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Hooked on an eight-second ride WORDS Dwain Hebda IMAGES Dwain Hebda and courtesy Hayden Leavell
Hayden Leavell
The American cowboy is one of those legendary titles that many aspire to, yet few can legitimately claim. Plenty of candidates can dress the part, but all hat and no cattle get you only so far. For most would-be ‘pokes, the too-new boots, the hat with the wrong crease, and the overly shiny buckle are as close as they are ever going to get to a share of this sacred heritage. Hayden Leavell has no such concerns. Hayden is as authentic as they come, wellschooled in the cowboy ethos and culture. Meeting him for the first time, the lean lad from Ozark looks like something out of central casting, right down to his molasses drawl and horizon-scanning squint. But he more than looks the part; Hayden is country to the bone, broken-in at seventeen with more rodeo and ranch cred than most people earn their entire lives.
DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM
