Sometimes great things occur when you step out of your comfort zone. Whether it is finding a new hobby or winning a competition, you never know what will happen when you broaden your horizons.
By doing something he had never done before, Tyler Quincy, a junior sociology major from West Jordan, was able to take home the crown for Mr. Trailblazer.
Three weeks prior, a group of 11 students got together to practice the opening performance for Mr. Trailblazer Feb. 11. This included a dance and lip-sync to “I’m Just Ken” by Ryan Gosling to go along with the theme of “I am Kenough.” For Quincy, this was one of his favorite parts of the competition.
“I made all of those friendships with all of those guys over the course of three weeks, and it was really fun to see them coming out of their comfort zone and to talk to them about their lives and their goals,” Quincy said.
From starting the night dressed as Allan from the “Barbie” movie to a musical performance for his talent, Quincy brought character to the stage.
One of the judges, Miss Utah Tech University 2024 Marie Sewell, a senior software engineering major from Lytle, Texas, said she could tell Quincy had worked hard to prepare through the way he presented himself on the stage.
“It was clear that the students who were there saw how he shined on stage, and they felt the high energy that he radiated,” Sewell said. “It was fun and entertaining, and everyone loved him…That’s the kind of energy you want someone who’s going to represent the university to have.”
For his talent, Quincy did a reenactment of “Freak the Freak Out” from a scene on the Nickelodeon show “Victorious.”
“It’s [the performance] very silly and funny, but it’s also showcasing me,” Quincy said. “After I took off the wig and the sweater, it was just me and I got to showcase what I love to do. I did some dance moves that I love and pulled up a stomp ’em hands.”
Now that he is crowned, Quincy said one of his goals is to broaden the platform for male pageants. He plans on doing that by being in contact with other pageant winners like Miss Utah Tech and Miss Southern Utah.
“I’m really excited to move forward with getting more service projects and more community outreach to create this platform for a male pageant in southern Utah,” Quincy said.
McKinley Vaughn, a senior criminal justice major from South Jordan, was the first runner-up for the Mr. Trailblazer competition and agrees with the importance of creating more opportunities for male pageants.
“Mr. Trailblazer is like the one thing us guys have,” Vaughn said. “I would be open if we had a Mr. UT [Mr. Utah Tech University] as well.”
One of the first steps Quincy intends to take is creating an Instagram page to highlight all of the adventures of Mr. Trailblazer. Quincy said he hopes the title will help him with networking and spreading the word about what Mr. Trailblazer is.
Yet, Quincy’s goals don’t stop there. After graduation next spring, Quincy plans on attending grad school to become a high school counselor.
Quincy said: “I want to inspire and help kids in high school get through the struggles of high school and get through the struggles of society during those times of growth development. I really struggled in high school, and I really want to help those people in high school grow and thrive.”
In the meantime, Quincy plans to continue enjoying the things he loves and being involved in southern Utah. At Utah Tech, Quincy was a member of Utah Tech’s Fusion before becoming the College of Humanities and Social Science’s senator this year. This is where he represents all students within that college and addresses any of their needs like finding funds for any trips or projects students might need the money for.
Quincy also grew up doing mixed martial arts and is a secondary black belt in karate, where he competed in open-hand forms, weapon forms and sparring. However, now he enjoys spending his time doing musical theater. He recently did a production of “Newsies” at Hurricane Theatrical and is hoping to one day perform at the Tuacahn Center for the Arts.
From being Mr. Trailblazer to a slight Disney adult, Quincy is a great example of what happens when you step out of your comfort zone.
“I’m really happy and I’m proud to be Mr. Trailblazer,” Quincy said. “To anybody that’s not feeling confident in anything in their lives, just go for it and see what happens.”
