For those of you who do not know Elizabeth, she grew up watching bull riding with her grandpa. She would watch the snot fly and laugh every time. As Elizabeth got older she never lost her love for the sport, however she always said she would never date a bull rider. for many reasons, but because they were often on the shorter side. They always tell you never to say never and Elizabeth should have listened.

Flash forward to January 2019 when Jess entered the picture and she was about to eat her words. It was a cold day in Denver at National Western Stock Show (NWSS) when Jess and Elizabeth crossed paths. Jess was competing and Elizabeth was interning with NWSS. They enjoyed a moment to chat and exchanged numbers, but then Elizabeth got whisked away for intern duties. Knowing the fast pace of rodeo life, Elizabeth thought she would never see him again.

As NWSS came to a close, Elizabeth moved back to Fort Collins for school at Colorado State University. She involved herself in multiple different organizations. The most important to this story was that she would be moving into her sorority house.

As weeks went by, Jess and Elizabeth kept in touch. Jess mentioned he was to be back in town in between rodeo events around Valentine's Day. Jess decided this was his chance to ask Elizabeth out for ice cream, but for her she did not think Jess would actually show up. She said yes anyway, but requested that he come pick her up from the sorority house. Much like any love story, Jess dealt with a swarm of sorority women peering out the window as he picked up her up (everyone crossing their fingers in hopes for a positive first date). The date went like a dream... But as the rodeo life goes, Jess had to leave to catch the next one. Over the next few months, Jess and Elizabeth would meet up any chance they could get for coffee dates in Fort Collins. The real test came later that year in May of 2019.

Elizabeth took an opportunity and moved to Lee, Florida for the summer to intern at a dairy farm while Jess was in full rodeo mode. At this point, she was unsure if Jess would stick around due to even more distance, but was still willing to give it a shot. Then come the end of July, Elizabeth flew home for her best friends wedding not expecting Jess would be able to attend due to events. However, at 6 in the morning, day of the wedding, there was a surprise for her waiting on the doorstep. Jess had driven all night to surprise her and be her date. From then on, she knew he was committed and was willing to put in the same effort to make it work even with the many many miles between them.

After many rodeos, surviving the distance, and 4 years... Jess proposed to Elizabeth. He popped the question 04.16.23 in the Sandhills of Nebraska after visiting some friends for the weekend. We are so excited to begin this next journey in our relationship and look forward to a lifetime of memories and happiness.

Photos