Behind the Scenes with a Newspaper Reporter

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~ by Chris Demaras ~

On Wednesday afternoon, a stranger contacted me, claiming to be a reporter for a major Toronto paper. Scared that I was about to get caught in a scam (preying on my inflated ego) I asked my son Daniel to verify that Libaan Osman was, in fact, a reporter for the Toronto Star.

During a 30 minute interview, I answered Libaan’s questions about the trend of lighting up cars for Christmas. But frankly, I was worried his article would cast guys like me in a negative light. Yes, some of the lights on enthusiasts cars are illegal; certainly the ones with flashing red or blue lights. By focusing on violations of the Highway Traffic Act the article would lump us in with the worst members of the car community. The hooligan types throughout the GTA who redline their engines while doing donuts in parking lots at night.

To make sure the reporter got a clear picture of the Toronto car scene, I invited him to come out for a Christmas Car Cruise on Friday night. We arranged to meet up at St. Lawrence Market in downtown Toronto. Kind of awkward having a stranger sitting next to me in the truck, but surely the feeling was mutual. Any nervousness disappeared when I saw Libaan get tangled up in the seat belt. Clearly not a car guy!

We chatted a little as back-seat Santa inflated. Strangers walking down the street began cheering once I switched on the lights. People just love the sight of the GMC all covered in LEDs. I hopped out of the truck and scurried over to a couple working at the market and gave the some candy canes. The lady was so filled with Christmas spirit that she gave me a big hug. Her man handed me two big bags of homemade caramel corn. Nice!

My job was to safely drive us to our destination (no speeding, no tickets) so my co-pilot got the task of handing out candy canes to people. While driving to the Rogers Centre for the meet up, or to Yonge Dundas Sq which was the first destination on our Christmas Parade, all we could see was smile from bystanders and pedestrians. People waged, and shouted words of encouragement.

As we waited at stoplights, some careful Canadians approached and asked if they could take pictures. Libaan always replied “Yes… but first I have a Christmas gift for you!” then held out our box of candy canes, offering one to anyone who was willing to ignore the advice their moms gave them about taking candy from strangers!

Arriving at Yonge-Dundas Sq, the Times Square of Toronto, was the highlight of the night. This is the heart of downtown Toronto, always filled with people, music and activity. Our convoy of cars hadn’t even parked before crowds gathered. Tourists snapping pictures, locals giving the thumbs up, and even a random singing Christmas carols.

We posed for pictures with strangers, answered questions about the type of tape used for the lights, and just enjoyed the vibe. Occasionally I heard an inclusive ‘happy holidays’ which made me laugh. He was sitting next to a 10′ tall Santa Claus after all. Yes, we blocked the curb lane of a major north-south route, but I don’t think anyone really minded. It was so much fun.

Although the tour continued to three more stops including the Distillery District and the Princes’ Gates at Exhibition Place, the real eye opener happened at Nathan Philips Square in front of City Hall. Our group parked nose to tail on the south side of Queen St, and attracted a crowd right away.

We’d already passed several police cars during our downtown drive, but most of the officers seemed busy doing actual police work. This time, one of Toronto’s finest was in the oncoming lane and slowed as he reached us. As the police cruiser stopped in the westbound lanes of Queen St, one of our brave organizers ran out to have a word. Tell me Officer Grinch wasn’t really going to start issuing tickets?

Nope. He simply turned the red and blue lights on for a moment to join our festival of lights. As he cruised by, the cool cop gave us ‘the nod’ and went back to catching bad guys; there were none amongst us.

I could see this puzzled my reporter friend, who’d called the police department earlier about the legality of ‘Christmas Cars’ and was told it’s not permitted under section so-and-so of the Highway Traffic Act. Could you imagine being the cop who gives out tickets at Christmastime to a bunch of young guys and gals out spreading joy? Nobody wants to be that guy!

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