Important Information!

Young men and women 18 years of age or younger are invited to participate in the 2022 Kansas Cowboy Poetry Youth Roundup by writing and performing an original cowboy poem at either of our regional qualifying events. The poem should be a rhyming verse that honors the agricultural lifestyle, western heritage, and the farm and ranch men and women of America. The submission can be serious or humorous.

For more information please see our "How To Enter" page.

The contest is for ORIGINAL WORK ONLY. Poems should be created by the contestant presenting the poem. All poems should be family-friendly. No profanity or inappropriate language is allowed.

2021 Youth Roundup Winner:

Katrina Turner

Prizes:

Judging:

The champion will receive a trophy buckle, and the top three winners will receive a certificate signed by the Governor of Kansas, gift cards to leading western wear stores, and a scholarship as follows:

1st prize - $150

2nd prize - $100

3rd prize - $50

Entries will be evaluated by a panel of judges on a thirty point scale, based on 10 points for each of three factors:

Quality - The technical quality of the poem itself. i.e., the rhyme and meter of the poem - does it rhyme well, does it flow, is meter correct?
Theme - Is it truly cowboy/western? Or just general in topic?
Presentation – delivery of the poem - effective stage presence, polish of the performer, etc.

A perfect score would be a total of 30 points. Ties are broken based on the scores in the Quality category.