Hey all!

I just want to remind everyone about the upcoming Miss Rodeo Utah Fundraiser.  The fundraiser will be held at the Legacy Events Center in Farmington, October 5th at 6pm.   Cost is $8 a person.

We will be having dinner, and a live and silent auction.  As well as a Mr. Rodeo Utah Contest, and live musical entertainment by Stampede.  Now you may have noticed that there is a typo on our invitations, please disregard that, and help us welcome Stampede to this great event!

So if you’re interested traveling to Hawaii, or Cabo, picking up some new jewelry and home decor, or maybe just filling your stomach and listening to a great band all for a good cause, make sure you come to the Miss Rodeo Utah Fundraiser Oct 5th. 

For more information please join our Facebook Event group, keep an eye on your mail box for a personal invitation, or simply contact Ogden Pioneer Days!

Fewww… the Miss Rodeo America Application has been completed and mailed in!  As I walked out of the Post Office I thought of how relived I was that I had got everything in on time, and that I could move on to the next big thing: The Fundraiser.  I also thought about all my future Miss Rodeo Utahs.  Just a word of advice for you ladies; don’t stress about the application because it is very do-able, do start making a list of all your accomplishments because those are the types of things that can be hard to remember under pressure. 

It has been a busy month, and I wouldn’t have it any other way, so I have a lot to tell you about and I hope you stay interested through the entire post!   I was lucky enough to attend the Miss Tomato Days Contest as well as the Tomato Days Rodeo.  Congratulations to Mackenzie Maughan, Queen.  Jamie Udell, first attendant.  And Elisa Lewis, second attendant.   Tomato Days is a great local rodeo held in Hooper, UT.  If you have never been I would recommend adding it to your list of yearly rodeos.  It is truly unique and great for the whole family. 

While in Hooper I learned, or at least was reminded, how great horse people are.  Now hopefully you know that by horse people I am referring to this amazing community that covers our nation.  It is a group of people that hold friendship, giving, and a love for horses higher than any competition.  My rodeo horse was out of commission for the week and I had hauled my grandpa’s horse to Hooper Tomato Days for the grand entry.  Upon arriving I realized that my horse was not going to perform the way I needed her to.  Within minutes a friend of mine offered to let me use her horse, on the condition that she run flags on the horse and switch horses with me afterward.  Her horse worked beautifully, and I couldn’t be more grateful for her generosity.   

In my travels this month I was also able to go to two performances of the Evanston Rodeo.  I had a great time with Miss Rodeo Wyoming, Erin Hoffron.  I also found my dream horse….who isn’t for sale.   Since I couldn’t sneak my horse, FedX, home in the bed of my Larry H. Miller Dodge Truck I settled for using him both nights while in Evanston.  After an embarrassing moment, Erin taught me a very valuable lesson.   She told me a story about something that had happened to her at the beginning of her reign and laughingly explained that this year isn’t going to be perfect and to just roll with the punches.  So thank you to Erin for being so understanding, and making me smile.

Evanston was also the first time that I had worn the black Miss Rodeo Utah chaps.  I knew every little about the chaps and was determined to find out more about them within the week.  Surprisingly, the very first person I asked was able to give me more than a simple answer.  She was the original owner of the chaps.  Jennifer Flint had donated the chaps after her reign as Miss Rodeo Utah because she felt that the following girls deserved to start out their year with a pair of chaps.  In 2007 Jenna Whitaker had a duplicate pair of the chaps made for Jennifer, as a thank you for giving up something that was so important to her.  I admire Jennifer for her seemingly small sacrifice that has blessed so many young women, many of which she didn’t know at the time (such as myself.)   I also had to tease Jennifer a little while traveling down memory lane.  She said that she had the chaps made extra long so taller girls could wear them, well I must be extra extra tall because they were a little short on me.  With that in mind, I also told her that I was genuinely worried I wasn’t going to get them done up around my hips.  She laughed and told me she was a size zero while she was Miss Rodeo Utah, and let’s just say…. I am not a size zero!

I know more now than ever, I am learning new things every day.  Being Miss Rodeo Utah has truly blessed my life with experiences and friendships that I may have never had otherwise.  I hope that each of us takes the time to realize that there are new things to be learned every day, and that growing and changing is a part of life.  Never be afraid to listen to someone’s advice, and remember it is okay to love the messenger and discard the message.    God bless.