Labor Day heralds the seasonal wrap to some Montana’s quirky summer pleasures.
At the Bearcreek Saloon & Steakhouse, just a short hop from Red Lodge, pork is the summer’s main draw - not on the menu, but, in the back, through the bar, where the pigs are penned and passed out, pleasantly awaiting their turn at the races. I’m pretty sure they’re smiling.
The Pig Races at the Bear Creek Saloon is a miniature version of the Kentucky Derby, complete with a race track, a bugle, and wild racing beasts—pigs—competing for the winning ribbon.
The annual race season began in 1988 as an idea to spur business at the restaurant. In 2020, longtime friends and employees of creators Pits and Lynn DeArmond, Tim Ryan and Dawn DeVille, purchased the business at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. With tremendous support from friends and the community, the Bear Creek Saloon and Bearcreek Downs continue to thrive.
Race Caller Andy Schwab explains the money - and the fun - support Carbon County students.
“In the past 30 years that we've been doing the Bear Creek Downs scholarship fund, we've raised and handed out over $155,000 to those local Carbon County students.
There's a lot of them that are just big industry experts now or big people that mean so much to their communities, whether it be here in Carbon County or whether it be in another state.”
Schwab is not only invested in the industry as the Beardowns seasonal race caller. He’s also a familiar voice to the region’s farmers, appearing as an announcer on the National Association of Farm Broadcasters’ programs. Schwab says the Pig Races have been a big hit this year.
“It's been a great summer so far, and you know, some of those weekends that we have are just busy.
I mean some nights we have 500 people here, and it is amazing to see.”
The Bearcreek Downs Pig Races run their last races for 2025 this Labor Day weekend.