Video of giant bull riding shotgun in the family car goes viral

A car driving with a bull in it was pulled over by police in the American state of Nebraska.

Don’t worry, the bull wasn’t driving. Instead, it was standing in the front passenger seat, getting a front row view of the scenery.

Local motorists were shocked to see the giant bull “riding shotgun” in the family car and soon called the police.

Police captain Chad Reiman from the nearby city of Norfolk said it didn’t take long for officers to track down the car with a massive bull riding in it.

“We didn’t have a full understanding of it until we saw it,” Capt. Reiman said. “It wouldn’t go far without being noticed for sure.”

A video of the traffic stop shot by News Channel Nebraska soon went viral.

HOW DID THE BULL FIT?
The owner of the car, Lee Meyer, had his car altered to make room for his Watusi bull named Howdy Doody.

Half the windshield and roof had been removed while a yellow metal cattle gate was attached to the car where the front passenger door would usually be, which meant the bull could be tied up.

Mr Meyer had driven his bovine buddy in this way in parades across the area for years, but he usually transported the bull to the parade in a trailer – not in his car.

A sign on the side of Meyer’s car declared Howdy Doody’s eye-catching ride was judged Best Car Entry in Nebraska’s Big Rodeo Parade.

BULL AND DRIVER SENT HOME
Capt. Reiman said Mr Meyer wasn’t headed to a parade when he loaded Howdy Doody into the car and drove more than 57km to Norfolk from his home.

He said the car broke traffic rules because of the standing bull, but the officer let him off with a warning as long as he turned around and took Howdy Doody straight home.

“We’ve never dealt with anything quite like that before,” Capt. Reiman said.

Mr Meyer’s wife, Rhonda, said Howdy Doody had been Meyer’s “friend and buddy” ever since he got him eight or nine years ago.

She said, “Lee thinks he’s a movie star” after the video of his traffic stop went viral, but that he was also a little shy.

Ms Meyer said Howdy Doody was like a member of the family now, but she wasn’t always happy about how much money her husband spent on the bull over the years.

“The amount of money that he’s spent on this whole darn project – between the car and the bull, I could’ve had a brand new kitchen,” she said.

POLL

GLOSSARY

• riding shotgun: sitting in the front passenger seat
• viral: popular online
• altered: changed
• bovine: cow

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QUICK QUIZ
1. What type of bull was seen riding in the front seat of Mr Meyer’s car?
2. What changes did Mr Meyer make to his car in order to fit the bull in it?
3. What is the name of the shotgun-riding bull?
4. How far did Mr Meyer drive with the bull in his car?
5. In which American state did this bizarre traffic incident happen?

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CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Summarise the article
A summary is a brief statement of the main points of something. It does not usually include extra detail or elaborate on the main points.

Use the 5W & H model to help you find the key points of this article. Read the article carefully to locate who and what this article is about, and where, when, why and how this is happening. Once you have located this information in the article, use it to write a paragraph that summarises the article.

Time: allow 25 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Science

VCOP ACTIVITY
Imaginative dialogue
Imagine you were there during the event being discussed in the article, or for the interview.

Create a conversation between two characters from the article – you may need or want to include yourself as one of the characters. Don’t forget to try to use facts and details from the article to help make your dialogue as realistic as possible.

Go through your writing and highlight any punctuation you have used in green. Make sure you carefully check the punctuation used for the dialogue and ensure you have opened and closed the speaking in the correct places.