Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo Photographer: A Dandy of a Summer

The summer I was seventeen was probably the best summer of my life.  Just me, a chestnut mare and endless days spent on her back representing the world’s largest outdoor rodeo.

I had the honor and privilege of serving as in the Cheyenne Frontier Days Dandies, one of a 16-member riding team that worked as goodwill ambassadors for the rodeo.  We toured the Rocky Mountain west, attending rodeos and parades to promote CFD and western heritage.

For a girl that had been in love with all things horse since she was five, it was a dream come true.

There were plenty of things I didn’t like about being a Dandy.  Some of the older girls tried to bully me because I was a “horse show princess,” and not a ranch girl.  And we had to learn to clog.  I can laugh about the bright gold cowboys boots and tapping a tune to “Baby’s Got Her Blue Jeans On” now, but back then it was positively painful.

But the trials and the tribulations faded into the background the moment I threw my leg over Peppermint’s back and we hit the arena.  Flying down the track with the big mare stretched out beneath me was always the cure for what ailed me.

Thump. Thump.  KA BOOOM!!!

I loved how my horse’s muscles would tense as she heard the bombs leave their launching tube before exploding into the sky.  She knew it meant that it was go time.  For years she had been my show horse.  She dutifully performed in pleasure classes, but that summer, I asked so much more of her.  And like the amazing, big-hearted creature she was, she responded.  I might be anthropomorphizing, but I think Peppermint loved the freedom and adventure of that summer as much as I did.

I loved seeing different parts of the country and experiencing different rodeos.  I made some amazing friends that summer with the other girls and their parents.  And meeting cute cowboys and country music stars wasn’t bad either.  But mostly, I just loved being on the back of that big ol’ mare with the roan spots on her hips  and the feeling of freedom as I gave Peppermint her head and let her run.

Yesterday, I was shooting the Junior Barrels at Cheyenne Frontier Days.  As the barrel racers finished, I noticed this year’s group of Dandies lining up at the north of the arena.  Instead of packing up my gear, I shouldered my camera again and watched.

Oh the memories.

I sang along with the music, the lyrics coming back to me twenty some years later as if it had just been last week.  I watched as they paired up, split off and paired up again, eventually forming a line of 16 horses that turned on its axis around the whole arena.  I loved it when the girls came running past the chutes, their faces lit up in breathless excitement.  These young ladies were having fun.

A summer on a fast horse repping the “Daddy of ‘Em All.”  Definitely worth smiling about.

–Teresa