Men, women, children get dirty and wrestle pigs

People who came to see Sunday's pig wrestling competition at the 2016 Blaine County Fair got an extra dose of entertainment as a large group banded together to chase a pig that escaped.

The pig got loose near the end of the event, as referee Don Richman, who was wearing a pink shirt that said "Boss Hog," in gold letters, accidentally left the door of the wrestling pen open. The pig saw an opportunity and made a run for it.

The pig was eventually tackled and nabbed, after it had run the mob all over the arena and eluded capture for minutes. The crowd clapped in appreciation.

Before the competition started, radio broadcaster Ron Bruschi announced to all competitors that any abuse of pigs will result in automatic disqualification. Bruschi, along with a panel, was seated at a table separated only by a fence from the wet ring where the action would take.

The pee-wee bracket had 12 teams of four each chasing around a squirming, squealing piglet.

Bobby and Jenna Kittson were leaning on the fence, cheering on their son, 8-year-old Ty Kittson, who was on The Porksters.

Bobby Kittson said this was Ty's second year in the pig wrestling competition. He said his son loves taking part in the competition and that he talks about it long before the day of.

The Angry Birds' Preston Egbert walked away from the arena, his face mostly muddy, having just helped his team earn a first-place time of 20.49 seconds.

"Gross," he said. "I got some in my mouth."

As the contestants got older, the pigs got bigger. The junior bracket was made of 16 co-ed teams of 9- to 15-year-olds. Some of the teams included The Hamroids, The Oink-Tastic Four and the Red Neck Hill Piggies.

The team Waid Ranch Inc. Hamslam barreled their pig in a speedy 9.38 seconds.

"They got 'em quick," Bruschi announced. "That's Olympic qualifying time, so get ready for Rio."

The women's 16 and over bracket was won by Oinkin' Mafia.

"That's it," Bruschi shouted as the women cornered their pig. "Make him an offer he can't refuse."

Kermit the Frog's Revenge was a co-ed team in the men-boys 16 and over bracket. By that point, the pigs had reached anywhere between 250 and 300 pounds.

The team, made of Emily Scofield, Ryan Evans, Valerie Hattar and Scott Anderson took a wait-and-see approach, compelling Bruschi to shout, "What are you doing? This isn't a committee."

But the foursome won with a time of 26.21 seconds. Once they took action, they swarmed on the pig and it had nowhere to go.