For 1970, the CFD Committee under the chairmanship of E. O. Davis needed something to replace the traditional serpentine that preceded every rodeo. Throughout the rodeo, as losing cowboys left for other venues, the serpentine grew smaller with each day. The solution, they concluded, was to have a team of twelve young ladies on horseback lead their own serpentine instead. Arlene Kensinger, who was a former member of the Quadrillettes riding group and responsible for the smooth operation of the serpentine, was asked to create the new organization. Under Arlene’s guidance, the Dandies became a skilled mounted drill team and represented CFD as its Ambassadors. Arlene continued to coach the Dandies until she retired in 1997. Since then, there have been two other Directors of the Dandies: Diane Humphries, who took over for Arlene Kensinger, and Michelle Hess, who became the Director when Diane retired in 2013.
The traditions established by the first team of twelve high school girls has evolved through the past fifty-plus years. At the outset, the minimum age requirement was 16. Today, the Dandies are a team with fourteen members where girls as young as 14 can be Dandies and “age out” at 18. While the original 1970 team provided their own costumes and only traveled to local rodeos and entertainment events, the Dandies of today receive all of their outfits from dedicated sponsors and have a travel schedule that begins in May and takes them to events in Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico and South Dakota, ending just before Cheyenne Frontier Days™. Beyond this, the Dandies also attend fundraising events for the Committees, host fundraising events of their own throughout the year, and provide help at the CFD Old West Museum.
During CFD, the traditions of the Dandies have remained the same. The Dandies continue to carry the flags in the arena, not only for CFD but also for its many sponsors. They appear at every rodeo in the opening serpentine and during the event as individual riders and as a team in coordinated arena drills. Dandies appear in every parade, pancake breakfast, and at the performances of the Thunderbirds and the Challenge Rodeo. As in 1970, the skills and fortitude to keep up with all these appearances takes a great deal of commitment to develop on the part of all the group’s members.
All Dandies give their time to Cheyenne Frontier Days™ and the demands are challenging. Dandies must provide and care for their own horses. The training needed to master the horse drills requires hundreds of hours of practice, as does developing the skills to maintain their appearance as CFD ambassadors. The members of the Dandies always have to manage their training and the time required to execute their responsibilities with the demands of being students and being involved with jobs or extracurricular activities such as athletics, cheerleading, dancing, 4-H, FFA, and music. To help them accomplish their goals, the girls, many of whom are too young to drive themselves, are supported by their equally dedicated parents. Many former Dandies continue to volunteer and some of their daughters have since become Dandies themselves, perpetuating the 50-plus year tradition with a deep understanding of the sacrifices that their daughters have to make. This perpetual support has helped the Dandies thrive for the last five decades. The Dandies’ dedication to Cheyenne Frontier Days™ is clear and the reputation of the group is far reaching. Since 1970, there have been an estimated 800 Dandies who have volunteered countless hours to serve as the official Good Will Ambassadors of the “Daddy of Em’ All.” They are a force to be reckoned with and are valuable contributors to Cheyenne Frontier Days™ and the western way of life.