In Pursuit of Sasquatch

Tucked away deep in the greenery of British Columbia is a hulking creature that has surprisingly won our hearts. The Sasquatch (or Bigfoot, or Grass Man, or Skunk Ape, or simply “Harry”) has been a celebrity in the west for far longer.

“He’s a contemporary cultural icon,” states Adam McGirr of the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club (BCSCC), an association dedicated to the research and preservation of Sasquatch and other cryptids (unknown creatures). “Kids love him, and Quatchi’s become a representative of Canada,” McGirr enthuses.

But while Quatchi is upbeat, huggable and the life of the party, the real Sasquatch is intimidatingly large and, despite its popularity, incredibly elusive. Sasquatch sightings have grown fewer and farther between as of late, possibly due to a decrease in population.

The BCSCC isn’t deterred by Sasquatch’s recent elusiveness, though, McGirr is one of over 70 intrepid Sasquatch Investigators with the BCSCC that commit their free time to interviewing witnesses and pursuing the truth behind Bigfoot. Their location is key: the west coast of Vancouver has the highest concentration of sightings in North America, since food is plentiful for the omnivore – a feast of salmon, deer livers, and rodents is readily available.

“Bigfoot has been everywhere,” remarks John Kirk, President and Chief Investigator, who sits down with McGirr to share his personal encounters. “Sightings have been reported in every province except for Prince Edward Island. These sightings have been amidst wildlife, and in suburban areas near highways and civilization.”

Of course, Sasquatch enthusiasts are not without challengers. Sasquatch skeptics often hold campaigns against the critter, dismissing both the existence of and the expeditions in search of the creature as the stuff of crackpots. “Belief is one thing, conclusion is another,” Kirk states boldly.

The Pursuit of Sasquatch was featured in Issue 2 of Scion Magazine. To read more visit: scion.ca/magazine

Speed Academy Begins Prepping the Targa FR-S for the Ontario-1500

Peter and Dave from Speed Academy are back in action, preparing the Scion FR-S they ran so successfully at Targa Newfoundland last year for a new event this year called the Ontario-1500.

We’re talking seven straight days of Time Attack, Autocross, and Drag racing at seven different tracks across Ontario in what they describe as the Canadian version of One Lap of America.

Rather than punishing themselves by cutting out a roll cage like they started things off with last year, Peter and Dave decided to ease their way into the project this year by installing front and rear Raceseng shock top mounts along with Raceseng’s A/C Delete Kit.

The Raceseng front top mounts were chosen for the extra camber adjustability they’ll allow when setting up the alignment for maximum grip at the race track, and these mounts are also caster adjustable. Plus, as you can see, the quality of the billet aluminum machine work is truly top notch, as is the quality of the bearings and hardware used, so Peter and Dave are confident they’ll stand up well to seven straight days of racing in the Ontario-1500 come mid-September.

The rear top mounts use a clever offset design that allows the rear dampers to have an extra 2-inches of travel compared to the standard mounts. On a lowered car with single adjustable ride height dampers like the KW Clubsports on this FR-S, the extra rear shock travel will really help Peter and Dave put the power down coming out of any bumpy corners.

The Raceseng A/C Delete Kit means the Speed Academy FR-S is now completely free of the factory air conditioning system, allowing them to save 31 lbs on a car that’s already very lightweight. With Ontario-1500 being in mid-September, Peter and Dave are confident they won’t miss the A/C, but they’re going to pack extra deodorant just in case.

And as you’ll see in the first of their video series covering the Ontario-1500 build, we also get a sneak peek at the new wheels and tires the car will be running this year, a stunning set of Racing Titanium Blue finished Advan Racing GT wheels wrapped in super sticky Toyo Proxes R1R tires.

As you can see, Peter’s a bit of a fan of these tires!

Up next the Speed Academy crew has a very special aerodynamic upgrade for the FR-S, but in the meantime be sure to check out Episode 1 in the series.

Lots more videos and blog updates coming at you from Speed Academy over the next few months, so jump on YouTube and subscribe to their channel to keep up-to-date on everything these two go-fast junkies are up to.

Great Scott! Q&A with the man behind PlayOn!

It’s not common to meet someone who turned their favourite childhood activity into a career. Scott Hill is one of those people.

Inspired by his life long love of hockey, Scott’s on a mission to bring back play one rink at a time. We caught up with him between games at Vancouver’s PlayOn! at the Coquitlam Centre to talk about what motivates him and whether the Stanley Cup will ever return to Canada.

So where did you get the idea for PlayOn!?

Well there are two angles to the story. The first story is when I finished my MBA and really wanted to work in professional sports and couldn’t find a job. I was 25 years old, applied to 30 NHL teams and at the time none of them were hiring. I was committed to doing something in the sport of hockey, because it’s always been my passion. The second part is that I’ve always loved playing road hockey. I used to play with my brothers in Kingsville, Ontario – our little hometown of 5000 people. In my university days, I was always known as the hockey guy. I was the president of the hockey club and used to organize ice hockey tournaments.

After I graduated I just saw an opportunity to start a road hockey tournament. I recognized that there are actually more road hockey players than there were ice hockey players in Canada. So I put a business plan together and pitched the NHL on it. It was a bit of a process but eventually I got their support and mobilized this concept for a national grassroots sports festival built on street hockey. It’s been 12 years and every day has been a grind. But long and short, I was just a super passionate hockey guy who wanted to make a difference in the hockey world. I saw an opportunity, was naïve enough to think I could do it, and that’s about it.

The event describes the importance of “taking back the street” – what is it about PlayOn! that keeps the list of participants and number of events growing year over year?

The slogan “taking back the streets” is really a push to encourage people to play again. When we started this in 2002, there was a lot of negative publicity and press, particularly in Toronto, about a bylaw that didn’t let kids play on the streets. The same thing happened in Halifax. So we built off some of that momentum and the slogan became our way to push back on the policy-makers of the nation to say that kids should be allowed to use streets to play their favourite sports, just as they do all over the world. In South America, they’re playing soccer. In the U.S., they’re playing basketball. I lived in Taiwan for a bit and it was baseball there. In Canada, we play hockey. We’re just reminding the kids that it’s okay to play and we’re providing an opportunity to do just that in an organized way.

Why are so many professional players hanging around your events?

Well I think it’s because they just really love to play. For example, last week in Kelowna, we had Curtis Lazar participate. He’s a Memorial Cup Champion, captain of the Memorial Cup winning team, current Ottawa senator, and Captain of Team Canada of the World Junior Champions. He just put together his own team and was super down to earth. We don’t want to aggrandize anyone’s celebrity here; everyone is just a road hockey player. And most NHL players got their start the same way as everyone else – they just started playing on the street.

Tell us about the Redwood Cup. Where did the name come from?

The Redwood Cup was our attempt to create a championship trophy that was really something that any Canadian could win. We designed it so that it would be the same size as the Stanley Cup so when a team wins they can actually physically hold it over their heads with their hands up. It’s named after the street I grew up on – Redwood Road. It’s a tribute to my parents and my brothers and it’s really built a following. People don’t play because they want to win money or prizes, they play because they want to win that cup.

Do you think that PlayOn is inherently Canadian? Any plans for expansion?

I do think there is something unique about road hockey and Canada. While it could work in some US centers, the hockey night in Canada brand is something specific to Canada, so that wouldn’t work. But we don't lack opportunity to expand within the country. We have 18 more cities in Canada that have requested the rights to host this event. I think more so, we’re looking at expanding it to other sports – street soccer, street basketball.

What sort of advice can you give someone looking at starting their own business to fulfilling their dreams?

Well you certainly need some business acumen if you want to try to start a business. You need to understand your market and put a plan together. Once you get passed that, really, it’s all about believing in yourself and never giving up. You hear these clichés all the time, about how many naysayers there’ll be and they really are all over the place. But if you really believe you can achieve something, and are not willing to listen to those who say that you can’t do it, then eventually you’ll succeed. I love being an entrepreneur. But what I love most about PlayOn! is that it matters to so many Canadians on such an intimate level. And that’s worth protecting. Even now in our 12th year, we still face challenges. We have partnerships that come and go, and we have to learn to work through that.

So how do you find the right partner?

Well, a great partnership provides an opportunity for us to use corporate resources to lift the program. When you look at a great product like Scion, it’s a bit of a niche market, caters to a young audience, cars are fun to drive, reasonably affordable, and they’re still building awareness in a lot of the country. So what we deliver to our partners, in addition to a young male demographic that spans all of Canada, is loyalty and love. If Scion can come out, bring a few of their hottest cars and set up next to our feature rink, and provide our demographic an opportunity to test drive them all weekend long? That’s a great fit, it makes the PlayOn! an awesome experience.

I guess it helps that we can fit two large hockey bags in the trunk of a tC! So what does the future look like for PlayOn! and Scott Hill?

Well, that’s a question that I struggle with every day. Once you’ve achieved what you’ve dreamed of achieving. We have to decide how long I want to continue with this. I may exit it at some point, because I feel like I’ve done as much as I could do. But for now, it’s business as usual. This is our final event of the year and the next step is the Redwood Cup in Lethbridge and we’re going to put on a good show. After that, we’ll meet with our partners and start talking about 2016 and beyond.

So, since we’re talking hockey, do you think we’ll ever see a Canadian team win a Stanley Cup again?

Well it may be a while for us Leaf fans to celebrate, but Calgary and Edmonton sure had some good drafts and made some good trades the other day. But the future’s bright, especially in Edmonton with the new arena. So there’s no doubt in my mind that we’re going to win a cup again soon. But I’m speaking about Canadian teams generally. Ha!

Cyrious Report: Return to the Podium

It’s been over 2 years since I've stood on the top of the podium and feels great to be back!

We returned victorious from the first round of Formula Drift Canada at Autodrome St. Eustache, and I'm very proud of our team and my FR-S on a long awaited win.

The two weeks leading up to this event were hectic to say the least. I spent most of the break fixing the car from our crash in Florida. It came down to the wire, with parts showing up only days before the event, and then finding other parts that were damaged the day we were about to leave. Luckily, I was able to get it all sorted out with just enough time to make the six-hour trip to Montreal.

The event was held over the weekend. Saturday was just a practice day, which was great because I figured there would be some bugs to work out of the FR-S. However, everything felt right the moment we got on the track. I was feeling comfortable with the car very quickly and after 10 laps of consistently hitting the same line, we decided to shut it down and save the car/tires for the main event!

Sunday morning we had two-hours of practice before moving straight into qualifying due to the stormy weather approaching. I did about six laps in practice, all relativity the same – very smooth, smoky and consistent. We threw on a fresh set of AD08's and went into qualifying. My first lap out I did the same line I had been doing all weekend, which put us in second place. On my next lap, I pushed a bit harder and got a slightly better score but got edged out by two other drivers so we ended qualifying third.

The battles that followed were pretty tough. The competition pushed the FR-S and I to do some of the best driving we’ve ever done together. We had an edge on everyone! The FR-S just seemed to have more grip than the rest of the field. On all my lead laps I would gap the competition by at least one or two car lengths, and then on my follow laps I was able to stick on everyone. We fought our way through with no "one more time" battles, and the judges’ decisions were all definitive. Nobody was able to touch us that day, from the Top 16 to the win!

We will carry this momentum into Round 2 of Formula Drift Canada in July. I truly love drifting the FR-S. After two years and a lot of hard work, it’s the car that I’ve always dreamed it could be!

I hope you had a chance to check out the live stream on Periscope. You can now watch the team and I get ready on race day by following @ScionCanada on the app. I enjoyed answering your questions and I'm stoked you get to see the action live from the side of the track!

I'm very excited for the rest of the season and looking forward to the next battle. Thanks for the support!