Miss Rodeo Canada visited Surrey to promote the sport of rodeo<\/p>\n
Published 11:00 pm Wednesday, June 24, 2026<\/p>\n
Miss Rodeo Canada was in B.C. last week to promote a local rodeo.<\/p>\n
Abbey Harty, who hails from Edam Sask., was crowned at the Canadian Finals Rodeo in Edmonton last October. She\u2019s now spending the year representing the sport of rodeo nationwide. As Miss Rodeo Canada 2026, she\u2019s the ambassador for the sport. She likes to showcase a little bit of what happens behind the scenes as she helps promote both the sport as a whole and individual rodeos across the country.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been an incredible opportunity and I\u2019m just excited to come out to B.C. and represent rodeo and our athletes and our stock,\u201d Harty told the Cloverdale Reporter. \u201cJust being able to do it from coast to coast is really special. I couldn\u2019t ask for a better job, honestly.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harty visited a local ranch to ride some horses and film a video to promote Valley West Stampede, Langey\u2019s pro rodeo. She filmed the video with Sheila Hicks, president of Valley West.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe community behind the rodeo here is very special,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s like a family. It\u2019s wonderful to be a part of it. And it\u2019s nice to be able to come out here and make connections.\u201d<\/p>\n
She added that, as Miss Rodeo Canada, she feels lucky to be adopted into all rodeos across the country.<\/p>\n
Hicks said they brought Harty out to help raise awareness in B.C. for the sport.<\/p>\n
\u201cAbbey is a great ambassador for rodeo,\u201d Hicks said. \u201cShe\u2019s helping move the sport forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hicks, who is also the leader of the Bit-A-Bling Grand Entry Team, added that Harty will be back for the Valley West Stampede in September. (Bit-A-Bling opens each rodeo competition for both the Cloverdale Rodeo and Valley West Stampede.)<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re sanctioned by the Canadian Professional Rodeo Association (CPRA), which is great because that means there\u2019s three pro rodeos in B.C. that weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n
She said Miss Rodeo Canada will attend all three, the Interior Provincial Exhibition & Stampede, the Nicola Valley Pro Rodeo, and Valley West Stampede.<\/p>\n
\u201cAbbey will be in Armstrong at IPE. Then she\u2019s gonna hit Merritt. Then she\u2019s spending Monday with us at Valley West Stampede.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harty said she enjoys being the face of Canadian rodeos and she\u2019s grateful she has the opportunity to promote them all. When she\u2019s in one province, she\u2019s always promoting rodeos in other provinces. She also promotes rodeos out west when she\u2019s on the east coast.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery rodeo that I go to is special and unique in its own way,\u201d she noted. \u201cBut I\u2019ve really felt a deeper connection with the people from Valley West Stampede. They\u2019ve really adopted me as one of their own.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hardy will be crisscrossing the prairies for the rest of the summer and even heading back east. She\u2019ll attend a rodeo in Cape Breton. Earlier this year, when it was colder up here, she was south of the line promoting Canadian rodeos.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll be going to as many rodeos as possible,\u201d she said. \u201cMy season will take me back to Alberta and Saskatchewan over the next few months. Then in August, a lot of the CPRA\u2019s B.C. rodeos will kick off. It\u2019s going to be really special to be able to travel all over Western Canada. Then I\u2019ll be heading out to the east coast to do some promotion for rodeo out there. So my season\u2019s pretty busy from now till the end of the year.\u201d<\/p>\n
And Harty isn\u2019t just an ambassador for rodeo, she\u2019s also a rodeo athlete. She competes in barrel racing.<\/p>\n
\u201cMiss Rodeo Canada has never attended the Valley West Stampede,\u201d Harty added. \u201cSo I\u2019m really excited to be the first one and to be able to come back for that. It\u2019s also the 5th anniversary for the Valley West Stampede, so I\u2019m very excited to be able to be a part of that (celebration) too.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Valley West Stampede will take place Sept 5-7 at the Langley Riders Arena.<\/p>\n