A Birdsville cowgirl has travelled 850 kilometres to go head-to-head with some of the best cowboys, at a bronc riding school in North West Queensland.
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Kath McQueen, 24, had been longing for the day to try her hand at bronc riding, signing herself up for the bronc riding school at Quamby last weekend.
Ms McQueen was the only female participating on the day, but said that did not deter her from competing.
"It was absolutely amazing! Everyone was so welcoming, accepting and really supportive of me taking part, which was great," she said.
"This was my first adventure bronc riding, however I have ridden in station buckjump a few times before which started off as a bucket list thing.
"I was only going to jump on one, but I had such a ball the first time I did it a couple of more times and decided to get really into it."
Ms McQueen rode time on her first horse at the school but said it wasn't beginners luck.
"I think we will call it determination," she said.
"I travelled over 800 kilometres and I broke down at Dajarra, towed to Mount Isa and then caught a lift to Quamby to be the only girl at the school. I was determined not to fall off in the first two bucks.
"No one said anything about me being a girl at the rodeo school, they were really excited to see me there, you could definitely tell by the amount of cheers that I got they were pretty stoked to see someone jumping in and having a go - let alone staying on."
Working and living on Adria Downs Station 160 kilometres north west of Birdsville, Ms McQueen is experienced when it comes to riding rough horses.
"Working on a cattle station you do ride some rough ones at work, I have also been breaking in horses so I've had a bit of practice," she said.
"I have also campdrafted around the North West a bit a bit, so riding horses is nothing new."
Ms McQueen said she was looking forward to jumping onto the rodeo circuit, post COVID-19.
"I think once I jump on a few more horses and get into the groove I wont be worried too much about it," she said.
"My goal is to have some fun, buck some horses out, make new friends and get some adrenaline going."
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Samantha Campbell
Samantha Campbell (nee Walton) has worked for regional and rural publications across New South Wales, Queensland and the Northern Territory. She is currently writing for the North Queensland Register based in North West Queensland. Email: samantha.campbell@austcommunitymedia.com.au
Samantha Campbell (nee Walton) has worked for regional and rural publications across New South Wales, Queensland and the Northern Territory. She is currently writing for the North Queensland Register based in North West Queensland. Email: samantha.campbell@austcommunitymedia.com.au
