Carson, IA

July 30-August 1, 2009 I made an unexpected appearance at the Carson rodeo. Carson is located about a half an hour southeast of my hometown of Underwood, IA and they put on a great PRCA rodeo every year. Earlier in the week I got a call as the stock contractor was in need of more girls to help out with the opening and closing ceremonies; horses would be provided. So Thursday July 30 I drove down to Carson where I met the people I would be riding for. They explained to me along with some other girls helping what we would do for the opening. Then I met Willy the horse I would be riding. All of the girls dressed up in the black shirts with red, white, and blue fringe along with the white and blue chaps of the contractor (J and S). For the opening ceremony that night we posted sponsor flags for the grand entry serpentine. Also at the Carson rodeo was Shelby Chapman, Miss Teen Rodeo Iowa. As the rodeo got underway I went and sat with my family who had come down to take in some great rodeo action and I noticed Shelby was the only queen there. Later I talked to her and the stock contractor and it was decided that I would bring a horse down the next couple of days and participate as Miss URA as well. For the closing ceremony we rode back in the arena with the sponsor flags then waved to the crowd as they all started to leave.

They next day I brought Tio along as well as 5 boxes of cucumbers that my neighbor Craig Hough donated for the hospitality tent to use and had sent along with me. As I drove down through the contestant parking I realized it was rather narrow. When we neared the end I stopped at the hospitality tent and unloaded the cucumbers. There was no where to turn around and both sides were quite full with trailers. Luckily someone who saw my plight was able to assist me in finding a place to park that I would be able to get out of after the rodeo. I unloaded Tio, then checked in with the contractor outfit to see what the plan for that night would be. We would be carrying the flags of the six branches of







the military for a tribute then posting for the grand entry. I tacked up Tio, then got ready for grand entry. Willy and I carried the Marines flag and posted down by the bucking chutes. After a moving ceremony and the grand entry serpentine, it was time for the singing of the "Star Spangled Banner" during which we stayed posted. After the opening ceremonies I changed and got on Tio. We missed part of the steer wrestling, but were able to help Shelby for the second half of that. The announcer then did queen introductions for Shelby and I as well as Hannah Hilsabeck, Miss Dallas County Fair Rodeo, who also came down that night to help the stock contractor. Tio hadn't gotten a chance to get into the arena much beforehand and so when they called my name he ran in, saw the calves and stopped dead in his tracks! After some strong urging he turned his attention back and we finished the queen's run. Silly horse! Later we helped with the calf roping (the calves were very fresh and gave many a great cowboy a tough time tying). After that I got a chance to talk to Al Landa who is an Arabian supporter who saw Tio and recognized him as an Arabian. We had a really great talk and all too soon it was time to put Tio away and go help with the mutton bustin'! The finalists of all three nights would be qualified to compete in a mutton bustin championship in Omaha during their River City Round-up. Some good riders and sheep paired up and each ride was scored by the rodeo clown (who also did some really awesome trick riding stunts). After the rodeo that night we did the same closing ceremony, and I rode Willy again.

Saturday was another great performance. We did the same opening ceremony and I of course rode my trusty steed, Willy. Shortly after Doug Mathis, the announcer, would be introducing us for the queens' runs so I stayed on Willy for that but changed my chaps and shirt. After the queen's run I got off of Willy and then mounted up on Tio as Miss URA to help Shelby push out the steer wrestling steers. Tio was a lot calmer and was doing a much better job pushing the cattle. After steer wrestling we watched as Hannah performed with her drill team. They put on a good show! Shortly after was the calf roping. Shelby and I pushed out for that (the calves had settled down a lot by Saturday!). Once Hannah had changed back Tio and I left and let her help out for the rest of calf roping. There was another good round of mutton bustin' and then it was my last time to mount up on 'ole Willy for the closing. The Carson Rodeo has been voted best small PRCA rodeo of the year several years, and I wouldn't doubt if it gets voted for again! They put on a great show, draw a lot of good contestants, and are very hospital to competitors and fans! I also had a lot of fun participating in a rodeo so close to home! I really enjoyed helping out!

Lenox, IA

July 23-25, 2009 I had the honor of attending the Lenox, IA Rodeo. My older sister, Raquel, was Miss Rodeo Lenox 2006 and so we've been going to the Lenox Rodeo since 2005 and it is a great little rodeo. In fact, its been voted URA rodeo of the year 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, and 2008. It has also been named best grounds and arena condition in 2001 and 2003, most improved rodeo in 1999, and most added money in 1999. On Thursday the 23rd Lacey and I, along with Tio and Jazz arrived at the rodeo grounds. We washed the horses then went to the campers, so kindly donated for the queens to use, to change and clean up for the rodeo that night. Then I attended a short cowboy church session before the start of the rodeo. The rodeo kicked off with mutton bustin which all of the queens helped with (which there was a lot of us). The queens who came to Lenox included Miss Rodeo Iowa, Lindsey Ahrenholtz, Miss Teen Rodeo Iowa, Shelby Chapman, Miss Leon Rodeo Princess, Jenna Kool, Miss Dallas County Fair Rodeo, Hannah Hilsabeck, and of course Miss Rodeo Lenox 2008, Courtney Stark. After helping out with the mutton bustin' we got on our horses and lined up for grand entry. I carried the URA flag in the grand entry. Then all of the queens did queens runs and they crowned the Miss Rodeo Lenox 2009, Suzy Fife. That night Shelby and Jenna would be helping push the calves and steers back. The other queens and I put up our horses and went over by the cook shack to sign autographs. It was a beautiful night for a rodeo and a lot of good contestants. After the rodeo that night Lacey and I fed the horses then drove to Stanton, IA where we spent the night with our aunt, uncle, and cousins (the Waters).


The next morning we headed back over to the rodeo grounds to feed the horses. Heather Beck (Lenox Queen Coordinator) met all of us queens and we headed over to Tiger Lanes for some great food and bowling! We had a lot of fun there and really appreciated them letting us come on a Friday afternoon. After bowling we went back to the rodeo grounds. All of the queens and Lacey jumped on our horses bareback to tour the town of Lenox. The horses were glad to stretch their legs and we were glad to sit back and relax. After the ride we had some more downtime before it was time to get ready for that night's performance. Before the rodeo started we stood at the gates to hand out rodeo programs. Then it was more mutton bustin along with some steer riding before the opening ceremonies, which started with the saddle club riding a drill. That night Tio and I helped chase out calves along with Hannah and the Rite N Gear Rodeo girls. Once again we did the grand entry, I carried the URA flag and did a queen's run. Tio did pretty well chasing out calves in the tie down and breakaway roping, though he was a little antsy. Hannah chased out in the steer wrestling and I took Tio back to the trailer to rest while I went and signed a few autographs. After the rodeo that night Tio and I helped out at slack where the ominous rain clouds held off and only sprinkled a little.


Before we knew it, it was our last day in Lenox. That afternoon all of the queens went to the Lenox Care Center where we celebrated the birthdays of two of the residents cowboy style. We learned how to do the Dallas Slide line dance, had "cowboy" trivia over old western tv show cowboys and their horses. I didn't know many of them, but I did get one question right about who "The Cisco Kid"'s sidekick was named. I knew it was Poncho because my grandpa used to always quote the line from the show: "Oh, Sisco!" "Oh, Poncho!" The residents knew most of them though. After that we played a "snake in the boot" game and ate hors d' oeuvres, then the queens signed autographs to those who wanted them before we had to leave. That night at the rodeo it was Tough Enought to Wear Pink night. The Queens handed out programs again, then it was mutton bustin' and steer riding time! We were all excited for the steer riding because that night Shelby Chapman (MTRI) and Suzy Fife (Miss Rodeo Lenox) would be participating! They did great! and came away without any injuries. With everybody in pink we did the grand entry and queen's runs. That night I used Jazz because Tio had developed a cough. After the opening ceremony we started to load up as we had to get home that night. Staver's Western Mercantile was there and so I got my hats reshaped before we left (Thank You Staver's!!! They look great!) Once again, the Lenox rodeo was a really fun time. Thank You to the Lenox Stock and Saddle Club for inviting me to be a part of your rodeo! Also, congratulations on a job well done on your Club's opening and closing drill ride! Thank you to Heather Beck and everyone else who helped make the queens' stay at Lenox so much fun! I hope to be back next year!

RAGBRAI

On the morning of Monday July 20, 2009 Lacey, my mom, and I left home before sun-up with the suburban loaded up with bottles of water and coolers. We were going to sell water on the RAGBRAI route to help raise money to help offset the traveling expenses to the rodeos I've been to this summer. For those of you who don't know what RAGBRAI is, its the Registered Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa. Thousands of people from all over not just Iowa, but other states across the nation come to participate in this literally great bike ride! They bike each day of the week and spend the night at certain towns across Iowa. The route is different every year. We would be selling on Day 2 of the ride. We set up shop in Williamson, IA, one of the smallest towns I've ever seen. Along with us were a bike repair shop, a chiropractor/massage therapist, and Tender Tom's (a turkey leg stand). Pretty soon the riders started to pour through town. Then the National Guard set up a free water stand across the street. So much for selling water! Instead we sold out of all the candy we had. I met a lot of interesting folks and got to tell a lot of people about rodeo and especially the United Rodeo Association. I also had a lot of people ask to take their picture with me and got several donations as well as some people buy some water who preferred bottle water. Towards the end of the day it began to rain, a few hours later things began to slow down so we packed up and headed home. Thank you to everyone on RAGBRAI who donated or bought something! I really appreciate it! Also thank you to the guys at the bike shop for helping us set up our stand and find a good place to set up! We had fun; maybe next year I'll be a part of RAGBRAI as one of the bikers! : )

Sabetha, KS

July 17-19, 2009 I was in Sabetha, KS for their rodeo. A couple of days before the rodeo Jazz, Tio, and I were in Richmond, MO visiting with Judy Rodgers when our truck decided to give out. : ( Luckily I was in the hands of the most helpful and caring people imaginable. The truck was towed home and down came my Mom with our red suburban and our old bumper pull two horse. After somehow managing to stuff all of the things from our other trailer into the suburban and two horse tack compartment we loaded up Jazz and Tio and headed west towards Sabetha. We arrived in Sabetha Friday afternoon. We unloaded my trusty steeds and put them in a pen that the rodeo committee so kindly provided for us then unhooked from the trailer and went to the Sabetha Country Inn to check in and get ready for the parade and rodeo that night. It was quite fortunate that the Sabetha Saddle Club was willing to put us up in the hotel while we were in Sabetha, because there's no where to sleep in our bumper pull. After we got ready for the parade Lacey and I mounted up (me on Tio and Lacey on Jazz) and rode over to the start of the parade. There I met the Sabetha Saddle Club queen Cesali Shaver. We were going to lead the horses in the parade but Tio and her horse got stage fright so we followed the Grand River Rodeo Company pick-up men. Tio was a complete goofball during the parade so I was thinking I might use Jazz for the rodeo that night. Even so when we got back I warmed Tio up in the arena. Boy was it ever great to ride in a DRY arena!!! Finally a rodeo weekend without mud or rain! : ) They had a very nice arena fence as well. Cesali's horse has ring bone and was lame for the rodeo, and her other horse wasn't working well for her so we decided she would ride Jazz who is a pretty experienced rodeo queen horse and wouldn't cause a fuss which meant....yup, Tio would be making his rodeo debut! I was excited to see how he would do. Caitlin Wilkerson, Miss Interstates Rodeo, also was appearing at the rodeo. We did the opening ceremony where we carried American flags to the John Wayne American tribute. Tio did really well and only had one moment where he got nervous and bumped into Caitlin's horse. Then we rode in the grand entry and Cesali posted the Sabetha Saddle Club flag while I posted the Grand River Rodeo Company flag and Cailtin carried the American flag to the national anthem. Tio did pretty well, and before we knew it, it was time to go back in the arena for the calf roping. This didn't go quite so well. Tio was much too nervous to stand still in the corner and didn't know what to think of the calves and horses that would occasionally come running out of the roping boxes and chutes, but we both survived just fine and Tio was glad to get a break as the other queens and I helped out with the kids stick horse race. There were tons of kids! and they all got a prize for participating. Also, later that night was a calf scramble for all of the kids. They must have some fast kids in Sabetha because it didn't take long for all of the calves to be caught. After that I signed a few autographs during the bull riding and Caitlin carried the American flag during the closing.

The next morning I went to the Sabetha Manor nursing home where I got to visit with the residents and sign some autograph sheets. After that I returned to the rodeo grounds to be there while Jazz got a shoe that he'd lost the night before put back on. Emily from Emma's Equine Services came out and quickly had his back right shoe back on. I had never had a female farrier before, but she did a great job with Jazz and was really interesting to talk to. After the shoeing I headed back into town to Cobblestone Court Assisted Living. I went room to room with all of the residents and got to chat with them about everything from Omaha, rodeo, and horses, to WWII. There were some pretty interesting folks there and sadly I didn't make it around to everyone before it was time for them to have dinner and time for me to head back to the rodeo grounds to get ready for that night's rodeo. It was another great performance. This one with more entries. We did the same opening, but unfortunately as Tio came around the corner he became extremely frightened by something and put on quite a spectacle (I'm told it looked like he was afraid of a shadow that he appeared to be looking at, that I couldn't really see from atop him. Those shadows, boy they'll get you every time! After that Tio was so riled up he had trouble settling down during the grand entry and posting of colors. This is where I was so glad Cesali was riding Jazz, because normally I would have said, "Tio can't handle this" and then used Jazz for the rest of the rodeo, but now I had to ride Tio. So we went back in the arena for the timed events. After a couple ropers went he started to settle down and I was very proud of him when for the rest of the night he stood pretty well. Once again they had a calf scramble and stick horse race. During the team roping and barrel racing, Caitlin and I signed autographs over by the vendors. After the rodeo they had a few slack participants, then we retired to our rooms for the night.

The next morning was another beautiful day in Sabetha. I ran over to the rodeo grounds to feed and water Jazz and Tio then ran back to the hotel to get ready for the day. After Cailtin and I got ready we headed over to Buzz's Cafe where we were invited to have their lunch buffet. It was delicious! Afterwards we went back to the rodeo grounds where Caitlin, Lacey, and I took our horses for a ride around town then came back and decided to give our horses a change of pace by doing a little jumping! : ) We had a lot of fun taking our horses over makeshift jumps, but we didn't want to wear them out too much so after a while we put them up so they could eat and rest up again before the rodeo. That night, at the rodeo we did the same opening. This time Caitlin and I switched which side of the arena we were on so Tio wouldn't see that shadow that had apparently scared the pants right off of him. After a little reluctance to go past the chutes the opening went just fine and Tio stood (almost) like a perfect gentleman during the posting of the colors. During the timed events he stood wonderfully in the corner. Once again there was a stick horse race and calf scramble, then I used Jazz for the closing ceremony, as Caitlin had to head home early that night.

Overall the Sabetha rodeo was a lot of fun! There was also a lot of great runs and rides by the contestants with one of the tie-down ropings in the 8 second range and breakaway in the 2 second range as well as some fast barrel times. There were also some great rides in the roughstock events. The arena was good, and the Sabetha Saddle Club and our contacts (Robert and Connie Marthaler) took such great care of me and my family. It was nice not to worry about the horses being tied to the trailer at night and it gave them a chance to lay down and rest. It was also really great to have a place to stay, especially since we didn't have our horse trailer that has a bed in it. We really appreciate everything that they did for us!!! Thank you to Robert and Connie Marthaler as well as the Sabetha Saddle Club for inviting me to be a part of your rodeo!!!

Woodbine, IA

July 9-11, 2009 I got to be a part of the fabulous Woodbine rodeo. It sure was nice to be at a rodeo that is only an hour away from my hometown of Underwood, IA. On Thursday the 9th at 2:00 pm I arrived at the Rose Vista Nursing Home in Woodbine, IA. There Kealy Knott, Miss Rodeo Woodbine 2009, and I got a chance to speak in front of everyone and then go around and visit with the residents and sign autographs if they wanted them. After our visit there was some time to kill before the kid's night at the rodeo grounds. So Kealy and I got to spend some time getting to know each other and I got to meet her family and a couple of friends. Before we knew it, it was time to head over to the rodeo grounds. Once there we helped people sign up for the mutton bustin' and greased pig contest that they were having that night. There were a lot of entries for the mutton bustin' where Kealy and I helped out by removing the protective wear (helmets and protective vests) after each participant was done and then giving them a sticker. Boy were there ever some good little riders! The top 15 (as chosen by a panel of judges) would ride again at Saturday night's rodeo. Next up was the greased pig contest and after all of the heavy rains in the days before, the arena was REALLY sloppy and the oldest group to go ended up getting into a mud fight after all of the pigs were caught! They had a great turn out for kids night and it was great to see so much of the community out having fun. I headed home that night and returned for Friday night's rodeo this time with Jazz, our traveling buddies (Lacey and Mozart) and my chesnut horse, Tio. I am currently trying to get Tio used to rodeo so that he can help share the work with Jazz as well as so I have a spare in case Jazz gets hurt again. After getting myself ready I saddled up Tio and rode him around the grounds and in the arena. He was terrified of the bulls (I can't really blame him)! : ) Otherwise he wasn't too bad and even got to get up close to the calves and steers as they moved them back behind the roping box and chute before the rodeo. After that I took Tio back to the trailer and got on Jazz and warmed him up. As the start of the rodeo neared I met the other visiting royalty: Miss Interstates Rodeo (IRA), Caitlyn Wilkerson, and the newly crowned Miss Rodeo Whiting. We were assigned our duties and then the rodeo began. All of the queens were introduced as well as all of the past Woodbine queens who were able to make it back again. Then we rode in the grand entry, the Woodbine Saddle Club officers were introduced and Jazz and I had the honor of carrying the American flag for the national anthem sung by Tiffany Blum. The Woodbine Saddle Club kept us queens busy. A flag was run before each event and we also took turns pushing calves and steers. Kealy Knott (Miss Rodeo Woodbine) and I teamed up together. We pushed out for breakaway and team roping while the other royalty got the other events. That night they had a "wild cow ride" event. That was a lot of fun to watch! There's a team of three people who have to rope a cow, put a saddle on it and then one person has to ride the cow (while the others lead it) a certain distance. (this is while all of the other cows and teams are running around and trying to do the same thing). It was quite a show and I'd say for the most part the cows came out on top. After the rodeo performance was over the queens each grabbed an American flag to carry in the closing ceremony where we honored a man from the Woodbine area who is in the armed forces and actually was being deployed to South America the next day. It was a very moving experience and I was proud to get to lead it. After the ceremony it was time for slack. Jazz was kind of sore so I borrowed Suzette Walker (former Miss Teen Rodeo Iowa and former Miss Rodeo Woodbine)'s horse, Katie. Katie is a pro at the queening job and was a lot of fun to ride pushing out calves.



That night my family and I headed home with the horses, only to return early the next day for the Woodbine parade. I decided to rest Jazz up for the rodeo and so rode Tio in the parade. Tio was really good in the parade. That night I rode him again before the rodeo. After the calves and steers got moved back behind the roping boxes I warmed up Jazz and we did the queen introductions, grand entry, and once again Jazz and I carried the American flag during the national anthem. Kealy Knott (Miss Rodeo Woodbine) and I pushed out the calf roping calves and steer wrestling steers while Caitlyn Wilkerson (Miss IRA) and Amy Christiansen (Miss Rodeo Whiting) took care of the other timed events. That night was the mutton bustin' finals. The top 15 kids from Thursday's kids' night rode. They were all really good, each of the finalists received ribbons and the top three were given trophies. That night Jazz and I got to lead the closing ceremony again, and this night we had three members of the armed forces with us to participate in the ceremony. I really enjoyed the Woodbine rodeo, and I'd like to thank the Woodbine Saddle Club along with the queen coordinator, Laura Kelley, for inviting me to be a part of such a great rodeo. It was great to see the whole community get involved in their rodeo, which drew a lot of great contestants. I'd also like to thank Kealy Knott and all of her family for opening their home up to me on Thursday. I really appreciated their kindness and hospitality!

Lake City, IA

The morning after the Auburn rodeo (June 27) it was time to drive north for the Lake City Rodeo! Still sleepy eyed from Auburn we loaded up once more, this time with the rest of the family. I have a lot of family in and around Lake City, IA so all of my immediate family was going up with me so we could see them. We arrived around noon at my second cousin and her husband's (Allison and Matt Ringgenberg) house where they were getting two horses ready for the parade which started at 1:00 pm. Lacey and I got Jazz and Mozart tacked up then set off in search of the Top Rail Saddle Club which was putting on the rodeo. After not being able to find anyone I decided it was too early to line up anyway so I went back to where the rest of my family was. My great aunt and uncle (Pat and Bill Albright) have a white carriage that they give rides in and hire out for weddings, etc. and they were going to have that in the parade and so we sat around talking and watching as they got it ready. Later I rode back to the start of the parade and found the Top Rail Saddle Club where I met their Senior Queen, Bailley Richardson, and their Junior Queen, Sydney Batz. Also riding with the saddle club would be Miss Teen Rodeo Iowa, Shelby Chapman. We lined up and started down the parade route. Jazz was terrified of the four Belgians pulling a large trolley with past saddle club queens. We rode down to the hospital/nursing home then looped around back towards the main street. There were a lot of people there for the parade and the weather was perfectly sunny with a cool breeze. After the parade, I received some instructions from Sherry Janssen, the Top Rail Saddle Club president, for the rodeo that night then untacked Jazz while I waited for the rest of the family to get back. They arrived not long after. Lacey had ridden her Arabian gelding Mozart, Bill Albright had ridden his quarter horse Sophie, Ryan Albright and Matt drove the carriage pulled by their beautiful black gelding, Halley, and riding in the carriage was Pat Albright, Allison and Ryan's children Cori, Gabby, Jack, and Will. With some time before the rodeo we kept the horses in Matt and Allison's yard to graze while my parents and sisters, and Tracy, and I grabbed an early dinner with my Granny, Jan Pierce, and Great Grandma, Frances Nutter. After lunch we loaded up the horses and brought them to the rodeo grounds where we saddled them up and got ready for that night's rodeo. Jazz and I rode in the grand entry and also did a queen's run. Then we helped chase out the breakaway calves along with Shelby Chapman (Miss Teen Rodeo Iowa). The saddle club queen's got the rest of the calf events then Shelby and I signed autographs until the end of the rodeo. Right after that nights rodeo they had an awesome fireworks display, which Jazz and Mozart took right in stride. We were pretty tired so we headed out to Pat and Bill's place where Jazz and Mozart, Lacey and I would be staying. We put Jazz and Mozart in a pen by the barn and their horses were out the pasture surrounding it. Then we hit the hay to prepare for the next day.


I somehow woke up on my own accord at the time I had planned (6:30 am). My phone had died during the night so my alarm had never gone off. As I was getting dressed, Lacey suddenly came up to me all breathless and said "Jazz is gone!" I was like "no way." She's like "I'm serious he's not in the pen, its just Mozart!" So I went running outside and sure enough, no Jazz. So we both jumped on Mozart and I have all of these horrible thoughts running through my head. (although their land is totally fenced in there is a cattle grate and if you can jump out of one fence you can jump out of another). Finally I go off of Mozart because I decided I could run faster on foot then I could bouncing around on old Mozart. I ran down the driveway and saw something white swishing in the tall grass. There he was munching on grass. I haltered him and surveyed the damage. He had scrapes on just about every part of his body, though most of them were pretty superficial. There were only 2 deeper cuts, which were on his right front leg on his shin and pastern. We led them back to the trailer where I cleaned off the blood and dressed his wounds. Mozart also had a couple scrapes on his left foreleg and his knee was a little swollen. They had apparently gotten into some mischief during the night. Once Jazz had been tended to I finished getting ready and we loaded them up to take to the rodeo grounds for slack that morning. Since Jazz's wounds were pretty minor I figured he'd be fine for slack. Lacey and I ate a quick breakfast served up by the Top Rail Saddle Club then I went to saddle Jazz. His right front pastern and fetlock had swollen up so I had Lacey trot him around so I could see if he was still sound. He had a bit of a limp and I could tell he was tender, so I knew he was going to have to take the day off. I tied him back to the trailer and went in search of Shelby Chapman (Miss Teen Rodeo Iowa) to see if I'd be able to ride one of her horses for slack. Luckily she was kind enough to let me use her horse Tucker and all of his equipment. We warmed up the horses and then settled into our corner as the many slack entries began competing. Tucker is a great big compared to my little Jazz, and so it was a little strange not to be on an Arabian, but I had fun riding him and he was so great with the calves I barely had to do a thing. Shelby had to leave a little early to get back home for work so my parents asked Pat and Bill if I could borrow a horse to use for slack and the rodeo. They kindly let me use their big black carriage horse, Halley. I have to admit I was a little bit skeptical about the whole deal, but there wasn't anything else I could do and I knew he'd had a lot of experience doing various parades, etc. so I jumped on and took him into the arena. My doubts were quickly taken away after the first couple of calves. He wasn't scared of the calves at all and was really responsive to what I asked, despite all of the commotion. We finished pushing out the calf events then I took him back to the trailer to rest up for that nights rodeo. The rest of the day we mostly spent hanging out with the family. We also went to visit Betty Greene, my great aunt, who was in the hospital. Then before I knew it it was time to get ready for Sunday night's rodeo. Once again I rode in the grand entry and did a queen's run. Halley did great in the arena but didn't quite understand that when we were outside of the arena to just stand still and rest for the next thing. He was really restless, but then it was time for breakaway roping. This time Caitlin Wilkerson, Miss IRA, and I would be chasing out the calves. Halley did great, though he seemed to think it was more important to beat the other horses down there than to get the calf in the gate. He wasn't too keen on standing still but he did it just the same. After breakaway we had a long break before the steer wrestling which would be our next event we'd be helping with (the saddle club queen's did the other calf roping events again). He was restless at the gate but settled down and we got to watch the rodeo for a while. For steer wrestling it was back into the arena! Halley was awesome and was really starting to pick up on his job. What a neat horse! I couldn't have asked for a better substitute to Jazz. Our duties in the arena finished, Caitlin and I put away our horses and set up the table to sign a few autographs. The table wasn't very busy so once the bull riding started we packed it up. Caitlin and her Mom got an early start on the road and I went to sit in the stands with my family to watch the bull riders take on some really great bulls from the Heartland Rodeo company. When the rodeo ended we said our good byes and loaded up the trailer for the long trip home. Overall, I had a great time at the Lake City Rodeo. The Top Rail Saddle Club did a great job putting together a fun rodeo. There were over 300 entrants that weekend and the crowd couldn't have been better. Thank you to the Top Rail Saddle Club and club president, Sherry Janssen for letting me be a part of your rodeo!!! Thank you Shelby Chapman for your generosity in letting me use Tucker during slack! Also, thank you to Pat and Bill Albright for putting up Lacey, Jazz, Mozart, and I as well as for letting me use Halley at slack and the rodeo! I don't know what we would have done without him!

Auburn, NE

Friday, June 26, 2009 Jazz and I along with our travel buddies (Lacey and Mozart) loaded up the trailer and headed southwest for Auburn, NE. My older sister and former rodeo queen, Raquel, was our chaperon and she brought her 18 month old daughter, Jazzlyhn. We arrived at the rodeo grounds at about 12:45, an hour before I was scheduled to visit the nursing home in town along with the Nemaha County Saddle Club Queen and Princess. We got the horses unloaded and grabbed a bite to eat, then I left with Mindy Clarke to go to the nursing home. There I met the other royalty and also a professional trick rider who was performing at the rodeo and also was making a visit. On the porch of the nursing home we told the residents a little bit about ourselves. I told them about what I do as Miss United Rodeo Association and how I came to earn the title as well as some things about the Association. Then the trick rider brought one of her horses up to the porch and showed us the saddle and while the horse stood she showed us several of the moves she'd be performing that night at full speed. She told us how trick riding was developed by warriors in battle and later was a common rodeo event. Today it is a dying art with only about 10 professional trick riders in America. It was very interesting to listen to her talk about her saddle and what it takes for a horse to become a trick riding horse. After that we went around and talked to the residents and I handed out autograph sheets. When the visit was over Mindy took me back to the rodeo grounds. I had a lot of time to kill so Lacey and I gave Jazz a bath so that he would look nice at the rodeo that night. By the time we got done with that it was time to get ready for the rodeo. That night Jazz and I rode in the grand entry and did a queen's run, then we also helped chase out calves, and assisted with the boot race. During the barrel racing and bull riding I signed autographs. We weren't able to assist with slack that night because we had to get home that night so we could leave early the next morning for another rodeo, so we left the slack duties to the more than capable hands of Caitlin Wilkerson Miss Interstates Rodeo Association and the Nemaha County Saddle Club Queen and Princess. Auburn had a great rodeo, the trick rider was amazing that night. It was also good to see Clara and Lacey Glover again, as well as Muff McGee. Thank you Mindy Clarke for inviting me to the Auburn Rodeo!!!