Boris Borzum: 16-Foot-Tall Metal Man (Gone)
Spokane, Washington
Built in 1975 out of pipes and old fuel tanks, Boris stood 16 feet tall and weighed five tons. He was frozen in a forward stride, arms upraised in a happy greeting. He wore a blue cap and a painted-on smile.
For years Boris was the mascot of Empire Boring, a local drilling company. His right hand held a pipe with a boring bar. The pipe and bar were eventually put to use and never replaced, and the hand vanished as well.
When Empire Boring shut down in 2010 Boris's owner had dinner with some old friends. He wondered what would happen to his beloved mascot. They volunteered to put him in their yard, and he stood there until September 2024, when the yard was sold to a townhouse developer. Boris was sold to the owner of a company that makes hydraulics for lowriders, and he turned Boris into a statue of Donald Trump.
