ProRodeo Sports News - June 26, 2020

was 21st in the June 22 team roping heeler world standings with $13,832. “It’s been a tough year for everybody with COVID-19,” de la Cruz said. “Cowboys want to get back to rodeos, and I’m glad to see rodeos are back. I’ve been working hard with my horsemanship and developing more of a relationship with my horses and keeping my horsepower going. That has been one of my main focuses this year, especially with the time off we had. I got a lot of outside horses to ride from some friends of mine, and they were nice horses and I was able to work on my horsemanship and riding. I feel like I have been grinding harder now than I ever have.” This season, de la Cruz’s primary horse has been Lucky, 10. “I feel rodeo horses don’t start hitting their prime until they get into double digits (in age),” he said. “I feel like Lucky is just starting to come into his own. He’s really athletic. I have had a lot of heel horses, and he’s one of the fastest horses I’ve ridden. “He also has a different personality. I’ve never really been around a horse like him. He trots a lot, and he’s a hyperactive type of horse. I spend most of my time trying to keep my heart rate down, and if I can keep my heart rate down, it keeps him calm. He loves to rodeo. He hears the announcer and he starts prancing and dancing.” At times, de la Cruz also rides Muddy Waters, 11. “Muddy just got back from an injury he (suffered) last year,” de la Cruz said. “I feel like right now I have some of the best horses I have ever had in my career. I have been working really, really hard at it as far as trying to develop a relationship with some of these horses. They are trying hard and they are a member of your team and a member of your family.” De la Cruz, who joined the PRCA in December 2003, hasn’t always had that mindset. “When I started my career, it was all about trying to catch two feet and trying to win,” he said. “I almost felt like the horse was a machine to me, like they weren’t allowed to mess up or have an off day. Now, I try and develop more of a relationship with my horse, so if he has an off day, I will take a step back and look at things. Maybe he’s a little sore and I need to give him a week or two off to heal up.” On June 13, at the Mesquite (Texas) Championship Rodeo De la Cruz partnered with header Jaxson Tucker, 18. De la Cruz plans to rope with Tucker the remainder of the season. Their next rodeo is the Oakley Independence Day Rodeo in Oakley City, Utah, June 30. “There are a lot of young guys who are at the top of their game,” de la Cruz said. “I feel like Jaxson is a really good kid. He has a really good attitude and a good set of horses. I feel like he hangs out with the right guys – he spends a lot of time with Luke Brown, Jade Corkill, Travis Graves and Paul Eaves. I have had my eye on him for the last year, and I feel like he’s one of the young, up-and-comers.” De la Cruz believes roping with someone half his age will rejuvenate him. “I’m 37 now, and I have three kids and a wife, and I’m trying to provide with my rope still,” de la Cruz said. “I remember when I was Jaxson’s age, and I feel like I was a roping fool back then. I didn’t have a care in the world. You wake up in the morning and think about roping, and you lay down and go to bed and think about roping. I have a lot of different things on my mind now, but when I’m around Jaxson I remember the kid I was when I was 19 wanting to go out there and how much I craved it.” De la Cruz and his wife, Arena, have been married 12 years. They have three boys: Camilo, 10, Gio, 8, and Zorro, 4. They live in Casa Grande, Ariz. Tucker is thrilled to team with de la Cruz. “I have known Cesar for a long time, and he’s just a really good guy,” said Tucker, who rides his horse, MCHammer. “I turned 18 (in October), and he asked to rope. I was really pumped up. It’s a big deal for me to be a rookie and get the chance to rope with Cesar, who has won about everything there is to win. I have some good horses and a good partner, and I’m going to do the best I can to turn every steer for him.”

Ric Andersen photo Cesar de la Cruz, above, is shown in action at the National Western Stock Show and Rodeo in Denver in January. De la Cruz partnered with team roping header Jaxson Tucker in June. They are planning to rope together the remainder of the season.

Photo courtesy Cesar De la Cruz De la Cruz poses with his son, Camilo, 10, back row, wife, Arena, and sons Zorro, 4, front left, and Gio, 8.

ProRodeo Sports News 6/26/2020

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