Saylor, 35, died Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, after he was thrown from a bull and then kicked or stepped on by the animal during a ride at the rodeo near Waynesville, in Clearcreek Township, Warren County, Ohio, police said. The chest protection Jason Blake Saylor wore at the Fox Hollow Rodeo did not save him from the bull that threw him.
Clearcreek Township police were dispatched to Fox Hollow Stables around 7:40 p.m. after calls reporting that a man had been stepped on by a bull. The venue sits at 1909 E. State Route 73.
Saylor had suffered a traumatic chest injury, and he was wearing chest protection at the time, officers said. Medics worked on him in the arena before an ambulance took him to Atrium Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead around 8:35 p.m. — less than an hour after the ride.
Police Are Asking for Cellphone Video
Clearcreek Township police are investigating the death as an accident, and they want to hear from the people who had their phones out. Investigators asked anyone with cellphone footage, any other video of the ride, or information that could help to call police dispatch at 513-695-2525.
Detective Sgt. Kevin Barton of the Clearcreek Township Police Department can also be reached at 937-748-1267 during business hours, listed as Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
An Injury Rate Football Can’t Match
The numbers behind the sport are brutal. A 2025 Arizona report on rodeo safety put bull riding’s injury rate at more than 10 times football’s, and cited a 20-year Canadian Academy of Sport Medicine study that found a fatality incidence rate of 4.05 per 100,000.
Fox Hollow is not a once-a-year county fair stop. The venue holds rodeo events every Saturday evening at 6 p.m., according to local listings. Saylor was hurt at a series event there.
Heartbroken Over a Brother in Christ
The rodeo confirmed the death in a Facebook post on Sunday, Oct. 25. “Our hearts are absolutely broken following the tragic loss of one of our bull riders and brothers in Christ, last night at Fox Hollow Rodeo,” the rodeo wrote, adding that there were no words for the sadness it was feeling and that its thoughts and prayers were with Saylor’s family, friends and everyone affected.
Organizers asked the public to leave the family alone during what they called an incredibly difficult time, and said any further announcements would go up on the rodeo’s Facebook page in the days ahead.
Friends and others in the rodeo community described Saylor as a man of faith and a role model to younger riders, and one mourner wrote on Facebook that he was a true cowboy who was brave and tough and who died doing what he loved.
Alanna Greathouse, whose son competes at the venue and who attended for the first time to watch him ride, said her son had “fallen in love with Fox Hollow because of the brotherhood and love that you all show to your riders and staff.” She also credited the staff for how they responded once the night turned.
The investigation remains open.