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So you think you can drive?

Andrew Rankin
Northern News Services
Published Thursday, June 11, 2009

INUVIK - She's seen her fair share of speedsters ripping along the back roads, and more than a few close calls, so Kym Brisebois is on a mission to showcase Inuvik's worst drivers.

She's teamed up with Northwind Industries owner Kurt Wainman to put on a closed obstacle driving course competition on July 4 called So You Think You Can Drive?

NNSL Photo/Graphic

Denny Conley said he'd be more than willing to put his driving skills to the test. - Andrew Rankin/NNSL photo

She's hoping to lure as many local drivers on site as possible. The duo are eyeing the derby pit on the outskirts of town as the site for the event.

They approached council at Monday's committee of the whole meeting for permission with the expectation members would vote in support of their proposal at the regular council session on June 10.

"I'll be excited come registration time to see who's going to be pointing the finger at who; who's going to be saying he or she's an awful driver and who will be signing up for this," said Brisebois.

She got the idea recently from a discussion among friends while watching Discovery Channel's humorous TV series Canada's Worst Driver, in which several terrible drivers, nominated by family and friends, are put through a series of driving obstacles until one is crowned the worst of the worst.

"We started discussing how awful the drivers were in this town - and I would know a little bit about bad drivers, being from Quebec - so we thought it would be interesting to put the Town of Inuvik to the test," said Brisebois, who moved to Inuvik from Montreal last year.

She presented her proposal to Wainman, who also happens to organize the town's annual demolition derby. Having all the equipment needed, including a few clunkers and the human resources to make it a success, he was quick to jump on board.

She has already approached Rick Lindsay about designing the course and is hoping it will contain one essential item.

"There'll have to be a teeter-totter because this won't be an easy course," she said.

Participant scores will be calculated by adding the total number of track penalties to the total time taken to complete the course, which she said should take about four minutes.

The contestant with the highest combined score will be crowned Inuvik's worst driver and will be forced to do the walk of shame. Similarly, the contestant with the lowest combined score will also be honoured. She's hoping to get RCMP and fire department members to volunteer as judges.

Resident Denny Conley said he's sure Inuvik drivers are the best around, adding he'll consider entering the event to 'smoke the competition.'

"Why not?" he said with a laugh. All profits for the event will be donated to the Inuvik Youth Centre.