Ninety-Three Year Old Cowboy Has a Saddle Bag Full of Tricks

Hub Hubbell is the kind of man whose life story sounds like the stuff of folk legend: He’s been a rodeo star, a trick shooter, a movie stunt double and a stock car racer. And at 93, he hardly shows any signs of slowing down. Manatee County’s most famous cowboy has collected a lifetime of stories that he is more than happy to share.

Hubbell came out to on Friday morning to do a lasso demonstration and share a handful of his stories with agriculture students from the school’s Science and Health Academy and beginning business students from the Business and International Studies Academy.

The students are reading A Land Remembered, a best-selling 1984 historical fiction set in pioneer Florida. The novel covers more than a century of Florida history ranging from 1858 to 1968.

Braden River High School reading teacher, Susan Busby, teamed up with business teacher, Mary Thompson, to figure out a way to make the novel come to life for their students. Hub Hubbell was their answer.

“After they had a chance to meet Hub, we asked the students if they could imagine him as a character from the book and a lot of them said ‘Yeah, I can see that,’” Busby said.

Born in 1918, Hubbell spent the majority of his youth ranching in the Ocala area. He attended school through the eighth grade, which he recalled was typical for the time.

“Back when I was your age, you had to be one of the really rich kids to make it all the way through high school,” Hubbell told the students.

“And during the Depression,” he added, “there weren’t many of those.”

During his childhood and teenage years, Hubbell worked on a farm. Following his completion of the eighth grade, he began his career as a house painter, making 50 cents per hour.

“Back then I thought 50 cents an hour sounded like a pretty good deal,” he said.

With no experience nor proper equipment, Hubbell entered his first rodeo in 1932 and quickly realized how much he enjoyed the sport.

He enlisted in the Armed Services during World War II and was stationed at an air base in Valdosta, Georgia. He took care of horses in Valdosta and frequently found himself putting his rodeo skills to use when he needed to get cows off the runway.

When his military service ended, he returned to the rodeo where he made a reputation for himself as a bronco rider, calf roper, horse trainer and even rodeo clown. When the announcer got sick one night, he took over the microphone initiating his successful career as a rodeo announcer.

In 1958 he became an announcer for the rodeo at New York's Madison Square Garden. He also worked as the radio announcer for several National Finals and the Cowtown Rodeo in New Jersey – the longest running rodeo, and one of the first televised in the United States.

Hubbell dabbled in Hollywood entertainment as well. In 1950 he dyed his hair red to double for the Ryder. In 1954, he doubled for prolific Hollywood actor, Gary Cooper, in the opening scene of Springfield Rifle.

Hubbell was also recognized on the front page of The Washington Post when he hand-delivered a rodeo invitation to President Lyndon B. Johnson on horseback in the fashion of a Pony Express messenger.

Hubbell's heart, though, has always been with the rodeo. While he was on the rodeo circuit in 1952, he lassoed Eunice, a pretty barrel racer and trick rider. It was love at first sight and the couple were wed on horseback within three weeks of meeting.

They remained together for more than 50 years, until Eunice passed away in 2009.

The pair took a number of acts on the road and became known as “The Shooting Hubbells” for their trick shooting show, in which Hub would shot items perched on Eunice’s head. In more recent years, they entertained at county fairs with their chuck wagon, a type of wagon used by 19th century pioneers to transport food, cooking and medical supplies.

Neither age nor injury has steered Hubbell away from his passion for all things rodeo. When he was 89 years old, he broke his neck, leg, and several ribs when his horse tripped into a fence post hole.

A shoulder injury prevented him from demonstrating elaborate lasso maneuvers on Friday, but Hubbell’s dexterous mastery of the spinning rope was indicative of his talent.

In recent years, Hubbell has turned much of his attention to training his trick pony, Silver, whose most unique trick is creating abstract “Modern Art” paintings. Using Silver’s favorite treats – apple sauce and carrots – Hubbell taught the pony to grasp a paintbrush in its mouth and use it to dab colorful swatches of paint on canvas.

The students who attended Hubbell’s demonstration were enthralled by his stories and tricks – and most of all, his age.

“I think they were just fascinated that someone who is 93 years old was here,” Busby said of the first batch of teenagers who met Hubbell.

As the cowboy rose to speak for a second time on Friday, dozens of bustling teenagers fell quiet in a matter of moments – an impressive feat for a public speaker of any age.

 “This guy is 93 years old,” one of the students near back of the audience said to his classmate. “Not many people live that long, let alone spin lassos.”