From 1995-2000, Joe Beaver won three All-Around World Championships and he probably would’ve done it sooner if he didn’t have to compete with the most versatile roughstock rider of all time, Ty Murray.
“When I was up at a performance and Ty Murray was up the same, I made up a point to ride up and watch him in every event,” Beaver said. “It was of great enjoyment to me, because I got to witness somebody that wasn’t just dominant in one event and carried a couple, that guy was bad in all three events.”
Before Beaver won his first All-Around Gold Buckle in 1995, Murray had won six in a row from 1989-1994. However, he experienced the downside of getting on that many horses and bulls a year and injuries started piling up, which opened the door for Beaver.
“If I was going to be beat by someone in the All-Around, over and over and over, it was okay to be beat by Ty Murray,” Beaver said. “Because he was a true winner.”
Beaver finished his career with 18 NFR qualifications in tie-down roping and four in team roping and according to 26-time PRCA World Champion Trevor Brazile, no one has transitioned from calf roping to heading like Joe Beaver did.
“All-around cowboys started as all-around cowboys, Joe B was a great calf roper and decided he was going to team rope and did it. That sounds really easy when you say it fast, but I haven’t seen people be able to do that since Joe B,” Brazile said. “He picked up a head rope and not only did it, but did it at the highest level.”
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