By Tracy Bidwell, OQHA
Photos courtesy Jeff Kirkbride
Since 1968, young women from all over the country have made the trip to Ohio for the chance of a lifetime. Annually, affiliate Quarter Horse associations send contestants to compete at the All American Quarter Horse Congress for the title of Congress Queen.
The Congress Queen serves as an ambassador for the show, welcoming spectators and exhibitors alike. In fact, the Congress Queen does so much during the show that she becomes one of the most memorable faces each year.
The Queen’s reign, however, does not end on October 28th. She makes appearances at many national events, including the AQHA Convention, AQHA World Shows and other major horse shows throughout the entire year. Aside from horse shows and AQHA events, the Congress Queen shares her love and knowledge of the American Quarter Horse with students, youth teams, 4-H and FFA groups.
The road to become Congress Queen is not an easy one. All queen candidates that compete at Congress must represent a state, regional or provincial Quarter Horse association, many of which hold competitions of their own for the honor. After winning a regional Queen title, candidates then compete at the Congress in a three-part test. The first portion, worth 40 percent of the contestant’s total score, is a written examination of the AQHA Official Handbook of Rules and Regulations. Next is an oral interview, which is also worth 40 percent. In this section, contestants are judged on their poise, appearance and personality. Finally, the last 20 percent of the competition is based on a Horsemanship pattern, in which contestants are judged by a panel of AQHA-approved judges on their performance. The goal of the Horsemanship class is to demonstrate excellent riding ability and horsemanship skills. The candidate who receives the highest overall score is crowned the All American Quarter Horse Congress Queen.
After a grueling week of competition that began on October 18th, 15 young ladies from around the country and Canada gathered in the Coliseum last night, anxiously waiting to hear which of them would be crowned.
After announcing placings for each phase, it was Emily Messing representing the Massachusetts Quarter Horse Association who was crowned the 2012 All American Quarter Horse Congress Queen.
Congratulations to all of the wonderful ladies that competed this year. Listed below are the results of each phase of the Queen Contest, as well as the overall placings.
Oral Interview
1st – Margaret Moore, Virginia Quarter Horse Association
2nd – Tausha Hellyer, Ontario Quarter Horse Association
3rd – Maggie Sturm, Northern Ohio Quarter Horse Association
4th – Megan Hephner, Kentucky Quarter Horse Association
5th – Kristina Pothoven, Western Michigan Quarter Horse Association
6th – Whitney Turner, Mid-East Kentucky Quarter Horse Association
7th – Meghan Murphy, Michigan Quarter Horse Association
8th – Emily Messing, Massachusetts Quarter Horse Association
9th – Lauren Harrington, Western Pennsylvania Quarter Horse Association
10th – Leona Parr, South Carolina Quarter Horse Association
Written Test
1st – Emily Messing, Massachusetts Quarter Horse Association
2nd – Meghan Murphy, Michigan Quarter Horse Association
3rd – Leona Parr, South Carolina Quarter Horse Association
4th – Whitney Turner, Mid-East Kentucky Quarter Horse Association
5th – Margaret Moore, Virginia Quarter Horse Association
6th – Lauren Harrington, Western Pennsylvania Quarter Horse Association
7th – Tausha Hellyer, Ontario Quarter Horse Association
8th – Kristina Pothoven, Western Michigan Quarter Horse Association
9th – Allison Watts, Mid-Atlantic Quarter Horse Association
10th – Maggie Sturm, Northern Ohio Quarter Horse Association
Western Horsemanship
1st – Meghan Murphy, Michigan Quarter Horse Association
2nd – Tausha Hellyer, Ontario Quarter Horse Association
3rd – Lauren Harrington, Western Pennsylvania Quarter Horse Association
4th – Emily Messing, Massachusetts Quarter Horse Association
5th – Jenna Mahovlich, Pennsylvania Quarter Horse Association
6th – Whitney Turner, Mid-East Kentucky Quarter Horse Association
7th – Maggie Sturm, Northern Ohio Quarter Horse Association
8th – Megan Hephner, Kentucky Quarter Horse Association
9th – Kristina Pothoven, Western Michigan Quarter Horse Association
10th – Mackenzie Thiel, Southern Ohio Quarter Horse Association
Overall Results
2012 Congress Queen: Emily Messing, Massachusetts Quarter Horse Association
First Runner-Up: Meghan Murphy, Michigan Quarter Horse Association
Second Runner-Up: Margaret Moore, Virginia Quarter Horse Association
Miss Congeniality: Abbey Maier, Ohio-Michigan-Indiana Quarter Horse Association
