Meet Teddy Bear, the Iowa State Fair's Super Bull for 2024

His name is Teddy Bear and make no mistake, he’s a big, big Teddy Bear.

Teddy Bear was big enough he took home the title of Super Bull at the Iowa State Fair Thursday night, weighing 3,064 pounds, besting the next closest competitor, Rampage, by 284 pounds and topping last year’s winner, Mean Gene, by four pounds, This year’s Super Bull competition included three entries.

Massive as he may be, Teddy Bear still fell short of the record bull of 3,404 pounds set in 2019. This year’s competition marked the 41 ^st year of the Super Bull contest. The first winner of the contest weighed in at a more modest 2,725 pounds.

Teddy Bear is a four-year-old Simmental owned by Gary Ruebel of Saylorville, who is nursing a broken leg and credited his family in helping get the bull ready for the fair. With a number of family members in the stands, he had vocal support from the crowd during the weigh in.

Ruebel said Teddy Bear did his “bull duties” for three years but got too tall. He made the decision last November to take a shot at the Super Bull title.

“It’s been on my bucket list to do the Super Bull contest,” Ruebel said.

Ruebel said he has two bulls that could have competed but decided on Teddy Bear because of his more docile disposition.

More: At 1,420 pounds, this year's Big Boar is an Iowa State Fair record breaker

Now that Teddy Bear has reached the pinnacle, what’s next for the 2024 Super Bull?

“I think he’s going to retire out in the pasture with the girls,” Ruebel said.

Teddy Bear will be on display in the Cattle Barn at the Iowa State Fair through Aug. 18.

Kevin Baskins is the metro jobs reporter for the Des Moines Register.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Meet Teddy Bear, the Iowa State Fair's Super Bull for 2024