North Dakota Pageant Winner Takes Bronc Riding Grit to Miss USA Competition

For a brief moment, reality hit Sophia Richards and made her question what she had signed up for.

When she registered for the Women’s Ranch Bronc Championship riding school, Richards was excited about the experience. But as the event approached, she was having second thoughts.

“I actually kind of chickened out,” Richards said with a laugh. She reached out to WRBC co-found Michelle McElroy to see if her deposit would be refundable. “She was like, 'No it’s not.' And I was like, ‘You know what, that’s fine. That is the motivation I needed to just commit to it.’”

Richards has stood under bright lights with cameras pointed at her for years. As the reigning Miss North Dakota USA, she’s been put on the spot, asked questions under pressure and performed to the watchful eyes of judges and mass audiences.

All that pales in comparison to trying to make an eight-second whistle.

“Honestly, it was a life-changing experience to put myself out there like that and prove to myself I can do it, was really really cool,” Richards said. “It gave me a lot of confidence I think going forward with this pageant. I was like, if I can do that, I can do anything.”

In the coming days, Richards will be in Miami representing her home state at the 75th annual Miss USA pageant. Preliminary competition and other engagements run August 24-26, with the crowning of a new winner on Thursday, August 27.

Each woman taking part in the event has a unique backstory. The likelihood that anyone else in the field has ridden a bucking horse is incredibly small.

Growing up in the small community of Hope, N.D. (population 250), Richards was always around agriculture, just not livestock. Her family has operated a farm for five generations, planting crops like corn, wheat, barley and soybeans. And while she attended rodeos from time to time, being involved with horses and cattle wasn’t something she routinely did.

During her time as Miss North Dakota in connection to Miss America, Richards began traversing the state more, engaging with different communities. One of her visits was to the 4 Bears Casino and Lodge in New Town, N.D., operated by the Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation, known as the Three Affiliated Tribes. Learning about the traditions and culture of the tribes was something she thoroughly enjoyed.

Since the infancy of the WRBC, the 4 Bears Casino and Lodge has played a significant role in supporting the league’s growth. Because Richards was interacting with the facility’s social media content, her algorithm put an advertisement for the WRBC riding school in her timeline. And so, an idea to ride a bucking horse was born.

“I didn’t tell my parents because they would’ve told me no,” Richards joked about signing up.

When she arrived on site, Richards looked the part – hat, jeans, boots. But there was something a little different compared to many of the other riders.

“Her makeup was immaculate. Flawless skin, her hair was done. Everybody was just kind of looking at her. We found out who she was and we just kept it on the down low,” WRBC co-found Daryl McElroy recalled with a laugh.

“I do a spiel at the beginning where I’m like if you’re an influencer and you’re just here to do a little side story or whatever, just let me know now. I’ll give your money back to you. You can keep all the swag that we give you and just go on. I don’t need you here. She was like, ‘No, I’m here to ride. Let’s do it.’ She had a blast.”

While most of the other girls had some experience in the arena, Richards was truly green. She used WRBC provided equipment, learning how to saddle a horse, along with the technique to get a proper scoring ride.

As expected, the first time out was an adventure.

“She got bucked off one time. She came up and had a mouthful of dirt and she was just beaming, smiling, like, ‘Can I get on another one?’ Daryl McElroy joked.

Despite being bucked off during her first ride, Sophia Richards was all smiles after taking part in the WRBC riding school. | Michael Magill/@michael_magill_photography

Richards has no illusions of returning to a bucking chute anytime soon. There are plenty of talented young women out there with aspirations of a WRBC World Title. She’s content letting them chase a gold buckle while she competes for a crown.

And while she learned a lot at the school, the two biggest takeaways were confidence in herself and newfound connections. She’s met a lot of people in her life, but those cowboys and cowgirls gave her a different perspective on what it means to be tough.

“All the girls have stayed in touch. I’ve had so many well wishes for the pageant from the girls and instructors, comments on social media and messages on social media,” Richards said. “I’ve just been so inspired and learned a lot. They’re tough as hell.”

Ironically, she left the school relatively unharmed, a little sore for sure but no worse for wear. However, she’s currently in Miami nursing a horse-related injury.

A few weekends back, Richards was out with a friend who had some horses that hadn’t been ridden in quite some time. The animal she was on decided the bolt, forcing Richards to bail off to avoid hitting metal fence paneling in the corral. The end result – a pulled muscle in her groin.

And while she’ll do the best to hide the hitch in her step during the Miss USA competition, if it shows on screen, she’ll consider it an earned badge of honor.

“I think it’s so funny that I actually got on three literal bucking horses and walked away without a scratch but now I have a whole injury from just jumping off of my friend’s horse,” Richards said. “When the boys try to be tough, I always say I’m sure my family farms more acres than you and I’m probably tougher than you. Do you think you’re a cowboy? Don’t talk back to me.”

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