Ep. 46 - Courtenay DeHoff; Western Sports Television Personality
Courtenay DeHoff is a Jack (or Jill) of all trades, the host of Cowgirl Problem’s Podcast, a TV reporter, and a beef advocate that works with the NCBA. We are excited to have her on the show to talk about all things advocacy and communications with That Western Life co-hosts Katie Schrock & Rachel Owens-Sarno.
Being a Television Host
Courtenay is a Kansas native cowgirl turned television host who pulls from her family’s cow-calf operation and ranching in her work today. She showed Angus heifers across the country as well as rodeo’d with her sister - even getting a rodeo scholarship to Oklahoma State University. During that time, she also pro rodeo’d a little bit but got into television via an internship at a local news station.
“I fell in love with the story telling aspect of the news,” says Courtenay. “I love people and telling stories… I kind of fell into television and my key card kept working so I kept with it.”
By sticking with it, she was able to advance further and further in the media world.
Courtenay admits that she let outside people and agents convince her that agriculture was too niche and that she needed to get out of agriculture in order to be successful. They had a fear that if she showed how attached she was too agriculture, the mainstream markets of New York and Los Angeles woudln’t take her serious.
“I’ve had this wild career… it’s been a dang adventure!”
Making Agriculture A Platform
After having a terrible experience at her first big kid job for an agricultural company. She was sitll involved in it; riding horses and learning what was going on but she didn’t post about it. There was a transition in the television industry where they didn’t want to hire talent, they wanted to hire people that have brands.
“What’s your brand?” “Who are you?”
These were questions that Courtenay struggled with as people said, “You’re really talented but you aren’t a marketable brand.”
Not into makeup, kind of into fashion, she really struggled with this new face of media. Her following began to grow organically as she worked her way through what she wanted her brand to be and it all started at a moment that Courtenay was in-between TV jobs.
Nobody was calling, she couldn’t get a job, couldn’t get an agent and Courtenay’s mom, who was a big fan of Kathy & Regis/Live with Kelly, there was a contest to be her guest co-host for the day. Michael Strahan had just left so they had this contest and her mom said she should do it.
At first, Courtenay was skeptical and almost angry thinking that she was above that. But it was in that moment that followed, as she loped out her barrel horse, that she realized that her on her horse WAS different.
“This could be something, this is kind of cool,” she thought to herself. There would be a lot of people who would be interested in horses.
“I wore a pure white Calvin Klein pant suit and I rode a horse and halter broke a show heifer for this tongue-in-cheek entry,” laughs Courtenay. Then she made it to the next round so she rode a cutting horse and drove a truck and trailer. In the end, she didn’t get it but she did make the top 10 and got to interview with the producers in New York.
It was at that moment that she started thinking about agriculture and her lifestyle as a brand but she wasn’t sold on it. Several years later, working in Dallas for a network, there was a huge story in the midwest about wildfires impacting farmers and ranchers, their homes and their animal genetics.
The news anchor wanted to know story pitches so Courtenay showed how it would impact everybody in the world. “Need I remind you, this is a real news world and stop bringing me your ‘cowgirl problems,’” was the response. Courtenay saw red and decided that she was going to share this large emerging story.
“It was probably self-serving,” admits Courtenay who thought this was an important story but she wasn’t able to get there to help. Sharing their story was how they could help! That story was viewed over 1.9 million times.
“For me, that was such a pivotal turning point in my way of thinking. It was in that moment that I thought, ‘What the hell have I been doing in NOT talking about agriculture?’ I tell you what, when your video goes viral, everybody starts to take notice but for me, that was the validation that I needed for my own personal whatever that these stories were worth telling. Agricultural needs to be in the mainstream media,” says Courtenay. “Ever since that video I have been really dedicated to lending my voice to agriculture.”
Cowgirl Problems Podcast
“I envisioned and wanted Cowgirl Problems to be a podcast that, quite frankly, be just me talking to cool-ass people,” says Courtenay. “I want to bring people onto my podcast that people may not be familiar with whether they are people in agriculture that my non-ag girlfriends in Dallas can listen to.
“I just wanted the podcasts to be the continuation of conversations that I am having,” says Courtenay. The best part of podcasts is that you can make it available to people. While not necessarily easy, it’s easy to have a great conversation and be able to share that with those interested in listening.
The dream guest that Courtenay would love to have on the show isn’t actually someone western or agriculture. A fan of women who are unapologetic bad asses that knock down doors - she is a HUGE Cher fan and would love to have that legend on the show. Ahead of her time in her thinking and “got it” before the rest of us did. She understood the value of women, the importance of equal pay, how powerful it can be to just call it like it is.
“I have interviewed celebrities… some are great, some are not so great, but she’s the one I would be star struck to talk too,” says Courtenay.
Professional Bull Riders
“It’s been really cool, the PBR is awesome,” says Courtenay who pursued the PBR and has had a longtime interest in working with them as they have done a great job of bridging the rural and urban gap. “They just really get it.”
The broadcast is next-to-none but with a family of history of bull riders, Courtenay really got in a year and a half ago with the launch of RidePass and the digital. Western sports can be a little behind the trends, the networks, and the ESPN’s of the world. Finally a spot had opened up and her first gig with them was at Madison Square Garden. They trusted her enough to turn her loose and she hosted RidePass in New York for the tour.
“It’s a great group, the guys are great, I just really enjoy it,” says Courtenay. “There’s not a lot of women involved but there is Kate Harrison and she’s AMAZING and kind.”
Rodeo has always been a passion and they do a great job of promoting the sport and have definitely been ahead of the game - a conversation that we had with TWL Podcast guest Ezekiel Mitchell.
If you’re a fan of this episode, you may also like fellow NCBA beef advocate Markie Hageman with Girls Eat Beef Too, PBR competitor Ezekiel “Blue” Mitchell or western sports television’s legend himself, Jeff Medders with Geronimo Productions!