Born in Nucla, Colorado, March 1, 1941, Carl Nels (BUD) Benson, was 81 years old when he rode a bronc through the gates of heaven on April 19, 2022, after losing his five year battle with an Atypical Parkinsons disorder. He was at home in Sonoita, AZ, surrounded by family. A man with a magnetic personality and a genuine love of life and people, he is remembered with fondness and respect by everyone who had the good fortune to be a part of his life.
As a boy growing up in the tiny rural area that was Nucla, Bud enjoyed an idyllic childhood exploring the Uncompahgre wilderness on a horse, hunting, fishing, and learning to be a cowboy from the old ranchers who took him under their wing. Those mountains became the inspiration that would shape him and guide him throughout his entire life.
Although Bud left for a few years to “see” the world, working for Leddy Brothers Boot Co. in Fort Worth, Texas, and trying his hand in the rodeo arena, the call of the Mountain took him back to Nucla. Job opportunities were limited to uranium mining, coal mining, and ranching. Thus, Bud worked for a short time mining uranium before he signed on with Peabody Coal Co. All of his free time, however, was devoted to cowboying and rodeoing. He spent many long hours in the saddle with only the Mountain for company, but for Bud, it was enough. The Mountain owned him. It completed him and fulfilled him.
Bud worked for Peabody Coal Co. until retirement, providing for his family, building his ranch and outfitting. A transfer to Montana necessitated selling the ranch, but he took his horses and his love for the Mountain with him. Upon retirement, Bud devoted his time to rodeoing, a passion he shared with his wife, Teresa. Together they traveled the western United States, seeing new places, making new friends, and thriving on the rodeo way of life. They called Cave Creek, AZ, home for over ten years before moving to Sonoita, AZ, a small ranching community, composed of rolling grasslands and surrounded by six mountain ranges. Bud continued to return to his Mountain numerous times throughout each year to ride, hunt, pack and renew his spirit.
A living manifestation of the phrase, Joie de Vivre, (Joy of Living), Bud's energy and enthusiasm were boundless. No job, big or small, in good weather or bad, could discourage him. He communicated that to his friends and his family. His friends remember him for his kindness and generosity, and say simply, “He was a good man and a good cowboy!”
Bud is survived by his wife, Teresa; son, Brock (Troy Masters); step son, Dale Davies; grandson, Beck; sister, Carleen (David Chiles); and nephews, Clifford, Alan, and Wesley Chiles. He was preceded in death by his parents, Carl and Sylvia Benson, a son, Bobby, and ex-wife, Rita Ann.
Arrangements for a Celebration of Life will be made and published by the family at a later date.
SHARE OBITUARY
v.1.8.17