I have been looking forward to another photo shoot with Sherry Smith Photography since my first one as Miss Rodeo USA in Guthrie, Oklahoma! Sherry is the official photographer for the Miss Rodeo USA pageant and I can’t think of a better person for that task. She’s a Houdini with a camera, getting every important shot without anyone noticing her running around. I knew this next photo shoot with her was going to be just as amazing. I traveled down to Lincoln, Arkansas for a whole new experience in front of the camera with Sherry. To make the trip even better my truck got a new wrap by Katalyst Sign and Grafix. We were south bound in style!
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We started out shooting sponsor clothing that I’ve been excited to debut for a while now but knew I needed the perfect photo to showcase each outfit. Sylvia Sandford with Queenies Custom Creations created a rich purple shirt with embroidered skulls and flowers all over it! I have always loved Pirates of the Caribbean, so naturally the skulls were right up my alley. Lottie Morrison (mother to a former MRUSA) created a beautiful deep gray leather vest with feathers and horseshoes, which paired with one of my Ariat shirts perfectly. Another show stopper was a bright pink breast cancer awareness arena shirt by Gloria Rudd with Rodeo Queen Shirts! I had fun with this one during a few shots with a gorgeous red roan horse named Rubin. I paired all my favorite Ariat denim, Miss Macie Boots, and Rhinestones Lipgloss Earrings with these fabulous custom pieces. I was also excited to showcase new Boot Rugs, my MJ Belt, Hoofies, Gypsy Tails, and a patriotic horse blanket thanks to Janet Woods!

Before I headed to Arkansas, Sherry told me she had an idea for a shot with smoke and colored lights. Of course I was totally in but knew I needed a specific outfit to capture the fierceness this photo had to offer. So I designed and made a snake skin fringe dress myself to pair with my bright white Miss Macie Boots! I felt like I was on top of the world while capturing this piece of artwork. Sherry had the great idea of adding white chiffon to create more movement in the photo while her husband Keith, used a leaf blower to bring the chiffon to life.

Another custom piece I had a part in designing were my custom Miss Rodeo USA chaps by Sara Prochaska with Lazy P Creations, who is also my aunt! It took a couple weeks to tweak the design until it was perfect but let me tell you what, these are the coolest chaps I have ever seen. While I might be a tad biased, there is no doubt they make a statement!

This photo shoot couldn’t have come at a better time. With many rodeos and events being cancelled I was missing the chance to really feel like Miss Rodeo USA lately. Sherry Smith helped me feel like a queen by capturing so many breathtaking photos that I will get to cherish for many years to come. Enjoy a first look at many of these amazing photographs. Thank you Sherry for all your hard work to get every photo exactly right!

Miss Rodeo USA 2020
Brooke Wallace
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Brooke’s Bloopers: While shooting with Sherry Smith Photography, I was asked to do a twirl to get the fringe on my dress to fly! Well, I was standing on a wobbly rock and we all know how this is going to end… Twirling in an all-white outfit, in a damp forest area is a recipe for disaster for me. I fell off the rock but stayed standing and miraculously missed stepping on one of Sherry’s flashes! We all got some good belly laughs out of the deal!
 
Queens Corner: I want to give you a few tips and tricks on preparing for a photo shoot. First off, don’t try new make-up or hair styles the day of! Practice beforehand so you know exactly what you will be doing the day of. Along with that, have all your outfits picked out and paired with jewelry so you can make quick changes on set. This will take away a lot of stress in the moment. Keep a hair brush, hair spray, and lipstick close by to do quick touch ups if needed. Finally, make sure to talk to your photographer beforehand so you both know what to expect on number of changes and clothes that will correspond with shoot locations.
 
Statistically Speaking:

• Miles Traveled: 3,151
• States Visited: 3
• Rodeos Attended: 4
• Number of Performances: 12
• Horses Ridden: 13
• Other Appearances: 12

I got to go to a rodeo and it sure felt good! When I originally saw there was an IPRA rodeo on the list that didn’t have cancelled or postponed written beside it, I didn’t care how far I had to drive. I wanted to go! To make it even better it was just a short 4 hours and some change to get down there. For reference, my idea of a short drive is less than 7 hours. A fair drive ranges from 8-13 and a long drive is anything over that. This has dramatically changed from the day I had to drive one hour to college and I thought that was a long drive. So off to Locust Grove I went with a smile from ear to ear and my essential road snacks, cracked pepper sunflower seeds and a mountain dew. This trip was mighty easy because I had a traveling partner which doesn’t always happen for me. My roommate entered in the barrel racing so we sang along to every country song all the way down through Kansas and as we got into Oklahoma. I swear our voices became a little bit jumbled, maybe because of the bumpy roads. We were both equally excited to be on the road headed to a rodeo!
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For the Friday evening performance I was honored to carry the American flag during the opening ceremony. I then crossed paths with a two fellow rodeo royalty, Miss ACRA, Haven Davis and Jr. Miss ACRA, Myranda Kistler. We all cleared the arena between contestants and enjoyed each other’s company. While taking precautions and social distancing we stayed horseback most of the performance and didn’t spend as much time talking to the crowd as we typically would. It felt a little odd for me not to start walking amongst the crowd to explain an event to a fan, or sign an autograph sheet to an admiring little girl. After the rodeo I stuck around to help clear the arena during slack. Slack is the term used to identify the remaining contestants that didn’t fit into the designated rodeo performance time. There is a random drawing to determine who is competing in the performance and who competes in slack, but all contestants have the same chance to win money. There were a record number of contestants for this rodeo with over 400 entries. In the past there have only been just over 100. That is a big change for a small rodeo. So needless to say slack ran until about 2 a.m. on Friday and 4 a.m. on Saturday. I will admit I was a bit chilly and definitely covered in mud but happy to be horseback doing what I love. I still can’t believe I was at a rodeo in May with a winter coat on.

Saturday rolled around and I went to get on Ralph, one of Kyle Robinson’s pick-up horses from Big Horn Rodeo. To my surprise my horse was already occupied by a little boy named Leroy. He was enjoying Ralph just as much as I did the night before. Leroy is Kyle’s son and didn’t seem to want to get off anytime soon so I climbed on double and we went for a pre-rodeo walk around the fairgrounds. Not many words were spoken because Leroy and I didn’t quite speak the same English but we both knew what tractor, horse and bull were so naturally we got along real great. Opening ceremonies took place and all the rodeo royalty, with the addition of the Ken Lance Memorial Rodeo Queen, Shannon Kerr were horseback carrying flags. Even though the sun shined down on the arena all day it didn’t quite dry the arena up. So with another muddy performance the show still went on and a good show it was!

Miss Rodeo USA 2020
Brooke Wallace
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Brooke’s Bloopers: While pushing cattle out of the arena Friday night we were met with an interesting surprise in the middle of the arena. After getting a calf out of the arena I spun my horse Ralph around to head back down the arena and I bust out laughing with the sight of a dachshund running down the middle of the arena. Remember, this was a very sloppy and muddy arena and his short little legs barely kept his belly off the mud. As I was contemplating hopping off my horse to pick this dog up a lady comes running out to get it. The rodeo resumes but not 15 minutes later I was watching another tie down roping contestant make a run and just as the calf leaves the chute the same little dog was hot on its heels. So not just once but twice this little dog makes an appearance in the arena creating lots of laughs and fortunately no wrecks. In all of my years of rodeo I have never had a dog come out into the arena, let alone a dachshund!


Queens Corner: Put yourself in the position to watch as many pageants as you can or compete in a mock pageant! I know that it definitely helped me with my mental preparation before running for a pageant. Even by watching a different pageant you are going through each step of the process. Watching contestants during horsemanship, model, give speeches, and answer impromptu questions you gain a lot of experience mentally. I took advantage of always going to rodeos that had a pageant coincide with the rodeo. If you are ever considering extra steps you can take to improve before competing in your next pageant go watch a pageant! Also by attending clinics you can receive valuable feedback. Remember the Miss Rodeo USA clinic will be August 14-16, 2020. Any age and skill level are welcome to come learn and improve their rodeo ambassador skills!
 
Statistically Speaking:

• Miles Traveled: 2,506
• States Visited: 2
• Rodeos Attended: 4
• Number of Performances: 12
• Horses Ridden: 13
• Other Appearances: 11