paniolo

It honors the legacy of the paniolo, or Hawaiian cowboy — a result of the cultural exchange between Mexican vaqueros sent to the island to teach the natives who lived there to herd cattle in the 1700s.

Her next release, coming out this summer, is a collection of interchangeable sets inspired by the paniolo pattern and others that hark back to her beginnings as an evening wear designer.

Wyoming claimed the Paniolo Trophy for the 15th time in the 25 meetings between the schools.

As a paniolo, which refers to the Hawaiian cowboy tradition that traces back to Mexican-Spanish vaqueros, Purdy won the top steer roping prize at that year’s rodeo, becoming the first non-Wyomingite to come out victorious in the competition.

“The Hawaiians did an amazing job of demonstrating the paniolo skills of how they did roping,” Kassel said.