Country Lifestyles
December 2016 Profile, Rusty Riddle – The Riddle Way
By Jessica Crabtree
A large personality comes to mind when describing Rusty Riddle, formerly known as “the happy red head.” “Rusty’s approach to life has always been determination. Whatever it took to get something done, that was Rusty’s way,” said Riddle’s wife, Dollie. She would know after 42 years of marriage.
When reminiscing about a young Riddle, Dollie recalls their first time meeting and early years of dating, “His reputation preceded him,” she laughed. “We just lived life to the fullest back then! That was my motto. We had a lot of fun,” Riddle interjects. The “back then” meant his years of rodeoing professionally as a bareback rider, a career that spanned 10 years.
Riddle was born in 1948, the oldest of four children. The family called Weatherford home. Attending school first at Granbury, then when the bus route finally reached their rural home, he completed school and graduated from Weatherford High School. Riddle’s time as a youth was consumed with work. At six years old, his family bought a dairy. By the age of 10, he and his younger brother, age nine, were running the business. “We would get up in the morning before school and milk then get home from school and milk again,” he explained. “Me and my brother would ride the milk cows. One day we’d ride her with a saddle, then next maybe with a bull rope,” he chuckled. “We rode whatever we could find. If it moved, we’d ride it,” Riddle said.
By the age of 15 his parents divorced and the dairy was sold. “At that point, I’d seen all the black and white cows I’d wanted to. I got my first taste of bareback riding and that was all it took,” he assured. By 16 Riddle was traveling and competing in rodeos. Starting out, the young cowboy wanted to do it all, every event. When he was 18 Riddle found Tommy Steiner from Austin and began working for him feeding livestock and driving trucks. That was the young man’s first taste of pro rodeo. The time allowed Riddle to gain experience practicing and study other competitors.
In 1968, Riddle obtained his PRCA card. With no time to spare, the rodeo cowboy hit the ground running, traveling and competing. “Like they say, it’s not when you get hurt, it’s how bad in rodeo,” Riddle said. In 1970 Riddle was in Jackson, Miss. when a bull stepped on him, breaking all his ribs on one side, collapsing his lung. The serious injury put him out the rest of the year. That is when Riddle drew the line, opting to only ride bareback horses, “I just saw I could ride bareback horses a little better and saw there was more opportunity there for me.”
To read more pick up a copy of the December 2016 NTFR issue. To subscribe call 940-872-5922.
Riddle riding bareback at the Weatherford rodeo in 1977. (Photo courtesy of Dollie Riddle)
Riddle riding at Calgary in 1974 on Reg Kesler’s Country Cousin. (Photo courtesy of Dollie Riddle)
As many of you know, I am a big fan of cowboy music and musicians. Thanks to my many years on the road with the great Don Edwards and Red Steagall, I, like many find the true west is best defined by those who sing its praises.
My friend and fellow musician Brenn Hill is making his mark in the cowboy world by writing and singing real songs that describe the west and the cowboy way of life exquisitely. His latest CD “Horses Of War” is a prime example of what separates this Utah cowboy from the herd. After listening it’s easy to understand why the late Don Edwards described Brenn as a “Role model for the next generation of cowboy singer/songwriters.”
To read more, pick up a copy of the December issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By Dani Blackburn
North Texas has much to be proud of in the next generation of rodeo athletes destined for greatness. Two of those athletes are barrel racers Charli Snow and Bayler Smith of Nocona, who are headed to the Junior World Finals in Las Vegas this month.
With a drive for success, a passion for their horses, and a dedication to the sport, the teens are not only a force to be reckoned with inside the arena, but great representatives of rodeo outside the arena.
To read more, pick up a copy of the December issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By Dal Houston
While many exchanges are complex, the explanation for how a deferred exchange works is a simple one.
Tax Consequences
The first element of an exchange to understand is the tax consequences of the sale of a business, investment and/or productive piece of real estate. There are two aspects that can trigger a tax consequence for the taxpayer.
The first type of taxable event occurs when the present sales value of the property is more than the taxpayer’s initial purchase price. This difference is a capital gain, which is subject to capital gains tax. The second type of taxable event is depreciation recapture, which is when the present sales value of the property exceeds the taxpayer’s adjusted basis in the property. The adjusted basis is the taxpayer’s initial purchase price, with adjustments made from depreciation deductions where the taxpayer has taken on the improvements and additions to the property. It is important to note that depreciation recapture is taxed at the taxpayer’s ordinary tax rate. Obviously, many sales involve both depreciation recapture and capital gains.
To read more, pick up a copy of the November issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
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