Back in 2001, Chiropractor Tom Payne had a 400 lb, eight-foot-tall Bigfoot, which he named “Sasquatch Sam,” carved out of a tree. It had bicycle-reflector eyes and acted as a signpost for the narrow driveway that led to Payne’s clinic in Federal Way, Washington. The town was stunned one morning in January 2006 to find that the Bigfoot had vanished. Two local teens later confessed to its theft, and to sawing off Bigfoot’s big feet in an attempt to hide the body.
Last weekend, according to a story in the Tacoma News-Tribune, three Washington State chainsaw carvers competed to replace Payne’s Bigfoot. The winner stands a full foot taller than the original, which “bore a passing resemblance to the guy on the cover of Jethro Tull’s Aqualung LP,” according to the article. Photos of the new Bigfoot reveal a more cuddly, Chewbacca interpretation.
The dismembered ’70s concept album Bigfoot still lies in Payne’s driveway, providing visitors with a unique two-for-one Bigfoot experience. The article does not mention what happened to the two runner-up statues, but they will likely find homes along other highways, tributes to America’s most recognizable roadside creature.
