Liana Tom

Indian Rodeo News Cowgirl of the Year nominee 2002



Age:  18

Marital Status:   Single

Family:  Dad-Lee, Mom-Cheryl, Brother-Justin, Sister-Kristen, and Kimberly Just, Charmaine and Benjamin Billey

Home Town:   Warm Springs, but am now residing in Spokane Wa.

Pets:  None with me at the time, but 3 dogs, don't know how many cats, and about 5 or 6 horses back home.

Ethnical Back Ground: Northern Paiute(Warm Springs, OR.), Southern Paiute(Moapa, NV.), Grand Rounde(Grand Rounde, OR.) and Choctaw decent.

Educational Back Ground:  Graduate from Madras High School 2002, and am now attending Spokane Community College doing my pre-requisites for nursing school. And hope to attend the Intercollegiate College of Nursing through Washington State here in Spokane.

Association Member of: Western States Indian Rodeo Association and  USTRC

Rodeo Accomplishments: National High School Rodeo Finals Qualifier 2 years, Silver State Invitational Rodeo qualifier 2 years (only H.S. rodeo for 2 years), Western States Champion Breakaway Roper and INFR Qualifier 2 years, Oregon USTRC Championship High Money Girl team roper.

When did you start an interest in Rodeo? I was born on my way to Hoopa, CA. All Indian Rodeo, and have been involved ever since.

Do you have a lucky piece that you carry with you when you compete? No, but I usually pray and ask that my grandpa, grandma, and uncle watch over me and make sure that I don't get hurt if my horse goes to bucking. (he's known to do that a lot with my brother, but it hasn't happened to me yet)

What other sports other than rodeo do you enjoy? I love to play basketball. But I also really enjoy watching boxing, and football.

What is the funniest thing that you have seen or experienced at a rodeo?  This past summer I went on the rodeo trail with my brother and Casey Greene.  But their is a couple of things that stand out like riding with Kim Just from Fort Hall, ID. to Billings, MT. that was one crazy drive.  And sitting at camp durring Crow Fair with Scott Rogers, Cort Hererra, John Just, Parker Colliflower, Kim, Casey, and my brother listening to everyones stories and jokes.  I don't think that I have laughed so hard in my life.  And one other thing that was fun and an experience if you know the crew.  At one time in Cody, WY.   Gene Edmo, Gene Curtis, J.W. Ball, Jake Caldwell, Justin, Casey, and me.  Now there were some jokes going off in there.  I guess you just had to be there, unless you know the people that I am talking about.

What Indian Cowboy or Cowgirl influenced you to rodeo?  The cowboy would probably be my dad, brother, and grandpa Jazzy, they rodeoed their whole lives and got me into it.  But the cowgirls that inspired me were Marylynne Colliflower, Crystal Colliflower-Gust, and Shannon Williams-Thom .  That is who I looked up too, and all of them still encourage me and support me in everything that I do.

What advice would you give to Indian Youth about rodeo or anything in general? That education is important, and if you are involved in extracurricular activities in school stick with them because, no matter what rodeo will always be their, and your school days only come once, so take in every minute of it.  I gave up volleyball and softball to rodeo and most of the time I regret it.

Is their any songs that inspire or pump you up before you ride or rope? Yeah, I get pumped up by jamming out to Chris LeDuex, Dixie Chicks and DMX on the way to a rodeo.

What would you like to see more of at Indian Rodeos?  More things to accommodate the families with young children.  You go to a lot of places and after words their isn't any thing for them to do until the next day at the rodeo.


Liana provided a separate bio for our readers to enjoy!  


2002 BIO: Liana Layne Tom
Warm Springs, OR
Northern & Southern Paiute, Grand Ronde, & Choctaw Decent

My parents are Lee & Cheryl Tom from Warm Springs, Oregon. I have one brother Justin Tom and my little sister Kristen Billey-Tom.

I grew up on my Dad’s family ranch on the South End of the Warm Springs Reservation. My family has rodeo’d for many generations and therefore, I naturally have fallen into the rodeo way of life. My brother and I have competed in Jr. Rodeo’s, High School Rodeo, Amateur and Indian Rodeo’s since we could literally walk & ride a horse. I usually inherited what ever horse my brother out grew, which when we were little some of the best ponies in the Northwest. I won numerous All-Around awards, buckles and saddles, by competing in not only timed events but also riding calf’s and bucking ponies. I won my first All-Around buckle when I was 3 & 1/2 by winning the underage Barrels and Pole Bending on my very first pony named Goldy, and I won my first All-Around Saddle when I was 6. In High School I qualified for the National High School Rodeo Finals in the Breakaway Roping and competed at Gillette, Wyoming, that year I should have been there in the Team Roping also, as I went into our State Finals in first place, however my roping partner broke his leg just before the finals and was not able to compete. I also qualified for the Silver State Invitational two years, and two years (2001 & 2002) for the INFR, in the Breakaway Roping. 

My favorite events are Breakaway Roping and Team Roping, however I am not opposed to jumping on a horse and turning a few barrels. In fact before I even started roping I loved barrel racing. My rodeo idle was Marilyn Colliflower (INFR Barrel Racing Champion). She was the greatest barrel racer I ever knew. When I was growing up she taught me alot about barrel racing, she took me into her home during the summers, worked with me, sold me my first barrel racing horse (Baby -T), and took me down the road with her and her daughters (my mentors and friends Crystal & Stacey & Cuz’in Kimberly). Clyde was our biggest supporter of course, he helped me to win the Jr. Barrel Racing at Fallon, NV one year when my horse got a stone bruise, he slapped me on his Bull Dogging horse, many cowboys know by the name of BOGG, we made the run of my life and won. 

Once I could swing a rope pretty good I got pulled into the roping pen to head for my brother and dad so they could practice healing, little did they know I would actually catch more than miss. Justin talked me into roping with him in some of the local jack pot ropings and we actually won some money, from there we went to the Oregon USTRC roping and we won the number six roping and I won the “High Money Girl” Buckle. Now I get to rope with some of the best ropers in the world like Bucky Campbell, Steve Johnson,  Chuck Crawford and Mike Beers. 

When I was 11 I was the Central Oregon Junior Rodeo Association Queen. I went on to be the Tygh Valley All Indian Rodeo Queen. In June of 2001 I was chosen to participate and portray Sacagawea  in the Rose Festival Parade along with a Theater Group that portrayed the Lewis and Clark expedition and the Buffalo Soldiers. These events all occurred before I graduated from High School and are some of my fondest memories.

In High School I not only competed in High School Rodeo’s, but I played Basketball, was a Cheerleader, was involved in Youth Leadership, and was an Oregon Indian Education Youth Representative for four years. I did a volunteer work program at our local hospital, I enjoyed working with and helping handicapped kids, I was a volunteer referee for our local youth basketball program, I was a peer tutor working with younger kids and I work at our local restaurant “Deschutes Crossing” for my cousin Snuffy Herrera-Smith (INFR Barrel Racing Champion) as a waitress during the summer and on my vacations. 

I am presently a full time student at Spokane Community College taking my Nursing pre-requisites, I plan on transferring to the Northwest Intercollegiate School of Nursing here in Spokane, Washington next year. Although, I really would like to College Rodeo I have chosen a field of study that is somewhat demanding and feel it is more important to finish my education. Getting my education is very important to me, I encourage all of our Native American youth to realize it’s importance not only for themselves but for all of Indian Country. I can and will Rodeo for the rest of my life and God willing it will be for many years to come. 

Important people and supporters of everything I do are my Mom, Dad, Brother, Sister, my Aunt Rosie, Kim Just, and my Grandpa Jazzy Wewa who has left us, but has left his legacy and memories with me forever.