Bearcreek Downs – Where Pigs Do Fly
Summer Pastime in A Rural Montana Town
Bearcreek, Montana
Written and Photographed by Jane Gilvary
Fall Issue - 2026
The smell of grilled steaks filled the fresh mountain air as the summer sun dipped the towering mountains looming in the distance. The air crackled with anticipation as folks lined up to place their bets and began filling the compact stadium built around a miniature racetrack. Pulsing with anticipation, spectators procured pre-race libations at the bar, little kids flocked to the staging area giddy with excitement for a peek at the rumpy racers, and local teens prepared a drove of plumpy porcines for a night of action. Conversations around the track revealed the playful atmosphere. With names like Patsy Swine, Ernest Hamingway, Albert Einswine, Rooster Hogburn, Curly Hocks and Cool Ham Luke, it was hard not to be in a festive mood. One lady from Cody quipped, "I just came out for a steak and suddenly I'm betting on pigs like it's the Kentucky Derby!" Welcome to Bearcreek Downs, where pigs really do fly!
Waking from its winter hibernation at the foot of the rugged and snowy Beartooth Mountains, the small rural town of Bearcreek, Montana comes alive in summer— humming with motorcycles, pickup trucks, and RVs that cruise through town, ferrying families, locals, and tourists bound for one of the most unique experiences in the West: the pig races at a ramshackle little saloon that serves as the heartbeat of the community. The Bear Creek Saloon & Steakhouse, easy to overlook because of its rustic and hard-worn facade, is more than just a local watering-hole. Part meeting place, part museum, and part racetrack, the Saloon gives this former mining community in the foothills of the Beartooth Mountains, plenty of reasons to celebrate.
In 1866 Montana frontiersman and prospector Yankee Jim discovered high-value coal deposits just seven miles east of Red Lodge, Montana in what is now Bearcreek. The coal, however, lay within occupied Crow Indian territory with no railroad access, making commercial mining impossible at the time.
In 1880, Crow land cessions opened the area to development, and by 1905 the railroads reached Bearcreek. Soon the coal boom transformed this emerging frontier town into a prime coal mining district. During its peak around World War I, nearly two-thousand European immigrants, from five countries, called Bearcreek home. With seven mercantiles, two hotels, a bank, two billiard halls, several saloons, and a reported brothel, the small, mountain town quickly made its mark on the western landscape.
Coal mining continued through the post-war Depression Era and into the early 1940s with Montana Coal and Iron Company operating the Smith Mine just off Highway 308. Then fate dealt a devastating blow, changing the community forever. In February of 1943 a catastrophic explosion—from methane likely ignited by a miner's headlamp—ripped through the Smith Mine No. 3 Vein, killing seventy-four miners and one rescue worker. The mine never reopened and the local railroad terminated its coal purchases, bringing mining to an end in Bearcreek.
In the decades following the mine explosion, Bearcreek's population dwindled to as few as thirty-one souls, with jobs limited to farming and ranching. A once bustling mining town faded into history. The dilapidated and unburnished out-buildings at the old Smith Mine haunt the Bearcreek foothills, and a lone roadside historical marker scarcely conveys the magnitude of the tragedy that unfolded there. Few would predict that pig races behind an old saloon would be the phoenix rising from the ashes in Bearcreek.
Today Bearcreek boasts a robust population of eighty-eight residents and one of the most interesting steak houses in all of Montana. In 1982 Pits and Lyn DeArmond purchased what was formerly the Hootie Owl Saloon, a neighborhood "dive bar." Wanting to increase business, Pits and Lyn renamed it The Bear Creek Saloon, added a kitchen, and began cooking up authentic Mexican fare, later pivoting to a steakhouse menu that better reflected Mountain West culture and tastes. They also explored creative marketing gimmicks to attract diners, including Cow Pasture Pool and a velcro wall. Much to the DeArmond's dismay, the 1988 Yellowstone fires brought a sharp decline in tourism to the region, and they needed an economic lifeline, a reason for tourists to drive to Bearcreek. Enter the oinkers!
A conversation at the bar between Pits and his friends, the Northcutts, sparked the idea for Bearcreek Downs and racing pigs instead of horses. Before long, a bunch of chunky porcine porkers began flying around the track in the Beartooth foothills—precisely what a struggling community needed after years of hardship and decline. Iterations of the races have varied over the years and at one point even included winter races featuring five-week-old piglets racing around a makeshift track on the saloon's stage.
But the wildly popular pig races drew the attention of the State of Montana, which claimed the DeArmonds’ needed approval from the Montana Board of Horse Racing to race pigs behind his saloon. Hogwash. Pits argued that the law never considered pigs and in 1993 victory for the Saloon and the pigs came in the form of House Bill 433, the "Pig Racing Bill," introduced by State Rep. Alvin Ellis. The bill made provision for pig racing in small towns to raise money for non-profits. Bearcreek Downs could resume racing. Now those little pigskin rockets could bring home the bacon and every dollar raised would fund scholarships for local students.
Pits DeArmond passed away in April of 2020, and his wife Lyn sold the Saloon to close family friends Dawn Deville and Tim Ryan, who to this day continue the long-held tradition of the pig races—so vital to the economy and morale of the Bearcreek community. The couple express their gratitude for the opportunity to continue what the DeArmond's began.
"We are so proud to continue the legacy that Pits and Lynn DeArmond started over 30 years ago,” Dawn said. “Their forethought with the creation of the scholarship fund has helped many young college students in our rural community.”
Since the passing of House Bill 433, Bearcreek Downs has raised over $185,000 in scholarship money for students in Carbon County, which is managed by the Red Lodge Public Schools Foundation. The pigs race Thursday through Sunday at 7:00 pm from Memorial Day to Labor Day (the Saloon is open year-round). A local family farm raises and stewards these elite barnyard athletes, even pampering each one with a refreshing hose-down before the races. To avoid overexertion, the pigs only race every fifteen minutes, and a huge trough of pig grub awaits at the finish line. Not a bad gig for a pig.
Before the swine hit the starting line at 7:00 pm, visitors can enjoy a savory pre-race meal at the bar or in the intimate dining room where historic photos of the Smith Mine and its miners line the walls. The menu includes mouthwatering and delectable sirloin, ribeye, prime rib, and flatiron steaks, all locally raised in nearby Absarokee and processed in Miles City. Care for fluffy cow instead? The kitchen grills up a succulent bison bistro filet paired with a hearty baked potato and fresh Greek salad—served without the Michelin star pretense or price. As for ham on the menu, don't even go there.
Visitors to Bearcreek may come for the pigs, but they leave having experienced an American West not curated or sugar-coated for favorable internet ratings. Its authenticity is refreshing in a whitewashed Instagram world. An evening at the Saloon provides a glimpse into the ingenuity, fortitude, and grit of a community committed to place, history, and a brighter future for its posterity. Pigs really do fly at the Bearcreek Saloon.
