Reflections on Judging Miss Indian Rodeo 2024

WOW! I can't say enough about the young women who showed up and showed out at the 2024 Miss Indian Rodeo Queen competition. I applied to be a judge because I feel it is a great way to give back to our Native youth. As the first American Indian Nevada State High School Rodeo Queen, so many people gifted their time, knowledge, and horses to me to help me reach success. Queen contests are so valuable to any young girl as they teach many important life and career skills that will carry them through the rest of their lives, and positively impact other lives. They prepare young women to assume leadership roles in their own lives, family, and community.

Each contestant brought with them unique and powerful stories that I would like to encourage all the contestants to continue to share their stories to inspire other young native children. Queen contests are tough in the manner that as contestants we are willing to stand up in front of a panel of judges and let them critique you. This is the most powerful tool that one can acquire as you learn to take critique as an opportunity to grow and strengthen skills. As in any competition, there can only be one winner, however, as rodeo teaches us, we must always never forget to go back to practice pen to get sharper and to stay sharp.

To stay sharp, for any girls who will be returning to the stage to compete for the title again, or any new girls who will be stepping into the competition for the first time, here are some tips and recommendations to provide the best showing of your skills.

1. Be Visible: When you are competing in the contest, you want to be seen everywhere! When you are not in the arena, you want to stay looking sharp and interacting with the public. Carrying with you autograph sheets with your picture as a contestant, and business cards. These are great ways to interact with the public. The kids love meeting someone as special as you and love getting autographs. Many adults love the autograph sheets, as you are someone they love and support, and someone they will remember. Giving an autograph sheet with a nice personalized message lets them know that you care and love them also, as you are representing the sport and way of life we cherish. It is a nice memorabilia that people will take home with them and remember their time at that year's INFR. This also helps when you are selling raffle tickets, if they don't want to buy a ticket, they may be very happy to receive your autograph sheet. As a judge, we are looking for who is out interacting with the people and representing the title. In case you win, have some autograph sheets and business cards ready to sign and hand out.
2. Etiquette: During the interviews, you want to remember proper etiquette when entering the room, and while sitting and talking with the judges. Simple things such as waiting to be asked to sit down, sitting at the edge of your chair with your back straight, knees together, and ankles together and slightly to the side. Be prepared for any type of questions ranging from INFR rule book knowledge, rodeo knowledge, rodeo sponsor knowledge, and personality questions. This is your time to demonstrate your intelligence while integrating your story and what you bring to the table.
3. Horsemanship: Ensuring that you brush up on proper horsemanship as this is the main meat of your package as a rodeo queen. You want to demonstrate your horse knowledge, tack knowledge, and of course, your showmanship. Be prepared for things such as picking up your horses feet, and unsaddling and saddling if asked. Properly dismounting, mounting, and holding your horse is important, as you want to be able to show the judges that you can handle your horse, and speak with them at the same time. The proper way to hold your reins and distance from your horse is important so the horse is not rubbing on you or pushing you while you are talking to the judges. You want to keep eye contact and conversation with the judges, so explain as much as you can, unless they specifically ask you to show them a certain part of your horse.

Finally, I would like to give a special thank you to the INFR Rodeo Queen committee for the amazing program they run for the Queen contestants. The amount of time and effort that goes into preparing and planning a competition is immense, and they did a fabulous job! I am forever grateful for the opportunity to have sat in front of all of the amazing contestants. The amount of cultural and traditional knowledge each contestant shared of who they are and where they come from was a true blessing. I must say, our future as Indian Nations is looking very bright as these young women embark on their journeys to be of service to our upcoming generations and tribal communities. All contestants should be very proud of themselves and the amazing job they did during the competition. I am so proud of each one of them!