Duncan Vezain: A Montana Cowboy’s Life of Rodeo, Recovery & Western Movies

“I don’t want to be remembered. I want to outlive everybody.” Montana cowboy, horse trainer, and film wrangler Duncan joins Mary O’Neill Phillips at Yellowstone Film Ranch for a Country Outdoors conversation about rodeo, recovery, and a life that sounds like a Western movie. From riding a bull with a broken arm to surviving devastating injuries and learning to speak again, Duncan shares his extraordinary experiences with honesty and humor. He opens up about alcohol addiction, rehab, relapse, and sobriety—and the family, freedom, and work that give his life meaning. The conversation follows his unexpected path from horseshoeing and custom saddle making to stagecoach driving, backcountry horse packing, and wrangling horses for Western films. Along the way, he talks about traveling to Australia, building a Montana property with horsepower, and turning handmade fur coats into another business. It’s a candid look at cowboy life, Western craftsmanship, second chances, and finding joy in the everyday. Content note: This episode includes discussion of a self-inflicted gunshot injury, alcohol addiction, serious injuries, and death.