Spotting Muppets on motorcycles may surprise some motorists on Greater Victoria streets while others recognize Animal (the wild drummer puppet) on a Harley hunkering down at the red light behind them.

ItB次元官网网址檚 likely Crofton man Scott Ferron, on a toy run or headed for some other community endeavour.

After all, he doesnB次元官网网址檛 don the Muppet helmet unless necessary, the beast is a hot and heavy costume.

B次元官网网址淧eople like to wear them for events, not for every day. ItB次元官网网址檚 not exactly a light thing to wear on your neck, especially at highway speeds,B次元官网网址� Ferron said. B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檝e become this Animal character, itB次元官网网址檚 now kind of expected, but there are 30 or 40 different ones now.B次元官网网址�

HeB次元官网网址檚 made several of them himself, experimenting with stronger fabric, reflective materials and lights.

B次元官网网址淓very time you buy a new helmet theyB次元官网网址檙e slightly different so you have to kind of adjust it,B次元官网网址� Ferron said, squeezing the Animal topper on for a photo.

It can take two or three months and a ton of braiding B次元官网网址� a skill he had to learn B次元官网网址� to get this particular Muppet just right.

FerronB次元官网网址檚 affection for Muppets goes way back, but the motorcycle helmet coverings date back to his time with the Canadian Forces while stationed in Halifax.

He and a buddy spotted some on the streets there. B次元官网网址淣othing elaborate like this, but these fabric helmet covers,B次元官网网址� Ferron recalled.

Finding them B次元官网网址渇unny as hellB次元官网网址� the duo ordered some and garnered enough attention that people started asking for covers of their own.

B次元官网网址淲e got a sewing machine, started making them and started selling them, and it just became this weird following,B次元官网网址� Ferron said. B次元官网网址淚t grew into this entity. Today it is a registered non-profit, that collects toys and delivers them to hospitals in the immediate area.B次元官网网址�

Helmet Heads Canada sprouted after he was posted to the Island in 2018, growing through word of mouth after a nurse friend suggested Jeneece Place was short on toys.

Adjacent to Victoria General Hospital in View Royal, Jeneece Place B次元官网网址� owned and operated by ChildrenB次元官网网址檚 Health Foundation of Vancouver Island B次元官网网址� is a home away from home for families receiving medical treatment in Greater Victoria. With 10 bedrooms, a kitchen, dining, living and play rooms, and a backyard, itB次元官网网址檚 hosted more than 2,760 families since opening in January 2012.

It was just the first place the Helmet Heads took toys.

Now Ferron gets calls a handful of times a year and the Helmet Head Canada volunteers deliver toys directly to hospitals in Greater Victoria to Port Hardy and west to Tofino.

Ferron was disappointed in how traditional motorcycle toy run donations are often distributed after learning one or two percent come back to Vancouver Island B次元官网网址� primarily Victoria General Hospital.

B次元官网网址淚 decided thatB次元官网网址檚 really not good enough for me,B次元官网网址� he said. The gang at Helmet Head Canada B次元官网网址� now in the range of 300 strong B次元官网网址� collects, sanitizes and delivers its own hauls.

The smiles from people witnessing a horde of costumed bikers is reward enough, but thereB次元官网网址檚 also a satisfying feeling of the smallest impacts B次元官网网址� from providing fidgets and colouring books for kids visiting the emergency room to gifting an iPad or Millennium Falcon Lego to fulfill the wish of a terminally ill child.

For security reasons, they donB次元官网网址檛 see the kids much, but the kids see them, as do parents, visitors and those on the streets during toy runs. And that reception is generally amazing, Ferron said.

B次元官网网址淓ven when youB次元官网网址檙e just rolling on the highway, everybodyB次元官网网址檚 looking at you smiling. It turns a bad day into a good day and youB次元官网网址檙e visible. ItB次元官网网址檚 hard to miss this on the highways,B次元官网网址� he said.

The added benefit is the high visibility on a notoriously risky ride. B次元官网网址淵ou donB次元官网网址檛 have any risk of not being seen, I just feel safer on the bike.B次元官网网址�

Those who havenB次元官网网址檛 seen them on the street may remember Helmet Heads Canada members from the 30 to 50 folks they muster for parades and other community events B次元官网网址� this year that included Buccaneer Days in Esquimalt and the Victoria Day parade.

Learn more or donate online at .