Tuesday, December 13, 2011

PAGEANT RESULTS

Miss Rodeo America 2012: MACKENZIE CARR

First Runner-up: JAMIE UDELL – Miss Rodeo Utah

Second Runner-up: BRITTANY SLATON – Miss Rodeo California

Third Runner-up: ALYSSA MORRISON – Miss Rodeo Kansas

Fourth Runner-up: KAYCEE MCDANIEL – Miss Rodeo New Mexico

Appearance: MACKENZIE CARR, Miss Rodeo Oregon

Personality: MACKENZIE CARR, Miss Rodeo Oregon

Horsemanship: MACKENZIE CARR, Miss Rodeo Oregon

Photogenic: Brooke Owen, Miss Rodeo Illinois

Speech: MACKENZIE CARR, Miss Rodeo Oregon

Congeniality: TY FITZGERALD, Miss Rodeo Tennessee

Raeana Wadhams Spirit Award: MACKENZIE CARR, Miss Rodeo Oregon

Written Test: Alyssa Morrison, Miss Rodeo Kansas & Kaycee McDaniel, Miss Rodeo New Mexico

Top Ten Contestants:Ty Fitzgerald, Miss Rodeo Tennesee-Mackenzie Carr, Miss Rodeo Oregon-Jamie Udell, Miss Rodeo Utah-Alyssa Morrison, Miss Rodeo Kansas, Jamie Virden, Miss Rodeo Oklahoma- Tricia Crump, Miss Rodeo Idaho- Kaycee McDaniel, Miss Rodeo New Mexico- Lauren Graham, Miss Rodeo Texas-Audrey Hall, Miss Rodeo Arizona-Brittany Slaton, Miss Rodeo California


Other Awards
Scrapbook Awards:1st Place – Miss Rodeo Oregon, Mackenzie Carr
2nd Place – Miss Rodeo Utah, Jamie Udell
3rd Place – Miss Rodeo Minnesota, Paige Oveson
4th Place – Miss Rodeo Montana, Lorissa Harris

Achievement Award (given to high seller for MRA Scholarship Foundation Drawing): – Miss Rodeo Texas, Lauren Graham

Chap Award (Scholarship from Women’s Professional Rodeo Association for contestant with unique chaps & story): – Miss Rodeo Utah, Jamie Udell

People’s Choice Award: – Miss Rodeo Texas, Lauren Graham

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

HORSEMANSHIP AT THE EXCALIBUR KING ARTHUR ARENA

You could hear a big sigh of relief from all of the contestants late this morning when the horsemanship competition was completed at the King Arthur Arena at the Excalibur Hotel. While the horsemanship award is one of the most coveted awards at the Pageant, the competition itself...well... makes most contestants just a little bit nervous.The horsemanship committee was up at the crack of dawn (literally, 4am) to get the horses ready for the competition; horses were provided by PRCA Stock Contractors.McKenzie Haley, Miss Rodeo America, presented the American Flag and the National Anthem was sang by Kara Hackney of Hays, Kansas. The contestants are taken down to their horses and assisted with stirrup length; they are not given a warm-up period and the first opportunity they get to "test" that horse is when the curtain opens. Once the competition started it went like clockwork with all contestants doing a great job and all of the horses performing well. After each contestant went through the "pattern," there was a brief intermission before the second go-round started. During the second go-round, each contestant did a 1 and a half minute "freestyle" pattern. It was interesting to see the routines that they came up with, they were all different and unique. For clothing, the monochromatic look was the most popular; and embellishments adorned most of the horsemanship shirts.At the conclusion of the competition, McKenzie gave a farewell arena run and was presented with a bouquet of roses from her parents.Immediately following the horsemanship competition, contestants enjoyed the Excalibur's Buffet with family & friends.

COWGIRL KICKOFF PARTY-VINTAGE COWGIRL THEME

Day #2 of the pageant and we are in full pageant mode! The contestants had breakfast courtesy of the Fellowship of Christian Cowboys and the Miss Rodeo New Mexico Pageant, Inc and the MGM Grand. They spent the day in their horsemanship interviews and rehearsing, we must have some really good dancers because the evening rehearsal was released early. The contestants and judges had lunch together today courtesy of Specialty Programs Insurors from Fairway KS.
The final event of the day was the Cowgirl Kick-Off Party with a “Vintage” theme. Red Wilk presented the contestants with a Black Hills Gold jewelry created for the 2011 contestants. McKenzie started the evening by taking us back in time with her vintage outfit. Contestants went in reverse order tonight and each one described their outfits. The girls took us through various decades and fashions. Some paid tribute to specific cowgirls and some to fashion trends. It was a vintage cowgirl fashion show. The audience had the opportunity to purchase tickets and fill the boot mugs of their favorite contestant’s outfits; the winner of the favorite vintage outfit was Miss Rodeo Kansas. Jose Perez Jr of JP Ultimate Entertainment finished the evening with some dancing music so everyone could get their two step in.
The girls will be up early tomorrow for horsemanship which is back at the Excalibur Arena. Don’t forget to check out all the latest pictures at www.shooterenterprises.com.

2012 MISS RODEO AMERICA PAGEANT ORIENTATION

The 2012 Miss Rodeo America Pageant kicked off today at the MGM Grand Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, NV. The contestants checked in this morning at the Hollywood Theater, received their banners from McKenzie Haley and then each girl had their media interviews. The next event was orientation, Tracy Damrell and Raeana Wadhams led orientation making sure the contestants had received all their information and understood the rules for the week. Each contestant introduced themselves and then answered a question, the questions were based on information they had provided on their application. Most questions were similar and asked about the girls future ambitions or how her career path tied into her rodeo ambitions.
The contestants were able to eat lunch with their parents and then move-in began. The hallways were full of luggage racks and busy parents going up and down the elevators. This evening is busy with rehearsals and clothing fittings. The hospitality room was open this afternoon and the MRA store is stocked full of merchandise, thanks to Sherry Smith for being the official buyer this year. She made sure there are lots of items to purchase.
Remember, if you would like to send emails to the contestants you can email missrodeopageant@yahoo.com and put the state name in the subject line.