Sept. 8 update:
After the first night of the Hand Over A Jeep contest, only four contestants remain.
The team’s mother Tanja Robertson and working from home Mel Barns were eliminated.
“Tanja clearly has good manners as she coughed a bit while eating and covered her mouth instinctively, with the hand from the car,” Marty Brown, a director with the Langey Good Times Cruise-In, told the Langley Advance Times.
Barns was also removed from the contest for food-related reasons, as she went to save her food from slipping off the hood of the Jeep with both hands.
“Both have vowed to return next year as they loved the car provided by Langley Chrysler,” Brown said.
Four contestants remain.
If multiple people manage to make it all the way through to Saturday morning, the Jeep will be taken to the Cruise-In in Aldergrove, and the contest will resume.
Should more than one person make it to 11 a.m. that day, a draw will be held to determine which of the contestants gets the Jeep, said Marty Brown, a director with Langley Good Times Cruise-In.
Sept. 7 update:
At 2 p.m., Paul Benwick was eliminated from the contest, seven hours after it started.
“Unfortuantely… Paul was not back on time from the break,” Marty Brown said, director with Langley Good Times Cruise-In.
There are six contestants left.
Original:
To celebrate turning 70 this year, Paul Benwick wanted to do something unusual.
“I like to do unusual things and I saw this in the paper… It’s a different kind of challenge, a lot of younger people, but us old-timers got a little experience so we’ll see what happens,” he said.
Benwick, the oldest contestant, is one of seven people from across the Lower Mainland competing in the first-ever Hand Over A Jeep contest by the Langley Good Times Cruise-In, in partnership with Langley Chrysler.
The person who keeps their hand on the 2023 Jeep Cherokee Altitude 4x4 the longest wins the car and covered maintenance and insurance bills for a year.
Contestants arrived early Thursday morning (Sept. 7) for the competition, which started shortly after 7 a.m.
If he wins, Benwick hopes to drive the Pacific Highway with his wife, something they haven’t done before.
From South Surrey, three brothers – Chris, Ryan, and Thomas Andrus – are competing against each other to see which brother lasts the longest.
While he’s participating in the friendly brother rivalry, Chris is going to be a father in early November and hopes to win the 2023 Jeep Cherokee to replace his older 2002 Volkswagen Golf.
“When I heard about [the contest] I was like, ‘Well, things are getting tighter, things are getting harder, if I can win this that’s a year of not worrying about paying maintenance and insurance,’” Chris said.
“Plus, it gives me a chance to show my brothers I can beat them,” he laughed.
Ryan and Thomas also wanted to beat each other and Chris, but came out for the excitement of something new too.
“We are very competitive,” Ryan said, comparing them to the brothers in the movie Stardust.
If he wins, Ryan plans to take his brothers on a ride along the beach to show off his new car. It will replace his 1993 YJ Jeep, which he’s had made to be a screen accurate replica of the Jurassic Park Jeep.
Tanja Robertson from Willowbrook said if she wins, she hopes to go to the mountains and see Whistler.
“I’ve never done anything like this and I need a car. I’m going to go driving… it’s nice to have a reliable car, [especially] for the winter,” she said.
Mel Barns from Clayton Heights applied late on Wednesday night after seeing a last minute opening for the contest posted to the Langley Good Times Facebook page.
She showed up to place her hand on the hood of the Jeep, with her laptop set up to use for work.
“I work from home, so I figured why not stand at a desk instead of sitting,” she said.
Harley Haugen from Chilliwack said he saw the contest posted online and wanted to compete to hopefully trade in his current 2021 Ford pick up truck.
He hopes to go travelling and skiing if he wins the Jeep.
If multiple people manage to make it all the way through to Saturday morning, the Jeep will be taken to the Cruise-In in Aldergrove, and the contest will resume.
Should more than one person make it to 11 a.m. that day, a draw will be held to determine which of the contestants gets the Jeep, said Marty Brown, a director with Langley Good Times Cruise-In.
Organizers with the Cruise-In will alternate shifts over the course of the contest, as well as security for overnight. Contestants will get brief breaks every three hours.
The Langley Chrysler is located at 19418 Langley Bypass.
READ MORE: CRUISE-IN 2023: Shine award winner prepares to pick a successor
IN OTHER NEWS: There will be a third Valley West Stampede in Langley
AND: Check out the special Cruise-In section.
