A 17,000-pound stainless-steel dinosaur handmade in the Fraser Valley is getting ready to head to its new home overlooking Okanagan Lake.
Metal sculptor Kevin Stone and his wife Michelle of Chilliwack were putting the finishing touches on a Tyrannosaurus rex they call Alice on Thursday (Sept. 14), buffing out heat marks from welds and polishing her to a shine.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檝e been doing the inside of the mouth and around the eyes making sure itB次元官网网址檚 super clean and fresh looking,B次元官网网址� Kevin said. B次元官网网址淲e want to have it all wiped down and clean before we ship it.B次元官网网址�
On Tuesday (Sept. 19) the Stones will be following behind the trailer that will haul it 325 kilometres from Chilliwack to Penticton.
Because the 50-foot long T. rex is too big and cannot travel down the highway in one piece, it will be shipped in three sections: the head and chest, the belly and hind legs, and the tail.
And although they have been working on it for more than two years, they still donB次元官网网址檛 even know what she looks like completely assembled.
Alice is so huge, the head and chest portion of her has always been separate from her belly and thick hind legs. SheB次元官网网址檚 so tall, she doesnB次元官网网址檛 fit in the StonesB次元官网网址� workshop in one piece.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e super excited to see it together because I donB次元官网网址檛 even know what she looks like,B次元官网网址� Kevin said. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 stressful.B次元官网网址�
He admits heB次元官网网址檚 already losing sleep over it.
ItB次元官网网址檒l take all day to move the dinosaur made out of mirror-polished, food-grade stainless steel. TheyB次元官网网址檙e starting around 7 a.m. on Sept. 19 where itB次元官网网址檒l be loaded onto a trailer. Kevin figures theyB次元官网网址檒l be in Penticton around lunchtime.
Once there, the belly/leg section will be bolted onto a 14-foot-by-14-foot concrete pad. HeB次元官网网址檒l then bolt on the tail to counterbalance the sculpture in order to put her head on.
B次元官网网址淚 hope it fits. I donB次元官网网址檛 know what to expect,B次元官网网址� Kevin said.
All of the bolts will be fastened inside the T. rex and once KevinB次元官网网址檚 done, heB次元官网网址檒l climb out a hatch located at the top.
When sheB次元官网网址檚 completely installed, she will stand about 20 to 23 feet tall at the head.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e hoping it fits like a glove,B次元官网网址� Michelle added.
The man who commissioned it dreamed of owning a giant metal dinosaur since he was a kid, Kevin said. The buyer said it was a female T. rex, and so Kevin named her Alice after a dinosaur from a 1970s childrenB次元官网网址檚 TV series called B次元官网网址楲and of the LostB次元官网网址� that he watched when he was young.
Alice was purchased for $380,000 USD and even though itB次元官网网址檒l be installed on a private waterfront property, the public will still be able to see it without going on the property.
The massive T. rex will be on the east side of Okanagan Lake visible to anyone walking along the Kettle Valley Rail Trail. ItB次元官网网址檚 less than a kilometre north of where the trail meets a residential street called Vancouver Place.
B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檓 really excited and IB次元官网网址檓 really happy that itB次元官网网址檚 going to a public space in B.C.,B次元官网网址� Kevin said. B次元官网网址淭his is probably one of the largest sculpture installations in Canada. ThereB次元官网网址檚 only a handful of really big ones and this oneB次元官网网址檚 up there.B次元官网网址�
ItB次元官网网址檚 the only sculpture of his on display in Canada for the public to see. All of his other work is either outside the country or in private places in Canada not visible to the public.
It took 26 months to complete. Kevin hired two welders B次元官网网址� Josh Guretzki and Brandon OB次元官网网址橲hea B次元官网网址� who also did a huge amount of labour.
B次元官网网址淭hey worked hard on it,B次元官网网址� Kevin said.
The Chilliwack metal sculptor always has more than one project on the go.
Over the past two years, he has finished a number of other pieces including a , and a that was part of a larger and very strange rocket/goat-themed sculpture for a cryptocurrency company.
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During the time they were building the T. rex, they encountered issues.
They realized part of it didnB次元官网网址檛 look right so they re-engineered the entire belly, making it lower by a few feet.
And for several months, they didnB次元官网网址檛 even know where the T. rex was going to be heading B次元官网网址� the owner changed his mind at one point with plans to have it shipped to his other home on the Cayman Islands. It was confirmed only about three months ago that it would be staying in B.C.
But the biggest challenge was the workshop space.
B次元官网网址淣ot having the correct space to be able to assemble it properly and stand back and look at itB次元官网网址� was the most complicated part of the build, Kevin said.
Now on Sept. 19, Kevin will finally be able to do exactly that. Seeing Alice complete for the first time ever will be an early birthday present for the metal sculptor whose birthday falls on Sept. 20.
B次元官网网址淚 canB次元官网网址檛 wait to see it,B次元官网网址� Michelle said. B次元官网网址淭o actually stand back and see it together is going to be amazing.B次元官网网址�
