Hold Your Horses, Missy!!!

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I found these horse trophies at a secondhand store in Daytona Beach, FL. The collection is from one person, and this is only half of what she earned.

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In the process of working with her trophies, I learned she started competing in the early 1960s and stopped in the mid-1970s, but there is much the trophies did not reveal. 

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Like how it felt competing in a sport that was, and still is, dominated by men. Especially in that era. Was she accepted? If not, did that drive her to reach higher? Or did she just ignore the naysayers?

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Were there other girls competing alongside of her? If yes, were they friends or just other competitors?

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Look closely among the many horses, and you can see a few “cowboy” trophies, but no “cowgirls.” A quick Google search and it’s clear that is still the standard today.

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I also wonder why she stopped competing? One can assume life got in the way of her rodeo days. Yet she kept her trophies the rest of her life until she died in 2017.

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I did not know her, and she has passed away, so my questions will always be unanswered.

What a strong, powerful, passionate woman she must have been. This is my tribute to her. She inspires me.