Konst named Miss Gold Rush Outstanding Teen

When Bailey Konst, 16, heard her name announced as the winner of the Miss Gold Rush Outstanding Teen, she didn’t know what to think.

“I was in shock,” she said. “Everyone kept saying, ‘You won’t win your first pageant.’ I really didn’t know what to think.”

Konst proved them all wrong.

Despite the Miss Gold Rush Outstanding Teen at the Miss Northern Hills Pageant (held in Sturgis on Jan. 5) being her first beauty pageant, Konst walked away with not only the main title, but also the award for best talent with a hip-hop dance routine. 

“This was my first year competitively dancing, but I’ve danced longer,” she said.

Dancing was how Konst was first noticed by pageant coordinators for the Miss Northern Hills Pageant. After performing in a high school competition for the Rapid City Central Cobblers, Konst was asked to participate in the pageant through Facebook.

“I thought it would be fun to do and I wanted to meet new people,” she said. “I also thought it would look good on college applications and the scholarship money would be great for the future.”