullivan, Jr. of Kansas City dreamed of being a cowboy from his
earliest years. Not until an abrupt disillusionment with college athletics
in 1975 did he drop out of school and move to Wyoming to pursue his dream at
age 19. There he met and worked for Grant Beck at the Two Bar Spear Ranch in
Pinedale, WY which had a life-changing impact on the author’s life. His
experiences in Wyoming and subsequent relationship with Grant Beck over the
next 30 years inspired Sullivan to share the remarkable story of Grant Beck
with others.
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