American Hat presents: Shane Hanchey

“The name speaks for itself,” said Shane Hanchey about American hats. “American hats and American cowboys are what the Western way of life is all about. There is more concrete getting poured and less ranching, so it makes it that much more special.”
Shane is proud to be part of the American Hat Company brand ambassador program. “If you go down the roster, it’s the who’s who of professional rodeo.” Shane has been on the team since 2018, and loves wearing the American hat. “I am part of the positive times movement that was started by the late Keith Maddox and his legacy for positive times and American hats are the best – made right here in Bowie, Texas.
From Sulphur, Louisiana, Shane started roping left-handed when he was very young, roping with his brother, Jason and his uncle, Butch Loft. Jason switched him to right-handed when he was five. “He said it wouldn’t be a fair advantage to be left-handed, only six guys have ever made the NFR left-handed.” Shane played a lot of sports and didn’t get serious about roping until high school. “I realized I could make a living at this.” He went through the Louisiana High School Rodeo Association, making Nationals three out of four and winning the state twice. He went to college in 2009, making the CNFR, and earned Resistol Rookie of the Year in 2009. He made his first of 12 appearances at the Wrangler National Finals in 2010. Shane won the World in 2013 and won the National Finals twice – 2013 and 2020.
Shane has had his share of misfortune, missing two world championships by one tenth of a second. He has also lost two horses, one two weeks before the 2021 WNFR. He has never let any of adversity stop him. “I still battle with it every day – I still think about it; but in order to move on and keep my head up, I’ve got to be confident and trust what God has in store for me and He has a bigger plan than what you think you have.”
Shane met his wife, Taylor Jacob, through rodeo. She made the WNFR in 2013 and 2015. They started dating in 2015 and got married in April of 2021. They both just won a round at San Antonio, qualifying for the finals there. They have relocated to Texas, where Shane is sharing his Louisiana culture by running a food trailer, Bo’s Boil n Geaux, specializing in crawfish boils, shrimp, gumbo, and all things Cajun. “We go from Stephenville to Weatherford, and Giddings. “Taylor and I run it – and it’s something we can do after our careers in rodeo. I usually lay low from March until June, and this works out perfectly.” Shane is now technically a chef, and his love of Cajun food is what got him started on this path. “I love everything about Louisiana from the people to the food and I wanted to bring that to the people in Texas.”
The first thing that comes to his mind about future goals are more world titles. “That is obviously the first thing, but after that, we want the food trailer to be successful. We hope to have kids and I’d like to be retired from rodeo by the time I’m 40. Then I want to ride off into the sunset with no regrets.”