If I had to sum up my weekend in Joseph with just one word it would likely be...Unforgettable!
This was my first trip without my faithful steed Cody and let me tell you loading all of my gear for a weekend in the back seat of our pickup was a feat in itself. Yikes, I didn't even have room to lean my seat back and sleep. A great big thank you to Vixen and Ryan Barney for being such wonderful hosts. They let us sleep at their house and allowed me to borrow three horses over a three day period. I also rode 2009 MROP contestant Celeste Hillock's bay mare. My dad has always said that to be a truly good rider you need to ride a lot of different horses. I do that on the ranch but have only borrowed one other horse over the 4 years I have been queening.
Thursday night at the rodeo we did the serpentine and then signed autographs. It was Tough Enough to Wear Pink night which is always a favorite of mine. That night we were treated to dinner ala Brent Ekstrom. He Barbecued hamburgers for us at midnight while Ashley and I made the french fries in their camper. We had a fantastic time catching up with the Ekstroms, and our newest family member our coordinator, Angie Vachter.
Friday morning we loaded up the raft that Ashley's brother brought from Texas and headed to Lake Wallowa. BRRRRRRR. The lake was crystal clear and iceberg cold, but that didn't keep us out of the water. Believe it or not this desert rat can actually swim.
Friday nights performance was a real hoot as Ashley and I were the first Junior/ Teen MRO to ever do arena runs in Joseph. The pressure was on and I think the horse I was riding could feel it as he tried to crow hop everytime I kicked him to pick up speed. Bob Tallman even made a crack about him trying to buck me off during warm up. We finally came to an agreement however and our run-in was a success.
Saturday morning found us all too early as we raced to get ready for the parade. I rode another of Vixen's horses which happened to be a paint mare. I will have to admit that my pink accessories looked particularly good on her. After the parade we attended the queens luncheon with MRO Nichole Andrews. Thanks again to Queen Paige Bailey and Princesses Shelby Tiehaara and Shelby Harshman you guys have done an amazing job and treated us, well....like royalty.
Saturday nights rodeo will go down as one of my favorites as we watched one of my favorite Oregon cowboys Trevor Knowles compete in the Steer Wrestling on probably my second favorite horse in the world. He calls her Reba and if you get a chance to watch her do her job you will likely fall in love with her as well. Ashley and I attended the Teen Dance that night and then ate breakfast at the rodeo grounds at midnight at Joseph's annual Cowboy Breakfast. YUM!
Happy Trails To You, Until We Meet Again..
Gosh, I love that song :)
This was my first trip without my faithful steed Cody and let me tell you loading all of my gear for a weekend in the back seat of our pickup was a feat in itself. Yikes, I didn't even have room to lean my seat back and sleep. A great big thank you to Vixen and Ryan Barney for being such wonderful hosts. They let us sleep at their house and allowed me to borrow three horses over a three day period. I also rode 2009 MROP contestant Celeste Hillock's bay mare. My dad has always said that to be a truly good rider you need to ride a lot of different horses. I do that on the ranch but have only borrowed one other horse over the 4 years I have been queening.
Thursday night at the rodeo we did the serpentine and then signed autographs. It was Tough Enough to Wear Pink night which is always a favorite of mine. That night we were treated to dinner ala Brent Ekstrom. He Barbecued hamburgers for us at midnight while Ashley and I made the french fries in their camper. We had a fantastic time catching up with the Ekstroms, and our newest family member our coordinator, Angie Vachter.
Friday morning we loaded up the raft that Ashley's brother brought from Texas and headed to Lake Wallowa. BRRRRRRR. The lake was crystal clear and iceberg cold, but that didn't keep us out of the water. Believe it or not this desert rat can actually swim.
Friday nights performance was a real hoot as Ashley and I were the first Junior/ Teen MRO to ever do arena runs in Joseph. The pressure was on and I think the horse I was riding could feel it as he tried to crow hop everytime I kicked him to pick up speed. Bob Tallman even made a crack about him trying to buck me off during warm up. We finally came to an agreement however and our run-in was a success.
Saturday morning found us all too early as we raced to get ready for the parade. I rode another of Vixen's horses which happened to be a paint mare. I will have to admit that my pink accessories looked particularly good on her. After the parade we attended the queens luncheon with MRO Nichole Andrews. Thanks again to Queen Paige Bailey and Princesses Shelby Tiehaara and Shelby Harshman you guys have done an amazing job and treated us, well....like royalty.
Saturday nights rodeo will go down as one of my favorites as we watched one of my favorite Oregon cowboys Trevor Knowles compete in the Steer Wrestling on probably my second favorite horse in the world. He calls her Reba and if you get a chance to watch her do her job you will likely fall in love with her as well. Ashley and I attended the Teen Dance that night and then ate breakfast at the rodeo grounds at midnight at Joseph's annual Cowboy Breakfast. YUM!
Happy Trails To You, Until We Meet Again..
Gosh, I love that song :)
Staheli Jo Wilkinson
2008 Junior Miss Rodeo Oregon
