Contestants vie for crown in 90th Dixie Roundup Rodeo Queen and Princess Contest

Written by Stephanie DeGraw
May 3, 2024

ST. GEORGE — Sequins dazzled in the sunlight Wednesday evening at the Dixie Sun Bowl as contestants competed for the crown during the 90th Dixie Roundup Rodeo Queen and Princess Contest.

L-R: Wade Milne, Dixie Roundup Rodeo vice chairman, stands with Gabriella (“Gabi”) Bruse who was crowned the 2024 Dixie Roundup Queen, Amaya Champneys crowned Princess, and Chad Drake, Dixie Roundup Rodeo chairman, St. George, Utah, May 1, 2024 | Photo courtesy of Mark Breinholt, St. George News

Earlier that day, contestants were interviewed by a panel of judges at the Veterans of Foreign Wars Cottam-Hafen Post building before contestants competed in the horsemanship portion. Four girls ages 13-16 competed for Princess, while two contestants vied for Queen, which includes the age bracket of 17-24.

Pageant participants competed in the following categories: speech, modeling, written test, self-promotion, congeniality and horsemanship skills. Ultimately, two contestants came out ahead: Gabriella (“Gabi”) Bruse was crowned Queen and Amaya Champneys was crowned Princess.

Ginger Wiscombe of the St. George Lady Lions and Dixie Roundup Rodeo Committee told St. George News that the Queen and Princess will act as rodeo ambassadors throughout their year reign. The Queen is also eligible to participate in the statewide contest for Miss Rodeo Utah.

“We’re excited to watch these beautiful ladies as they represent the rodeo around the state of Utah,” Wiscombe said.

Additionally, the Queen and Princess will play a significant role during the 90th Annual St. George Lions Dixie Round-up Rodeo in September by participating in the flag presentation, entertainment and herding livestock as necessary.

The royalty also plays an integral role in inspiring youth and introducing children to the sport of rodeo. As part of this, they are scheduled to visit local elementary schools during rodeo week in September.

One of this year’s Queen contestants, Emily Stout, who won first in self-promotion, said a lot more dedication goes into rodeo queen contests than most people realize. But the hard work pays off, as these contests help girls and women develop their confidence, she said.

“A lot of the reason why I started rodeo queening was it gave me more confidence in myself. I think I found my personality and figured out who I am as a person,” Stout said. “I definitely am able to talk to strangers randomly if I need to. Whereas before rodeo queening, I kept just to myself, my family and one friend.”

Outgoing 2023 Dixie Roundup Queen Riley Warick and Princess Halle Frey welcome the 2024 contestants for the Dixie Roundup Rodeo, St. George, Utah, May 1, 2024 | Photo by Stephanie DeGraw, St. George News

The outgoing 2023 Dixie Roundup Rodeo Queen, Riley Warick, told St. George News that one of her favorite duties was visiting elementary schools.

“It was so fun to go around and see our up and coming generations, our future cowboys and cowgirls and educate more on the things that they might know about rodeo events and what it takes to put on the rodeo,” Warick said.

The 2023 Dixie Roundup Rodeo Princess Halle Frey told St. George News that she enjoyed sharing the culture of rodeo and agriculture with young people.

A member of the Rodeo Queen committee, Christy Jones, said they work with the contestants to help them in their future.

“We really work to make sure that these girls leave our pageant are better than when they came in,” Jones told St. George News. “I make sure that with our judges that they give them feedback about what they can do better for their next contest and how they can really just be better in life.”

Jones said one unique aspect of the contest is that competitors must submit a cover letter and a resume to be judged.

“I’m trying to prepare them for life and applying for jobs or whatever so they can be better than when they got here,” she added.

The judges also emphasize the participants’ horseback riding skills and ability to look good in the arena. Jones said that’s where most of the public sees the Queen and Princess, so they must be fun, cute and have great personalities.

“When they are walking around at the rodeo, talking to the kids and other people, they’re very engaging and really represent our rodeo and what a great rodeo and community that we have,” Jones said.

She said it’s important to know this contest is not political, unlike some pageants.

To help guard against that, Jones said that the judges’ sheets clearly explain why a contestant may have missed some points.

“We’re just trying to make it very fair and taking the politics out of it. I don’t care who’s applying,” Jones said. “I want the best contestant who showed their best today to win.”

Proceeds from the rodeo are distributed directly back to the community, Wiscombe said. For example, the St. George Lions Club donates all proceeds from Wednesday night’s rodeo (Pink Night) to Intermountain Cancer Center of St. George.

The St. George Lions Club also provides academic scholarships for community members and donates to groups at Utah Tech University, local 4H Groups, the National National FFA Organization Organization, youth sports and other local charities.

The St. George Lions Club provided free hamburgers for those in attendance at the horsemanship contest and drew winners for four premium tickets to the rodeo. The rodeo will be at the Dixie Sun Bowl on Sept. 12-14.

2024 winners in each category

  • Queen test: Gabbi Bruse
  • Princess test: Paylynn Curtis
  • Queen modeling: Gabbi Bruse
  • Princess modeling: Amaya Champneys
  • Queen speech: Gabbi Bruse
  • Princess speech: Hadlee Warnick
  • Queen interview: Gabbi Bruse
  • Princess interview: Amaya Champneys
  • Queen self-promotion: Emily Stout
  • Princess self-promotion: Amay Champneys
  • Queen horsemanship: Gabbi Bruse
  • Princess horsemanship: Amaya Champneys

Photo Gallery

 

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2024, all rights reserved.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Stephanie DeGraw is an award-winning journalist. For 25 years, she engaged in journalism, broadcasting and public relations. DeGraw worked for the Salt Lake Tribune, Associated Press and The City Journals. She was a reporter for a CBS television station in Twin Falls, Idaho. She graduated from Weber State University with a Bachelor's Degree in Journalism and Broadcasting.

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @STGnews

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