SC EP:1240 Special Guest Bentley St. John

Please welcome my special guest tonight. Twelve-year-old Bentley St John says he's 'pretty mad' about getting hit while crossing at a crosswalk. His family wants the driver to turn themselves in to police.

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:03Speaker 00

  It looked like somebody was bent over and had their head in the window of the deer blind and it either heard me or smelt me and he pulled his head out of the tent and stood straight up and that, that shocked me. They don't make people that, that big.

• 0:31Speaker 01

  The way it moved, almost as if it was gliding across the beach. I've never seen anything move like that in my life.

• 0:45Speaker 01

  They were screaming at each other in gibberish.

• 0:49Speaker 01

  It sounded like a language and they were chuntering away, back and forwards, back and forwards, back and forwards.

• 0:56Speaker 01

  I know what a bear looks like and there is no way on this planet that what I saw bears.

• 1:14Speaker 02

  911, what are you reporting? Jesus Christ, you better... Karen, see ya! Hello? Get somebody out of here. What's going on now, sir? That son of a bitch is about six foot nine, I don't know. Do you see him now, sir? Yes, I'm looking right at him. Uh-oh.

• 2:10Wes Germer?

  Welcome to the show. Tonight is a little bit of a different show than what you're used to hearing, and I'll return tomorrow night with more Sasquatch encounters, but I hope you stick around for the full show tonight. It's a very important show to me. I got this email from Alex, and he writes, "Hey Wes, I'm writing to you because my 12-year-old son and I are big fans of the show. He was hit by a car last week and still is in pain. He had three breaks in his left leg. He would absolutely love it if he heard you give him some well wishes. If you don't have time, or if I'm like one out of a thousands that

• 2:54Wes Germer?

  asks for something like this, don't worry. We still love you and everything you do for people. You're an absolutely amazing person. Take care, Wes." And Alex actually sent me the CTV news where it actually shows Bentley getting hit. It's very, very difficult to watch, but here's the news coverage.

• 3:17Speaker 04

  Hello and thank you for joining us. We begin tonight with some incredibly disturbing video. The family of a young boy struck in a hit-and-run while he was in a crosswalk earlier this week wants the driver to do the right thing and turn themselves in. It was all caught by our surveillance camera, and other drivers didn't stop to help either. Tyson Fedor is in Terrodale tonight, and Tyson, the family is outraged by this entire event.

• 3:41Speaker 05

  Well Tara, this stretch of road behind me, very busy, and for 12-year-old Bentley St. John Tuesday morning changed his life. As he was walking across that March crosswalk behind me, he did everything right. He looked both ways for oncoming traffic. That's when he was struck by a vehicle in that crosswalk, and a warning was caught on video, and we're about to show you some of that video, and it could be disturbing to some viewers.

• 4:10Speaker 05

  It's just after 7 a.m. Tuesday morning, Bentley St. John is crossing in a marked crosswalk on Terradel Drive Northeast before a white four-door sedan with tinted windows hits him, knocking him to the ground. The vehicle quickly brakes and then takes off.

• 4:26Speaker 06

  I'm like pretty mad about it.

• 4:28Speaker 05

  St. John was taken to hospital with a broken leg.

• 4:31Speaker 06

  When I got like into the middle, I got like my leg got ran over. And I and I broke three bones.

• 4:45Speaker 05

  But after he was hit, three vehicles go around him in the crosswalk.

• 4:49Speaker 07

  He almost has to crawl and roll out of there before anybody even acknowledges the fact that he was hit by a vehicle.

• 4:55Speaker 05

  St. John is heard screaming and rolling away from traffic to get out of the road before three bystanders come in and eventually help.

• 5:03Speaker 06

  So me got hit and then he pulled over. Got me some warm blanket so I can like stay stay warm.

• 5:14Speaker 05

  St. John's sister Jaden says she was horrified to learn that her best friend was left stranded and in pain.

• 5:21Speaker 08

  I ended up breaking down in tears. My brother is my best friend. Um, I think the part that hurt me the most was you see him physically rolling himself away in the video and just trying to get off the road and people are going around him.

• 5:36Speaker 05

  Calgary Police released images of the vehicle on Thursday. Investigators are asking the public to track down the driver by looking for this white four-door sedan. A make and model is not known. As for St. John, he is recovering at home on the couch with his blue leg cast.

• 5:51Speaker 06

  I hope this doesn't like happen again.

• 5:54Speaker 05

  As for his family, they have a stern message for the driver.

• 5:57Speaker 07

  I guarantee you know you hit somebody. Stop your car.

• 6:01Speaker 08

  You know we're looking for you. You know the whole city is looking for you. Just show up and take accountability.

• 6:07Speaker 05

  Tyson Fedora, CTV News, Calgary.

• 6:10Speaker 04

  Investigators are asking anyone with information or dash cam footage from the area to call police or Crime Stoppers.

• 6:17Wes Germer?

  Again, this is an important show for me and I hope you stick around and I'll return tomorrow night. But for tonight, if you would indulge me for a moment.

• 6:36Speaker 09

  Hello?

• 6:37Wes Germer?

  Hey Alex, it's Wes with Sasquatch Chronicles. How are you holding up, man?

• 6:42Speaker 06

  Wait, who is this?

• 6:45Speaker 09

  You're on, you're on speaker, by the way.

• 6:48Wes Germer?

  Hey Bentley, just a guy I wanted to talk to. This is Wes with Sasquatch Chronicles. How are you doing, young man?

• 6:56Speaker 06

  Good.

• 6:58Wes Germer?

  You know, your dad had sent me an email saying you guys are fans of the show and asked me if I would give you kind of a shout out on the show. And I was sitting there thinking, shout out. I want to meet Bentley. I watched the video Bentley from CTV News. And as a father myself, it was hard to watch. I can't believe the person in the white car didn't stop. That coward knew he hit you because you kind of see him stop and pause for a second before driving off. And I agree with your sister Bentley. Watching these scumbags drive around you as you lay in the crosswalk really was disgusting.

• 7:39Wes Germer?

  But it was really amazing to watch you have the presence of mind and the sheer willpower to roll yourself out of that crosswalk. You're trying to get out of there as quickly as possible so people don't run you over. And I thought, I bet this kid's in Alberta.

• 7:57Speaker 06

  Yep, I am.

• 7:58Wes Germer?

  Yeah, I knew it. Albertans are kind of like normal Canadians, just more badass. They're the Canadians you don't want to mess with. You know what I'm saying Bentley?

• 8:07Speaker 06

  Yeah.

• 8:09Wes Germer?

  Seriously though, I'm beyond impressed with you. I would have just kind of laid there in the crosswalk yelling, medic! I would not have been as strong as you Bentley or even showed the courage you displayed. You know, that's not something you can teach someone. It's kind of like in your warrior DNA. And I know you're in pain. I get it. But always remember, you know, pain heals, chicks dig scars, and courage lasts forever. Plus, it's on video. Anytime anyone gives you any crap, you can replay the video for them and be like, you know, when you're in trouble, you call 911. When I'm in trouble, I am 911. I'll rescue myself.

• 8:51Wes Germer?

  How are you feeling today bud? I mean, how are you doing?

• 8:55Speaker 06

  Um, I felt squatchy.

• 8:57Speaker 09

  Squatchy?

• 9:00Wes Germer?

  You feel squatchy?

• 9:02Speaker 06

  Yeah.

• 9:05Wes Germer?

  Where were you headed to when this whole thing happened?

• 9:09Speaker 06

  To school. It was in the morning.

• 9:12Wes Germer?

  Oh, wow. And it looked cold there too. What was the temperature when you were out there?

• 9:19Speaker 09

  Yeah, minus 10.

• 9:21Wes Germer?

  Yeah, that's cold. That would be about 14 degrees Fahrenheit. How long did the doctor say it would take to kind of heal?

• 9:29Speaker 06

  Like, six weeks?

• 9:32Speaker 09

  It's six to eight weeks until the, because his, his cast goes from his thigh to his toes. So it's six to eight weeks before he gets it cut down to below his knee. He's still, we don't know how long he's gonna have the cast on below that, but it's just six to eight weeks for that portion to come off.

• 9:54Wes Germer?

  And what do you gotta do to like, put a bag over it to take a shower?

• 9:58Speaker 06

  Um, yeah.

• 10:00Wes Germer?

  Well, keep your head up. You know, I broke my ankle once. I'm embarrassed even telling you this weak story after what you just went through. But when I broke my ankle, it was pain on a different level. It took like a year to heal. And I milked the crap out of that, uh, I milked the crap out of that injury. Especially around beautiful women. You know what I'm talking about?

• 10:24Speaker 06

  Yeah.

• 10:26Wes Germer?

  What are you doing with your downtime?

• 10:29Speaker 06

  Just watching some shows.

• 10:32Wes Germer?

  Oh, nice. What do you like watching?

• 10:35Speaker 06

  Um, Sonic. Um, I'd like to listen to your Sasquatch podcasts.

• 10:43Wes Germer?

  Oh, thanks so much, Ben Lady. That means a lot to me. I really do appreciate it.

• 10:48Speaker 06

  I have a question for you.

• 10:50Wes Germer?

  Yeah.

• 10:51Speaker 06

  Is there Sasquatches, um, like, in, like, Canada?

• 10:57Wes Germer?

  Yeah, Sasquatch kind of has a long history in Canada. I would say it even has a longer history than what we have in the States. I get many reports out of Canada. And even the name Sasquatch comes from Canada. So yeah, they're definitely there and there's a long history of them.

• 11:15Speaker 06

  Actually, I have been drawing like, like pretty good Sasquatch pictures.

• 11:22Wes Germer?

  Oh, you have to send me one Bentley. I'm, I'm somewhat of an artist myself. You know, when I was your age, I, I love to draw. And no one in my family is artistic really besides me. My, my family's made up of cavemen, savages and stormtroopers. And possibly pirates. But I had this natural ability to, to draw, you know, and I, I really enjoyed it. I mean, I was drawing before I could recite the alphabet. One of my earliest memories was, uh, watching Sesame Street. And after it was over, I sat down and kind of drew every character from memory. I remember I drew a big bird.

• 12:03Wes Germer?

  Smoking a cigarette because I thought it was hilarious. Plus he kind of had that annoying voice. So I kind of took him as a smoker. And I remember I got in trouble for that. You know, when it comes to Sasquatch, would you want to see one?

• 12:19Speaker 06

  Yeah.

• 12:21Wes Germer?

  Well, tell me Bentley, after listening, what kind of episodes kind of stand out to you?

• 12:26Speaker 06

  Just like that curious George one?

• 12:29Speaker 09

  There was one time you had, I think it was, uh, Bob Garrett, we're talking to him and I think it's called, uh, Gold Mine or Gold Miner?

• 12:39Wes Germer?

  Oh yeah, I know which one you're talking about.

• 12:42Speaker 09

  Yeah, he was talking about the, uh,

• 12:44Speaker 06

  And picked up and

• 12:46Speaker 09

  Yeah, the compassion part of it, how they have compassion and that was one of them, the curious George, uh, the boy that was going camping and he got lost. He told his parents that curious George picked them up and brought them back to camp.

• 13:03Wes Germer?

  Yeah, sometimes they show up with compassion and it kind of throws you off. I know you guys have heard the show with, uh, Tommy from Talking to Alex and you know, him being abused and a Sasquatch saved him. You would think it wouldn't go that way with these things. You would think that. You're in real danger, but you know, most of the time I don't think that they attack people as much as some people might think. And it's kind of crazy that, you know, the audience seems to know the show better than I do. I wanted to tell you Bentley, you know, when I was a kid, I visited Canada. My family went to Victoria, Vancouver, and it was absolutely stunning.

• 13:47Wes Germer?

  And I'm not so sure BC is quite the same place today. I remember as a kid, but we drove to a couple of places in Alberta. We rode horses at some ranch and there was cowboys everywhere. We visited the oil fields for some reason, but I remember asking my dad, are we still in Canada? Do we drive to Texas? I mean, I had no clue that Canada actually had cowboys. You know, I'm just a kid when I was there, but I loved it. I would say the one thing I remember the most about Canada, not so much Alberta or BC or, you know, the landscape. I think what I remember

• 14:29Wes Germer?

  the most was, you know, the people, you guys, the Canadians, very warm, kind people, treat you like family. Let me ask you Bentley, just because I'm curious, if you could travel the world or even someplace in Canada, where would you go?

• 14:49Speaker 06

  Banff, probably like in the mountains because it's where we're closer and always wanted to see a Sasquatch.

• 14:58Wes Germer?

  Yeah, like I was saying, you know, that whole area through there, Banff, I've had many, many people come on the show and share encounters from that area. If you talk your dad into it, you'll have to come back on and let me know if anything happened. You know, earlier we were talking about like shows that stood out to you. Do you have a favorite one?

• 15:21Speaker 06

  I would say uh one where like this guy, he like was he was in a park and all and he was like and something hit the car like at the back when he got in. He was hiking in the mountains and and there was people going past like saying like there's a lot of weird things in the mountains.

• 15:50Wes Germer?

  Yeah, I'm trying to remember that one Bentley. Do you remember which episode that was?

• 15:55Speaker 06

  No, but um he said like that like there was this tree what looks it like it like it was moving. He said like it it he like dragged off when he saw it.

• 16:12Speaker 09

  Usually I'm pretty good with uh remembering which episodes he's talking about, but that one I'm drawing a blank.

• 16:20Wes Germer?

  Yeah, if you find that episode, would you let me know Bentley? I mean, just because I don't remember it means very little. Like I said earlier, the listeners know the show better than I do. You know, we were kind of talking about the rich history of Sasquatch in Alberta. What do you think Sasquatch is?

• 16:41Speaker 06

  Hmm, I would say it's like it's I think it's more of a man. Just how it walks and like how it learns and how to eat and hunt.

• 16:58Wes Germer?

  Yeah, that's a good observation Bentley. You know, a lot of their even their behavior reminds me more of a man most of the time than an animal. Don't get me wrong, they'll act like an animal, but there's a lot of times where I'm like, man, that sounds like something a human would do. You know, there's a lot of mysteries in this world and the UFO topic has been pretty big lately. And I'm sure you've seen it on YouTube and do you think aliens are real?

• 17:28Speaker 06

  No.

• 17:30Wes Germer?

  What is it that you think people are seeing?

• 17:33Speaker 06

  I just think it's like airplanes and stuff.

• 17:36Wes Germer?

  Yeah, it could be misidentification, but I'm not so sure about that. Is Bigfoot kind of your favorite cryptid?

• 17:45Speaker 06

  Yeah.

• 17:46Wes Germer?

  What about Dogman?

• 17:48Speaker 06

  Yeah.

• 17:49Wes Germer?

  He's okay too in your book?

• 17:51Speaker 06

  Yeah.

• 17:53Wes Germer?

  Yeah, I hear you. You know, I know that um, the whole incident with the car was about a week ago. Did you at least get some time off school?

• 18:04Speaker 06

  No.

• 18:05Speaker 09

  Yeah, you haven't been back to school yet.

• 18:08Wes Germer?

  Yeah, you would think you would at least get some time off of school. Did they give you kind of a timeframe on when you can go back? Or when you have to go back?

• 18:17Speaker 06

  Uh, when I get wheelchair.

• 18:19Wes Germer?

  Yeah, well, don't worry. I mean, you'll be healed up in no time and be back in action and just kind of a blip on the radar at the moment. You know what I mean? I wanted to ask you, Bentley, throughout your life, what's kind of the best gift you've ever received or given?

• 18:38Speaker 06

  I think talking to you right now.

• 18:41Wes Germer?

  Oh, you gotta get, you gotta have a better gift than talking to me.

• 18:46Speaker 06

  You actually are the best gift.

• 18:49Wes Germer?

  Oh, thanks, ma'am. That means a lot to me, Bentley. Thank you for that. You know, I kind of got a get well package for you. Um, I'll probably get it sent out Monday. But it's a bunch of gear and merch and I'm gonna send it to you and your dad. It's all the stuff I personally like from the store. And it's just kind of a get well package, you know, a gift from me to let you know I'm thinking about you and praying for you and God saved you for something special, young man. You're gonna do great things with your life. I know it in my heart.

• 19:23Speaker 06

  Now, why is that get well package?

• 19:26Speaker 09

  You have to find out, Ben. It's a surprise.

• 19:29Speaker 06

  Oh.

• 19:30Wes Germer?

  Yeah, it's just kind of a gift package, kind of a gift from me to you, Bentley. You won't be disappointed. Did you get any street cred from your boys when they found out what happened to you?

• 19:43Speaker 06

  Yeah. They were mad about it.

• 19:48Wes Germer?

  Yeah, well, I don't blame them. It made me mad too. In the same breath, you're kind of Iron Man. You know, outside of invincibility, which you seem to have mastered by the age of 12. If you could have one superpower, what would it be?

• 20:06Speaker 06

  Eon.

• 20:07Wes Germer?

  Oh, wow. That's really a thoughtful answer, Bentley. I had more of a selfish answer like flying. That was a very cool answer, though. And again, I hope you heal up. Is there anything I can do for you?

• 20:22Speaker 06

  I do not know.

• 20:25Wes Germer?

  Well, your dad has my cell phone number and you're welcome to call me anytime. You know, this incident that happened to you, Bentley, I think it'll make you stronger throughout your life, and I think you'll look back at this moment. It'll definitely change you, but I think it'll be more for the positive.

• 20:44Speaker 06

  Yeah.

• 20:45Wes Germer?

  If you don't mind, I wanted to ask you, how did it kind of affect you?

• 20:50Speaker 06

  Um, I think like it's just like from all the badness in the world.

• 20:58Wes Germer?

  Yeah, that's kind of what I thought too, Bentley. I mean, my first thought was like, how can you hit a human being and keep going? And then to see the people like drive around you as you lay in their crosswalk. It shocked me. I can't imagine doing something like that. The only positive thing about the video really is you, Bentley. And you know, the courage that you showed and I admire you. You know, I know you're kind of waiting for your wheelchair so you can go back to school. Do you have a favorite subject?

• 21:34Speaker 06

  Uh, I do not know.

• 21:38Wes Germer?

  What's a subject that is kind of your least favorite?

• 21:42Speaker 06

  I would say math.

• 21:46Wes Germer?

  Yeah, you and I are actually a lot alike Bentley. You know, in school I loved history, but I absolutely hated math. I was terrible at it. And I'll tell you a quick funny story. We were not allowed to use calculators, you know, in school. My teacher would always say something to the effect of like, what do you think in the future? People are going to walk around with calculators in their pockets? You need to learn how to do this in your head. And my much older brother, who I talked about in a member show, the same guy who taught me how to swim. It's kind of a tragic and hilarious story, but I'll save that for another time. He

• 22:29Wes Germer?

  had somehow acquired a box of calculator watches. Have you ever seen those before?

• 22:35Speaker 06

  Yeah.

• 22:36Wes Germer?

  Yeah, these were expensive watches back in my day, and I was told not to ask any questions about how they were acquired. He gave me one, I think to kind of keep my mouth shut. And I wore it to school and I got busted with it on in math class and the teacher took it away from me. I'll tell you what, the next time I saw that watch, it was a few days later, the principal was actually wearing it.

• 23:06Speaker 06

  Yeah.

• 23:08Wes Germer?

  I never got my watch back. But you know, that principal seemed to really enjoy wearing my watch. It's like some corruption in the public school system. But anyway, that's my story. I'll let you get back to resting and it's been a real pleasure to meet you Bentley and thank you so much for taking my call.

• 23:30Speaker 06

  Thank you.

• 23:32Wes Germer?

  And Alex, thanks so much for setting this up today. You kind of made my day. I really enjoyed chatting with both of you guys.

• 23:40Speaker 09

  Yeah, I'm so, I appreciate and I'm grateful for you calling and I just wanted to see the smile on his face because I knew that that would make him smile and you just went so many steps further. I'm really grateful for that.

• 23:59Wes Germer?

  Yeah, well, it was the least I could do. How are you holding up, man? You got a strong, strong kid.

• 24:06Speaker 09

  Yeah, he is strong. You know, I keep on thinking, you know, like sometimes you go and you wish you can take something back or if you see somebody like, oh, I I don't care if they catch the guy as long as, you know, it's like a redo with, you know, and I think that's exactly what it was like. He got away with a broken leg while in three spots, but other people aren't as lucky and it's, it's a tragedy. It's

• 24:35Speaker 09

  it's hard to even think about and I think that we're lucky that it's only a broken leg and if they catch a guy, great. If not, I'm, I'm not too worried. It's, I'm just grateful for what we have now.

• 24:51Wes Germer?

  Yeah, you know, I've watched that video over and over and over again, and it bothers me and I would imagine being your his father. It, you know, take my feeling and times that by like a million. I don't really understand, you know, like here in town, there's areas where it's really, really dark and it's not well lit. And then you have someone dressed all in black and I've had a few moments where I was like, oh, it's like, I didn't even see that they were there. Thank God. Never hit anyone, but I don't really get that driver. You know, it's not like they're doing 50 miles an hour through there.

• 25:30Wes Germer?

  It's well lit. Bentley, he looks left, he looks right and he takes his time going through the crosswalk. I mean, I can't figure out if they were on their phone or what.

• 25:44Speaker 09

  Yeah, I've got some ideas, but I wasn't there, so I really don't know. A lot of days in the morning here in Calgary, or there in Calgary, you get frost on your window. So if you're lazy, you don't scrape it. So I think maybe he had like an area where he can see out of, but not very clearly, right? So it's, you know, he could have missed Bentley that way. I don't know what kind of car it was. It looked like a really nice car. And that's one of the things that's hard about this is you're looking at it, you're trying to identify it. You're almost obsessed with, you know, trying to find out what car it is.

• 26:28Speaker 09

  Just from the blurry picture. But anyways, it could have been like the blind spot, you know, where the corner, where the windshield meets the side of the car, you know, that part that goes down from the roof to where the hood is. But I thought maybe Bentley, as he walked, he stayed in that sort of blind zone. So that he couldn't see and eventually, you know, like, it was at that point where he got hit. I really don't know what the situation was and it's tough. It is tough, man.

• 27:09Wes Germer?

  Yeah, and I think that is a reasonable explanation. The part that bothers me, when you watch the video, that guy knew he hit something. Because he stopped. And kind of like paused for a second. And you could hear Bentley crying and then he takes off. And that just might be, you know, one major scumbag out there, but what really shocked me about that video was watching all of these cars just drive around Bentley when he's laying in the crosswalk. Like what the hell's going on in Canada, man?

• 27:45Speaker 09

  Ah, good question. I really don't know.

• 27:52Wes Germer?

  Yeah, and I don't, I don't want you to think I was bashing Canada. That probably came out all wrong. That could have happened down here in the States. I guess I was just shocked. I, I, it's not the Canada I remember. You know, it's, it shocked me.

• 28:09Speaker 09

  You know, I think it's, uh, it's culture. It's driver's culture. I see people speeding down the, and I'm not talking, you know, four or five kilometers over or even 10, but I see people driving just insane speeds on, on the highway, right? So it, it's just driver culture. Uh, I want to say if the police were giving more tickets for, you know, excessive stuff like that, uh, maybe we wouldn't have that, but then, you know, that doesn't explain why people don't stop. It's just, it's hard. Uh,

• 28:50Speaker 09

  maybe it's a wake up call too. Maybe that's almost bad to say, but it maybe that had to happen for people to come to their senses and say, hey, what the hell did I just do? I went around this kid, you know, and maybe next time they'll stop. Hopefully there's not a next time, but maybe the next, the next, uh, incident where they, they, they have to think about stopping or, or keep driving. Maybe they, they will stop, you know? It needs to change. That's all I know. It, it does need to change.

• 29:23Wes Germer?

  Yeah, it does. I agree with you. You know, I called to cheer you up, Alex. I felt like I'm bumming you out.

• 29:30Speaker 09

  No, no, I'm, I'm, I'm cheered up. I am. I'm very happy that you called it, but it put a smile on my face as well. And, uh, even my girlfriend here, she, he's, he was videotaping and she had to take off, but, uh, he was videotaping for the longest time and, and, uh, I, I bet you I had a as big of a smile on my face that Ben had. So I'm, I'm very cheered up. Don't worry about that.

• 29:57Wes Germer?

  I appreciate you saying that. The other thing I wanted to ask you about is I have a hard time believing that was the only camera that captured that car. I mean, there has to be more cameras that got a license plate that got that car. Do you know, are, are the cops kind of looking at other cameras in different angles?

• 30:20Speaker 09

  Yeah, they actually, tha- that's the only one I know of, right? Cause uh, well,

• 30:26Speaker 09

  uh, me and his mom aren't together. We haven't been together for, for a while. Uh, but we're, we, we get along really well. So, the day it happens, I was driving to work from another town outside of Calgary and he's in, in Calgary. So, uh, she phoned me right away and uh, but she had, he headed down there to, you know, it's, it's like a couple of blocks away from the house. And uh, you know, to, to be with him. And so she knew, she was shown the camera footage and, and she was able to go to the, uh, to the house and request it, you know, being sent to her and everything. But uh, the police, they, when they uh, released

• 31:09Speaker 09

  photos of the car, it was like, there was one photo taken of the passenger side of the car. So, obviously they've gone to different houses looking for uh, footage. You know, those doorbell cameras, they're good in a way, but then, you know, like any distance, it's, it's hard to make out license plate numbers. So, it's tough. Uh, almost like you have to sort of backtrack where he came from uh, to get a really good picture. Not everybody has doorbell cameras here. I wish they did, but it's, it is what it is.

• 31:47Wes Germer?

  Yeah, you know, I would imagine the laws are kind of the same between the States and Canada in a situation like this. But I, I don't know. So I'm kind of speaking out of turn. But you know, if you strike someone and drive off and cause bodily harm and being that Bentley is, you know, a child, he's a minor. I'm sure you're looking at several, several felonies. You're, you're going to prison for a while. Do you think this is a situation where the RCMP would get involved?

• 32:21Speaker 09

  Um, no, the city of Calgary has their own police force and they work with the RCMP. It's not like your rivals or anything like that, but uh, it would fall under the jurisdiction of, of the Calgary Police Service. So I don't think they would look into it unless it was something that was more of a federal uh, issue.

• 32:46Wes Germer?

  Yeah, like I said, you would think this would be more of um, federal charges as opposed to like provincial charges. I mean, I could think of like four felonies that were committed. I'm sure if I brought a cop on, he could probably tack on another four or five or more. You would think because it's more like a federal charge, the RCMP would get involved. But again, you know, I don't know.

• 33:12Speaker 09

  Yeah, no, though the Calgary Police Service would uphold the, you know, the federal law and everything like that. It's just, you know, where it took place. Uh, I mean, I, I, you know, funny you mention that. I, I have no idea what the difference would be if it, if the RCMP were to, to investigate it. I don't know if it would turn out differently, but I doubt that it would.

• 33:38Wes Germer?

  Yeah, I'm gonna put that video and screenshots of that car on my blog and hopefully someone can kind of recognize it. I have kind of a large listener base in Alberta. God bless Alberta, by the way. But I really hope someone kind of recognizes that car because you know, it's not like it's a Honda CRV that everyone and their kid brother has within 30 miles. That car kind of stands out. Maybe not in Alberta, but I can tell you in Washington, that car would stand out big time. And I hope they find whoever did this and punish them.

• 34:17Speaker 09

  Yeah, um, in this, I know for the city, at least the city, I'm not sure about the entire province, but we're not supposed to have the front, you know, like the passenger and the driver door. We're not supposed to have those windows tinted or if, if you do it, I, I don't know if it's zero tint or up to a certain percentage or whatever they base it off of, but uh, Yeah, those windows were fully tinted. You couldn't see in. So that might help in identifying it because if it's. If it's illegal, then. Uh, not a lot of people would have that, that it would just be more of a.

• 35:02Speaker 09

  It would narrow it down a little, a lot more, I guess. I, I would think. It's tough. You, you do like, I do feel like I want. I want, uh, justice. But at what cost? Should I be emotionally bound to making sure that he gets justice? He, sorry, uh, he or she get justice or should I? Just count my blessings that, uh, it's not worse and. Bentley's here with me and. And just go from there. Cause it's, it's, it's so hard to choose between the two. You don't want people to get away with it, especially, you know.

• 35:45Speaker 09

  As a member of the community, you don't want. Other children or, or adults, anybody really.

• 35:54Speaker 09

  To go, have to go through the same thing. You, you've want them to feel that they can cross the street without. Uh, worry. And if people do that and they don't stop and they just take off it. It's like a slap in the face.

• 36:09Wes Germer?

  Yeah, I would stay positive and obviously be there for, uh. Bentley like you have been, you know, like a good dad and. I understand what you're saying, you know. You can easily be consumed by rage and revenge and. I get it. I get where you're coming from. I, I would stay positive as best you can. And I'm telling you, man, I, I haven't watched that video as many times as, as you have. And I don't know if you believe in God or not, but. Watch him as he enters that crosswalk. I mean, somebody was watching over him.

• 36:48Speaker 09

  Yeah. If you watch, I we I've watched that video so many times. You know, it's just, it's really weird. You see Bentley look, he looks both ways and then because there's a car turning just ahead of the car that hits him. Well, the car is turning and he still he it he see he's looking to make sure it's safe even after that car. And I don't know if it's, he sort of paused a little bit, you know, or slowed down, slowed his his walking speed. And I think that's because, you know, i- if he didn't do that, he would have been in the more in the path of that car and who knows what could have happened?

• 37:31Speaker 09

  How it could have turned out? So it's, uh, yeah, when you mentioned God, a lot of people don't believe, but sometimes you just, there's things that you can't explain. And the fact that he slowed his walking pace and and looked like he got brushed by the side of the car, you know, it could have been a lot worse. And how do you explain that? Why? Why would he slow down like that? And but still get hit, you know, like it, it, it doesn't make any sense. Except for the fact that someone was watching out for him.

• 38:07Wes Germer?

  Yeah, and I picked up on that, too. It's almost like Bentley becomes like very, very self-aware. And he does kind of slow down. I would have been the idiot that just kind of ran into the crosswalk and would have been hit by that car. And just the way he reacts. It's like someone's watching over that kid. And then, you know, I was telling Bentley about when I broke my ankle. I don't think I could have ruled out of that crosswalk. You know, he can't stand up, can't really crawl, and he like rules himself out of that crosswalk to avoid cars. I can't think of too many adults that would even do that, or even.

• 38:52Wes Germer?

  It's like a miracle man watching that video.

• 38:55Speaker 09

  Yeah, cuz not only did the driver drive away, you know, he had, there were so many people that just drove right on by. And it's not like it's like a, a, a plastic bag or, or something like a, you, you can see it moving. You know, it's somebody that got hit and they just went right around them, you know, just drove right on by. I just hope that that's, that's a wake up call. You know, the first, first driver that went by, they made decision, the decision to do that. And then the next drivers thought, okay, well, that guy drove by, maybe I should do. I don't

• 39:36Speaker 09

  know. I, I just want there to be more compassion. It's almost, it's almost a, you know, like we were talking before, you know, Sasquatch have more compassion than people do.

• 39:52Wes Germer?

  Well, I'd like to follow up with you guys in a few weeks, just to see how you guys are doing and.

• 39:58Speaker 09

  Absolutely, Wes.

• 40:00Wes Germer?

  Kind of a side topic. What got you into Bigfoot, man?

• 40:03Speaker 09

  Oh, that's, you know, I was wondering if I'd ever answer one of your questions like this. It started probably around when Bentley was born. Everybody was listening to podcasts and they're like, oh, you should listen to a podcast or something. So I'm like, well, what the hell do I listen about? The first one, I settled on the topic of, of Sasquatch or Bigfoot. And I can't remember who the first, the first one was. He's not a bad guy. And I know you've had him on your, on your, on, on your show. I can't remember when, but.

• 40:44Speaker 09

  It's almost like his, uh, I know you, you guys edit stuff, but it's just with him. It was, it was more like it was obvious that he, everything always ended with, uh, like the same way they said goodbye or something like that. Anyways, and it's not that he was a bad host or anything. It was, it was just, I, not for me, I guess. Uh, but then I, I found your show and, uh, I've watched it ever since, or listened to it ever since. I like, uh, Bob Garrett, Bob Gimlin, Bill Sheehan,

• 41:23Speaker 09

  and then Bobo. I, I mean, I remember you having Bobo and, uh, oh, the other guy, Cliff. And, uh, you know, just a lot of, uh, the different people that you've had on and, uh, you know, Claire from the UK. Anything with the doc. Oh my God, what a, he, he almost seems like he's a, like he's a grandpa to me, you know, like he, he's got that, uh, I don't know, maybe it's the way he talks. It's just, he's got that voice that's just so comforting and you learn a lot from him.

• 42:03Wes Germer?

  Yeah. You know, when, um, John died, I mean, I was absolutely crushed. And I think the reason why I get so emotional talking about John Bernagel is, um, you know, my dad was kind of an older guy and he was much closer to John's age. So I didn't really get the grandfather thing.

• 42:31Wes Germer?

  My father was completely opposite of John. And John, you know, it has nothing to do with Bigfoot. In fact, our relationship really didn't have anything to do with Bigfoot. We rarely ever talked about Bigfoot. And if we did, there would be 45 minutes of him wanting to know how you're doing. How are you? How, you know, tell me what's going on in your life. Tell me, he just cared.

• 43:03Wes Germer?

  I didn't really have that growing up, but John would always ask how you're doing and he just taught me to be a better man. Has nothing to do with Bigfoot. He just taught me to be a better man and I loved him. And you know, even when John was dying, I, I never heard him complain once about anything. And we all knew he was dying. I never once heard him pour me. I never once heard anything negative. Come out of his mouth. He was always about you. He always wanted to know how you were doing. He always wanted to know how he could help you.

• 43:47Wes Germer?

  And I remember one of the things he told me and it, and it really applies today more than, more than ever. He would say, you know, Wes, when dealing with the subject and when dealing with people, always do it with class.

• 44:03Wes Germer?

  There's no class left in the Bigfoot world. Be different. Make more of a positive impact. And well, you know, I would like to say I try to live up to that standard, but there's no way I could live up to John's standard. I mean,

• 44:23Wes Germer?

  he was something special. He really was

• 44:27Wes Germer?

  a good man. And you know, maybe one day when I'm gone, people will say, you know what? That guy was a pretty nice guy. That's all I really want to be known for. I don't want to be known for Bigfoot. And I'll never live up to it, but I try. But yeah, he was, um, he was a good man. I miss him.

• 44:49Speaker 09

  I'm gonna have to interrupt you there, uh, Wes. I think, you know, John, before your show, I think, you know, he obviously he knew his stuff and everything, but I think as, as soon as he came on your show, you were the conduit. Uh, you were the one that, uh, I mean, before your show, I'd, I'd never heard of the guy. You know, when you say, uh, the, you know, about class, correct me if I'm wrong. I remember you saying that you had no, no experience, you know, hosting shows like this before. So I know that you are one of the most classiest. Host that I can think of. So when you say that you can't live up to it, I think you've

• 45:33Speaker 09

  lived up to it and more there Wes. And just for, you know, as, as me being one person uh that, you know, listen to your show and, and learned about John, there's countless others that haven't, you know, that you haven't talked to and, and that you have talked to. Uh, I, I'm pretty sure that most, if not all of your, uh, I'm going to say subscribers, but you know, the members, you know, they know about John because of you and, and I bet you everybody that's, uh, ever heard any one of John's, uh, episodes on your show,

• 46:13Speaker 09

  they've heard him because of you. So you, you might not have been the, the one that, you know, brought all the science to it, but you're definitely a big part of bringing him, you know, his, his voice and his, uh, you know, all of his education towards it, uh, towards Sasquatch, bringing it out to people. So, uh, I'm gonna have to let you resume, but, uh, please say that you've got the class. You're, you're one of the classiest guys I know, uh, uh, especially, you know, that, that wrote, uh, host, uh, shows like this. So yeah, I'll let you continue.

• 46:56Wes Germer?

  Yeah, I appreciate you saying that. It, it means a lot to me and thank you for that. I think, uh, you know, I just knew John too well and I know that's not true. Uh, John was, um, John was a man and John was a huge giant in this field before he ever came on my show. Uh, make no mistake, uh, uh, you know, I'm still a nobody, but even back then I was more of a nobody and John really was a giant in this subject, but you know, thank you for that. You know, I was telling Bentley about, um, we were talking about Alberta and

• 47:36Wes Germer?

  you know, B C and Canada and how many accounts actually come out of there and you're only a couple hours away from Banff. What, what do you think Sasquatch is? What's your take?

• 47:49Speaker 09

  Okay, so I think, like, I'm not too familiar on the Nephilim or anything like that. Uh, I do believe in God, but I haven't read the Bible and or studied the Bible to the point where, you know, I've heard about the Nephilim and and that kind of thing. So I'm just gonna leave that part out of it and not too educated on that. But, uh, you know, I I think about where, uh, you know, the

• 48:17Speaker 09

  First Nations, you know, or or Native Americans, or however you wanna describe them, uh, where they came from. They came from the land bridge between, uh, you know, Alaska and and and Russia. So, but they, I believe that, you know, they they came here and and I think that Sasquatch was already here, so maybe they came the same way, cuz, you know, they got, uh, in Asia, Europe, it's all over the world, right? Uh, well, so how did they get here? I think they got here from the land bridge. I think it's maybe, you know, before the Native Americans or First Nations.

• 49:03Speaker 09

  Maybe, you know, centuries before, or I don't know, maybe the same time. I have no idea. But I think that, uh, it's kind of the same. Now, what they are, I wanna say that, you know, it's, you know, from from the tree, from the family tree. You know, humans are are one branch, and I think that, uh, you know, before, you know, today, there was another branch that came off of that same branch. Maybe that's where Sasquatch is. I think they're maybe not, uh, you know, like somewhere in between a gorilla and a human, like it's, uh, you know, I think gorillas, they they're they're very, uh,

• 49:46Speaker 09

  secretive and they don't want anything to do with humans. Uh, and I think Sasquatch is the same thing. I believe they're pretty much nocturnal, so that that, uh... reduces even more the chances of of sighting them. I believe they bury their dead. So you know, you don't really see bodies unless you go dig up the forest or. But I really don't know. I I believe that they're just a branch off somewhere in in the tree.

• 50:21Speaker 09

  Uh, I actually, I do have one question for you. How many people have have hosted a podcast for that long? I guess I'm I'm wondering, I wonder if anybody else has been wondering, how? How long do you plan to keep doing this for? And? And have you? I know that you've, you know, had some bad things happen. And I think you said you were so close to quitting, but you have to be one of the longest, longest running podcasts out there. How do you feel? And where do you stand in that?

• 51:01Wes Germer?

  Yeah, I know. We talked a little bit about this off the air. I've been hosting this podcast for just over 13 years. And I interviewed this, um, he's not really a kid. He's in college. But he's like, yeah, I've been listening to you ever since I was a little kid. I was like, Jesus, I mean, you know, I'm like, Jesus, have I been doing it that long? But you know, there's so many other mysteries or so many other topics that I've always wanted to kind of delve into. And you know, if I go off the Bigfoot topic, half the audience hates my guts. The other half kind of likes it, but there's so much more to go after, you know, as far as

• 51:47Wes Germer?

  like Jeffrey Epstein, I've been really kind of going through the Jeffrey Epstein files and you know, I used to always think that guy was probably a Mossad. I don't think he was Mossad. I think it's much worse than what people think. And you know, the term bail sure comes up a lot in his emails. But you know, those files are hard to read, especially if you're a good human being. It's really tough to get through some of it. A lot of stuff you see in the past is going on today. And I'm kind of putting together a project for my very first show. And there's a lot of cool things that I want to do like with AI. You know, you can create a really cool cinematic visual to actually watch, but you know, I would probably still do the voice and

• 52:33Wes Germer?

  just kind of present stuff in a very cool way. That I couldn't do before, you know, I've always wanted to do after dark. The problem I run into with after dark is a computer I had at the time. There's no way I could handle it. And I burned through hard drives like there's no tomorrow with just audio editing. Now you get you add video on top of that. And you're going to kill a computer pretty quick. I mean, I've killed a lot of hard drives and I finally just got the computer that has the power to actually do what I want to do. But it's a lot of work, you know, I'm researching things and I'm putting things together. And I really want to get this first episode out and actually start working on my next one.

• 53:19Wes Germer?

  While still doing Sasquatch Chronicles. And I listened to a lot of podcasts and it dry and I'm not beating up any podcast for doing this. I'm saying this is my own personal feelings on my show. So I'm not faulting anyone for this, but you know, some of these podcasts I listen to and it's like they cut to commercial every eight minutes and they'll do it right in the middle of a sentence. And the podcasters are doing it. It's not some third party doing it. They're the ones actually doing it. And you know, if I added commercials to my show, I would probably make at least 10 times as much as I'm making now.

• 54:01Wes Germer?

  But the show just means too much to me to do that. My own personal feeling again, not a reflection on anyone else. I feel like it just kind of cheapens the show.

• 54:14Wes Germer?

  I think I would fall out of love with my show if I cut to commercial every 10, 15 minutes. I think it just kind of ruins the show and that's how I feel about it. And so doing the after dark and actually having the hardware, the power behind it to actually do what I want to do. I hope people like it. It'll be separate from Sasquatch Chronicles, but I really want to create something cool that I would sit and watch. And I could go the easy route very quickly. I could have commercials in all my shows tomorrow. But like I said, it just means too much to me.

• 54:55Wes Germer?

  But I'll keep doing the show as long as people want to listen and as long as encounters keep coming in. You know, there's so many, um, I rarely ever talk about this publicly. Right now, there's probably about 10 shows that are an exact carbon copy of my show. And a few of those guys I could call out because they were like, oh, Wes has just done it for the money when I was doing my memberships and you know, here they are. Every minute they're dumping in three or four progressive commercials. One's in English, one's in Spanish. It's just not worth it to me.

• 55:35Wes Germer?

  I put too much heart into it to slam in progressive commercials or political commercials or I'm just kind of ranting and raving, but I guess the short answer to your question is I'll keep doing it as long as people want to send me their encounters and people want to listen. And the day that stops, I'll leave. But right now, you know, I just want to do additional projects. I want to create more. And like I said, I've always been limited by hardware. You know, in the last 10 years, I bet I've burned through three computers and I couldn't tell you how many hard drives. You know, this sort of thing is really hard on your computer.

• 56:20Wes Germer?

  But again, I got the computer. I need to create the stuff I want. So the people who hate my guts will probably be here for a while. I hope that answers your question. I appreciate the question.

• 56:35Speaker 09

  Yeah. Uh, sorry, Bentley asking about breakfast here.

• 56:41Speaker 09

  Yeah, no, it's, that's, that's good. That's good to, to know. I don't know. I just, I would miss your show if it ever ended. And, uh, Bentley just turned on Sonic.

• 56:56Wes Germer?

  Yeah, no, that's okay. Go, go feed Bentley and he's earned it, man. And if there's anything I can ever do for you, be on my cell. Don't hesitate to give me a call.

• 57:09Speaker 09

  Thank you so much, Wes, and, and, uh, I appreciate everything. And, uh, I think you're an amazing person, uh, damn good host. I'll send Bentley on anybody that disagrees.

• 57:23Wes Germer?

  Well, thanks again, Alex. I really enjoyed chatting with you and Bentley and thanks so much for your guys' time. And that's it for tonight, everyone. Remember, if you've had an encounter, chew me an email. My email address is [email protected]. And if you get a chance, check out sasquatchchronicles.com. You can become a member and get additional shows. Until next time, everyone.