McKee is one of many who recognize that Jurrius certainly has clout when it comes to furthering the tribe's interests.

Jurrius used contacts at the Department of the Interior to get a cooperative BIA superintendent transferred to Utah. This month he and some of his employees were in Washington, D.C., lobbying for a new energy bill.

Jurrius likens himself to an Old West gunslinger hired to clean up the town.

"I'm the economic sheriff," he said. "They have me to make all these changes and take all the bullets and the criticism."

Awakening giant

Jurrius turned the tribe's old way of doing business on its ear. Rather than passively collecting royalty checks from the 20 oil and gas companies operating on the reservation, it took an active role in renegotiating contracts more to its favor.

"The sleeping giant woke up," Jurrius said.

The awakening jolted the oil companies on the reservation. They didn't like the new, assertive Ute tribe. They were not only upset but nervous.

Now all but two work with the tribe. One of those that declined, Denver-based Miller, Dyer & Co., has newfound respect for the Utes.

"Don't blame the industry for not immediately accepting the tribe as a new partner; they really prefer the old, easy to get along with (tribe)," John E. Dyer and Kyle R. Miller wrote in a letter to the Utes.

They described Jurrius as a "fierce competitor" and "loyal advocate for the tribe."

Under new agreements, oil producers are obligated to drill on the land they lease or face hefty fines or even lose the lease. The tribe probes the ground for potential productivity before marketing a site. In the past three years, it has leased 300,000 new acres.

Each oil rig employs 60 to 80 people, from geologists to pipe layers to construction workers.

Jurrius was dumbfounded when he arrived to find the Utes earning less than 1 percent on their investments.

Though the tribe had more than several hundred million in federal water settlement funds, it wasn't making use of the money. Jurrius, over the objections of several tribal leaders, obtained permission to withdraw $190 million for investment.

Cameron Cuch says the tribe will continue to move forward into the black.

"If you look at the history of our people, we've lost a lot," he said. "We are trying to provide for today but also for future generations. That's why this plan has been established, and that's why it's working."

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Today: New thinking energizes tribal economies

Monday: Poor people, rich lands

Tuesday: Tradition vs. progress?

Wednesday: Thinking outside the box

Thursday: Spanning two worlds

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E-mail: romboy@desnews.com; lucy@desnews.com