‘Bob the Bend Rock’ gets his own Facebook page, becomes tourist destination after 8 cars fall victim to him this year

High-centered drivers draw high-profile attention; will a small shift curb the car-nage?

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Bob is the latest Bend feature taking the spotlight, far and wide. In this case it's really B.O.B., which stands for Big Obvious Boulder. But this "rock star" was obviously not obvious enough to several drivers who landed on top of it.

Bob is a 2-ton lava rock that currently calls the parking lot to the Franklin Avenue 7-Eleven home.

Bob the Bend Rock was placed on the curb 10 years ago, to prevent people from driving over the curb and ruining ADA access.

But in the past few months, eight cars that entered the parking lot from Franklin and Third Street have fallen victim to Bob.

"Because believe it or not, the small rock was too small, but it was heavy enough, that they would blow my curb out at the same time," Larry Freeland, property manager of the complex where Bob is located, told us Friday.

Freeland explained how Bob got there: "So I took the smaller rock, discarded it, told a gentlemen with a backhoe, 'Go find me a big rock' -- well, two blocks away there's a big pile of rocks."

And the rest is history.

At the Pine Tavern Restaurant, Bend's oldest, they'll give you a free drink or meal if you've fallen victim to Bob.

"Being in Bend, we need to adopt a rock," Pine Tavern owner Bill McCormick said, offering a consolation for rock victims. "I think that if you do end up on the rocks, come on down to Pine Tavern, and I'll give you something on the rocks that'll put a smile on your face -- just bring a picture of the devastation."

The owner of MidCity SmashedBurger, located at the Waypoint Hotel, is also offering some free food to anyone with evidence of getting stuck on Bob.

"I think everyone kind of has the same wonderment and questions like, 'How does this happen?'" owner Mike Aldridge said, "It's hilarious that it happens. So it kind of brings everyone together in the community. It's something we can all laugh and joke about."

In just one week, Bob has had more than 5,000 people join his Facebook page, and is now even listed as a tourist destination on Google Maps.

Just like Mt. Bachelor, Pilot Butte and the World's Last Blockbuster before it, Bob the rock is now synonymous with Bend.

But these now-famous encounters just might be over - time will tell.

Bob was moved forward a few inches this week, to discourage drivers from getting stuck on him in the future.