Rodeo cowboy Shawne Hagan inducted to hall of fame

By Anne Davison

Shawne Hagan and his wife Jocelyn ranch on the Hagan home place where Edward and Christina Hagan raised Shawne and his four siblingsnear Woodnorth, south of Virden. Steeped in the horse industry all his life, Shawn has been chosen by his peers to receive the Horseman’s Hall of Fame award at the 2023 Virden Indoor Rodeo.

It means a lot to receive this prestigious award in this horse community where people enjoy draft horses to miniature horses, mounts used for rodeo and ranch work, racing, and showing. Hagan says, “It’s a very special award to get. There’s a tremendous amount of horse people in this area.”

As a youngster he rode on the Shetlands that his mother raised, and later on horses provided by his big brother Keith. Shawne would grow up envisioning life as a cowboy. And that’s just what he became, not only using horses on their cattle ranch, but taking up calf roping, competing in rodeos around Manitoba and eastern Saskatchewan and even competing in some pro rodeos.

“You know, I was always interested in horses from the time I was a little guy. I got going to the local fairs, showing horses, doing gymkhana. I progressed into roping, just at home.

“My Dad had cattle. I played around with them, roped them when I wasn’t supposed to,” he chuckles.

“Everybody wants to be a cowboy. I wanted to be a cowboy. I always liked calf roping and that’s what I pursued.”

Shawne and Jocelyn raised four children Alistair, Amanda, Thomas, and Bronwen. The boys became rodeo competitors and daughters-in-law Erin (Alistair) and Felicity (Thomas), accomplished barrel racers. The senior Hagans now enjoy five grandchildren: Harley, Slade, Rory, Ryan and Sofie with even the youngest riding ponies.

Virden has become one of the best rodeos on the Prairies, Hagan says. As a homegrown competitor, he helped build Virden’s rodeo legacy. Hagan had a like-minded companion in a Lenore cowboy, Lyle Brown. By the time Hagan bought his first rope horse, Brown had built an arena and bought some roping calves.

“Jocelyn and I would drive over about three times a week and we had a wonderful time. When Lyle and I got together and practiced, we sort of learned together.” They built a lasting friendship.

Brown, recalls those early days and the connection between the Hagans and the Browns. “Our families were close,” says Brown. They still are.

Roping and steer wrestling (which Hagan added as a second event) now seem like second nature to cowboys around Virden, but it wasn’t always so. “It was tough for a kid from Manitoba to get involved in rodeo at that time,” says Hagan. “You had to know somebody to help you a little bit.”

Pg 11 ►

◄ Pg 10

There was no YouTube or online instruction either. Just the real thing.

Hagan began from scratch, so to speak. Miniota and Oak Lake were the closest rodeos in the early ‘70s. “I think I entered Miniota for the first time in about 1973.

The horse under the cowboy has to be educated. Hagan says, “I started out with a little horse that was okay… good enough to get me going.”

He then purchased a retired rope horse from a cowboy at Carnduff, Sask. “They sold him to me for $400. He was the first real good horse I ever had.”

After that, Hagan began to train his own horses, a satisfying accomplishment. He says his favourite and probably his best mount was a registered quarter horse that he purchased as a colt, from Stu Taylor at Miniota. He was a buck- skin gelding named Dan.

“Looking back, he was probably one of the best ones I ever had. I trained him myself; I was very tickled with that.”

Bill Harding was another good friend that Hagan practiced with for many years. It so happened that Harding purchased an appaloosa gelding named Ranger, who became Hagan’s rodeo reliable. “He let me use him for a few years, we won quite a bit of money on him.”

Hagan joined the Manitoba Rodeo Cowboys Association (MRCA) in 1976 and started going to some 20 to 30 rodeos per year around Manitoba and into Saskatchewan.

“At that time… about ’79, or somewhere in there, we had our first MRCA Finals in Brandon which was quite a big deal for me.”

The top 10 competitors in each event qualified to compete in the finals for the year end championship. He qualified for the finals most of 20 years of rodeoing.

Hagan was in on the startup of what has become the Virden Indoor Rodeo. He recalls, “The very first rodeo… came as kind of a surprise to us. We didn’t know there was going to be a rodeo until about two weeks beforehand. The town had gotten involved with a rodeo (stock) contractor.” The first rodeo in Virden came together quickly.

After that first one, a meeting was called. Everybody in the area who was interested in rodeo, came together and the Virden rodeo organization began to take shape. “Everyone got behind it.”

Highpoints in Hagan’s years of rodeo competition include twice winning the calf roping event in Virden rodeo.

“And that was pretty special because Virden was very hard to win and it was great to win your home town rodeo.”

The Virden became a destination for many rodeo competitors and a foundation producing Virden area competitors, with second and third generation cowboys and cowgirls now into the sport.

A foundation that included years on the high school rodeo circuit for the Hagan kids. “Fun times.”

About that time the Hagans got into the PMU business, running it for 15 years with both quarter horse and draft mares.

The Hagan name was to become a recognized brand in the horse industry through yearly sales.

“We had our first Hagan Horse Sale in 2009, and had 12 more sales after that. We would consign about 12 horses each year, divided among our three families: Jocelyn and Shawne, Alis- tair and Erin and Thomas and Felicity.”

The sale was strategically held each fall in conjunction with the MRCA Rodeo Finals at the Keystone Centre in Brandon.

“We made a lot of new friends and sold horses all over North America.”

This event showcased what the Hagan family did best, day in and day out, spending hours in the saddle to create horses that cowboys wanted. “We’d ride them all year long on the ranch, do ranch work.”

They added some smart marketing, producing videos of each sale horse. Buyers from Texas to Toronto would call wanting to view videos of the stock. And then the Internet and YouTube came along, making that even easier. “We had a lot of fun with it.”.

The sale was discontinued due to Covid restriction and their horses are sold privately now.

The Hagan name continues on rodeo programs with sons Alistair and Thomas heavily involved in Virden’s rodeo.

This year, Hagan’s granddaughter Harley, 15, and grandson Slade, 12, are competing in the High School Rodeo Finals in Brandon. Grandparents

Shawne and Jocelyn are thrilled to go and watch. Shawne Hagan continues in the sport now as a team roper, often with family members.

“My kids, my two sons and my grandson now are my partners now. My grandson and I are going to rope in Virden rodeo… Slade. So that’s special.” Grandpa Shawne will be the header, Slade the heeler. “And it was his idea. He asked me if I wanted to go.” Shawne hopes to someday rope with grandson Rory too. After some 50 years of rodeoing, it doesn’t get any better than that!