Hulstrom: ‘I Wanted to Be A Cowboy’
* By Paityn Hulstrom
LARAMIE -- Roaring screams from the student section, decked out in brown and gold. The flashing lights as Cowboy Joe trots across the turf. The shaking of War Memorial Stadium as the Wyoming Cowboys run out to take on their biggest rivals.
Isn't that enough to make anyone want to go to school in Laramie?
Well, that was the case for my 17-year-old self.
I would visit Wyoming multiple times a year when I was growing up to see my family in Douglas. I always enjoyed driving through fields and fields of open space. But go to college here? Yeah right.
My mother's side are all University of Wyoming alumni, from my great grandparents to my fourth cousins. Wyoming blood runs through generations of my family. Ragtime Cowboy Joe was basically the lullaby that put me to sleep.
Every Christmas, sure enough, UW merch. My mom’s face would gleam as I put on that little cheerleading costume. I had all the hats, sweatshirts, t-shirts, you name it. Even a college fund bottle with the Steamboat logo on it.
Was it destiny?
I was a teen from Colorado, though. I wanted to be different. I made it clear from the moment I found out what college even was, there was no way I was going to Wyoming. I mean, who would want to go to college in a state that has only half-a-million people in it?
I wanted to go somewhere everyone knew: NYU, University of Miami, Arizona State. My heart was set on Boulder and CU.
My Aunt went there. She played volleyball and basketball for the Buffs and currently works for the school. To even out my clothing collection -- or maybe even the score -- I would receive plenty of CU gear around the holidays, too.
You can guess how big that rivalry was between my mom and her.
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When I got my first car, the keys were dangling from a CU lanyard. I plastered Colorado stickers all over my water bottle. My favorite sweatshirt was a black and gold hoodie, proudly boasting that school in all caps.
My heart was set on it.
I wanted to watch Ralphie run. I wanted to listen to Folsom rock. I wanted to see what Prime Time was all about.
Still, the conversations continued.
“Why don’t you just consider UW?”
“Will you just come check out the campus?”
“You know, it’s much cheaper!”
Nothing was changing my mind. At least, that's what I thought.
I was a junior in high school when my mom took me to tour the school. It took plenty of convincing. It was the beginning of November. My mom probably knew better than to take me in the dead of winter.
As we drove to the campus my 17-year-old mind couldn’t believe how small the town was. I mean, where's Target?
But as we strolled onto campus and into the Union to find our tour group, something changed. As I looked around I noticed the beautiful brick buildings, the students walking to campus who were wearing Wyoming gear. The welcoming faces.
As good as the tour was, it still wasn’t enough to convince me. But luckily, we still had the football game the next day. It wasn't just any football game, it was the Border War.
I wore a brand new brown crew neck with Wyoming penned in gold across the front. I purchased it at the bookstore the day prior.
“You know, you look good in brown,” my mom would say as we were leaving our AirBnB. I forced a smile.
When we got to the parking lot outside of the stadium the first thing I saw was "The World Needs More Cowboys."
Walking to our family tailgate, I couldn’t believe how many people were there. Not just people there to watch a football game, but grandmas and grandpas, children, college students, you name it. All there, in one place, supporting one team.
The pride they had for this school, this state, that logo. It was something I had never witnessed before. My mind was even more blown after I sat down on those metal bleachers. The whole stadium was electric, everyone on their feet.
I was jumping up and down, screaming as the Cowboys ran onto the field to take on the hated Colorado State Rams. Boy, did I grow a hatred for those sheep that day.
I don’t think I took my eyes off that field.
There was a sense of pride inside of me that I had never felt before. I wanted Wyoming to win. I wanted the Cowboys to send the Rams back to Fort Collins.
I wanted to be a Cowboy.
May fairytale ended in a UW victory, fans rushed the field. I jumped out of my seat and sprinted towards the bottom of the bleachers. I didn’t even give it a second thought before I jumped over the guard rail.
Everyone was on the 50-yard-line, yelling, screaming, dancing. I thought this was only stuff you see in the movies.
As I looked up at the scoreboard, lighting up the field in the darkness, I knew -- There it was. The moment I never thought would happen. I wanted to go to school in Laramie, Wyoming.
I can say with utmost confidence, as a sophomore at the University of Wyoming, that was the best decision I’ve ever made. The pride that this state has for its school is something I am beyond proud to be a part of.
Plus, the look on my mom's face when I told her I was going here is something I won't soon forget.
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