Jimmy Hurdstrom (Jefferson White) makes an effort to ride a rodeo horse in the Season 3 finale of the Paramount Network’s contemporary western “Yellowstone,” despite the fact that his previous attempt to do so ended in a potentially fatal injury. Jimmy’s return to rodeo riding also goes horribly wrong when his horse bucks, knocking him unconscious to the ground.
After this incident, some “Yellowstone” viewers believed Jimmy’s time on the show would be permanently finished. However, Season 4 revealed that although though Jimmy survived the incident, his decision to compete in the rodeo went against the intentions of John Dutton, his boss and the ranch’s patriarch (Kevin Costner). As a result of his second injury, he is no longer permitted to work as a ranch hand at Dutton Ranch. Jimmy is now residing at the 6666 Ranch in Texas as of Season 4 to gain experience as a cowboy.
Soon after arriving at 6666 Ranch in Season 4 Episode 5, Jimmy finds an elderly horse trainer who the local foreman identifies as Buster Welch, a prominent figure in the Texas horse riding community.
Buster Welch is a Texas legend
Buster Welch is known for his expertise in horse cutting, according to a brief biography posted on the website of the American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame, where he was admitted in 2004. In essence, this is a sport where participants show off their horseback herding prowess (via Horse Canada). Welch finished first four times in a row at the World Championship Futurity competition of the National Horse Cutting Association. Additionally, he has worked at the 6666 Ranch among other places at various points in his career. In reality, the 6666 Ranch website lists Welch as the rider of Peppy San Badger, a horse with which he won a National Cutting Horse Association Futurity and whose pedigree they rank as the second-best in ranch horse history.
The 6666 Ranch foreman tells Jimmy after his appearance in “Yellowstone” that “there are three gods in Texas: the Almighty himself, Buster Welch, and George Strait.” Although this may be exaggerated, Welch is nonetheless a prominent figure in his field and will be instantly identifiable to viewers who are familiar with the sport of horse cutting.
