Senior Taylor Hill saw her lifelong goals come to fruition when she was awarded the grand prize of Rodeo Queen in 2017.

Hill grew up learning to ride horses since she was two years old, and has been working toward this achievement since she was ten years old.

“When I won, I felt a sense of relief because I realized that my hard work had paid off and that I had accomplished one of my larger goals in life,” she said.

Hill began riding competitively when she was about eight years old. Her riding career consists of mostly ranch style competitions, such as break away roping, and barrel racing.

Break away roping is when the rider attempts to rope a calf and then stop their horse, breaking a ribbon that ends their time.

Barrel racing is a rodeo event that consists of a horse and rider attempting to run around barrels in the quickest time.

Hill has four horses but she says that one stands out in particular, and that’s her 11 year old horse named Lucy.

“[Lucy] is the best for my competition. She’s a quarter horse that’s just super athletic and competing is what she’s bread for,” Hill said.

Despite the challenges of lassoing a calf or speeding around barrels, for Hill the hardest part of this experience is the traveling and having to pay for all the rodeos and events.

“The farthest I’ve been is Yakama, a lot of people generally go to Texas from here, but as of now that’s the farthest,” Hill said.

Earning the title of Rodeo Queen takes a lot of preparation.

Before she won the award, Hill studied rodeo terminology, athletics, and extemporaneous speeches, making sure her animal science knowledge was supreme.

A major requirement for Hill was being able to have good horsemanship skills.

At pageants, the riders compete with horses that they have never ridden or met before.

Hill was very excited when she won Rodeo Queen, but she’s not satisfied yet. She plans to try out for either Miss Pro-West Rodeo Association, or Miss Spokane Interstate Rodeo for next year.

Being so involved in horseback riding and rodeo competitions, Hill has made many connections with the people and horses she works with.

She is thankful to share this passion with many people and hopes to continue her riding career after high school.

“I was really excited because me winning meant I had the opportunity to be a representative for the lifestyle I have been raised in,” Hill said. “I have the opportunity to inspire other little kids to be kind, helpful, and hardworking.”