It's Rodeo Queen Time: Find Out Who's Competing

Hold on to your cowboy hats! This Saturday, April 2, is the kick-off of the rodeo season with the Rowell Ranch Rodeo Queen Contest. 

Three young women from Pleasanton, Castro Valley and Tracy will compete for the prestigious title of Miss Rowell Ranch Rodeo 2011.

The candidates will be judged on horsemanship, poise, personality, appearance, modeling and public speaking. At the end of the day, a queen will be chosen. She will host the Annual Rowell Ranch Pro Rodeo on May 20-22 and travel throughout the state representing the rodeo and our community at various events.

The competition starts in the morning at Apple Creek Farms Equestrian Center on Crow Canyon Road in Castro Valley, and ends at Ahames Hall, 170 Lindbergh Ave., Livermore, at the annual Rowell Ranch Rodeo BBQ Dinner-Dance, which begins at 6 p.m. Tickets are $35.

Everyone is invited to enjoy drinks, BBQ and dancing to a traditional country-western band.

This year’s contestants include 21-year-old Christine Fox from Pleasanton. Christine is currently a student at St. Mary’s College of California and also works as an au pair.  She started her riding career as an English rider but soon realized that she was meant to be a cowgirl. Besides her passion for rodeo, she competes in reining, cutting and working cow-horse competitions.

Next is 21-year-old Samantha Materne from Castro Valley. Samantha has been riding since she was 8 years old and has competed in reining, team sorting and drill teams.  She is currently an apprentice with a local horse trainer and hopes one day to compete in the Snaffle Bit Futurity.

The third contestant is 22-year-old Danielle Williams from Tracy.  In addition to her love of horses, Danielle enjoys playing both the violin and clarinet, is active with 4-H and FFA, and scuba dives with her dad. She competes in performance horse events and also trains her own horses in reining, barrel racing and extreme cowboy events.

The competition kicks off at 9 a.m. with the judging of horsemanship. Each contestant will answer equine questions.

Then each contestant will ride a specific pattern, which will include galloping around the arena and doing an official “rodeo queen’s wave.”

Apple Creek has an indoor arena, so if the weather is inclement, the entrants will still have a place to demonstrate their riding ability.

Next comes a personal interview where the contestants will be judged on their knowledge of current events, the history of the rodeo and personality.

Whether you are a rodeo person or not, it’s always a great evening with terrific food and wonderful live music. So come on by and say howdy, see the contestants, and then enjoy a wonderful cowboy kind of evening of food and dance. It’s all part of Castro Valley’s unique cowboy heritage.

For more information about the Rowell Ranch Rodeo Queen Contest or for dinner tickets for the Rodeo Queen BBQ Dinner-Dance, contact at 510-581-2577.

 writes a column for Patch called "Let's Talk Horse."