Entertainment - Whatcom People

POSTED: Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2009

Hillary Zender: Crowned first queen of Lynden Rodeo

On Jan. 24, 2009, Hilary Zender of Bellingham was crowned the first Miss Lynden Rodeo Queen at the Northwest Washington Fairgrounds in Lynden. The pageant included a horsemanship competition, in which participants were asked to demonstrate their riding skills in front of a panel of judges.

In the next several months, Zender will be working to promote the Lynden Rodeo through public appearances at various events and other rodeos. The organizers of the rodeo plan to make the pageant an annual event.

Here is her story, in her own words:

"I've always grown up in the country. I've been riding since I was 8 and I think that when I get on a horse it takes away all of my cares and worries. I feel very natural on a horse and it's just something that I love to do and it can make any problem disappear. I’m never stressed when I ride horses. It's just like how city people might go to a gym to work out — my horse is my way to get rid of all of my stress and work out at the same time.

"I think the rodeo needs a Miss Rodeo because the cowboys and cowgirls work so hard to get here and don't really get a lot of recognition. The job of the Rodeo Queen is to promote and represent her rodeo in her area and to go to rodeos in different areas. It’s to get people aware that we have a rodeo here in Lynden, to show people that the rodeo is fun and to get them to come.

"I've never done this before, but in all the rodeos I've been to, I just love the royalties. They're just beautiful and natural horse riders and they just looked really excited and happy to do what they were doing. I'm just really excited. I think this is an awesome opportunity.

"Comparing Miss Rodeo Lynden to a beauty pageant, well, it isn't really the same. We were interviewed with the three judges, so we had to study up about the NFR and rodeo history. We were judged on our riding horsemanship. Then, there was a social part where we gave a speech about why we wanted to become the first Miss Lynden Rodeo and got to show our personality in front of the community.

"This is a privilege. I'm excited to be the first Miss Lynden Rodeo and I just really like to go out there and represent something that I love. Rodeo is definitely a passion of mine. It's just a great opportunity for me to get out there with my horse and go to all the rodeos and see what it's all about and maybe try out for Miss Rodeo Washington.

"It was just really exciting — it made me think of all the opportunities out there now that I've got this, about what I can do from here. It's just amazing."