On the road with Miss Rodeo America….

Hello everyone, and welcome to my blog! For those of you that do not know me, I am Jordan Tierney, Miss Rodeo America 2020 and 2021…and no, two years is not normal, but thanks to Covid, here I am, living my best life! 

After serving a year already, the idea to do a blog came about to detail my experiences and memories that go along with being Miss Rodeo America. 

In this first blog post, I want to recap the year 2020. As I started writing it, I quickly realized that my post would likely resemble my 17-page final paper of Marketing Strategies 430 that compared and contrasted Sirius XM radio to Traditional Radio as I detailed the year 2020. 

Who wants to read 17 pages of what it is like to be a National titleholder during a pandemic all in one sitting? Not me. Like everything in 2020, I changed gears, and my first blog post will be covering my first couple of months in 2021 because they are the most recent. 

Don’t worry, I will be covering 2020, but I made the executive decision that during the slow weeks this spring, I will be recounting my memories of 2020 in a few different blog posts, so be on the lookout! 

Okay, ready to get into it?

2021…

I’d be lying if I said that I wasn’t a little eerie of the way 2021 started because, like 2020, one of my first events was attending the Rapid City Rush hockey game for Rodeo Night in Rapid City, South Dakota. I love attending hockey games, but the last thing I needed was a repeat of 2020. Nonetheless, I had a great time at the Rush game and got to participate in the honorary puck drop, introduced on the ice with some of the best rodeo cowboys and cowgirls from South Dakota, and was on air with the radio commentator for most of the 2nd period talking about the upcoming Rodeo Rapid City. I was on the ice a total of three times in cowboy boots and didn’t fall once. I consider that a win!

In May of 2020, I was asked if I would extend my year as Miss Rodeo America. I said yes, but if possible, I would love to attend Rodeo Rapid City, which is our big winter rodeo in South Dakota, and also won Large Indoor Rodeo of the Year for 2020!  Jim Sutton started the rodeo back in the 60s, and the Sutton family has continued its legacy into what it is today! They are one of the most amazing families I have ever met and are a big reason why my Miss Rodeo South Dakota year was so memorable. While at Rodeo Rapid City, several state queens and myself got an opportunity of a lifetime. An experience that not even this black hills resident of 26 years had ever gotten to do and that was a private tour to the top of Crazy Horse Memorial! If you ever make a trip to South Dakota, I highly suggest putting this on your list of must-sees! Crazy Horse Memorial stands for so much more than a sculpture carved in the Black Hills. It was created to build a bridge for Native American culture and history to the general public! 

Also, throughout the week, I had my own talk show in the Rodeo Zone where I got to have some incredible conversations with women, such as Donna Keffler, Janie Johnson, Megan Harkless, Danni Hinman, Kennie Word, Amy Johnson and Amanda Radke! Rapid City was jammed packed for me, and I want to thank Amy Sutton-Muller for setting it all up. It felt normal, and I was so grateful for that!

Now, off to one of my top three rodeos of 2020, the Dixie National Livestock Show and Rodeo in Jackson, Mississippi. First and foremost, I want to say I did not bring the unprecedented winter weather south; that was every cowboy from South Dakota that entered that rodeo who did. Please take it up with them! 

Regardless of winter weather or covid restrictions, I still had a great time at the Dixie National. As I said earlier, this was one of my favorite rodeos from 2020 so attending in 2021 was like coming home! The people of Mississippi are truly the salt of the earth and restore my faith in humanity every time I’m around them. A funny memory I would like to share with you is the night after flag rehearsal and flying into Jackson, Deborah Tucker took me to get Chick-Fil-A before the end of the night. There Deborah told the man behind us, and I quote, “please don’t shoot me.” As he honked at us for holding up the line as we waited for my mac and cheese, they forgot. Welcome to Jackson! 

Additionally, while getting out of the Chick-Fil-A, Deborah almost jumped a median in her Honda mini-van as we both gazed at five cop cars. I laughed and told her thank you, not only for the delicious food but because I was worried I wouldn’t have enough stories to tell during speeches at the Miss Rodeo America Pageant, and she just contributed two! 

Between covid and the winter storm, the Dixie National Rodeo was widely different from last year but still just as special. I got to spend a day hunkered down with my host family, eating leftover brisket and southern grits. Plus, they treated me to the best Valentine’s Day dinner I’ve ever had! There is a silver lining in everything, even a winter storm in the Deep South!

Clearly, to escape the cold weather I had to go even more south, and that my friends is just what I did. Kissimmee Florida was calling my name, so off to the Silver Spurs Rodeo, I went! This year I didn’t have the hog hunting, air boating or alligator holding experience I did in 2020, but I did make it to Disney, Abracadabra Ice Cream, and got to ride one of my favorite horses of all time, Paco! Laura and Mark Kessler were my host family, and they did it all while their son got married that exact same weekend. Don’t worry; I took it upon myself to personally help eradicate the house of leftover wedding desserts. It was a difficult task, but I was up to it. Thank you to Silver Spurs Rodeo Committee for having me back at your great rodeo; it’s always a pleasure!

Having a repeat year has given me a unique opportunity to experience rodeos through two different lenses, with covid restrictions and without (or lessened) covid restrictions. All I have to say to all rodeo committees, communities, and rodeo contestants is hats off! The past year has sent curve ball after curveball, and what I continually see is people knock them out of the park one after another, after another!

Until next time, I hope you enjoyed the 1st edition of On the Road with Miss Rodeo America….

Jordan Tierney