Bull escapes Snowmass Rodeo grounds

A bull escaped the Snowmass Rodeo grounds and roamed a nearby neighborhood Wednesday.

The bull slipped through a fence as stock providers, who supply animals, were unloading it for the Wednesday night Snowmass Rodeo, Snowmass Police Chief Brian Olson said.

“They put up fencing to direct (the bull to) where they’re going to store him for the night,” Olson said. “And he probably got through the break in the fence somehow.”

The bull entered the Horse Ranch Subdivision of Snowmass, according to a Pitkin County alert. The Snowmass Police Department actively used a drone to locate it.

Cowboys rode through Snowmass looking for the bull immediately after its escape, but had to return to the grounds Wednesday afternoon to prepare for the rodeo night.

The police department hadn’t seen the bull for 90 minutes as of 3:30 p.m. Wednesday. The rodeo cowboys were instructed to lasso the bull once they found it, Olson said.

“They are very proficient at getting bulls out of pastures and fields and stuff like that,” Olson said.

The bull has still not been caught as of 8 p.m., Olson confirmed.

“No change … (He’s) still out there somewhere,” Olson said Wednesday night. “(He’s) enjoying his freedom.”

Skyler Stark-Ragsdale can be reached at 970-429-9152 or email him at sstark-ragsdale@aspentimes.com.