Clinton Public School District

Clinton High School junior Shelby Kate Taylor recently won the title of Junior Miss Dixie National after competing in the Miss Dixie National Livestock Show and Rodeo Pageant. 

As Junior Miss Dixie National, she is nationally recognized as a rodeo queen for the Dixie National Livestock Show and Rodeo, a sanctioned Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association event.

Taylor said she was instantly overwhelmed with excitement. “Winning this title is an incredible honor and blessing in many ways. It opens the doors to countless opportunities that I otherwise would not have,” she said. 

She said this serves as a platform to share her love of the rodeo and agricultural heritage that has been passed down through generations within her family, starting from her great grandfathers who farmed in the Mississippi Delta. Her mother’s love for the rodeo is what spurred her interest in the first place. 

“It allows me to expose the outside world to the rodeo way of life and the positive impact it has on so many levels,” she said. “To be able to represent the prestigious Dixie National Livestock Show and Rodeo is a gift that I do not take lightly.” 

As the Junior Miss Dixie National, she will ride in every performance at the 2025 Dixie National Livestock Show and Rodeo, participate in the annual parade and promote the Dixie National Livestock Show and Rodeo through various appearances in hospitals, schools, nursing homes and media spots. 

This pageant has some of the categories familiar to well known pageants, but unlike other pageants of note, the Miss Dixie National Livestock Show and Rodeo Pageant requires the contestants to exhibit their horsemanship and knowledge of equine health and care. 

“We had to ride through a set pattern,” Shelby Kate Taylor said, “performing lead changes and showcasing our ability to handle our horse.” 

On top of displaying her horsemanship, she was tasked with answering questions under a strenuous interview session, displaying her knowledge of all things rodeo and horses. 

Taylor and a horse named Colonel, owned by family friend and coach Lane Vargas, did more than impress the judges. Her skills earned her the Horsemanship Award, the Appearance Award, the Personality Award and, of course, the title of Junior Miss Dixie National.

Admittedly, she felt nervous during the competition, stating that she wanted to win very badly. “I remember getting ready to enter the arena for my turn to ride for the horsemanship portion and literally shaking with nerves. I closed my eyes, took some deep breaths. I asked God to ride with me, and that is exactly what He did, and I reminded myself to trust my horse.”

Her love of horses started at an early age but was paused in 2020 after being diagnosed with Slipped Capital Femoral Epiphysis in both hips. She underwent emergency hip surgery and was told she would probably never walk normally again and most likely would never be able to ride horses again. 

“After months in a wheelchair and not bearing any weight on her hips, we were told her hips healed better than the doctors could imagine,” Shelby Kate’s mother Lauren Taylor said. “She held fast to God’s promises and she returned to the saddle and entered her first rodeo in July of 2020, which was a complete miracle,” she added.

Shelby Kate still has metal pins in both hips which can limit her mobility, even preventing her from mounting her horse from the ground. 

Taylor said she had a great ride, but near the end of her pattern, her foot got caught in her stirrup, leaving her in a predicament. 

“The pins in my hips prevent me from stretching out as far as most people can. As I was pulling my foot out, the movement startled my horse and he began to back up quickly,” she said. “He could have dragged me, pulled away from me or any other scenario that could have ended in major injury.”

Shelby Kate’s training and relationship with her horse played a vital role in keeping the situation safe while portraying her true horsemanship to the judges. 

“I exited that arena in tears, certain that I had blown it. I thought for sure I had lost the whole thing. But much to my surprise, that wasn’t the outcome at all,” she said. 

The judges told her how she handled that situation impressed them strongly, commenting on how she put her horse first, keeping them both calm. 

“That’s what this title is about, not just winning a beauty pageant, but showcasing the depth and character of rodeo and what it teaches you,” she said. “This experience reminded me that I can overcome, even when it feels like a loss.”

The Dixie National Livestock and Rodeo began in 1965 and has exponentially grown over the years with an estimated economic impact of over $20 million drawing well over one hundred thousand visitors to the fairgrounds annually. 

Shelby Kate Taylor is the daughter of Dr. Virgil Taylor and Lauren Taylor and the granddaughter of longtime Clinton Arrow Baseball and Soccer coach Hugh Christian.