MOULTRIE, Ga. — In the sport of rodeo, there are basically two types of royalty — the cowboys and cowgirls who are legends in the sport of rodeo and the beautiful young ladies who carry the title of rodeo queen.

Recently, 18 young ladies from ages 3 to 26 competed in the 5th Annual Sunbelt Expo Rodeo Queen Pageant in Moultrie. Contestants from Georgia, Florida and Alabama competed in six different age divisions.

These very talented cowgirls were judged in three major areas that included personality, appearance and horsemanship. Along with all of this, they also worked hard to show off their skills and knowledge of rodeo and presentation, general equine science, public speaking, personal interviewing, poise, awareness of current events, their photogenic qualities and overall professionalism. Poise, personality, knowledge, horsemanship, graciousness and integrity are all important components of this contest.

This year the entries participated in personal Interviews with a panel of judges, they modeled western wear in a fashion show and they completed a horsemanship pattern. Older age groups gave three-minute “commercial style” speeches advertising the Sunbelt Ag Expo, answered impromptu questions on stage and took a written test on equine, agriculture and Sunbelt Ag Expo related knowledge.

The 2018 winners include:

Teeny Miss Sunbelt Expo Rodeo Princess – Chanlynn McPhail. McPhail is the 4-year-old daughter of Casey and Morgan McPhail from Norman Park.

Tiny Miss Sunbelt Expo Rodeo Princess – Kayma Jenkins. Jenkins is the 7-year-old daughter of Mark and Candace Jenkins from Leesburg, Ga. 1st runner up – Cadence Davis from Hahira; 2nd runner up – Chloe Crawford from Coolidge; and 3rd runner up – Jamie Leigh Raines from Chickamauga, Ga.

Little Miss Sunbelt Expo Rodeo Princess – Ava Lynn Cravey. Cravey is the 10-year-old daughter of Corey and Jody Cravey from Eastman, Ga. 1st Runner up – Maddie Mullis Pearson; and 2nd runner up – Kristin Anderson from Ochlocknee.

Junior Miss Sunbelt Expo Rodeo Princess – Tarabeth Looney. Looney is the 13-year-old daughter of D.J. and Michelle Raines of Chickamauga. 1st runner up – Emma Dent from Lake Park.

Miss Sunbelt Expo Rodeo Princess – Allie Ann Wheeler. Wheeler is the 15-year-old daughter of Alan and Chrissy Wheeler of Coolidge. 1st runner up – Melissa Ballard of Morven; 2nd runner up Elizabeth Crews of Alma, Ga.

Miss Sunbelt Expo Rodeo Queen – Jolye Durrett. Durrett is the 25-year-old daughter of Joey Durrett and Tracye York and is from Alpine, Ala. 1st runner up – Malerie Whitehurst of Williston, Fla.; 2nd runner up – Kayla Shelnutt from Loganville, Ga.; 3rd runner up – Sarah Larson from Newberry, Fla.; and 4th runner up – Meagan Smith from Moultrie.

As the newly crowned Sunbelt Queen, Durrent received a trophy saddle, a custom perpetual crown, a custom designed trophy buckle, three monogrammed sashes, a custom saddle rack, an embroidered weekend bag, a leather portfolio, jewelry and many other prizes. If she chooses to go on to compete in the 2019 Miss Rodeo USA Pageant in Oklahoma, her $250 entry fee will be paid.

In addition to the titles, several special awards were also presented:

• The Speech Award winner was Jolye Durrett.

• The Most Photogenic Award went to Allie Ann Wheeler. 1st runner up was Jolye Durrett and 2nd runner up was Cadence Davis.

• Wheeler also received the Miss Congeniality award.

• Horsemanship awards were presented to the contestants with the highest score in that category. They were judged on their overall appearance on the horse, their body, hand and seat position, execution of the pattern and their presentation ride for the audience. Older contestants were asked to dismount and were asked equine related questions and then asked to re-mount. Horsemanship winners include: Teeny Miss Horsemanship Chanlynn McPhail, Tiny Miss Horsemanship Maddie Mullis, Little Miss Horsemanship Cadence Davis, Junior Miss Horsemanship Tarabeth Looney, Princess Horsemanship Allie Ann Wheeler and Queen Horsemanship Malerie Whitehurst.

Another special award is the Miss Spirit of Sunbelt Rodeo title. This title is decided by the pageant officials and judges and goes to a young lady who did not win their division but showed outstanding poise and potential to represent  the Sunbelt Ag Expo. This years’ winner was Sarah Larson from Newberry, Fla. Larson is the 22-year-old daughter of Dawn Larson and William Larson. She is currently a student at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College majoring in agriculture education.

The mission of the Sunbelt Expo Rodeo Queen Pageant is to provide a quality rodeo queen competition where both the contestants and spectators are enriched, according to a press release about the event.

“Selecting an ambassador and spokeswoman helps promote a positive image and awareness of the importance that the equine industry plays in the state of Georgia,” the release said. “The newly selected rodeo princesses and queen will form a connection between loyal horse owners and enthusiasts, the media and the general public’s perception of horse events such as rodeos, horse shows and other equine events.”

The winners of the pageant are selected to be official spokespersons for the Sunbelt Ag Expo, which is scheduled this year for Oct. 16-18.

The pageant is directed by Cindy Wynn from Pavo. Wynn started the pageant five years ago in hopes of giving young cowgirls in the south a chance to compete for a rodeo queen title.

“There are a lot of little girls who would love the opportunity to compete for a title but we just don’t have that many opportunities,” Wynn said. “Out west, there are rodeo queen pageants held monthly and sometimes weekly but here in Georgia, there really isn’t anywhere for them to compete.”

Wynn was a former Miss Rodeo Georgia who competed in the Miss Rodeo America Pageant in 1981. She also served as the state pageant director for the Miss Rodeo Georgia Pageant for several years. Wynn has coached contestants and judged rodeo queen pageants for over 30 years. She has coached many title winners and also coached a former Sunbelt Rodeo Queen who went on to be crowned Miss Rodeo USA.