Escaped La Pine rodeo bull flees again, killed by train

A bull that jumped out of the La Pine Rodeo arena after being ridden Friday evening was later found on a rodeo board member’s property, where it remained over the weekend.

But when its owner sent workers to euthanize it after several escapes, they found it had bolted again, crossing Highway 97 and reaching the railroad tracks – where it was struck and killed by a train, authorities said.

The bull had fled the arena around 8:30 p.m. Friday, heading northwest, then zig-zagging through the area. Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies and Oregon State Police went looking, while crews on horseback also went out to track it down.

Later that night, they found the wayward bull in a rodeo board member’s pasture near the Deschutes River, said La Pine Rodeo President Candy Yow.

“He stayed there – nobody bothered him, the owner of the bull knew he was there, everything was 100 percent safe,” Yow said Monday.

But sometime later, he again bolted and ran – “maybe he was trying to go home,” Yow wondered.

Sheriff’s Sgt. Kevin Dizney said the owner had sent a crew to professionally euthanize the bull, which had a “prior history of escaping.”

“They had some staff to do that,” he said. “They tracked it to (Highway) 97 and Wickiup Junction and Burgess Road. It had gotten across to the east side of the highway, and it was struck by a train.”

They found it dead by the tracks about 11 a.m. Monday and were working to have it removed, Dizney added.

Yow and Dizney both said the train had not struck the bull full-on but, in Dizney’s words, “clipped him hard enough to kill it.” Apparently it crossed the highway during the night.

Yow said the bull’s escape was a first for the 13 years of the La Pine Rodeo, but not unheard of in rodeo circles. She said she had been in the stands at another rodeo when one jumped the fence, but in that case, “it didn’t go that far.”

“They are great big, wild animals that we try to pretend are tame, but are not,” Yow said.